At the age of 12 Jay’s mother applied and won a scholarship for him to Scotch College in Adelaide to give her eldest son a better chance at life. Jay moved to Adelaide where he now is a proud resident and calls the place home. Just last year J-MILLA was nominated by MusicSA for “Best Aboriginal/TSI Artist”. It was his first official industry award nomination.
“Adelaide gave me the chance to break the cycle – I feel blessed by the things that are happening for me here.” says J-MILLA.
No Lie
J-MILLA Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Tryna get right
Champion my inner wolf
1985ish
Mike Fox tip
Remote channel shit
My broadcast will ever-last
Box pass
Hello, big dance
March madness
Scoring evident
My stats prevalent
Who could stop the kid
Carolina Salt
This Salt Carolina
I own this state
CEO and Father
Denied you for years
Never wiped a tear
Deadbeat of the year
Forgive me for my fear
I feared to claim home
A place unknown
The Villes very own
For nine years strong
I grew and moved
Closer to my roots
My parents birthplace
But fuck it, this one state
One Carolina
She's my happy place
On and on and on
(We on)
We the chosen ones
(The chosen ones)
The crown is for the takin'
(The takin')
Shots up please hold the chaser
(Hold the chaser)
No lie I'm never fakin'
(Never fakin')
No lie I'm never fakin'
(Never fakin')
Gold chains & 40 acres
We kings in the makin'
Forever in debt to ya
I'll always check for ya
This the bank
Deposit my faith
Belief in we
Southern my speech
Talk that talk
Own our faults
Wrongs we ensue
Slavery was cruel
Segregated schools
Who made the rules
Division of people
I thought we all equal
No math shit
Kill politics
Democracy flawed
I'll never vote again
Too many snakes
Elections are fake
Bonds unkept
Front door terror
Yea, it's whatever
War at home
A sad love song
Yea, color hate
Call a spade a spade
Uh, all right, ok
Bullshit
Dark ass days
Thick pigment chicks that everyone craves
On and on and on
(We on)
We the chosen ones,
(The chosen ones)
The crown is for the takin'
(The takin')
Shots up please hold the chaser
(Hold the chaser)
No lie I'm never fakin'
(Never fakin')
No lies I'm never fakin'
(Never fakin')
Gold chains & 40 acres
We kings in the makin'
In "No Lie," J-MILLA shares his journey of self-discovery and acceptance, both as an artist and as a person. He stays up all night trying to do and be his best, channeling his inner wolf as a sign of strength and determination. He references Mike Fox, a former NFL player who played for the Carolina Panthers, his home state's team. J-MILLA's stats are prevalent, and he is confident that no one can stop him. He claims ownership of his state and his success as a CEO and a father. Still, he admits his past failings as a "deadbeat of the year" and asks forgiveness for his fear of claiming his place in the world.
The song takes a turn when J-MILLA delves into the issues of racism and division in America, from slavery to segregated schools, politics, and racism that still exist today. He speaks out against the flaws of democracy and his loss of faith in the political system, as he portrays the sad reality of war at home and people's division. He calls for a change in the form of a direct, honest conversation about social injustices, owning up to our faults and embracing diversity. He affirms that true progress calls for us to take a hard look at our nation's history, confront our wrongs, and move forward together. In the end, J-MILLA affirms his place in the world, as he and his Southern folks work to make history and build a better future for themselves and their country.
