(Intro — soft mbira-inspired pluck + trap pad)
"Warden made this one..."
— deep 808 hits, low pad hum —
(Hook — Shona + English | deliver with breathy tails on Shona)
Handichadzoki kwauri (han-dee-CHA-dzo-kee KWAA-ree) — (breathy tail)
Wandisiya — ndiri lonely (wan-dee-SEE-ya n-dee-REE LOH-nee) — (soft exhale)
You say you love me slowly
Asi wakanditadzira, homie (AH-see wah-kan-dee-TEE-dza-rah) — (hard consonant)
Mwoyo wangu warwadza (MWO-yo WAHN-goo wah-RWAH-dza) — (long hold)
But I’m stronger than before
Ndakadzidza kubva kumarwadzo (ndah-kah-DZEE-jah KOOT-svah koo-mahr-WAH-dzo) — (breathy)
I’m not turning back — I left the key in the dark
(Verse 1 — reflective, concrete sensory detail)
Cold ashtray on the dash, corner of 5th and Monroe
Streetlight flicker like a pulse in a neighborhood I used to know
Voicemail at 2:13 — your voice: "We'll figure it out," then static
Photo on the dash, June '19 scribbled, lipstick on the fabric
You said "ndinokuda" softly (n-dee-noh-KOO-dah) — mouth close, half-smile
Now you walk past like you don't know the miles we compiled
Shamwari dzangu dzakati, "bro, she’s playing with your head"
I kept receipts — receipts of nights I stayed awake instead
(Pre-Hook — intimate, pull back to one mic)
Usandifonere usiku (oo-SAHN-dee-foh-NEH-reh oo-SEE-koo) — (breathy)
When you feel alone, don’t call me
'Cause when I needed you most
You left my name ringing on a screen I couldn't see
(Hook — Shona + English — tighten final word impact)
Handichadzoki kwauri (han-dee-CHA-dzo-kee KWAA-ree) — (breathy tail)
Wandisiya — ndiri lonely (wan-dee-SEE-ya n-dee-REE LOH-nee)
You say you love me slowly
Asi wakanditadzira, homie (AH-see wah-kan-dee-TEE-dza-rah)
Mwoyo wangu warwadza (MWO-yo WAHN-goo wah-RWAH-dza)
But I’m stronger than before
Ndakadzidza kubva kumarwadzo (ndah-kah-DZEE-jah KOOT-svah koo-mahr-WAH-dzo)
I’m not turning back — I left the key in the dark
(Verse 2 — confident, sharper cadence, concrete images)
Sour coffee in the sink, black like the bottom of the week
Blood-red skyline from the highway, city coughin' when it sleeps
You pull up in the lane where we used to scream our dreams aloud
Now it’s mirrors and a shadow, you look lost in a crowd
Ndakachema kare, zvino ndakasimba (ndah-kah-CHEH-mah KAH-reh, ZEE-noh ndah-kah-SEEM-bah)
I burned the lists of everything you said would save us, left the embers on my shirt
Love ain't supposed to feel like a ledger full of hurt
If it's real it holds you close — if it's fake, it shows the dirt
(Aggressive Rap — 8 bars | triplet flow, sharper imagery)
Voicemail at 2, your whisper cracked like glass / nights teach you lessons while your promises don't last
I forged my nights into armor, every loss a cartographer's map / you dial nostalgia, I shut the door, I trap the past
Cold ash on my sleeve, sour coffee cup, streets spit facts / blood-red skyline guide me — I don't look back
You call from the curb at midnight, corner names I'm still avoiding / I patched my wounds
