Grew From Gravel

Morning after the homecoming show, easy now
Same cracked pavement, same corner glow
Walk with me small — I'll show you something
This block don't look like much… look closer:
From gravel, we bloom — I'll prove it
Every crack in this road is a chapter, true talk

Bus stop bench with the paint peeled grey
That's where we schemed till the streetlights gave way
Now Amara's there at 5 a.m., scrubs on clean
First shift at the ward — you see what I mean? (you see it)
Same bench, different dream
Baba's barbershop, one squeaky chair
Tunde mixed his first tape sitting there
Same clippers humming like a metronome
Now his drums play in a hundred homes (a hundred!)
Same chair, same mirror, same door —
Dreams don't need marble floors (they don't)

They wrote this place off in the city plan
No garden was meant for this stretch of sand
But seeds don't read what the paper said —
Look what grew up from this cracked bed —

You gave us gravel — we gave you gardens (gardens!)
You gave us corners — we gave you names (say them!)
You gave us cracks — we grew straight through them
Grew from gravel, still we bloom the same (still we bloom!)

From gravel, we bloom (bloom!)
From gravel, we bloom (bloom!)
Tell the city plan we grew anyway (anyway!)

Third corner now — walk slow for this one
The wall by the shop where the paint's redone
Kofi's face is ten feet tall, paint still fresh
Best of us all, didn't make it at all (rest easy, rest easy, King)
But look what they painted underneath his crown:
Every seed he planted around this town
The kids he coached still run his drill
Every Saturday, boots on the gravel field
Gravel took him — his garden's growing still (still growing, still)

They wrote this place off in the city plan
No garden was meant for this stretch of sand
But seeds don't read what the paper said —
Look what grew up from this cracked bed —

You gave us gravel — we gave you gardens (gardens!)
You gave us corners — we gave you names (say them!)
You gave us cracks — we grew straight through them
Grew from gravel, still we bloom the same (still we bloom!)

From gravel, we bloom (bloom!)
From gravel, we bloom (bloom!)
Tell the city plan we grew anyway (anyway!)

Who taught you hustle? (this pavement did)
Who taught you patience? (the bus that never came)
Who taught you family? (every door on this road)
Who kept receipts? (the gravel kept them all)
Then say thank you like we say it here — DANCE! (ehhh!)

Bus stop! (Amara's shift!)
Barber chair! (Tunde's drums!)
Kofi's wall! (still teaching us!)
Three corners, one soil — say it with us (grew from gravel!)
If your block raised you, put your hands up (hands up!)
If a hard road made you soft-hearted, louder! (LOUDER!)

I didn't come back to floss on the block
I came back to thank the concrete and the rock
'Cause anything soft would have made us soft too
The hard ground is why the roots broke through (that's why)
So when they ask where the flowers came from
Point at the cracks… point at the gravel… point home —
(let the guitar answer… okay, bring them in —)

(voices and claps only)
You gave us gravel — we gave you gardens
You gave us corners — we gave you names
You gave us cracks — we grew straight through them
Grew from gravel, still we bloom the same

You gave us gravel — we gave you gardens (gardens!)
You gave us corners — we gave you names (say them loud!)
You gave us cracks — we grew straight through them (straight through!)
Grew from gravel, still we bloom the same (the same!)
Grew from gravel (gravel!), grew from gravel (gravel!)
Still we bloom, still we bloom (we bloom!)
One more for the corners — grew from gravel! (bloom!)

From gravel, we bloom (bloom!)
From gravel, we bloom (bloom!)
Tell the city plan we grew anyway (anyway, anyway!)
Tell the whole town — say it plain (we bloom!)

From gravel, we bloom (bloom!)
From gravel, we bloom (bloom!)

Mmm… from gravel, we bloom
Mmm… from gravel, we bloom

Amara — safe shift (safe shift o)
Tunde — play one for the chair (one for the chair)
Kofi — we still see you, King (ten feet tall, forever)
Same soil, new seeds every spring (every spring)
Lock the block in gold when you film it (golden hour)
From gravel, we bloom (mm… we bloom)
From gravel… we bloom, we bloom (the block stays blooming)