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Taking Back Tomorrow

by Chuckie Campbell

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    Artwork by New York Times best-selling author/artist, Kerby Rosanes in six-panel DVD packaging with six panel fold-out, glued-in artist booklet, detailing all album production credits, contributions, and dedications. We come from a time when music was an artifact of culture that preserved the very parts of ourselves that reminded us of what it meant to be human. We think that’s worth celebrating.

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1.
Adlib, Iesha Green: All things end I think we’re going to be better off this time around this time around Verse 1, Chuckie Campbell If you listen close enough you can hear it at a distance unsure if it’s a secret or a prayer when all the pain and the scars come together in our hearts I swear you can feel it in the air and if you felt it in the air then I know it’s in your dreams on occasion when you wake in a puddle of belief I can see it in your eyes coming in and out of sleep heart pounding in the hollow of the deep (Come alive...I’m) indebted and dedicated to healing heartache I rise from desolate delicate dark space driven and determined by pressure and heartbreak I redefine the vision of victims who find faith and re-envision seeing myself in the same way the survivor of the events that previously took shape our forever is a mask every mask is a mirror to unmask my forever I forgive, but remember Chorus 1, Iesha Green: All things end then they begin again I think we’re gonna be better off, better off this time around All things end then they begin again I think we’re gonna be better off, better off this time around Verse 1, Chuckie Campbell If you listen close enough you can hear it at a distance a mother who would die to save her son when all the pain and the scars come together in his heart he’s a son who would lie to take his drugs and, when his body in hearse pulled away from the church somewhere in-between what we get and we prefer left me so unsure of the real and the absurd do we accept the love we think that we deserve (Come alive...I) remembered every second and wrote it into a song I imagine he’s somewhere to sing along and I answer to this feeling and deal with it at a cost because our actions are connected to our thoughts and if the broken as adults were once broken youth and often the abuser was once the abused we all wear a mask every mask is a mirror in the cycle of abuse hurt people, hurt people Chorus x 2, Iesha Green: All things end then they begin again I think we’re gonna be better off, better off this time around All things end then they begin again I think we’re gonna be better off, better off this time around Breakdown, Chuckie Campbell: I’m never dreaming but devoted unfolding our broken moments decoding forgotten voices (because the way home is home) beneath the breathing images revisited repeatedly reliving what it meant to me (I check signs for signs) I’m reminded yet divided that those who committed violence once were victims of the violent (because hurt people, hurt people) the played becomes a player the bullied becomes a bully the cycle repeats usually (I check signs for signs) In the cycle of abuse those afflicted become the very ones to inflict it (and the way home is home) I’m elated to be healing and thinking let’s do it different if you with me, let me hear it, ‘cause (there’s no fear in love) Chorus x 1, One Nation Choir: All things end then they begin again I think we’re gonna be better off, better off this time around All things end then they begin again I think we’re gonna be better off, better off this time around Chorus x 1, Iesha Green: All things end then they begin again I think we’re gonna be better off, better off this time around All things end then they begin again I think we’re gonna be better off, better off this time around
2.
Chorus 1, Heidi Feek Pretty girls, they don’t cry Young men, they don’t die Husbands, they don’t lie And, pretty girls don’t cry When pretty girls don’t get their way, somebody’s gonna have to pay Baby, do you ever wonder why pretty girls don’t cry? Verse 1, Chuckie Campbell Her flawless, pretty face is a dream of timeless mazes staring back from her reflection hazel eyes, she’s dark complected secrets cast in mirrors her absent father’s features poison fruit of live forbidden hips and breast and flowing hair a preteen with a woman’s figure drawn to men like magnetism filling voids with male attention lacking supervision her mother goes out weekends nights of heavy drinking men exit while she’s sleeping and she rarely hears them leaving but one night a silent shadow drifting stumbles on her bedroom enters hand gigantic breach between her while above, he stops to whisper this Chorus 2, Heidi Feek Pretty girls, they don’t cry Young men, they don’t die Husbands, they don’t lie And, pretty girls don’t cry When pretty girls don’t get their way, somebody’s gonna have to pay Baby, do you ever wonder why pretty girls don’t cry? Verse 2, Chuckie Campbell Her flawless, pretty face is her perfect imperfection countless violations, now she’s sixteen dancing, drinking work that, twerk that grab your ankles blur the depth peel back the layers dye the