Am I Dreaming
Akon Lyrics


Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴  Line by Line Meaning ↴

See, I can kinda recall a lil' ways back
Small, tryin' to ball, always been black
And my hair, I tried it all I even went flat
Had a lumpy curly top and all that crap, now
Just tryin' to be appreciated
Nappy headed brothers never had no ladies
And I hit the barber shop real quick
Had 'em give me lil' twist and it drove 'em crazy (crazy)
Then I couldn't get no job
'Cause corporate wouldn't hire no dreadlocks
Then I thought about my dogs from the block
Kinda understand why they chose to steal and rob
Was it the hair that got me this far
All these girls these cribs these cars?
I hate to say it but it seem so flawed
'Cause success didn't come till I cut it all off

Little girl with the press and curl
Age eight, I got a Jheri curl
Thirteen, and I got a relaxer
I was a source of so much laughter
At fifteen when it all broke off
Eighteen and went all natural
February, 2002
I went on and did what I had to do
Because it was time to change my life
To become the woman that I am inside
Ninety-seven dreadlocks all gone
I looked in the mirror for the first time and saw that

Hey (hey)
I am not my hair
I am not this skin
I am not your expectations, no (hey)
I am not my hair
I am not this skin
I am the soul that lives within

Good hair means curls and waves (no)
Bad hair means you look like a slave (no)
At the turn of the century
It's time for us to redefine who we be
You can shave it off like a South African beauty
Or get in on lock like Bob Marley
You can rock it straight like Oprah Winfrey
If it's not what's on your head, it's what's underneath, and say

Hey (hey)
I am not my hair
I am not this skin
I am not your expectations, no (hey)
I am not my hair
I am not this skin
I am the soul that lives within

Who cares if you don't like that?
With nothin' to lose, postin' with the wave cap
And the cops wanna harass 'cause I got waves
Ain't see nothin' like that in all my days
Man, you gotta change all these feelings
Steady judging one another by their appearance
Yes, India, I feel ya, girl
Now go ahead, talk to the rest of the world 'cause

(Whoa, whoa, whoa)
Does the way I wear my hair make me a better person?
(Whoa, whoa, whoa)
Does the way I wear my hair make me a better friend? Oh
(Whoa, whoa, whoa)
Does the way I wear my hair determine my integrity?
(Whoa, whoa, whoa)
I am expressing my creativity
(Whoa, whoa, whoa)

Breast cancer and chemotherapy
Took away her crownin' glory
She promised God if she was to survive
She would enjoy every day of her life, oh
On national television
Her diamond eyes are sparkling
Bald-headed like a full moon shining
Singing out to the whole wide world like, hey

Hey (hey)
I am not my hair
I am not this skin
I am not your expectations, no (hey)
I am not my hair
I am not this skin
I am the soul that lives within

Hey (hey)
I am not my hair
I am not this skin
I am not your expectations, no (hey)
I am not my hair




I am not this skin
I am the soul that lives within

Overall Meaning

In Akon's song "Am I Dreaming," the lyrics focus on the power of hair, and how it can impact a person's identity, social standing, and opportunities in life. The song begins with Akon reflecting on his own experiences as a young black man, who felt like he had to conform to certain hair standards in order to be accepted or successful. He discusses how he experimented with different styles, including a "lumpy curly top," before ultimately deciding to shave it all off.


The second verse of the song is sung by India.Arie, who shares her own journey with hair. She describes getting a Jheri curl at age 8, and then getting a relaxer at age 13. Despite trying to conform to societal beauty standards, she was still made fun of and felt like a source of laughter. Eventually, she decided to go completely natural at age 18, and cut off her 97 dreadlocks in 2002. She sings, "I am not my hair, I am not this skin, I am the soul that lives within," reinforcing the message that appearances do not define a person's worth or identity.


The chorus of the song emphasizes this message, with Akon and India.Arie both singing, "I am not my hair, I am not this skin, I am not your expectations." They challenge the listener to think about how they judge themselves and others based on appearance, and to recognize the importance of inner beauty and individuality.


Overall, "Am I Dreaming" is a powerful and introspective song that encourages listeners to embrace their true selves and reject societal beauty standards. Through personal anecdotes and insightful lyrics, Akon and India.Arie deliver a message that is both empowering and thought-provoking.


Line by Line Meaning

See, I can kinda recall a lil' ways back
I can remember back to when I was young


Small, tryin' to ball, always been black
When I was young, I tried to be successful, but I faced challenges because I am black


And my hair, I tried it all I even went flat
I tried different hairstyles, even straightening my hair


Had a lumpy curly top and all that crap, now
I used to have a messy, curly hairstyle


Just tryin' to be appreciated
I was just trying to be accepted and valued


Nappy headed brothers never had no ladies
Men with natural, kinky hair were not seen as attractive


And I hit the barber shop real quick
I went to the barbershop to get a new hairstyle


Had 'em give me lil' twist and it drove 'em crazy (crazy)
I got twisted braids and it made me stand out


Then I couldn't get no job
I struggled to find employment


'Cause corporate wouldn't hire no dreadlocks
Companies discriminated against people with dreadlocks


Then I thought about my dogs from the block
I thought about my friends from the neighborhood


Kinda understand why they chose to steal and rob
I can see why they felt like they had to resort to stealing and robbing


