cadence weapon. song for a failed state
a previously unreleased poem by rollie pemberton
Coming from a liminal space
I was a witness to a great change
Saw my heroes fall from grace
Then they begged at heaven’s gates
The collective death drive
Yes, they tried to change the tides
But it was much too late
There won’t be another day, it all fades away
End of an era, end of an eon
The last days and nights of neon
Swan song for getting it on
And how we used to get along
End of world is clear in view
But to some, apocalypse ain’t nothing new
You always turned the other cheek
Forgot to try the other shoe
I don’t wanna fight in your war no more
You’re not the hero in this story anymore
That was a different day
But the words remain the same
This is a song for a failed state
Armed to the teeth with the time-honoured belief
In the right to be overbearing
Overserved ’til you’re drunk with power
And the whole damn time, you’re oversharing
Reputation undeserved
Shoulda been home preparing
Now the nature’s unpreserved
How could you be so uncaring?
So unsparing, never left it undisturbed
Unbearable with a terrible thirst
For the fruits of someone’s labour
The custodian’s curse
Everything that comes up gets brought back to earth
Everything you dig up comes right back to earth
I don’t wanna fight in your war no more
You’re not the hero in this story anymore
That was a different day
But the words remain the same
This is a song for a failed state
The leaders look the same
Keeping things the same way
This is the word that God sent me
In a subliminal state
Felt just like fate
The people felt forgotten
When we went to look away
It had barely been a day
Either way their words would trend
Even though they were making
Almost ten times the pay
I’m a passenger
Backseat driver going nowhere fast
Drive in circles ’til we’re running out of gas
Yes, we’re running out of gas
A house is not a home like a chair is not a throne
Traded sticks for some stones
Now everything is overgrown
The seeds have already been sown
I don’t wanna fight in your war no more
You’re not the hero in this story anymore
That was a different day
But the words remain the same
This is a song for a failed state
What goes up
Must come down
It always comes back around
It always comes back around
Rollie Pemberton is an artist and journalist living in Toronto. As Cadence Weapon, he’s released five albums of rap music since 2005. Originally from Edmonton, he was the city’s poet laureate from 2009 to 2011. His first book, Bedroom Rapper, is scheduled to come out next year. You can subscribe to Rollie’s newsletter here.