Intro: JAY-Z & Stevie Wonder]
EC#m
Good morn' or evening, friends
EC#m
Smile, you recordin'?
Verse 1: JAY-Z]
E
Slammin' Bentley doors like we invented doors
C#m
20 years ago we drove Bentley Azures
Em
We drinkin' Cris stylin', yeah
C#m
Kept the tray on me like Chris Paul then
E
Drinkin' Ace of Spades like it's codeine now
C#m
Tryna put a million on the whole team now
E
Push through the pain so we can see new life
C#m
So all the ladies havin' babies, see a sacrifice
E
Mama had four kids, but she's a lesbian
C#m
Had to pretend so long that she's a thespian
E
Had to hide in the closet, so she medicate
C#m
Society shame and the pain was too much to take
E
Cried tears of joy when you fell in love
C#m
Don't matter to me if it's a him or her
E
I just wanna see you smile through all the hate
C#m
Marie Antoinette, baby, let 'em eat cake
Chorus: JAY-Z & Stevie Wonder]
EC#m
Bad times turn to good memories, smile
EC#m
Even when I'm gone and you remember me, smile
EC#m
Good times never fade away, smile
EC#m
Even if I'm not with you here today, smile
E
Good morn' or evening, friends
C#m
Smile
E
Here's your friendly announcer
C#m
Smile
Verse 2: JAY-Z]
E
Far as draft picks, my name did not get called
C#m
Bet before I go I put a billion on the board
E
Hall of Fame Hov, I did it all without a pen
C#m
Y'all knew that was comin', I had to remind y'all again, huh?
E
Flyin' paper planes through the projects
C#m
Now the whole projects on my jet
E
Now you see the real in the front row
C#m
In every one of y'all televised shows
E
Super facts
C#m
Niggas switched sides, traded pride, we don't do all that
EA loss ain’t a loss, it’s a lesson
C#m
Appreciate the pain, it’s a blessin'
Chorus: JAY-Z & Stevie Wonder]
EC#m
Bad times turn to good memories, smile
EC#m
Even when I'm gone and you remember me, smile
EC#m
Good times never fade away, smile
EC#m
Even if I'm not with you here today, smile
EC#m
Good morn' or evening, friends
Verse 3: JAY-Z]
E
I mastered my aesthetics
C#m
I know you often heard me wax poetic
'Bout bein' back in the Lexus
D#3
But trust me, that was nothin'
C#mA nigga up in the hundreds of millions
I have no ceilings, ah, this that feelin', I'm that boy
E
Anita Baker's "You Bring Me Joy"
C#mE
Slappin' out of the toy, the separation is clear
C#m
In my rear-view mirror, objects is further than they appear
E
Oh yeah, I was born with a pair
Playin' for high stakes
C#m
Norman Cake, he looked up and out of the Lear
E
How niggas can't relate?
Fuck a slice of the apple pie, want my own cake
C#m
Chargin' my own fate
E
Respect Jimmy Iovine
C#m
But he gotta respect the Elohim as a whole new regime
E
And niggas playin' for power, huh
C#m
So our music is ours
Niggas only own houses
E
Ours was, "Fuck you, pay me"
C#m
Now it's, "Fuck payin' me, I pay you
Put the rest away for Blue"
E
That blood money, I giggle at it
C#m
Can't even support my miss's habit
Jewelry shoppin' in Paris
E
All y'all jewelers should be embarrassed, huh
C#m
Blood diamonds drippin' with guilt
E
I still ain't trippin', that's life, winners and losers
C#m
Drug dealers and abusers, America likes me ruthless
E
My therapist said I relapsed
C#m
I said, "Prehaps I Freudian slipped in European whips"
E
God sent me to break the chain
I'm the true and livin'
C#m
God in the flesh, the rest of these niggas is vain
EA stain on the white suit, inferior IQ
C#m
Niggas'll rip your shit off TIDAL just to spite you
E
Ahhhh, what did I do?
'Cept try to free you
C#m
Niggas'll love you but hate you 'cause they can't be you
E
Dump 'em all in the bayou, uh
C#m
Everybody wave bye to the guy you thought you could lie to
E
This was meant to be a haiku, huh
C#m
But my story's too wide to fit inside the line or two
E
Oh, these that drugs
C#m
Heroin flow, I spaz on the stove
E
This is Hov, no flex zone, nigga, who lied to you?
C#m
Look, you a pedestrian
Don't ever question the security I provided you
E
Oh y'all thought I was washed?
I'm at the cleaners
C#m
Launderin' dirty money like the Teamsters, huh
E
Shout out to Hoffa back home, he in the church
C#m
When I heard you got booked, that shit hurt
E
Fear for you, bro, we know the system don't work
C#m
Take a young nigga's freedom over some dirt
E
Yet it's legal in Colorado
Yeah, we deny
C#m
Black entrepreneurs, free enterprise
E
That's why it's a black market, that's why it's called the trap
C#m
That's why it's called the projects 'cause it's exactly that
E
All these people was gon' kill me, heh
C#m
'Cause the more I reveal me, the more they 'fraid of the real me
Welcome back Carter, smile
Outro: Gloria Carter]
Living in the shadow
Can you imagine what kind of life it is to live?
In the shadows people see you as happy and free
Because that's what you want them to see
Living two lives, happy, but not free
You live in the shadows for fear of someone hurting your family or the person you love
The world is changing and they say it's time to be free
But you live with the fear of just being me
Living in the shadow feels like the safe place to be
No harm for them, no harm for me
But life is short, and it's time to be free
Love who you love, because life isn't guaranteed
Smile
This arrangement for the song is the author's own work and represents their interpretation of the song. You may only use this for private study, scholarship, or research.