The Version That Survived

[Intro] Yeah This ain’t the version they expected This is the version that survived Look

[Verse 1] I left pieces of myself in rooms I never mention Old versions of me died without a funeral or pension Had to bury who I was with no flowers, no attention Just a shovel full of silence and a mouth full of tension

I was soft till the world put teeth in my sleep I was kind till the wolves found meat in my peace I was lost till the dark started teaching my feet Now I walk like revenge got released from a leash

Don’t ask me where the old me went He stayed too long where the pain was kept He trusted too much, he bled too deep He gave his whole heart to hands with theft

But this one? This one don’t fold This one got fire where the blood runs cold This one got scars with a story to tell This one shook hands with the bottom of hell

I ain’t healed like clean white sheets I’m healed like concrete under bare feet I’m healed like silence after gunfire I’m healed like a grave that refused defeat

[Pre-Chorus] I lost a lot But I kept my name I lost my calm But I kept my flame

I lost the boy That needed saving Now look what came alive

[Chorus] This is the version that survived Blood in the mouth Still breathing alive

This is the version they denied Back from the dirt With fire in the eyes

I’m not the same I’m not the lie I’m not the one They left to die

This is the version This is the version This is the version that survived

[Verse 2] Fast now

I had panic in my ribs, had a storm in my skull Had a life half-empty and a heart too full Had a smile like a mask, had a soul like a bruise Had a hundred locked doors and a thousand bad truths

I was carrying guilt that was never all mine Had shame on my tongue like a bitter red wine Had memories barking at the back of my spine Had to learn real peace is a weapon with time

I don’t miss the weak nights, don’t miss the fake friends Don’t miss the begging for a wound to make sense Don’t miss the cheap love, don’t miss the dead ends Don’t miss the old me making war with defence

Now I move with precision No wasted permission No begging for vision No soft indecision

I learned from the damage I grew from collision I turned every prison To violent ambition

This ain’t arrogance This is evidence This is what happens when pain gets intelligent This is what happens when silence gets teeth This is what happens when grief gets relevant

So tell them I changed Tell them I had to Tell them the old me was too good to last Tell them the new me was built out of ash Tell them I came with a blade from the past

[Pre-Chorus] I lost a lot But I kept my name I lost my calm But I kept my flame

I lost the boy That needed saving Now look what came alive

[Chorus] This is the version that survived Blood in the mouth Still breathing alive

This is the version they denied Back from the dirt With fire in the eyes

I’m not the same I’m not the lie I’m not the one They left to die

This is the version This is the version This is the version that survived

[Breakdown] No halo No rescue No clean road No breakthrough

Just pain Just pressure Just one soul Under weather

No witness No mercy No soft light No worthy

Just blood Just breath Just death Missing me

[Verse 3] Now listen

I became what the storm could not swallow Became what the dark could not hollow Became what the past could not follow Became tomorrow with a chest full of sorrow

I got old ghosts sitting in the back row Watching me rise with their heads held low They used to scream when the lights got low Now they shut their mouths when the drums get cold

I’m not proud of the pain But I’m proud that I stayed Proud that I stood when my whole world swayed Proud that I crawled when my bones felt made Out of glass, out of fear, out of debt unpaid

You don’t know how many times I died quietly How many nights came dressed violently How many thoughts tried lying to me How many prayers came silently

But I’m here Still raw Still scarred Still law

Still teeth Still flame Still me New name

Let the old me rest Let the new me roar Let the floor shake hard When I step through doors

If they ask who came back Tell them nobody gentle Tell them something survived And it came back mental

[Final Chorus] This is the version that survived Blood in the mouth Still breathing alive

This is the version they denied Back from the dirt With fire in the eyes

I’m not the same I’m not the lie I’m not the one They left to die

This is the version This is the version This is the version that survived

[Outro] Not better Sharper

Not colder Harder

Not broken Altered

Not dead Survived