Was it the hair that got me this far
I wondered if my hair was the reason for my success


All these girls these cribs these cars?
I had all these things that I thought were a result of my success


I hate to say it but it seem so flawed
But it seemed like there was something wrong with that idea


'Cause success didn't come till I cut it all off
In reality, I didn't achieve success until I cut off all my hair


Little girl with the press and curl
As a child, I had a hairstyle called a press and curl


Age eight, I got a Jheri curl
When I was eight years old, I got a Jheri curl hairstyle


Thirteen, and I got a relaxer
When I was thirteen, I got a chemical relaxer to straighten my hair


I was a source of so much laughter
People made fun of me because of my hair


At fifteen when it all broke off
When I was fifteen, my hair broke off due to damage


Eighteen and went all natural
At eighteen, I stopped using chemicals and went natural


February, 2002
In February 2002


I went on and did what I had to do
I did what I needed to do for myself


Because it was time to change my life
It was time for me to make a change in my life


To become the woman that I am inside
To become the person I truly am on the inside


Ninety-seven dreadlocks all gone
I cut off my 97 dreadlocks


I looked in the mirror for the first time and saw that
When I looked in the mirror, I saw something different about myself


Hey (hey)
Hey


I am not my hair
My hair does not define me


I am not this skin
My skin color does not define me


I am not your expectations, no (hey)
I am not who you expect me to be


I am the soul that lives within
I am what is on the inside


Good hair means curls and waves (no)
People see curly and wavy hair as good


Bad hair means you look like a slave (no)
People associate certain hairstyles with slavery and oppression


At the turn of the century
As we enter a new time period


It's time for us to redefine who we be
We need to redefine who we are


You can shave it off like a South African beauty
You can shave your hair off, like the women in South Africa who did it as a form of protest and resistance


Or get in on lock like Bob Marley
You can get your hair in locks, like Bob Marley did


You can rock it straight like Oprah Winfrey
You can wear your hair straight, like Oprah Winfrey does


If it's not what's on your head, it's what's underneath, and say
What matters is not your hairstyle, but what's inside of you


Who cares if you don't like that?
It doesn't matter if you don't agree


With nothin' to lose, postin' with the wave cap
I have nothing to lose, so why not wear a wave cap?


And the cops wanna harass 'cause I got waves
The police harass me because I am wearing a wave cap


Ain't see nothin' like that in all my days
I have never seen anything like this before


Man, you gotta change all these feelings
We need to change how we view things


Steady judging one another by their appearance
We constantly judge each other based on how we look


Yes, India, I feel ya, girl
I understand how you feel, India


Now go ahead, talk to the rest of the world 'cause
Now tell the world how you feel


(Whoa, whoa, whoa)
(Wow)


Does the way I wear my hair make me a better person?
Does my hairstyle determine my worth as a person?


(Whoa, whoa, whoa)
(Wow)


Does the way I wear my hair make me a better friend? Oh
Does my hairstyle affect my ability to be a good friend?


(Whoa, whoa, whoa)
(Wow)


Does the way I wear my hair determine my integrity?
Is my hairstyle a reflection of my moral character?


(Whoa, whoa, whoa)
(Wow)


I am expressing my creativity
I am expressing myself through my hairstyle


(Whoa, whoa, whoa)
(Wow)


Breast cancer and chemotherapy
I had breast cancer and underwent chemotherapy


Took away her crownin' glory
The chemotherapy caused her hair to fall out


She promised God if she was to survive
She made a promise to God that if she survived, she would live every day to the fullest


She would enjoy every day of her life, oh
She would appreciate and cherish every moment of her life


On national television
On live TV


Her diamond eyes are sparkling
Her eyes shine like diamonds


Bald-headed like a full moon shining
She is bald, but she shines brightly like a full moon


Singing out to the whole wide world like, hey
She is singing to the world


Hey (hey)
Hey


I am not my hair
My hair does not define me


I am not this skin
My skin color does not define me


I am not your expectations, no (hey)
I am not who you expect me to be


I am the soul that lives within
I am what is on the inside


Hey (hey)
Hey


I am not my hair
My hair does not define me


I am not this skin
My skin color does not define me


I am the soul that lives within
I am what is on the inside




Lyrics © BMG Rights Management, Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC, Warner Chappell Music, Inc.
Written by: Andrew Ramsey, Shannon Sanders, India Arie Simpson, Aliaune Thiam

Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
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Comments from YouTube:

Kadijatou D

2021 and this song literally just popped into my head out of nowhere I didn’t even know the name just started humming it😭

Precious Phiri

2022 we here

Maureen Munuhe

Me too! Just now

Brenda Julez

Same☺️

Frida Ikome

Me too 🤣

Monika Johannes

Same here

4 More Replies...

Oluwaseun Olorunmaye

The year is 2021 and I woke up with this beat randomly playing in my head.

Rim kay

Born 2000s you will never understand how powerful this song was and is still.2022 we still here.

Indila Metumo Ndinaomwaameni

22 April 2022, 07H08 in Namibia. Playing this song on repeat right now while on duty. Just popped up into my head last night. Gained access to internet years ago but just seeing the video now for the first time. Will always love and appreciate this song.

Nispriha Sujeewon

This song keep me dancing on the go. Beautiful song Kat DeLuna ft Akon

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