hair and pierce the navel hide the hurt and put up walls she learns to run and not to trust black out love and deal with lust numb with drugs or self destruct an object to be used or touched abuse her ‘til they use her up abuse her ‘til they use her up so when she learns she’s pregnant she rubs her stomach restless no father comes to claim it her mother’s hugs and tight embraces meet above and deep beneath her hold her gently as she whispers this Chorus 3, Heidi Feek Pretty girls, they don’t cry Young men, they don’t die Husbands, they don’t lie And, pretty girls don’t cry When pretty girls don’t get their way, somebody’s gonna have to pay Baby, do you ever wonder why pretty girls don’t cry? Bridge, Heidi Feek No I’m not wild with sorrow No, I won’t be here tomorrow I meant it when I said I'd love you true but baby love isn’t bulletproof Verse 3, Chuckie Campbell Her flawless, pretty face is a mask for inner hatred she wanders lost and aimless cursed, ashamed, and often vacant never looked into her infant’s eyes and saw her own reflection instead she saw her absent father and features of her rapist never opened up to tell her mother she was once molested out of fear that she would blame her for the countless indiscretions never felt such waves of anger as she closed our conversation and described her mother’s husband reaching in her daughter’s play pin and I knew then what it meant to be her why she cocked that loaded pistol why aimed and pulled the trigger why she teared up as she whispered this Chorus 4, Heidi Feek Pretty girls, they don’t cry Young men, they don’t die Husbands, they don’t lie And, pretty girls don’t cry When pretty girls don’t get their way, somebody’s gonna have to pay Baby, do you ever wonder why pretty girls don’t cry?
3.
Smoke 02:30 video
She imagined crooked paths, a burning match, a fleeting moment Chinatown, my paranoia passing patterns at pagodas pantomime the wicked omens eyelids flutter, read my palm for a second I believed her when that chill went up my arm I shook it off we took a walk superseding suppositions superfluous superstition a supplement superficial I’m a sinner, bleeding heart lost and circling the summit summon sundown in the summer swigging beer and swapping numbers She’s younger, sweet as syrup swimming midriff in my current talked for hours, still uncertain serendipity was burning I surrender on the surface she spoke as if almost nervous tours in Canada and Europe future persons I would work with I had thoughts and she would word them almost perfect with a purpose her assertions, coercing coherently we’re conversing reaching deep within her purse then lips met in that embrace my heart skipped and missed a beat as neon lights lit up her face the reflections in her eyes something haunting in its wake lit a cigarette, she smiled, pulled my hand the other way Across the street there was a scuffle loud voices at the corner store shots fired, broken glass two men escape the front door crossfire, sirens, taxi cab lays on the horn a baby cries, tires screech something’s burning through my arm time stops, stood at pause, as if it waved a magic wand I looked down and what I found nearly stopped my broken heart her lungs filled with blood and all she could manage was a cough even worse, as she would struggle I was left to sit and watch from time to time, I wonder when my skin gets nice and hot if this scar is just a story left to make a, make a mark Cigarette burns Cigarette burns Cigarette burns
4.
Verse 1, Chuckie Campbell I'm telling the stories unfolding before us like dreams of a life that had fell out of focus if someone had told me that some day a moment could feel like forever I'd tell them that no one's forever devoted like you were devoted and even the notion that time is important is lost to the struggle and effort to hold it We're taking it taking it taking it back My modus operandi is to kill off all your coded lies All you see -- abandoned buildings, poverty, a life of crime I see something different In my city, we just visualize every tenement's a pyramid we dreamed it by design Chorus 1, Chuckie Campbell I wish that I could take the pain away replace it with hope Tell you love will conquer hate that we could right every wrong but life is precious and unfair and often far too short We guard our hearts and rarely realize that we're meant for more and I'm no longer writing songs these are letters from God Today I almost shed a tear 'cause it was warm outside I felt a presence moving through me like the beauty we find when we realize that we're living but we're living to die Bridge, Chuckie Campbell We know We find in time We are from the future Verse 2, Chuckie Campbell We know not what we do It's the lead that in your tap water Monsanto makes your food Xanax, Lexapro, and Vicodin prescribed to alter mood It's the link between our prisons and the drop outs in our schools It's the reruns and the soundbites, talking points on cable news, civil liberties for some, and legal justice for the few Law enforcement in your city march like military troops, trained to serve and to protect, but instead, they point and shoot -- We're quick to blame the victim, post a meme while others march, but I wonder if we're listening or waiting just to talk 5,000 friends on social media, not