Agony
Nate Denver Lyrics

Agony is the key to a happy life
One must experience suffering to appreciate the joys of life

You can't know joy if you don't know strife
Without experiencing hardship, it is impossible to understand happiness

There's no good or bad by itself
Events should not be judged on their own without context

You can't have poverty if there is no wealth
The idea of poverty is only relevant when compared to wealth

They'll build you up and they'll break you down
People will support you and then turn against you

But you're stronger for the next time they come around
Each experience makes you more resilient in the future

They'll smile in your face and they'll give you praise
People may pretend to be kind and supportive in order to manipulate you

And they try to destroy you in a thousand different ways
Others will attempt to harm you in numerous ways

With every bad there's a little good
Even in negative situations, there is a silver lining

And with every good there's a little bad
Something positive can always be found behind something negative

So you're gonna get happy and you're gonna get sad
Life has its ups and downs

So keep movin on like my good ol' dad
One should push forward despite adversity, like the artist's father did

In actuality, I mean in reality
The following statements are not hypothetical, but truthful

The words that I speak are a mere hypothesis
Previous statements were not necessarily factual, but mere ideas

Pure agony might not be what it's about
Suffering may not be the only path to happiness

But comparisons of one state to another, no doubt
One can evaluate two situations in comparison to each other

Agony might be more than I can claim
There may be more to suffering than what the artist has experienced

I have no pure joy and I have no pain
The artist does not feel extreme happiness or sadness

I know a person we can ask who's known Agony
The artist would like to defer to someone with more experience in suffering

A grandmaster on the mic, Percy Carey
The artist knows a rapper named Percy Carey with a lot of experience in life's hardships

With hardy laughter from my heart and tears pouring from my sockets
The artist is emotional, showing polar opposite feelings

I pass the mic along, Grimm Reaper rock it
The rapper Grimm Reaper is taking over the song, signifying death and destruction

Hundreds of years, hell's been America
America has been the site of much suffering and pain for hundreds of years

Auctioned of yes, sold like eBay
People were sold into slavery like merchandise on eBay

Told to be a good boy, listen to what they say
Black Americans were forced into submission and obedience to white authority

Don't get smart boy, life will be easy
African Americans were not allowed to receive education or excel in any way

Try to run boy, the dogs get angry
Those who tried to escape slavery were hunted down like animals

Picked at cotton in the field, be happy
Black Americans were forced to work in cotton fields with no reward

What you say to me, you nappy
Derogatory term used to insult someone with afro-textured hair

Head little nigga, talkin' back
Whites expected African American children to be subservient and not vocalize their opinions

String him up good, then we whip off the black
Lynching of black people was an accepted form of punishment

Speed time up, meanwhile tell some facts
Rapid advancements in technology were happening while people held onto outdated and cruel beliefs

Power to the people? Nah, Nixon killed that
The government betrayed the trust of the people who supported it

Nas pimpin' all the women, yeah bitches gettin' smacked
Nas is a rapper who has degrading lyrics about women

Speed up time, whole nation on crack
Cocaine became a major problem in the United States in the 1980s

Drug wars and ghetto, dealers kidnapped
Violence related to drugs created more problems for the poor in the US

Ransom not paid, found all hacked
Drug dealers faced a lot of violence and physical danger

Hip hop daisy age, peace knapsacks
Hip hop artists in the 1990s focused on peace and love

Now we in the dizzy age, gangster rap
Current hip hop culture glamourizes the gangster lifestyle

Everyone is strapped, in the street bustin' caps
Armed violence is present throughout the country

Someone come save us, please 'cause we're trapped
The citizens of America are stuck in a cycle of poverty, violence, and suffering

Taste all the agony, put some fear in ya
The song emphasizes the pain and suffering in America

Get home safe now, goodbye America
The song concludes with the artist's despair and hopelessness for his country.