Genre not found
Artist not found
Album not found
Song not found

Somalia
K'naan Lyrics


Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴  Line by Line Meaning ↴

Uh,
Yeah,
Somalia

Yeah,
I spit it for my block,
It's an ode, I admit it.
Here the city code is lock and load
Any minute is rock and roll
And you rock and roll,
And feel your soul leavin'.
It's just the wrong dance
That'll leave you not breathin'.
I'm not particularly proud
Of this predicament but,
I'm born and bred
In this tenement, I'm sentimental, What?!
Plus it's only right to represent my hood
And what not.
So I'm about to do it in the music, in the movies.
Cut to the chase pan across to the face
I'm right there.
Freeze frame on the street name
Oops wait a minute,
This is where the streets have no name
And the drain of sewage.
You can see it in this boy how the hate is brewin'
Cause when his tummy tucks in
Fuck the pain is fluid.
So what difference does it make,
Entertaining threw it.
Some get high mixing coke and gun powder, sniffin'.
She got a gun but could have been a model or physician.

So what you know bout the pirates terrorize the ocean.
To never know a simple day without a big commotion.
It can't be healthy just to live with a such steep emotion.
And when I try and sleep, I see coffins closin'. (Repeat)

Yeah,
Yeah,
We used to take barb wire
Mold them around discarded bike tires.
Roll em down the hill in foot blazin'.
Now that was our version of mountain bike racing
Damn!
Do you see why it's amazing,
When someone comes out of such a dire situation
And learns the English language,
Just to share his observation!
Probably get a Grammy without a grammar education.
So fuck you school and fuck you immigration!
And all of you who thought I wouldn't amount to constipation.
And now I'm here without the slightest fear and preservation,
They love me in the slums and in the native reservations.
The world is a ghetto with ministerin' deprivation.
My mommy didn't raise no fool did she hooyo?
I promise I would get it and remain strictly loyal.
Cause when they get it then they let it all switch and spoil.
But I just illuminated it like kitchen foil.
A lot of main stream niggas is yappin' about yappin'
A lot of underground niggas is rappin' about rappin'.
I just wanna tell you what's really crackalackan
Before the tears came down this is what happened.

So what you know bout the pirates terrorize the ocean.
To never know a simple day without a big commotion.
It can't be healthy just to live with a such steep emotion.
And when I try and sleep, I see coffins closin'. [Repeat: x2]

Overall Meaning

The lyrics to K'naan's song "Somalia" tell a story of the struggle and strife in his birthplace of Mogadishu, Somalia. K'naan starts by acknowledging the harsh reality of life in his block where the city code is "lock and load" and any moment can turn into rock and roll where one's soul might leave the body. While he is not proud of this predicament, he feels it is essential to represent his hood and struggles in his music and movies. The story moves to the streets with sewers, where hate brews amongst the young boys, and pain is fluid. The message is clear that life on the streets where violence is the norm is not just entertaining, it is debilitating in real life.


The song's second verse shifts from K'naan's personal story to that of his community and Somalia's current political situation. He reminisces about the games they played as kids - molding discarded bike tires with barbed wires and roll them down the hills. But then the mood turns to the reality of the situation- Somalia is terrorized by pirates who make the sea their playground, and the citizens never have one peaceful day. He questions whether it's healthy to live with such steep emotion and shares his haunting dreams of coffins closing as he sleeps. K'naan's lyrics shed light on the challenging and volatile reality of the streets of Mogadishu and the need to overcome this adversity.


Overall, K'naan's "Somalia" stands out as an ode to his roots and a call to action for the world to see the difficult conditions in Somalia. It is a song about survival, adaptation, and resilience in the face of adversity.


Line by Line Meaning

Uh, Yeah, Somalia
Introduction to the song - K'naan introduces his native country Somalia which has been in conflict and war for decades.


Yeah, I spit it for my block, It's an ode, I admit it.
The song is a tribute to Somalia and K'naan's neighborhood where he grew up.


Here the city code is lock and load, Any minute is rock and roll, And you rock and roll, And feel your soul leavin'.
There is constant violence and danger in the streets, which takes a toll on people's lives.


It's just the wrong dance That'll leave you not breathin'.
The violence is like a dance - but it's the wrong kind of dance that is killing people.


I'm not particularly proud Of this predicament but, I'm born and bred In this tenement, I'm sentimental, What?!
K'naan acknowledges that the situation is not ideal but he has an emotional connection to his neighborhood.


Plus it's only right to represent my hood And what not. So I'm about to do it in the music, in the movies.
K'naan wants to represent his neighborhood and country through his music and movies.


Cut to the chase pan across to the face I'm right there. Freeze frame on the street name Oops wait a minute, This is where the streets have no name And the drain of sewage.
K'naan paints a picture of his neighborhood where the streets are unnamed and sewage drains in the open.


You can see it in this boy how the hate is brewin' Cause when his tummy tucks in Fuck the pain is fluid.
K'naan describes how even children in his neighborhood are affected by the violence and poverty.


So what difference does it make, Entertaining threw it. Some get high mixing coke and gun powder, sniffin'. She got a gun but could have been a model or physician.
K'naan questions the purpose of his music and expresses how some people in his neighborhood turn to drugs and violence to cope.


So what you know bout the pirates terrorize the ocean. To never know a simple day without a big commotion. It can't be healthy just to live with such steep emotion. And when I try and sleep, I see coffins closin'....
K'naan talks about the ongoing issue of piracy in Somalia, and how living in such conditions affects people's mental health and life expectancy.


We used to take barb wire Mold them around discarded bike tires. Roll em down the hill in foot blazin'. Now that was our version of mountain bike racing Damn!
K'naan reminisces about his childhood and how they used to make do with what they had - by creating their own version of mountain bike racing.


Do you see why it's amazing, When someone comes out of such a dire situation And learns the English language, Just to share his observation! Probably get a Grammy without a grammar education.
K'naan talks about the importance of education and how he used it as a tool to rise above his circumstances.


So fuck you school and fuck you immigration! And all of you who thought I wouldn't amount to constipation. And now I'm here without the slightest fear and preservation, They love me in the slums and in the native reservations.
K'naan expresses his frustration with the education system and immigration policies, and how he has overcome the odds to achieve success and love from his community.


The world is a ghetto with ministerin' deprivation. My mommy didn't raise no fool did she hooyo? I promise I would get it and remain strictly loyal. Cause when they get it then they let it all switch and spoil. But I just illuminated it like kitchen foil.
K'naan reflects on the harsh reality of the world and how he has remained true to his values despite the temptation to switch sides - he compares his resilience to how kitchen foil reflects light.


A lot of mainstream niggas is yappin' about yappin' A lot of underground niggas is rappin' about rappin'. I just wanna tell you what's really crackalackan Before the tears came down this is what happened.
K'naan critiques mainstream and underground rappers for focusing on superficial topics and boasts, whereas he wants to share the reality of his situation and what's really happening in Somalia.




Lyrics © Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC
Written by: BRIAN WEST, GERALD EATON, KEINAN WARSAME

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

More Versions