one writes on your wall All those contacts in your iPhone, yet no one you can call Chorus 2, Chuckie Campbell I wish that I could take the pain away replace it with hope Tell you love will conquer hate that we could right every wrong but life is precious and unfair and often far too short We guard our hearts and rarely realize that we're meant for more and I'm no longer writing songs these are letters from God Today I almost shed a tear 'cause it was warm outside I felt a presence moving through me like the beauty we find when we realize that we're living but we're living to die Bridge, Chuckie Campbell We know We find in time We are from the future Coda, Chuckie Campbell In a world where we seem more connected than ever, we're more divided than we've ever been Where we pursue happiness, we find resentment, and in restraint, we find freedom None of us exist outside the river of time to rectify the past we must acknowledge its role in the present, where tomorrow is never promised, yesterday is gone, through our stories and songs we carry on, taking back tomorrow Bridge, Chuckie Campbell We know We find in time We are from the future
5.
Coda, Chuckie Campbell Guess who’s back? You’re now rocking with the true and living held captive to the truest vision Chuckie Campbell Ras Kass and the magnificent, Mad Dukez this is power Verse 1, Mad Dukez I’m not entitled I know I deserve it been smiling all year still it got you nervous been holding a lane while watching ‘em curb it still building a name from the depths to the surface look, you want the baddest? you got the legend say a prayer to opposers of this thing we rep’n my exploits is on epic so ex noise I hold court, no damn gavel and then deploy boy, lord willing return with the winners mo’ living, mo’ sinning no matter religion only remedy’s the stories you tell and my mission more than vivid, it’s wicked twisted, hitter, you get this Chorus 1, Mad Dukez Yeah, got the whole world tuning in so, go on turn it up louder yeah, feel the surge when they talking yours now, you brimming with the power yeah, now you brimming with the power yeah, now you brimming with the power yeah, now you brimming with the power yeah, now you brimming with the power Verse 2, Ras Kass Reintroducing the best ever --did it finesse clever -- lyrics west weather -- get it sunny, it never rains SoCal, my profile risable great water tax when bro smile the whole style hostile my means murder mics from Mississippi to Moscow Mr. Tipsy, use ditsy sluts like sippy cups breastfeeding whiskey I’m like fifty bucks What’s fifty bills? that’s keepin it one hundred meaning, I’m pretty ill mogul status, sitting on 20 mill these rappers is jokes all I ever hear is that theme music from Benny Hill No fuck boy -- Johnny Gill Chorus 1, Mad Dukez Yeah, got the whole world tuning in so, go on turn it up louder yeah, feel the surge when they talking yours now, you brimming with the power yeah, now you brimming with the power yeah, now you brimming with the power yeah, now you brimming with the power yeah, now you brimming with the power Breakdown, Chuckie Campbell On the other side of pain is power without struggle, there is no progress but the choice is yours I once knew a man in love with his pain he was no more than a slave in love with his chains his life felt like a loop he couldn’t escape so he buried his power, disguised it as hate and, everyone he loved, he pushed them away ‘cause it was easier to leave than ask them to stay easier to blame, criticize, and defame easier to complain than actually change easier to dream than work through the pain and easier to hate than create a better way I’m pursued by a power you managed to take for granted no prototypical patterns repackaged I felt it happen in a vision, color palette of madness and now you found it words are pictures, panoramic and candid -- I got you open like this Rappers...always making me laugh, like skinny jeans and weak raps didn’t didn’t exist in the past When you rap, if I were you, I’d feel like less of a man, like holding Caitlyn Jenner’s testicles in Donald Trump’s hands -- Stand for something greater, shining light in the dark Stars align and I predict the prophet’s path through my palm All along, I push through envy, hate, and doubt for the art, so while you were writing raps, I was writing songs Chorus 1, Mad Dukez Yeah, got the whole world tuning in so, go on turn it up louder yeah, feel the surge when they talking yours now, you brimming with the power yeah, now you brimming with the power yeah, now you brimming with the power yeah, now you brimming with the power yeah, now you brimming with the power
6.
