Is it in my skin
Why they hate me so
Is that why they shoot me
10 times in a row
Is that why they fear me
Do they even know
How am I supposed to smile
When they make me feel so low
If I show I'm angry
Why am I threat
If I can't be happy
Can't I get upset
Do I need their permission
Can I express it yet
Why do I have to listen
What I tell them, they forget
Just being black
Is a burden
Is a burden
You're something to attack
You're not a person
You're not a person
With the whole world on your back
You keep servin'
You keep servin'
And by the time you snap
You've been hurtin'
You're sick of hurtin'
Out of concrete
Am I supposed to bloom
How can I grow (Grow)
If I have no room (Room)
How can I be myself
In a costume
How can I build a house
From a wooden broom
If I don't die
From sickle cell
I'm sure to go (Go)
From raising hell (Hell)
The rage inside me
Makes me wanna yell
But if I do that
I'll be killed as well
Just being black
Is a burden
Is a burden
You're something to attack
You're not a person
You're not a person
With the whole world on your back
You keep servin'
You keep servin'
And by the time you snap
You've been hurtin'
You're sick of hurtin'
Isn't it such a pity
My racial identity
Will always be held against me
Can it be
Just being black
Is a burden
Is a burden
You're something to attack
You're not a person
You're not a person
With the whole world on your back
You keep servin'
You keep servin'
And by the time you snap
You've been hurtin'
You're sick of hurtin'