Little Ghetto Boy
Roots (w/John Legend) Lyrics

My grandmother's suits was tailor made
My grandmother was a classy woman who dressed impeccably in suits that were custom made for her.

Sundays Mahalia played
On Sundays, we would listen to the music of Mahalia Jackson.

Simple familiar ways
Life was full of simple and familiar routines and traditions in our community.

Like how she kneeled and prayed
One of the traditions was my grandmother's practice of kneeling and praying.

Wailin', master, forgive us
We would cry out to God to forgive us for our sins and grant us mercy.

Our trust, pastors had us real afraid
Our pastors instilled fear in us and we believed that we would be punished if we strayed from the right path.

I never listened, yet I still obeyed
I didn't really pay attention to what the pastors were saying, but I still followed their rules and teachings.

I got to see how Philly played at such an early age
I grew up in Philadelphia and was exposed to its culture at a young age.

What my father was into sent him to his early grave
My father got into dangerous activities that ultimately led to his early death.

Then moms started chasin' that base, like Willie Mays
After my father passed away, my mother turned to drugs, and started prioritizing them over everything else, much like a baseball player chasing the ball like Willie Mays.

My childhood was all of forty nights and forty days
My childhood was full of hardship and struggle, much like the biblical story of the Israelites wandering in the desert for forty years.

Trouble was my ball and chain, shorties would call me names
I experienced a lot of trouble and difficulty growing up, and was subject to harassment and ridicule by other kids.

Humble beginnings
I came from a modest and unassuming background.

But a star is what it all became
Despite my humble beginnings, I was able to become successful and famous.

My journey from a dirty hallway
I started from a place of poverty and squalor.

To the Hall of Fame
But I was able to achieve greatness and be recognized as one of the best in my field.

Music, my therapeutic way to cope with all this pain
Music was a way for me to deal with the pain and difficulties in my life.

Was headed for the drain
But my life was heading towards destruction and ruin.

Soakin' before the rainwater came
I was aware of my troubles before they erupted and caused even greater damage.

And chaos, until the order came
My life was full of chaos and confusion until I was able to bring order to it.

I started doin' what I'm 'sposed to do in life
I began doing the things that I was meant to do and making better choices.

Tryin' to move out of the dark
I was attempting to escape the shadows and negative influences in my life.

And closer to the light
And move towards the positive aspects and influences.

They say if you get a chance to do it over, do it right
It is important to make the most of a second chance and do things correctly.

Tomorrow isn't promised every time you say goodnight
You never know what tomorrow will bring, so it is important to make the most of your time and opportunities.

Little ghetto boy, oh
The song is addressed to a young boy who has grown up in the ghetto.

Playin' in the ghetto street, ayy
The boy is playing in the streets of the ghetto.

What you gonna do when you grow up
The song poses the question of what the boy will do with his life when he becomes an adult.

And have to face responsibility?
And is confronted with the responsibilities of being an adult.

Will you spend your days and nights in a pool room?
Will the boy waste his life hanging out in a pool hall?

Will you sell caps of madness to the neighborhood?
Will the boy turn to selling drugs and making things worse for his community?

Little ghetto boy
Again, the song addresses the young boy growing up in the ghetto.

You already know how rough life could be
The boy has already seen and experienced the difficulties and pain of life in the ghetto.

'Cause you see so much pain and misery
The boy has witnessed so much suffering and hardship in his life.

Your daddy was blown away
The boy's father was killed violently.

He robbed that grocery store, yeah
The father was involved in criminal activity, which ultimately led to his death.

Do you know that was a sad, sad day?
The boy will always remember the day when his father died tragically.

All your young life you've seen such misery and pain
The boy has seen and experienced so much pain and suffering throughout his childhood.

The world's a cruel place to live in, it ain't gonna change, yeah
The world can be harsh and unforgiving, and the boy shouldn't expect it to change anytime soon.

You're so young, and you've got so far to go
The boy has his whole life ahead of him and many opportunities to make something of himself.

Don't think you'll reach your goal, young man
But it won't be easy and he must work hard to achieve his goals.

Talkin 'bout the ghetto boy
Again, the song addresses the young boy growing up in the ghetto.

When, when you become a man, yeah
The song looks ahead to when the boy becomes a man.

You can make things change
The song tries to inspire hope and encourage the boy to take action and make things better.

Oh, if you just take a stand, yeah, yeah
If the boy takes a stand and makes a difference, things can change for the better.

You've got to believe in yourself, in all that you do
The boy must have confidence in his abilities and believe in himself.

You've got to fight to make it better, better
The boy must work hard to improve his situation and the situation of his community.

And you will see that others will start believin' too
When the boy starts to make a difference, others will join him and believe in him as well.

Then my son, things will start to get better
If the boy works hard and makes a difference, things will improve for him and his community.

(Everything has got to get better)
The song concludes with a repetition of the message that things can get better and we must believe in ourselves and work hard to make a difference.