Poverty
I-Octane Lyrics


Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴  Line by Line Meaning ↴

I open up my phone and I read
Coronavirus will delete Yemen from maps all over the world
As if they were worse than before, yo that’s fucking cold
Just do me a favour, search Yemen kids on google, fuck war
It's like they haven’t tasted food in a year or more
How the fuck do humans allow others to be so goddamn poor
How can some humans be so goddamn cruel
Poverty and famine is hidden from society
While showing your ass on Insta, is a propriety
I'm outta here
I hope yall get the message loud and clear
Child labour still exists in Bangladesh cuz their parents disappear
Because of poverty, an atrocity, no one cares about the minority
They're worth more than the majority they paying off the fucking authorities
What a mockery, inequality, people think it’s a fucking lottery
It’s a stick up it’s a fucking robbery, of human rights, the monstrosity
Check the topography in Africa, in Niger they got no economy
Rwanda check the demography, it’s a massacre, an anomaly
Would be fixed if it wasn’t for poverty, war is written in the astronomy
End of the road, for you and me
All because of greed
We were born free, we were born free son
Stop passing the gun like you passing a joint
Y'all living life completely, missing the point
Can't even find proper presidents to appoint
Go find another fucking planet to disappoint
We’re coming to an end
How many rules do we have to bend
How did we reach this level of greed
Stop it right now, I’m begging you please
I’m begging you please
I want you to look up for some information
The fertility rates of women with no education
Hopefully this stops some discrimination
Worldwide we need to start changing legislations
It’ll take a combination of dedication, imagination, inspiration
Collaboration, unification, to save the world from this obvious domination
Oh look at me I just made a donation
Man shut the fuck up, hope you get my frustration
This world is corrupt, lets starve the starvation
Yo fuck Donald Trump, he's ruining your nation
Come at me wassup, respect the creation
Stop stealing our land without hesitation
They don’t give a fuck, couldnt be more blatant
Playing with fire, getting closer to Satan
In the white house he's hiding, look at him he's shaking
Zeus strikes you with thunder, they looting, they Raiden
No more, don’t go under, get the fucking illustration
We’re sick and we're tired, no more racist examples
The system is shocking, it could use some more amperes
Current world events are horrific
When Trump won, somethings fishy, a gimmick
They rob you behind your back and you’re ok with it
Like passing a knife to your brother, hope he don’t stick you with it
Go check the statistics
While other kids starve, we got lands of plentiful food, absolutely prolific
While other kids starve, we got bulimics
Instead of teaching us there's 800 millions people starving on this planet
They teach us mythology and hieroglyphics
We’re coming to an end
How many rules do we have to bend
How did we reach this level of greed




Stop it right now, I’m begging you please
I’m begging you please

Overall Meaning

I-Octane’s song “Poverty” addresses the issue of global inequality, particularly the alarming poverty rates in countries like Yemen and Bangladesh. The opening lines lament the existence of the coronavirus, while underscoring the fear that Yemen will be erased from the global map due to poverty. The artist then asks his listeners to do him a favor by searching for Yemen kids on Google, highlighting the poverty and hunger that people in that part of the world face daily, as if they have not tasted food in a year or more. He goes on to question why humans allow others to live in such dire states of poverty, and wonders how cruelty and inequality could still persist.


He highlights the existence of child labour in Bangladesh and how the parents of such children disappear due to poverty, an atrocity that no one cares about. This is because the minority pays off the authorities, making it a mockery of inequality, where people think it is a lottery. The artist mentions the lack of economy in Niger and the demography of Rwanda, emphasizing the atrocity and anomaly present because of poverty. The song then ends with a plea to stop the greed and corruption that facilitate and allow inequality to persist.


In conclusion, I-Octane’s “Poverty” is an insightful commentary on global inequality, shining a spotlight on the many people globally who live in poverty, hunger, and despair despite being born free. The song encourages people to prioritize and confront the many simmering issues and inequalities that are often hidden from society.