Verse 1, Chuckie Campbell I remember the feelings and patterns repeating the shadows resembling God a cycling ribbon of images flickering on my mind as I’m singing this song every man has a moment to live in his judgment confessing the sins of his heart and sometimes in the process of hurting another improperly measures his loss I think back to the violent open nights broken glass and strobing lights summer surrounding the government housing enclosed and compounding some hopeless fight, hopeless life enough of whatever you want to stay needing enough of whatever you need to stay breathing enough of whatever to keep you from feeling enough and within the interpreted urban decay, the trauma diverted our personal space Introverted, determined to push you away and ask you to prove who you are -- A king or peasant, a saint or a sinner a sheep or shepherd, survivor or victim, you’re both and you’re neither Within every villain's the heart of a hero and every day is a test Chorus 1, Nicole Atkins Wherever I go, that’s where you are Love leaves a witness All my walls come down I never left you This is acceptance Acceptance Collision 1, Chuckie Campbell: Shadows of memories suddenly large discovering that I was never really lost Listening close to the beat of my heart broken approaching your outstretched arms Verse 2, Chuckie Campbell: I’m finally putting together the pieces drunk off the liquor and staring at pictures wondering why the people I needed were always the people I kept at a distance always the people I kept at a distance over the years, I constructed a prison built from the issues I chose not to deal with the lying, the cheating, the alcoholism the violent, volatile, shaking and dreaming the tossing and turning and sweating through pillows emerging as patterns of something much deeper through moments of loss and the process of hurting I hurt other people so nothing is harder than truly forgiving myself For a person who never determines the cause there’s only the feelings that damage their heart avoiding admitting whatever was wrong can put us right back at the start A king or a peasant, a saint or a sinner a sheep or shepherd, survivor or victim, you’re both and you’re neither Within every hero's the heart of a villian and every day is a test Chorus 2, Nicole Atkins Wherever I go, that’s where you are Love leaves a witness All my walls come down I never left you This is acceptance Acceptance Collision 2, Chuckie Campbell Shadows of memories suddenly large discovering that I was never really lost Listening close to the beat of my heart broken approaching your outstretched arms Bridge 1, Chuckie Campbell Shock Pain Descent Blame Denial Depression Broken, approaching your outstretched Broken, approaching your outstretched arms Chorus 3, Nicole Atkins Wherever I go, that’s where you are Love leaves a witness All my walls come down I never left you This is acceptance Acceptance Collision 3a, Chuckie Campbell Shadows of memories suddenly large discovering that I was never really lost Listening close to the beat of my heart broken approaching your outstretched arms Collision 3b, Chuckie Campbell Shock Pain Descent Blame Denial Depression Hope Acceptance Chorus 4, Nicole Atkins Wherever I go, that’s where you are Love leaves a witness All my walls come down I never left you This is acceptance Acceptance Collision 4a, Chuckie Campbell Shadows of memories suddenly large discovering that I was never really lost Listening close to the beat of my heart broken approaching your outstretched arms Collision 4b, Chuckie Campbell Shock Pain Descent Blame Denial Depression Hope Acceptance
7.
Verse 1, Chuckie Campbell In a field of bluegrass a green stop sign pouring black rain glowing gray skies tiny white lies a black wedding dress a world of white rappers and black presidents Human beauty is more than just skin deep I wonder if we'll ever acknowledge just what it means, celebrate our differences and find a shared experience beyond the veil of ignorance we cultivate and teach Unarmed black men dead and lying in the streets like lynched black bodies swinging in the southern breeze My mind and heart are open absorbing pain of the moment If you claim you don't see color, you probably missed the point then -- Broken hearts and fake news bulletproof police vests pushing politicians backing hate crimes and racists mass incarceration and urban gentrification legalize discrimination through systemic effects To hate another person's to love yourself even less We're the same because we're different We're a beautiful mess Colorless lost lives of colorful lifetimes should not leave us colorblind but show us where color lies Chorus 1, Chuckie Campbell In a field of bluegrass a green stop sign pouring black rain glowing gray skies tiny white lies a black wedding dress a world of white rappers and black presidents Green doesn't mean go Red doesn't mean stop How we learn color all depends on what we're taught So we walk between the lines stop and go with flashing lights in a world full of color all we see is black and white Synesthesia Bridge Red, Blue Left, Right Us, Them Black, White Christian, Muslim Wrong, Right Push, Pull Death, Life Verse 2, Talib Kweli Race to the finish taking my place in the winner's circle I'm in a circle of trust I'm making it spin the earth rotate when I bust I'm making it fertile Let'em see the colors that I'm mixing like the medicine Green is for the lettuce and purple is for the lean you know what I mean? It's like the heroin Got you on your balance act The sky is blue, water is wet You can't challenge facts I see them try to battle back disrespectful with battle raps lips chapped, face screwed like they ate a sour patch -- kidnapped now they dropping drones that's how cowards act love for our country but do our country have our back? They try to separate you from the truth but look, it's now attached They want us to rest in peace We just taking power naps Aristocratic elitists are using race to divide us We at each other's throats taking advantage of our brother's kindness Colorblindness, another reminder some of us find it kind of offensive they try to erase the love inside us Chorus 2, Chuckie Campbell In a field of bluegrass a green stop sign pouring black rain glowing gray skies tiny white lies a black wedding dress a world of white rappers and black presidents Green doesn't mean go Red doesn't mean stop How we learn color all depends on what we're taught So we walk between the lines stop and go with flashing lights in a world full of color all we see is black and white Synesthesia Bridge Red, Blue Left, Right Us, Them Black, White Christian, Muslim Wrong, Right Push, Pull Death, Life
