Zoné Korae - Sugar Lines Lyrics

[Intro]
Trading culture like sugar cane
They want the sweetness, don't feel my pain
My father told me 'bout the ancient ways
Now they say I'm just here to betray

[Verse 1]
Started from the soil where my roots run deep
Got the wisdom from my pops, knowledge I gotta keep
They say I'm selling out, but they don't understand
Every bar I spit comes from my motherland
Critics wanna judge me from their ivory towers
While I'm out here growing thorns between my flowers
You can't gatekeep what runs through my veins
My DNA's wrapped in these melodic chains

[Chorus]
They want the culture but not the scars
Want the rhythm but not the stars
That guided our people through the dark
Now everybody wanna play their part
But where were you when we built this art?
When my father sang beneath the stars?
Now you wanna claim I broke your heart
'Cause I took our sound and made it smart

[Verse 2]
Aminata talking shit about my new direction
Like I ain't spent years mastering perfection
You can keep your fake-ass accusations
I'm building bridges between generations
Yeah, I sample kora through a digital lens
But every note I play, my ancestry transcends
You want me stuck in time like a museum piece
While I'm trying to let this culture spread and increase

[Bridge]
They trade our stories like commodities
Strip away all our identities
But I'm not gonna let them limit me
This is evolution, can't you see?

[Verse 3]
My father was a griot, taught me how to speak
Now they say my voice ain't authentic, shit's weak
But I'm mixing old and new like ancient chemistry
Creating something raw from this synergy
You can hate on me, try to clip my wings
But can't stop this force from what it brings
I'm not here to please your colonial gaze
I'm here to set this whole game ablaze

[Outro]
Trading culture like sugar cane
But this time we control the game
My father's voice still echoes true
Through every beat, I'm breaking through
Through every beat, I'm breaking through