[Intro — Spoken over four-on-the-floor kick] Hey — la nuit nous appelle — Pénitentiaire en avant! (Disco bassline fades in, mirror ball click) [Verse 1] Midnight yard — shadows on the wall, Neon guard lights paint the call. Barred reflections on a mirror ball, Locked doubts tapping the rhythm of my fall. [Pre-Chorus — rising, snaps/claps build] From concrete to starlight — count the steps we climb, Feel the pulse — a heartbeat on the downbeat time. (Backing vocals: “count the steps — climb!”) [Chorus — Short chant, call & response] Lead (staccato): En avant! — En avant! Response (layered): Pénitentiaire! Lead: En avant! — En avant! Response (call/response): Pénitentiaire! (Backing: handclaps, echo: “en avant!”) [Verse 2] Chains of habit like a midnight chain-link fence, Keys are songs we've locked away — no pretense. Footsteps syncopate with a disco bass descent, We spin the yard — freedom's our intent. [Pre-Chorus — lift] From cell to spotlight — count the beats, arise, Snap your fingers — let the old self say goodbye. (Backing vocals: “au revoir chaînes — en lumière”) [Chorus — Repeat, fuller] Lead: En avant! — En avant! Response: Pénitentiaire! Lead: En avant! — En avant! Response: Pénitentiaire! (Call: “Break out!” interwoven between lines) [Vamp — four bars, ascending] (Instrumental vamp: strings swirl, bassline walking higher) Spoken: Feel that key turn in your pocket? That’s hope. [Bridge — half-time breakdown, percussive claps, echo] Quiet now — the mirror ball is a tiny sky, Snap — the echo cracks the old alibi. Hands on the bars — but the bars are light, Guard lights blink — the disco turns to flight. (Production cue: remove kick, add toms & hand percussion) [Build — big return] Climb the steps — count the stars — one, two, three, All together — breath and beat and history. (Backing: layered harmonies, rising four-part) [Final Chorus — key lift, full arrangement] Lead (anthemic): En avant! — En avant! Response (gang vocals): Pénitentiaire! Lead: En avant! — En avant! Response: Pénitentiaire! (Backing call: “Break out! Break out!” — horns hit) [Outro — ad-libs, layered] Keep on — keep on — don’t look back tonight (en lumière), Hands held, hips sway, we own the light. (Ad-libs: “liberté, liberté” — high harmonies) Pénitentiaire en avant — chant it loud, chant it right! [Production & Vocal Arrangement Notes — for performers] - Tempo: steady four-on-the-floor, ~120–125 BPM. - Hook: short chant “En avant!” with call-and-response on title. - Backing: call-and-response on choruses, layered ad-libs in outro. - Bridge : half-time percussive breakdown, then key lift for final chorus. - Disco elements: mirror ball, bassline walk, claps/snaps, horn hits, string swells. - Language: bilingual flavor (sprinkle of French phrases for rhythm and authenticity).