Line by Line Meaning

I open up my phone and I read
I am checking news on my phone and reading about current affairs


Coronavirus will delete Yemen from maps all over the world
The coronavirus pandemic is affecting Yemen where it is causing high mortality rates and the country is being largely ignored by the rest of the world


As if they were worse than before, yo that’s fucking cold
The situation in Yemen was already dire and the pandemic is making it worse, it's immoral for the world to ignore it


Just do me a favour, search Yemen kids on google, fuck war
I am urging people to search for information on the situation in Yemen to understand the reality of war and poverty the kids there are facing


It's like they haven’t tasted food in a year or more
The people of Yemen are suffering from severe malnutrition due to the war and poverty


How the fuck do humans allow others to be so goddamn poor
It's unacceptable that humans are allowing other humans to endure extreme poverty


How can some humans be so goddamn cruel
It's inhuman to be cruel to others and let them suffer in poverty and famine


Poverty and famine is hidden from society
Issues related to poverty and famine are often ignored and not given enough attention


While showing your ass on Insta, is a propriety
People spend more time posting pictures on Instagram than on addressing important societal issues and problems


I'm outta here
I am leaving this situation as it is because I am frustrated with humans' ignorance and cruelty towards each other


I hope yall get the message loud and clear
I hope that my message comes across powerfully and that people understand the gravity of the situation


Child labour still exists in Bangladesh cuz their parents disappear
Children in Bangladesh often end up in child labor because their parents are too poor to support them and have disappeared


Because of poverty, an atrocity, no one cares about the minority
Minorities are often marginalized and ignored when it comes to addressing societal issues such as poverty


They're worth more than the majority they paying off the fucking authorities
Minorities are often manipulated and exploited by those in power because they are not given the same opportunities


What a mockery, inequality, people think it’s a fucking lottery
Inequality in society is a major societal problem and is often ignored, people think that some are lucky while others aren't


It’s a stick up it’s a fucking robbery, of human rights, the monstrosity
Societal inequality is not just a problem, it's a violation of basic human rights and it's unacceptable


Check the topography in Africa, in Niger they got no economy
The state of the economy in Niger is extremely poor, and it is just one example of economic problems in Africa


Rwanda check the demography, it’s a massacre, an anomaly
The demographic conditions in Rwanda are alarming and require immediate attention


Would be fixed if it wasn’t for poverty, war is written in the astronomy
Wars and conflicts in many parts of the world are the result of poverty, and the eradication of poverty could help reduce conflicts


End of the road, for you and me
The current societal issues and problems could lead to a catastrophic end


All because of greed
The cause of societal issues is often the greed that people have for power and money


We were born free, we were born free son
Everyone is born free, but societal issues strip them of their basic rights and freedoms


Stop passing the gun like you passing a joint
The practice of passing around weapons is common and it's a serious societal problem that needs to be addressed


Y'all living life completely, missing the point
People are so engrossed in their own lives that they are missing the point of addressing societal issues


Can't even find proper presidents to appoint
The lack of good leaders is a societal problem that poses a huge challenge to finding solutions to societal issues


Go find another fucking planet to disappoint
Humans are destroying the planet with their greed and irresponsibility, they need to find another planet to exploit


How many rules do we have to bend
We have already bent many rules and laws to accommodate greed, and it's causing societal problems


How did we reach this level of greed
The level of greed that we have reached is unprecedented and it's the reason for the current societal problems


Stop it right now, I’m begging you please
I am urging people to stop their greed and start addressing societal problems


I want you to look up for some information
I want people to be informed and educated about societal issues


The fertility rates of women with no education
The fertility rates of women who are not educated are often higher which poses a challenge to combating poverty and other societal issues


Hopefully this stops some discrimination
By educating people, we can help to reduce discrimination and inequality


Worldwide we need to start changing legislations
We need to update and reform our laws and policies to reflect the needs of our changing society