8.
Verse, Chuckie Campbell How many senseless acts of violence 'til we value human life? Trayvon Martin, Terence Crutcher Erik Garner, Terry Price Micheal Brown, Sandra Bland Freddie Gray, Phillip White Walter Scott, Jason Moland Dante Parker, Tamir Rice I'm learning how to smile again without storms of sunshine, another routine traffic stop, another broken headlight, another unarmed victim, cellphone video and headline -- another case where all lives matter, except black lives... Watch them blame the victim before his heart can even flat line, demonize the subject then report on black on black crime, ignore the key eye witnesses, "his hand was by his waistline" "the assailant was resisting" "check his wrap sheet in the meantime" Put that officer on paid leave and family on Dateline, mock their tears and feelings, as millions watch them in real time Never mind the patterns, check your make up, yo, we live, right? Queue the lights, arrange the sound, stage is set, prime time -- now Chorus 1, Chuckie Campbel Hands behind your head Lay you flat down on the ground It's a flashlight to the face Run those plates, they out of town It's the -- Language of the Unheard Language of the Unheard For years we couldn't make you listen now we on some Riot, Riot Hands behind your head Lay you flat down on the ground It's a flashlight to the face Run those plates, they out of town It's the -- Language of the Unheard Language of the Unheard For years we couldn't make you listen now we on some Riot, Riot Verse 2, Quadir Lateef Another black male in a jail cell for a crack sell we don't never tell we don't never speak but we always yell in the hood life man, it's always hell in the trap house you can tell the smell in the court room he ain't getting bail 'bout to wild he ain't getting mail single black mom she don't need a male Hands up mean don't shoot Selling dope, ain't no excuse If you rap, ain't dropping facts ain't no excuse, you a prostitute Black man gotta rise up Dose off, open eyes up Unify, gotta grind up Gotta grind up, 'fore your time up I been walking in the street God is with me 'cause I know the devil's always trying to get me I won't fall If I do, they might kick me I break the chains 'cause you know I gotta get free Chorus 2, Chuckie Campbel Hands behind your head Lay you flat down on the ground It's a flashlight to the face Run those plates, they out of town It's the -- Language of the Unheard Language of the Unheard For years we couldn't make you listen now we on some Riot, Riot Hands behind your head Lay you flat down on the ground It's a flashlight to the face Run those plates, they out of town It's the -- Language of the Unheard Language of the Unheard For years we couldn't make you listen now we on some Riot, Riot Coda, Chuckie Campbell Before the cries of justice for Emmett Till, or the beating of Rodney King, already patternizing a difficult relationship with blacks and law enforcement, many ignore that modern policing grows out of slave patrols and night watches meant to criminalize All black people aren't criminals All policemen aren't bad cops All riots are not senseless acts of violence But to ignore our history is to ignore cause and effect and when communication breaks down this is the language of the unheard... this is the language of the unheard Chorus 3, Chuckie Campbell Hands behind your head Lay you flat down on the ground It's a flashlight to the face Run those plates, they out of town It's the -- Language of the Unheard Language of the Unheard For years we couldn't make you listen now we on some Riot, Riot Profile fits description hide your hoodies and your Skittles There's no danger like the fear behind the man who holds a pistol... It's the -- Language of the Unheard Language of the Unheard For years we couldn't make you listen now we on some Riot, Riot X1
9.