Line by Line Meaning
Up all night
I was awake throughout the night
Tryna get right
I was trying to make things right
Champion my inner wolf
I was trying to be a winner in my own way
1985ish
I was feeling nostalgic about the past
Mike Fox tip
I was giving a shoutout to someone named Mike
Remote channel shit
I was talking about broadcasting from a remote location
My broadcast will ever-last
My message will last for a long time
Box pass
I was passing the ball in a game
Peep the stance
I want you to notice my posture or attitude
Hello, big dance
I am excited about a big event
March madness
I am referring to a famous basketball tournament
Scoring evident
I was scoring points and it was pretty clear
My stats prevalent
My statistics are very impressive
Who could stop the kid
I am asking who can stop me
Carolina Salt
I am referring to a place called Carolina Salt
This Salt Carolina
I mean that Carolina Salt belongs to me
I own this state
I am saying that I am very influential in this place
CEO and Father
I am a CEO and a father at the same time
Denied you for years
I did not acknowledge you for a long time
Never wiped a tear
I never showed any weakness or emotion
Deadbeat of the year
I was not a good father
Forgive me for my fear
I am apologizing for my fear
I feared to claim home
I was afraid to admit that this place is my home
A place unknown
I was not familiar with this place before
The Villes very own
This place belongs to me
For nine years strong
I have been living here for nine years
I grew and moved
I became a better person and I moved on
Closer to my roots
I felt more connected to my past
My parents birthplace
My parents were born here
But fuck it, this one state
I am disregarding everything else, this place is important to me
One Carolina
I am referring to this place as One Carolina
She's my happy place
This place makes me happy
We the chosen ones
I feel that I and my fellows are special
The crown is for the takin'
We can become the rulers of this place
Shots up please hold the chaser
Let's take shots but hold off on the chaser
No lie I'm never fakin'
I am always truthful
Gold chains & 40 acres
We are rich and have a lot of land
We kings in the makin'
We will become the rulers of this place
Forever in debt to ya
I will always be thankful to this place
I'll always check for ya
I will always make sure that this place is doing well
This the bank
This place is very important to me
Deposit my faith
I am putting my trust in this place
Belief in we
I believe in us, as a community
Southern my speech
My accent is Southern
Talk that talk
I am speaking confidently
Own our faults
We should take responsibility for our mistakes
Wrongs we ensue
We sometimes do things that are wrong
Slavery was cruel
Slavery was a very cruel thing
Segregated schools
There were schools that only certain races could attend
Who made the rules
Who decided these things?
Division of people
People are divided and this is not good
I thought we all equal
I believed that we were all equal
No math shit
I am not talking about mathematics
Kill politics
I hate politics
Democracy flawed
Democracy has some flaws
I'll never vote again
I am so disillusioned with politics that I will never vote again
Too many snakes
There are too many dishonest people in politics
Elections are fake
Elections are not always fair
Bonds unkept
Promises are not always kept
Front door terror
I mean the fear of terror attacks
Yea, it's whatever
I don't care anymore
War at home
There is a lot of conflict in this place
A sad love song
I am sad because of all the conflict
Yea, color hate
There is a lot of hate based on one's skin color
Call a spade a spade
Let's call things what they really are
Bullshit
I am calling out all the lies
Dark ass days
These are very dark times
Thick pigment chicks that everyone craves
Women with darker skin are very attractive
We the chosen ones
I still believe that we are special
The crown is for the takin'
We can still become rulers of this place
Shots up please hold the chaser
Let's have some drinks, but not too much
No lie I'm never fakin'
I am always truthful
Gold chains & 40 acres
We have a lot of wealth
We kings in the makin'
We will become rulers of this place
Lyrics © DistroKid
Written by: Alex Salters
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
hughboyzilla
Great work mate. Love the honesty!
Ewan Barkallaropolus
Keep doing you brother, the success will come
J-MILLA
Ewan Barkallaropolus thank you so much for the support 💯💯💯
Lil Boogz
This some real shit bro, Keep at it💯🔥
Kai Edwards
Killed it my brother ❤️🖤💛
Kira Slater
We love this song
Tommo Clausen
I love ur songs ur the best bro🤙💛🖤❤
KOORI REP [-O-]
Dope asf my brother! 💯🔥🔥🔥👊🏾 #RealTalk
J-MILLA
KOORI REP [-O-] thank you big bro! Means a lot coming from you ❤️💯
KOORI REP [-O-]
@J-MILLA All g my brother keep killin it! We'll do a track soon if you're keen brother I got a dope D-boy beat for us 💣💥💥💥 [-O-] ✊🏾