It’ll take a combination of dedication, imagination, inspiration
Addressing societal issues will require a combination of dedication, creativity, and inspiration


Collaboration, unification, to save the world from this obvious domination
To save the world from societal domination, we need to come together and collaborate


Oh look at me I just made a donation
Donating money to charities is good, but we need to do more to address societal issues


Man shut the fuck up, hope you get my frustration
People who just donate money and don't take any further action are not doing enough to address societal issues and it's frustrating


This world is corrupt, lets starve the starvation
The world is corrupt, and we need to address societal issues such as poverty and famine to create a better world


Yo fuck Donald Trump, he's ruining your nation
The current political leadership in the US is causing more societal problems, and we need to do more to address them


Come at me wassup, respect the creation
We need to respect all creation and address societal issues to create a better future for ourselves and future generations


Stop stealing our land without hesitation
People need to stop exploiting natural resources and stealing land from others for their own greed


They don’t give a fuck, couldnt be more blatant
People in power are often motivated by greed and don't care about societal issues or others' basic rights and freedoms


Playing with fire, getting closer to Satan
By exploiting and destroying our planet and society, we are getting closer to destruction and chaos


In the white house he's hiding, look at him he's shaking
The current political leadership is ignoring societal issues and causing more problems for the world


Zeus strikes you with thunder, they looting, they Raiden
People in power are often motivated by greed and they are looting and stealing from others for their own benefit


No more, don’t go under, get the fucking illustration
We need to work together to address societal issues and create a brighter future


We’re sick and we're tired, no more racist examples
We are tired of the societal problems, including racism and inequality, and it needs to stop now


The system is shocking, it could use some more amperes
The current system in place needs to be reformed and updated to address modern societal problems


Current world events are horrific
Current events in the world, including wars and pandemics, are extremely concerning and require immediate attention


When Trump won, somethings fishy, a gimmick
The election of current political leaders raises questions about the democratic process and the need for reform


They rob you behind your back and you’re ok with it
People in power are often robbing and exploiting others, and it's concerning that many people are accepting it as normal


Like passing a knife to your brother, hope he don’t stick you with it
It's concerning that people are often blindly following others in power and ignoring societal problems that affect them


Go check the statistics
It's important to be informed and educated about societal issues through research and data


While other kids starve, we got lands of plentiful food, absolutely prolific
It's unacceptable that some people have plenty of food while others are starving and suffering from poverty and famine


While other kids starve, we got bulimics
The societal problems related to food, including food waste and eating disorders, are concerning and need to be addressed


Instead of teaching us there's 800 millions people starving on this planet, They teach us mythology and hieroglyphics
It's unacceptable that education systems are not addressing societal issues in a meaningful way, and instead, are teaching irrelevant subjects or misinforming students about societal problems




Lyrics © O/B/O DistroKid
Written by: Bashar Shahroor

Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
To comment on or correct specific content, highlight it

Genre not found
Artist not found
Album not found
Song not found
Comments from YouTube:

@RicketyRockit

I-Octane is the hreatest thing in reggae right now. Continue on this positive path and a legend will arise

@cheetahgirlfan32

jah bless di youths dem who ah inna dis slums an' pickneys force fi go an' rob i ah grew up inna slum buh by jah grace i ah move outta deh. so mi ah pray fi di poor people!

@moviecenter3046

Got a sba on urban poverty....thinking of using this as one of my artifacts to represent it

@ReggaeDirec

This video aims to show the impact of POVERTY on the poor. It's Time we begin to make a change all it takes is Love for humanity and not Vanity (Jovian A. Moulton).

@Simone372605

I-Octane is the realest right now..hope he stays that way...Love you :)

@aminuk23

great singer, deep music, greeting from iran

@ringobandito

powerful lyrics!!!!!!!

@kemarwilson3840

Still a big song in 2022

@junaid9830

real thoughts are being expressed in this song it is good to know that there are still musician who represent the oppressed

@jamaicatory2342

Powerful Message

More Comments

More Versions