Where I’m From

Where I'm from
Brothers always wanna know where you from
Sisters always wanna know if they can come
Well, check this out, I'm gonna tell you, but remember, it ain't all just about fun

I'm from a country where kings and queens once reigned supreme
Places like Ghana, Mala, Nibu, just east of Benin
And yes, the same place that great general Ass King Mohammed overthrew the Songhai dynasty
From within

I'm from a country devastated by the violent penetration of the European
Depleted of its wealth by slave ships for one reason
I'm from a new country where Native Americans were slaughtered and enslaved so the settlers
Could make some money

Until that wasn't enough and so Africans were considered a new human cargo and that's when
It got ugly
I'm from a country that don't want me
I'm from a place where time can't erase

Where a brother feels like he's always styling, cause he's constantly the victim of profiling
I'm from a time where everything's a fight like civil rights and where you consider if
You was born black instead of white
I'm from a people who refuse to give up and persevere

For example, that brave young woman who wouldn't move from the front to the rear
I'm from insightful, intelligent inventors like Thomas J. Martin who invented the first
Fire extinguisher in 1872
See the notion that we are highly creative is most definitely true

I'm from the same school of thought that Carter G. Woodson attends when I think it important
That our future depends on understanding our history as our present blends beautifully
Into yesterday, every day
And not just a particular month or week

I'm from a people that think
I'm from a people that speak
I'm from a people who invent, break records and don't qualify for any category being considered weak

Cause we, we are strong
Stronger together, the stronger the better
Strong
I'm from a people that need to remember that like it's they favorite song

Try, Try to remember your history as if you were the one wronged
I'm from all these places and I ended up here to one day go back with the knowledge I gained
Here only because of the Lord I made it when death and prison seem so near
So add that together and divide the sum and discover the product is where I'm from