Chorus 1: I put my heart into this music because this music is my life from the moment that I wake up ‘til I fall asleep at night a dream is but a dream unless you’re brave enough to try success is what you make it make it more than just a grind ‘cause we ‘gon make it we gon’ make it x 13 these haters think they can fade us, huh? Verse 1: Non-believers are not on my level I settle for nothing, my foot on the pedal I’m feeling your energy, feeling your energy enter the entity into the vessel verses averted and rep’n the turn up converted the effort to work with a purpose invented the rules and then all you learned it you mumbling rappers can come and get murdered told me I wouldn’t amount to nothing from the jump I knew that y’all were wrong locked myself inside my room put pen and pad to writing songs now I travel around the country paid for what y’all hating on much more to the story listen close and try to follow along hold up, hold up now, I’m focused for a moment, I felt hopeless down and out, was almost homeless lost some friends to overdoses more than music it’s my culture ask me what’s the diagnosis I go harder than these vultures Kaepernick can’t stand up for ya Chorus 2: I put my heart into this music because this music is my life from the moment that I wake up ‘til I fall asleep at night a dream is but a dream unless you’re brave enough to try success is what you make it make it more than just a grind ‘cause we ‘gon make it we gon’ make it x 13 these rappers think they can fake it, huh? Verse 2: We put that work in now it’s working through the touring and networking nights we wondered was it worth it slayed these stages, watch us earn it slept on floors in rooms unfurnished waging war on what you worship this world of wealth is not the world if once you wield it you feel worthless -- word? we been traveling, searching, tracking the formulas tunneling under the past peddling music, connecting with people and building our music and brand delivering data, recording the music and destined to follow the path remembering delicate memories digging up pieces and parts of a man hold up, hold up, now, we reaching heights we never dreamed do this, do this for my soul, but also for my team delving deeper, making music meant to set you free listen up and hear my vision come alive and let it breathe Chorus 3: I put my heart into this music because this music is my life from the moment that I wake up ‘til I fall asleep at night a dream is but a dream unless you’re brave enough to try success is what you make it make it more than just a grind ‘cause we ‘gon make it we gon’ make it x 13 these haters gon’ make us famous, huh? Breakdown: We put that work in now it’s working if you work it, hit the floor we go hard and we go stupid we go ignorant, drop it low our world is turning, so we turn up time is ticking, let it go life is precious, spend it present in that moment that we hold our world is turning, so turn up time is ticking, let it go life is precious, spend it present in that moment that we hold we put that work in ‘til it’s working if it’s worth it, you will know we go hard and we go stupid we go ignorant, for our goals and we ‘gon make it we celebrate it and we been patient it’s entertainment the aim is to strive for greatness, huh? Truncated Chorus 1: I put my heart into this music because this music is my life from the moment that I wake up ‘til I fall asleep at night a dream is but a dream unless you’re brave enough to try success is what you make it make it more than just a grind…. Chorus 4: I put my heart into this music because this music is my life from the moment that I wake up ‘til I fall asleep at night a dream is but a dream unless you’re brave enough to try success is what you make it make it more than just a grind ‘cause we ‘gon make it we gon’ make it x 13 these haters ‘gon make us famous, huh?
10.
Coda, Chuckie Campbell: When I first started out, I just wanted to rap -- at school beating rhythms on those cafeteria tables in that broken down Chevy Impala on those crooked, winding country roads you rapped in the mirror, in the shower, at the party, and on the walk home Verse 1, Chuckie Campbell: I remember when the music was nothing but a vision when all that really mattered was a feeling to me, it was a culture before it was a business I never wanted more than I could give it now, we in the building people want to listen throw they hands up to the ceiling brought the whole band in a full tour van this is how we make our living independent, instigated liberated thought initiating innovative integrative costs I put that work in now you haters at a loss let me show you how to walk that walk this is for the people dedicated to the cause thinking with they head and they heart Chorus 1, Iesha Green: Everybody, move your body, come together If you feel it, like I feel it, do whatever Move your body to the beat everybody move your feet put your left foot, with your right foot come on, people It doesn’t matter who’s wrong or right as long as we’re dancing as long as we're dancing Everybody, tell somebody to get up and let yourself be free One Two Three Four Bridge, Chuckie Campbell: Yeah, I always believed this was more than just music when our worlds come crashing down this is what reminded us what it meant to be human to be alive, to feel, we have a responsibility to grow to come together, to love each other, to be one, to be whole Verse 2, Chuckie Campbell: I wonder how to put it into words tell you all the facts even if it hurts express my truth while listening to yours we’re capable of so much more I rap for the rain falling hard in your heart or the girl all alone calling out in the dark in an alley looking up with a needle in her arm praying she can raise this child or the fate of a friend when you wipe away tears from the face of a man with the mind of a kid locked for a bid almost twenty five years for a crime that he never even did Listen, this is for the people dedicated to the cause when music is all we got -- Dance. Chorus 2, Iesha Green: Everybody, move your body, come together If you feel it, like I feel it, do whatever Move your body to the beat everybody move your feet put your left foot, with your right foot come on, people It doesn’t matter who’s wrong or right as long as we’re dancing as long as we're dancing Everybody, tell somebody to get up and let yourself be free Adlib, Iesha Green: I feel like dancing I feel like moving to the beat and nothing’s going to stop me and I feel like moving so don’t nobody stop me and don’t nobody move me ‘cause I feel good tonight Collision x 2, Chuckie Campbell Love, Compassion Trust, Forgiveness Caring, Courage Family, Friendship Thought and Feeling Passion, Vision Fairness, Wisdom Love, Persistence
