Alright – English Lyrics

• By: Kendrick Lamar
• Album: To Pimp A Butterfly

Lyrics & Translation

Discover the story behind Kendrick Lamar's 'Alright,' a song that transcends music to become a cultural touchstone. Learning the lyrics offers insight into the language of resilience, faith, and protest in modern America. The song's blend of poetic wordplay, direct social commentary, and a universally hopeful chorus makes it a unique and powerful tool for understanding the intersection of art and activism.

[English]

All's my life, I has to fight, -

All's my life, I

Hard times like, ya

Bad trips like, ya

Nazareth

I'm f- up, homie, you f- up

But if God got us, then we gon' be alright

-, we gon' be alright

-, we gon' be alright

We gon' be alright

Do you hear me? Do you feel me? We gon' be alright (be alright)

-, we gon' be alright

Huh? We gon' be alright

(Nigga) we gon' be alright

Do you hear me? Do you feel me? We gon' be alright

Uh, and when I wake up

I recognize you're looking at me for the pay cut

But homicide be looking at you from the face down

What MAC-11 even boom with the bass down?

Schemin', and let me tell you 'bout my life

Painkillers only put me in the twilight

Where pretty - Benjamin is the highlight

Now tell my mamma I love her, but this what I like, Lord knows

20 of 'em in my Chevy, tell 'em all to come and get me

Reaping everything I sow, so my karma coming heavy

No preliminary hearings on my record

I'm a - gangster in silence for the record, uh

Tell the world I know it's too late

Boys and girls, I think I've gone cray

Drown inside my vices all day

Won't you please believe when I say

Wouldn't you know

We been hurt, been down before

-, when our pride was low

Lookin' at the world like, "Where do we go?"

-, and we hate po-po

Wanna kill us dead in the street for sure

-, I'm at the preacher's door

My knees gettin' weak, and my gun might blow

But we gon' be alright

-, we gon' be alright

-, we gon' be alright (nigga)

We gon' be alright

Do you hear me? Do you feel me? We gon' be alright

-, we gon' be alright

Huh? We gon' be alright

-, we gon' be alright

Do you hear me? Do you feel me? We gon' be alright

What you want? You, a house? You, a car?

40 acres and a mule? A piano? A guitar?

Anything, see my name is Lucy, I'm your dog

Motherf-, you can live at the mall

I can see the evil, I can tell it, I know it's illegal

I don't think about it, I deposit every other zero

Thinking of my partner, put the candy, paint it on the Regal

Digging in my pocket, ain't a profit big enough to feed you

Every day my logic, get another dollar just to keep you

In the presence of your chico, ah!

I don't talk about it, be about it, every day I sequel

If I got it then you know you got it, Heaven, I can reach you

Pat Dawg, Pat Dawg, Pat Dawg, my dog, that's all

Bick back and Chad, I trap the bag for y'all

I rap, I black on track so rest assured

My rights, my wrongs, I write 'til I'm right with God

Wouldn't you know

We been hurt, been down before

-, when our pride was low

Lookin' at the world like, "Where do we go?"

-, and we hate po-po

Wanna kill us dead in the street for sure

-, I'm at the preacher's door

My knees gettin' weak, and my gun might blow

But we gon' be alright

-, we gon' be alright

-, we gon' be alright

We gon' be alright

Do you hear me? Do you feel me? We gon' be alright

-, we gon' be alright

Huh? We gon' be alright

-, we gon' be alright

Do you hear me? Do you feel me? We gon' be alright

I keep my head up high

I cross my heart and hope to die

Lovin' me is complicated

Too afraid, a lot of changes

I'm alright, and you're a favorite

Dark nights in my prayers

I remember you was conflicted

Misusing your influence

Sometimes I did the same

Abusing my power, full of resentment

Resentment that turned into a deep depression

Found myself screamin' in a hotel room

I didn't wanna self-destruct

The evils of Lucy was all around me

So I went runnin' for answers

...

