[Verse 1: Macklemore]
When I was in the third grade,
I thought that I was gay
‘Cause I could draw, my uncle was
And I kept my room straight.
I told my mom, tears rushing down my face,
She's like, "Ben you've loved girls since before pre-k."
Trippin', yeah. I guess she had a point, didn't she?
A bunch of stereotypes all in my head,
I remember doing the math like,
“Yeah, I'm good at little league.”
A pre-conceived idea of what it all meant
For those that like the same sex had the characteristics.
The right-wing conservatives think it's a decision,
And you can be cured with some treatment and religion,
Man-made, rewiring of a pre-disposition,
Playing God.
Ahh nah, here we go,
America the brave
Still fears what we don't know.
And God loves all his children, it's somehow forgotten,
But we paraphrase a book written
3,500 years ago.
I don't know.
[Chorus: Mary Lambert]
And I can't change
Even if I tried,
Even if I wanted to.
And I can't change
Even if I tried,
Even if I wanted to.
My love, my love, my love,
She keeps me warm. [x4]
[Verse 2: Macklemore]
If I was gay,
I would think hip-hop hates me,
Have you read the YouTube comments lately,
“Man that's gay!”
Gets dropped on the daily.
We've become so numb to what we're saying.
Our culture founded from oppression,
Yet we don't have acceptance for ‘em,
Call each other faggots,
Behind the keys of a message board –
A word rooted in hate.
Yet our genre still ignores it,
Gay is synonymous with the lesser,
It's the same hate that's caused wars from religion.
Gender to skin color,
Complexion of your pigment,
The same fight that lead people to walk-outs and sit-ins.
Human rights for everybody,
There is no difference.
Live on! And be yourself!
When I was in church,
They taught me something else,
If you preach hate at the service,
Those words aren't anointed,
And that Holy Water,
That you soak in
Is then poisoned.
When everyone else
Is more comfortable
Remaining voiceless
Rather than fighting for humans
That have had their rights stolen,
I might not be the same
But that's not important,
No freedom ‘til we're equal.
Damn right, I support it
I don't know.
[Chorus]
[Verse 3: Macklemore]
We press play,
Don't press pause.
Progress, march on!
With a veil over our eyes,
We turn our back on the cause
‘Til the day
That my uncles can be united by law.
Kids are walkin' around the hallway,
Plagued by pain in their heart,
A world so hateful,
Some would rather die
Than be who they are.
And a certificate on paper
Isn't gonna solve it all,
But it's a damn good place to start.
No law's gonna change us,
We have to change us.
Whatever god you believe in,
We come from the same one,
Strip away the fear,
Underneath it's all the same love
About time that we raised up.
[Chorus]
[Outro: Mary Lambert]
Love is patient, love is kind,
Love is patient, not crying on Sundays,
Love is kind, not crying on Sundays. [х5]