11.
Coda, Chuckie Campbell Feels good Feels like the morning after Still dark outside Sometime I just like to look up Look up and ask myself Verse 1, Chuckie Campbell Are we waiting to be loved or do we deserve it or even at our worst are we worth it, I wonder nervous We were young, staring up at the stars, burning light punching holes in the blackness pulsing hot like the beat of our hearts Nothing here is real in that infinite dark and I can feel vibrating like it's singing me songs Maybe reach into the far beyond extending my palm -- like our problems could be solved by simply sharing our thoughts I wander off into the night searching for meaning in life revisiting every feeling too difficult to hide Approaching from behind the memories left inside the moon will be my magnet manipulating the tide I'm recounting in my mind all the people who died, either chasing an unchase-able high, or fighting an unwinnable fight in some unlivable life, so consuming to consume it its consumers commit suicide Remind me of what it would take for us to value human life, treat each other human, like the depths of this experience were obvious and justified -- to let go of the pain let go of the strain on the outside what looks different somehow inside is the same somehow we discover something human in that space, somehow it's our differences we learn to celebrate, ironically, it's love that often shows us how to hate to understand the heart breaks uneven when it breaks We navigate the human heart as if it were a place pin our feelings to the map and learn the map is in the way We're actors in a play The world is our stage, but performing human freedom proves us prisoners of fate The bully learns to bully feeling bullied and afraid; the player learns to play from the hurt of being played; the addict forms his habit trying to take away the pain -- trapped within this cycle reciprocity expires the participants required are a master and a slave Who are you today? And who are you to say? when you kick it with these people who don't recognize they're chained, who raise their hand to talk and only stand in line to wait, who speak about their dreams, but do nothing but complain -- The trick behind the dream is they're dreaming their awake and I'm sick of the excuses and the comments and the blame I'm sick of staying silent trying to hold in all this rage in this xenophobic, homophobic nation full of hate Listen. I don't have the answers and don't want to just complain, don't think a simple rap song could wash away the pain, the echoes of expression in dynamic interplay, but I refuse to let you hurt the ones I love and walk away I'll fight for what I love until you put me in my grave For every man you treat as less, every cause has an effect, every action a reaction to reciprocate that pain -- What's that really mean now in these United States? Conservatives are stupid, racist, or insane? Liberals are cucks or liberal snowflakes? What do you accomplish by calling these people names? It's just another cycle instructing us who to blame, just another code reminding us who to hate The natives here were killed or systematically contained; Texas once was Mexico 'til Mexicans were slain; the Chinese built our railroads for beneath a living wage; Japanese in concentration camps; the Africans were slaves, and no matter how much history you wash or just erase, by denying or ignoring these events have taken place, it furthers a divide by trying to wish the pain away Instead of dealing with the problem, we slap on a band aid, treat the minor symptoms, while the sickness still remains, spread it like a virus through the sacred and profane With no foreseeable future or solutions now to date, the least that we can do is admit that it's man made. That very revelation reveals an important thing: we could make a different world but we love the one we've made with the anger and the killing and the greed it undetakes I'm weary and I'm tired I'm feeling some type of way I walk the city streets and stare at the cityscapes, listen to darkness and ask it to explain -- Are we waiting to be loved or do we deserve it or even at our worst are we worth it, I wonder nervous We were young, staring up at the stars, burning light punching holes in the blackness pulsing hot like the beat of our hearts Yo, your love is real Don't let'em tell you it's not and I can feel it vibrating like it's singing me songs I can feel it vibrating like it's singing me songs... Yo, I feel it vibrating like it's singing me songs... the morning after