Key Vocabulary

Vocabulary	Meanings
fight /faɪt/ A2	verb - to take part in a violent struggle involving physical force or weapons. noun - a violent confrontation or struggle.
hear /hɪr/ A1	verb - to perceive with the ear the sound made by (someone or something).
feel /fiːl/ A1	verb - be aware of (something) through touching.
wake /weɪk/ A2	verb - to emerge from sleep; stop sleeping.
life /laɪf/ A1	noun - the condition that distinguishes organisms from inorganic matter, including the capacity for growth, reproduction, functional activity, and continual change preceding death.
times /taɪmz/ A1	noun - an instance of something happening.
pain /peɪn/ A2	noun - physical suffering or discomfort caused by illness or injury.
love /lʌv/ A1	verb - have a strong affection for. noun - an intense feeling of affection.
world /wɜːrld/ A1	noun - the earth, together with all of its countries, peoples, and natural forces.
kill /kɪl/ A2	verb - cause the death of (a person, animal, or other living thing).
weak /wiːk/ A2	adjective - lacking the power to perform physically demanding tasks; having little physical strength or energy.
blow /bloʊ/ B1	verb - (of wind) move creating an air current. verb - explode
evil /ˈiːvəl/ B2	adjective - profoundly immoral and wicked. noun - profound immorality, wickedness, and depravity, especially when regarded as a supernatural force.
answers /ˈænsər/ A2	noun - a reply to a question or problem.
heart /hɑːrt/ A1	noun - a hollow muscular organ that pumps the blood through the circulatory system by rhythmic contraction and dilation.
pride /praɪd/ B1	noun - a feeling of deep pleasure or satisfaction derived from one's own achievements, the achievements of one's close associates, or from qualities or possessions that are widely admired.
power /ˈpaʊər/ B1	noun - the ability to do something or act in a particular way, especially as a faculty or quality.
dark /dɑːrk/ A2	adjective - with little or no light.

Key Grammar Structures

• All's my life, I has to fight

  ➔ Non-standard English/Dialect - Use of 'has' with 'I'

  ➔ This line uses non-standard grammar. The correct form would be "All my life, I *have* to fight." The use of "has" is a deliberate choice for stylistic effect, reflecting a specific dialect or vernacular.

• But if God got us, then we gon' be alright

  ➔ Conditional sentence (Type 1 variant); 'gon'' (going to)

  ➔ This line uses a conditional sentence. "*If* God got us, *then* we gon' be alright." 'Gon'' is a colloquial abbreviation for 'going to', indicating future tense. The condition (God got us) leads to the result (we're going to be alright).

• Homicide be looking at you from the face down

  ➔ Subject-verb agreement with a collective noun ('homicide'); prepositional phrase ('from the face down')

  ➔ Here, "homicide" is treated as a singular, collective noun. The prepositional phrase "*from the face down*" modifies the verb "be looking" describing the direction of the look. It implies death or a threatening stare.

• Now tell my mamma I love her, but this what I like, Lord knows

  ➔ Imperative ('tell'); indirect object ('mamma'); relative pronoun omission ('what'); parenthetical insertion ('Lord knows')

  ➔ "*Tell* my mamma I love her" is an imperative sentence. The line omits the relative pronoun 'that' in the clause "this *is* what I like." "Lord knows" is a parenthetical insertion, adding emphasis or expressing the speaker's conviction.

• Reaping everything I sow, so my karma coming heavy

  ➔ Present participle ('reaping', 'coming'); causal conjunction ('so')

  ➔ "Reaping" and "coming" are both present participles used as verbs. The conjunction "*so*" indicates a cause-and-effect relationship: because the speaker is reaping what he sowed, his karma is coming heavily.

• I'm a - gangster in silence for the record, uh

  ➔ Use of 'a' before noun ('gangster'); prepositional phrase ('for the record')

  ➔ The indefinite article "*a*" precedes the singular noun "gangster." The prepositional phrase "*for the record*" is an idiom used to emphasize the truth or to ensure clarity about what is being said.

• Boys and girls, I think I've gone cray

  ➔ Present perfect tense ('I've gone'); adjective ('cray' - slang for crazy)

  ➔ "I've gone" is the present perfect tense of the verb "go", indicating a completed action with present relevance. "Cray" is a slang term for "crazy", used as an adjective to describe the speaker's mental state.