Letter To The President

[Verse 1]
Dear Mr. President, I’m writin' from the block
Where the kids learn sirens before they learn the clock
Mama got two jobs, still the rent creeps high
And the fridge stay loud with a whole lotta why

I seen teachers leave when the books got thin
Seen a good man fold when the lights fell in
We don’t need more speeches from a gold-backed mouth
Need a grocery receipt and a road out south

Every corner got a story with a bruise on its face
Every young one got a dream and a chain to erase
You say “change” on the screen, but the block don’t heal
When the court got a price and the meal ain’t a meal

[Pre-Chorus]
So I’m knockin’ at your door
With the whole block sore
Don’t send a camera crew
Send somebody who’ll do

[Chorus]
Write back, write back
For the ones off track
Write back, write back
Bring the stolen years back (bring 'em back)

Write back, write back
We been counting every crack
Write back, write back
Tell the kids they matter, Jack

[Verse 2]
My little cousin got a mind like a shooting star
But the bus stop cold and the school too far
He got knuckles full of chalk and a stare too grown
Like the world hit him early, left him skin and bone

The cops roll slow like they own that air
And the neighbors all silent 'cause they’ve been there
One false move, one phone lit up red
And the whole block mournin' what the headlines said

I’m not askin’ for pity, I’m askin’ for sense
Build us ladders, not cages, not a fence for a fence
Put the cash in the hands of the folks who stay
Not the men in the suits who just fly away

[Pre-Chorus]
So I’m knockin’ at your door
With the whole block sore
Don’t send a camera crew
Send somebody who’ll do

[Chorus]
Write back, write back
For the ones off track
Write back, write back
Bring the stolen years back (bring 'em back)

Write back, write back
We been counting every crack
Write back, write back
Tell the kids they matter, Jack

[Bridge]
If you really want peace, then start on my street
With a clinic on the block and a plate to eat
With a fair shot school and a clean-up crew
With a job that’s real for the boys I knew

I’m tired of the wake-up calls at dawn
Tired of mothers standin' where their sons got gone
So read this line slow, let it burn, let it land
We need justice with a pulse, not a shaking hand

[Chorus]
Write back, write back
For the ones off track
Write back, write back
Bring the stolen years back (bring 'em back)

Write back, write back
We been counting every crack
Write back, write back
Tell the kids they matter, Jack

[Outro]
Dear Mr. President
Don’t let this be the end
Dear Mr. President
We’re still here to defend (still here)