Shades
Wale Feat. Chrisette Michelle Lyrics

(Boy) Beautiful
Repetition of admiration towards the boy's physical appearance.

Chip on my shoulder
Feeling of resentment and anger towards society for not accepting the boy.

Big enough to feed Cambodia
The boy's anger towards society is immense and can feed a whole country.

See, I never fit into they quotas
The boy never fit into society's standards of beauty and acceptance.

Sneakers wasn't fitting and my knees needed lotion
The boy did not have access to proper care and attention growing up.

Long before I knew the significance of a comb
The boy did not have a clear understanding of proper grooming practices.

I roam like phone with no vocal reception
The boy felt like his voice was not heard or acknowledged by those around him.

Immigrant parents had me feeling like a step-kid
The boy's parents immigrated to the US, making him feel like an outsider to both his native culture and American culture.

And black Americans never did accept me
The boy also experienced rejection and isolation from the black community due to his skin color.

That's why I thrive so much, win and respect dig
The boy channels his anger and rejection towards success and gaining respect.

I never fit in with them light skins
The boy did not fit in with light-skinned people either, despite his own lighter skin color.

I felt the lighter they was the better that they life is
The boy resented light-skinned people because he believed they had more advantages and opportunities simply because of their skin color.

So I resented them and they resented me
The boy's resentment towards light-skinned people was reciprocated.

Cheated on light-skinned Dominique when we was seventeen
The boy acted out his resentment by cheating on a girlfriend who was light-skinned.

I figured I'd hurt her, she'd evidently hurt me,
The boy sabotaged his own relationship and hurt someone else as a result of his own insecurities.

And all women who had light features
The boy associated light features with negative traits and therefore mistreated women who possessed those features.

See, I never let a light broad hurt me
The boy refuses to be hurt or vulnerable in front of light-skinned women because of his resentment towards them.

That's why I strike first and the first cut's deep
The boy uses aggression and hostility as a defense mechanism so that he does not get hurt by others.

[Chorus]
Refrain to emphasize that skin color does not matter in a relationship.

Just another knotty head nigga
The boy identifies with negative stereotypes of black men with unkempt hair.

Hoping Wes Snipes make my life a bit different
The boy admires a black actor and hopes to emulate his success.

In middle school, I had the right to be timid
The boy was insecure and shy during his middle school years.

I had beautiful words but girls never listened
Despite having a way with words, the boy was not valued by girls due to his appearance and skin color.

Blacker the berry, sweeter the product
The darker someone's skin color, the more valuable and attractive they are.

Well, I'm fruit punch concentrate and they water
The boy feels inferior and diluted compared to others who have a stronger sense of identity and cultural heritage.

Walk into my room thinking how to make moves
The boy is preoccupied with his own image and attractiveness to others.

Ain't thinking like a student but how Ice-T do it
The boy idolizes a successful rapper/actor and bases his actions off of him instead of thinking critically about his own path.

Light dudes have the girls looking there all year
Light-skinned men are more popular and desirable among women.

It's not fair, the ones with the good hair
The boy believes light-skinned people with 'good hair' have an unfair advantage in society.

Couldn't adapt to naps, I wavecap they naps and slept on me
The boy cannot conform to mainstream beauty standards and feels rejected by those who can.

Man, I hate black
The boy resents his own blackness and the negative associations that come with it.

Skin tone, I wish I could take it back
The boy is ashamed of his own skin tone and wishes he could change it.

Or rearrange my status, maybe if I was khaki
The boy believes that if he had a lighter, more 'acceptable' skin tone, he would have a higher status in society.

Associating light skin with classy
The boy believes that light skin automatically equates to being classy or high status.

The menstrual show showed and me, that was not me
The boy feels misrepresented and disrespected by negative stereotypes of black people in mainstream media.

[Chorus]
Refrain to emphasize that skin color does not matter in a relationship.

They say black is beautiful
The boy acknowledges the positive message of uplifting blackness.

But ask them beautiful light girls
However, the boy believes that light-skinned people still hold a higher status in society and are more desirable.

If its black they attract to usually
The boy believes that people are still attracted to lighter skin tones, despite the message of embracing blackness.

What if Barack skin was all black, truthfully?
The boy questions whether a dark-skinned person like former President Obama would be as successful and respected if he did not have some lighter features.

Would he be a candidate or just a black in community?
The boy questions whether a dark-skinned person would be accepted and celebrated in mainstream society, or relegated to only being recognized in their own community.

Because black dudes tend to lack unity
The boy laments the lack of solidarity among black men in society.

And them blacker girls ain't on the tube, usually
The boy also notes the lack of representation and recognition for darker-skinned women in mainstream media.

Right now, at 23, I ain't mad at them reds no more
The boy has grown to accept and appreciate lighter-skinned people, and no longer resents them.

But for long time I had gone cold
However, the boy did have a prolonged period of hostility and resentment towards lighter-skinned people.

Blindfolded my own insecurity was holding me back to reds,
The boy recognizes that his own insecurity and anger was the source of his hostility towards lighter-skinned people.

I ain't know how to act
The boy was immature and acted out towards others because of his own issues.

They would get the cold shoulder and know it was an act
The boy would intentionally hurt others and push them away, but knew it was not genuine.

A defense mechanism what I thought that I lacked
The boy used hostility as a defense mechanism to protect himself from getting hurt by others.

[Chorus]
Refrain to emphasize that skin color does not matter in a relationship.