Grain of Grit

[Verse 1]
They called it a burden, a weight I should shed,
But this 'chip' is the timber that props up my head.
From the West Indian market, scents of jerk and spice,
A quiet ambition, paying freedom's price.
My father's calloused hands, blueprint lines etched deep,
The unseen labor, secrets the city keeps.

[Chorus]
This chip on my shoulder, it's carved in the grain,
A blueprint scar, through sunshine and rain.
It ain't holding me back, it's the scaffold I built,
For every truth spoken, every drop I have spilt.

[Verse 2]
From Scarborough flats, where history echoes low,
Each slight a new joiner, making my spirit grow.
They spoke of limits, I built load-bearing beams,
A sagacious elder in these young man's dreams.
The quiet dignity of hustle, the street-level vernacular,
Eschewing false fronts, no performative spectacular.

[Bridge]
No need for a gimbal to steady my stride,
This bedrock beneath me, there's nowhere to hide.
Just forward momentum, a rhythm so true,
The foundation is set, for all that I do.

[Outro]
Yeah, the unseen labor, forever the guide,
With this grain of grit, there's nowhere to hide.