about

"Taking Back Tomorrow" aspires to be a daring and personal full length album that confronts the impermanence of a world where tomorrow is never promised. It is an invitation for personal renewal and a reclaiming of time and balance, reminding us of the strength and courage it takes, not only to hold on, but to let go."

credits

released June 8, 2018

Thank yous are extended to all who put their blood, sweat, and tears into the making of this project.

All songs written and performed by Chuckie Campbell for Sunsets and Silencers Music, Buffalo, NY, except for verses and choruses on “Power” by Mad Dukez and Ras Kass; “Synesthesia” by Talib Kweli;“It Doesn’t Matter” by Iesha Green; “Language of the Unheard” by Quadir Lateef; “All Things End” by Michael Grubbs of Wakey Wakey, and “Love Leaves a Witness” by Willie Breeding and Nicole Atkins.

Additional vocals by Talib Kweli on “Synesthesia”

Additional vocals by Iesha Green on “It Doesn’t Matter” and “All Things End”

Additional vocals by Heidi Feek on “Pretty Girls”

Additional vocals by Nicole Atkins on “Love Leaves a Witness”

Additional vocals by Ras Kass for Re Up Entertainment/ Cre8yte Corporation on “Power”

Additional vocals by Mad Dukez on “Power”

Additional vocals by Bobby Williams, Yvon “Iyam” Macon, Leo Nelson, Jalen Workman, Corey Threet, Zahir Kijani, Amanda Orr, Rachel Medley, Charae Duncan, Felecia Rodolph, Leah Medley, Latoya Bloom Reid, and Mandie Beanie for One Nation Choir on “All Things End”

Additional Guitar on “It Doesn’t Matter” by Justin Craig in New York, New York

Additional Guitar on “Pretty Girls” by Jeremy Fetzer of Steelism in Nashville, TN

Additional Guitar on “All Things End” by Jeremy Fetzer of Steelism in Nashville, TN

Additional Bass Guitar on “It Doesn’t Matter” by James “Hags” Haggerty in Nashville, TN

Additional Bass Guitar on "Smoke" by Rob Crowell in Nashville, TN

Additional Saxophone on "Smoke" by Rob Crowell in Nashville, TN

Additional Drums by David “Teaspoon” Hulett in Buffalo, NY

Additional Keys by Micah Hulscher on “It Doesn’t Matter” in Nashville, TN

Additional Flute by Nick Easton on “The Morning After” recorded at the Hattr Hole in London, ON

Additional Trumpet on “The Morning After,” “Power,” “Meant for More,” and “It Doesn’t Matter” by Emilio Virella in Buffalo, NY

Additional Trombone on “The Morning After,” “Power,” “Meant for More,” and “It Doesn’t Matter” by Shawn West and Naheem Shabazz in Buffalo, NY

Additional Strings on “Pretty Girls” by Mark Evitts in Nashville, TN

Engineered by Willie Breeding in Buffalo, NY and Nashville, TN

Additional recording and engineering done by Alan Dusel at Starfields Productions in Buffalo, NY and California Road Studios in Orchard Park, NY

Additional engineering by Chuckie Campbell at Sunsets and Silencers Music, Buffalo, NY

Additional production and programming by Bobby Campbell on “Pretty Girls,” “Power,” and “Synesthesia” in Nashville, TN

Recorded, produced, and mixed at True Blue Recording by Willie Breeding in Nashville, TN

Mastered by Kevin Peterson at The Mastering Palace in New York, NY

Album Artwork by Kerby Rosanes for Kerby Rosanes Doodle Art and Illustration in Manila, Philippines.

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Chuckie Campbell Buffalo, New York

Chuckie Campbell is an American hip hop artist who lives in Buffalo, NY. Campbell commonly performs with a live band (drums, keys, and a full horn section), to make for a dynamic, powerful, and eclectic approach to hip hop, filled with fluid instrumentation, lush musical arrangements, and heartfelt poetic nuance. ... more

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