Born in Babylon

I came from nothing but not nothing like nothing
Nothing, like nobody thought I was something
Nothing, like called every name in the book
But for every second guess, I never gave a second look, look

I tell myself, "Don't let it get to me"
'Cause if the best they've got, it's not impressing me
Then there's no reason they should get the best of me
While they were aiming at my words, they missed the rest of me, see

So how can I stop all these
Critics from their talking?
The more I do, the more they say
But there's no way I'm stopping
So they just keep on talking
And who do you think I think I am?

I got the feeling that there's more like me
Born in Babylon, but you just got to be free
Shackles on your feet that you and me can't see
But you can feel 'em and they're heavy, so you need that key

And so you're looking at your hands, saying
"Man, if I ditch the system, these could be mine"
But then your hear a voice coming from behind
"Don't even think about stepping out of line!"

So how can I stop all these
Critics from their talking?
The more I do, the more they say
Yeah, but there's no way I'm stopping
So they just keep on talking
And who do you think I think I am?
Who do you think I am?

My friends are deep and they're all I've got
They stand up behind me if you like it or not
And I'm telling you that the fire's hot
Can you see that smoke, and did you hear that shot?

'Cause it's a war and in the middle I am
So judge me now with your pen in hand
'Cause I'm too busy to judge another man
I'm tryna write the blueprint for all the world to understand, and

How can I stop all these
Critics from their talking?
The more I do, the more they say
The more they say
But there's no way I'm stopping
So they just keep on talking
Who do you think I think I am?
Who do you think I am?

How can I stop all these
Critics from your talking?
The more I do, the more they say
They won't stop talk, won't stop talk

And I regret me giving you any little voice at all
But saving this world just comes with a cost
And maybe they were right from the start

Maybe I should not be myself
'Cause I'm just giving these critics help
And it makes me twist my stomach in half
That my pen and his pen are put into the same breath

If I never tried to do this at all
Then I think he'd be out of a job
And maybe I just should've stayed in bed
Stay out of the booth and put all these guitars in the closet

Maybe I should go back to school
But any more education just makes me feel like a fool
So I guess I gotta let critics talk
'Cause I won't stop