seasons
Sjava Lyrics

Seasons change
The passage of time brings change and transformation

There's still time for us to run away
Despite the changing seasons, it is possible to escape from negative situations

San'bonan endlini
Greetings are exchanged upon entering a house

Sjava kajama Indlalifa igama ley'nsizwa
Sjava is a prince, and his name is synonymous with the identity of the young man

Mina, ng'phuma le enzansi, kwafel ubala
Sjava is from a low place where humility is valued

Insizwa uma ina-thirty five kthiwa is' indala
A young man is considered old if he is thirty-five years old or older

Laph' eng'phuma khona maw'phuma khona bathi aw'fiki la
People criticize Sjava when he leaves his hometown and when he returns

Ngyamangala uma ngi-la
Sjava is surprised when he hears rumors about himself

Bebathi ng'yophelel emoyeni, beba right
People assumed Sjava was suicidal, but he was actually just thoughtful

Manje ngiy'nkanyezi
Now Sjava has risen to fame and shines like a star

Njengoba ngik'tshela ngempilo yami
As I share details of my life

Ng'funa uthathe nayi imfundiso yami (lalela la wena)
I want to share my experiences with you, listen up

Ithemba alibulali
Hope is not dead, hope endures

Ukube l'yabulala ngabe nihamba phez'kwami
If hope were dead, would you follow me?

Poverty
A state of being extremely poor

Jealousy
A feeling of envy toward someone else's possessions, success, or advantages

Negativity
An attitude that focuses on the negative aspects and downplays the positive

Ngith' ak'nandawo la
I won't be shaken by poverty, jealousy, or negativity

Go away (far away)
I want these negative influences to leave me alone and be gone for good

I cry with lil' brotha, got high and watched the sunrise
I empathize with my younger sibling and we bonded while smoking and watching the sunrise

Wiggle on 'em if it's One Time they done hung all of my people
If someone tries to mess with me even once, I'll retaliate because my ancestors were lynched

I love all of my people, I'm in the slums with all of my people
I care deeply for everyone around me, and I live in a poor area alongside them

They trynna tell us that we all equal
Some people claim that we are treated equally, but that is not the case

We gettin' no justice so it ain't peaceful
We are not seeing justice, so our protests and actions are not peaceful

They could bluff you, they could beat you
Those in power can deceive or harm others

Paid attorney we gon' need it
We will require a paid legal defense team to fight against the system

Momma told me there was demons, she ain't never lied on her Jesus
My mother warned me about the evils of the world, and she has never been wrong about her faith

She worked her ass off just to feed us
My mother worked tirelessly to provide for us

She went to Ross to cop the new Adidas
My mother went to the store Ross to purchase the latest Adidas sneakers for us

She used to tap in with all the teachers
My mother was involved with my education and communicated with my teachers

They wasn't teaching nothin' it's no secret
The curriculum lacked value and was not teaching us anything of substance

Whole lotta grind, lil' niggas beefin'
There is a lot of hard work required, and there are many young people engaged in conflicts

We gotta keep it or end up a victim
We must stay focused and strong or we will become victims of the system

Trapped in the system, trafficking drugs
The system is rigged against us, and some resort to drug trafficking to survive

Modern-day slavery, African thugs
Despite being supposedly free, we are still treated as slaves and labeled as thugs because of our skin color

We go to war for this African blood
We are willing to fight and die for our African heritage and identity

When I put niggas on it was all out of love
I helped others succeed and achieve their goals purely out of love and kindness

You was disloyal, can't call it no love
If you were disloyal to me, I cannot consider it real love

You know we at the stove with it, we stove whippin', my niggas know we gon' get it
We are working hard and whipping up something great, and we know we will achieve it

Dodgin' cops fuck around and get locked you never comin' home with it
We are avoiding the police because getting caught could result in never returning home

Look, my nigga, I came from the sewer
I came from a place of extreme poverty and disadvantage

Don't shit on my past you ain't come from manure
Do not criticize my background if you have not experienced similar struggles

You see Reason and you see LA, but bitch I ain't come for no ruin
Some may associate me with Reason and his song LA, but my purpose and goals are different

Just know all of my niggas we struggled for it, had to hustle for it, cried puddles for it
All of my friends and I have worked hard and faced many obstacles to achieve what we have

My pops watch his sister get locked for it
My father witnessed his sister being arrested and incarcerated for her actions

I done seen my niggas get popped for it like
I have witnessed my friends being killed for their actions

Gimme that, I carry the llama like a piggyback
Give me what I want or I will resort to violence and carry a gun like a backpack

I carry my city like guilt that ain't got no forgiveness
I feel the weight and responsibility of my city, but forgiveness is not possible

No way out, shit we locked in the system
We are trapped within the confines of a system that does not allow for progress or escape

Catch a case and they not gon' forgive ya
If you are arrested, there is no chance for forgiveness or redemption

White skin, you be out before Christmas
If you have white skin, you will not face the same harsh punishments as black individuals and will be released before Christmas

Shit, auntie missed eight of those days
My aunt missed eight years of her life due to incarceration

Tears from me had to pray those days, had to slave those days
I cried and had to pray during those difficult times, and I also had to work hard and struggle

Shit, we had to hit up a couple hood-give-aways those days
We had to go to food drives and other similar events to get by during those tough times

Thank God for every inch that he gave us
We are grateful for any progress or achievements we have made, no matter how small

Thank God for everything 'cause he made us
We are thankful for everything in our lives, even the struggles and hardships

Like when that car bent the block, brock, brock, brock
Like when a car drove around the block making loud, banging noises

Hit the homie but we made it, so he already saved us
One of my friends was hit during that incident, but we survived, so we feel we were saved

Thinkin' that he could've died nigga
Reflecting on the fact that my friend could have died during that incident

We was praying to the sky and his mother cried rivers
We were praying to God for my friend's safety, and his mother was crying tears of relief and gratitude

Healed up, but tough luck, he tried to get revenge
My friend recovered from his injuries, but he had bad luck when he attempted to seek revenge

Had to drop but his popped and they killed him
My friend was killed in retaliation for his attempted revenge

Worst part is that it sound so familiar
This story is unfortunately all too common and has happened before

I am T'Challa
I am a symbol of power and resilience like T'Challa from Black Panther

I am Killmonger
I am also like Killmonger from Black Panther, fighting for justice and equality

One world, one God, one family
We are all connected and should treat each other like family regardless of our differences

Celebration
Despite the hardships and struggles we face, we can still find reasons to celebrate and be grateful