See, I can kinda a lil' ways back Small, tryin' to ball, always black And my hair, I tried it all I even flat Had a lumpy curly top and all crap, now Just tryin' to be Nappy headed brothers never had no And I hit the barber shop real Had 'em give me lil' and it drove 'em crazy (crazy) Then I get no job 'Cause corporate wouldn't no dreadlocks Then I about my dogs from the block Kinda why they chose to steal and rob Was it the that got me this far All these girls these cribs these I to say it but it seem so flawed 'Cause success come till I cut it all off
Little with the press and curl Age eight, I got a curl Thirteen, and I got a I was a source of so much At fifteen it all broke off and went all natural February, I went on and did I had to do Because it was to change my life To the woman that I am inside Ninety-seven dreadlocks all I looked in the mirror for the first and saw that
Hey (hey) I am not my I am not this I am not expectations, no (hey) I am not my I am not skin I am the that lives within
Good hair means curls and (no) Bad hair means you like a slave (no) At the turn of the It's for us to redefine who we be You can shave it off like a African beauty Or get in on like Bob Marley You can rock it straight like Oprah If not what's on your head, it's what's underneath, and say
Hey (hey) I am not my I am not this I am not expectations, no (hey) I am not my I am not skin I am the that lives within
Who cares if you like that? With nothin' to lose, postin' the wave cap And the cops wanna harass 'cause I got see nothin' like that in all my days Man, you change all these feelings judging one another by their appearance Yes, India, I feel ya, Now go ahead, talk to the rest of the world
(Whoa, whoa, whoa) Does the way I wear my make me a better person? (Whoa, whoa, whoa) the way I wear my hair make me a better friend? Oh (Whoa, whoa, whoa) Does the way I wear my determine my integrity? (Whoa, whoa, whoa) I am expressing my (Whoa, whoa, whoa)
Breast and chemotherapy Took her crownin' glory She God if she was to survive She would enjoy day of her life, oh On television Her diamond eyes are Bald-headed like a moon shining Singing out to the wide world like, hey
Hey (hey) I am not my I am not skin I am not expectations, no (hey) I am not my I am not skin I am the soul that lives
Hey (hey) I am not my I am not this I am not expectations, no (hey) I am not my I am not this I am the that lives within