[Intro]
(Vinyl crackle, soft rain)
88 in the pocket, low 808 breathe
Night hum on Perkins, neon stutters where the levee meets the street (yeah)
Call it home, call it hustle — Red Stick, Bayou Heat
[Verse 1]
Late night, Perkins Rd, stoplight heartbeat, dash-lit chrome
Mixtapes in the trunk, mama prayin', I been on my own
Dealer of dreams, not the kind you buy with plastic cash
I trade stories for a stack, teachin' lessons in the back of a '63 Impala, fast
Spanish Town murals, spray paint saints, pray for rain to wash the pain
Cops roll slow, bass low, we chantin' names like they sing in Tiger Stadium’s frame
Pocket full of promises, pockets patched from last summer's leak
I counted hopes on a paper plate at a crawfish boil, sauce on my cheek
(Hook the line) — we runnin' routes where the river bends and the lights blink
I learned how to keep my cool when the floodwaters try to think
[Pre-Chorus]
When the Mississippi whispers, you answer in a heartbeat
We tie up boats, pass the rope, family first on every street (say what)
Hands in the dirt, hands on the wheel — stayin' steady on our feet
We breathe slow, then explode — let that Red Stick heat repeat
[Chorus]
Red Stick, Bayou Heat
Red Stick, Bayou Heat
(Ad-libs: Yeah! Say what? Bayou on me!)
[Verse 2]
Childhood on the riverbank, fishlines, sneakers full of mud
Granddaddy swore by his watch, taught me how to hustle with love
Tailgate Sundays at Tiger Stadium, purple gold flags wave loud
Mama sellin' po-boys, neighbors shout, whole block movin' proud
Second-line parades, parasols swing, brass horns cut the sky
We learned to celebrate every damn thing even when we barely get by
Perkins to the River Road, every corner got a hymn
Saw my first fight then my first prayer — learned to take both on a whim
Punchlines crisp like the snap of the snare, internal rhymes like a river splice
Life gave me two choices: fold up quiet or roll like fire and ice
[Pre-Chorus]
When the levee groans, we lean in, not away from heat
Pass the chair, pass the plate, share the last cold something to eat
We got grit in our teeth, gumbo in the pot — we turn loss into beat
Breathe deep, let the mantra rise, then drop the hook on repeat
[Chorus]
Red Stick, Bayou Heat
Red Stick, Bayou Heat
(Ad-libs: Uh! Bayou, hold up!)
[Bridge — Micro-story: Flood Night]
Remember that night the river climbed, radio crackled like a preacher
Ol' Mrs. Dupré with a candle on the stoop, pitch-black without a teacher
We shoved out boats, lifted couches, traded shoes for makeshift oars
Neighbors that never spoke tightened straps, opened every door
I held a baby, she hummed a hymn — we flagged down salvation in the dark
Flames of a grill, smoke like hope, every porch a small, bright spark
Punchline: we ain't born from gold, we made the gold from grit and heat
When lightning writes our names in the sky, we dance barefoot in the street
[Verse 3 — Final Push]
Now when I step to a mic, I speak names: Perkins, Spanish Town, the River
I rap for the hustlers, the bakers, the moms who never quiver
Tiger ro
