Kick, Push – English Lyrics

• By: Lupe Fiasco
• Album: Lupe Fiasco's Food & Liquor

Lyrics & Translation

Dive into the lyrical artistry of Lupe Fiasco's "Kick, Push" – a captivating storytelling masterpiece that encourages listeners to embrace their passions and persist through life's journey. This song offers a unique opportunity to explore rich English vocabulary and nuanced metaphors, making it a truly special track for language learners and music enthusiasts alike. You can learn about narrative structure, idiomatic expressions, and how everyday actions can symbolize deeper life lessons.

[English]

Ugh! (Woo!) What up, y'all? Yeah

(Soundtrakk, what's poppin', baby?)

Woo! (Ugh)

If y'all ain't know

I go by the name of Lupe Fiasco

Representing that First and Fifteenth, yeah, uh

And this one right here

I dedicate this one right here (Uproxx...)

To all my homies out there grinding

You know what I'm saying? Legally and illegally, haha

You know what I'm talking about?

So, check it out, uh

First got it when he was six, didn't know any tricks

Matter of fact, first time he got on it, he slipped

Landed on his hip and busted his lip

For a week he had to talk with a lisp, like thisss... (Ugh)

Now we can end the story right here

But shorty didn't quit, it was something in the air (Ugh)

Yeah, he said it was something so appealing

He couldn't fight the feeling, something about it

He knew he couldn't doubt it, couldn't understand it

Branded, since the first kickflip he landed, ugh (Woo)

Labeled a misfit, a bandit

Ka-kunk, ka-kunk, ka-kunk; his neighbors couldn't stand it

So, he was banished to the park

Started in the morning, wouldn't stop 'til after dark, yeah

When they said "It's getting late in here

So I'm sorry, young man, there's no skating here"

And so he kick, push, kick, push

Kick, push, kick, push; coast...

And away he rolled

Just a rebel to the world with no place to go

And so he kick, push, kick, push

Kick, push, kick, push; coast...

So come and skate with me

Just a rebel looking for a place to be

So let's kick... (Ugh)

And push (Y-yeah, y-yeah-yeah)

And coast

Uh, uh, uh (Y-yeah, y-yeah-yeah)

My man got a little older, became a better roller

Yeah, no helmet, hell bent on killing himself

Is what his mama said, but he was feeling himself

Got a little more swagger in his style

Met his girlfriend, she was clapping in the crowd

Love is what-what was happening to him now, ugh!

He said "I would marry you

But I'm engaged to these aerials and varials

And I don't think this board is strong enough to carry two"

She said "Bow! I weigh a hundred and twenty pounds" (Woo!)

"Now, let me make one thing clear

I don't need to ride yours, I got mine right here"

So she took him to a spot he didn't know about

Some odd-end apartment parking lot

She said "I don't normally take dates in here"

Security came and said "I'm sorry, there's no skating here"

And so they kick, push, kick, push

Kick, push, kick, push; coast...

And away they roll

Just lovers intertwined with no place to go

And so they kick, push, kick, push

Kick, push, kick, push; coast...

So come and skate with me

Just a rebel looking for a place to be

So let's kick (Ugh, ugh)

And push, yeah, yeah (Woo, woo)

And coast... (Yeah, ugh!)

Yeah, yeah!

Before he knew, he had a crew that wasn't no punk

In they Spitfire shirts and SB dunks

They would push 'til they couldn't skate no more

Office building lobbies wasn't safe no more

And it wasn't like they wasn't getting chased no more

Just the freedom was better than breathing, they said (They said...)

An escape route they used to escape out

When things got crazy, they needed to break out

They'd head... to any place with stairs

Any good grinds, the world was theirs, ugh!

And their four wheels would take them there

Until the cops came and said, "There's no skating here"

Key Vocabulary

Vocabulary	Meanings
kick /kɪk/ A1	verb - to strike out with the foot
push /pʊʃ/ A1	verb - to exert force on something to move it
skate /skeɪt/ A2	verb - to glide on skates or a skateboard noun - a shoe with wheels for gliding
coast /koʊst/ A2	verb - to move smoothly along without effort
rebel /ˈrɛbəl/ B1	noun - a person who resists authority adjective - resisting authority or control
grind /ɡraɪnd/ B1	verb - to perform a skateboarding trick on a ledge noun - a skateboarding trick
swagger /ˈswæɡər/ B2	noun - a confident, arrogant manner
aerial /ˈɛriəl/ B2	noun - a skateboarding trick performed in the air
varial /ˈvɛəriəl/ C1	noun - a skateboarding trick involving a spin
banish /ˈbænɪʃ/ B2	verb - to send someone away forcibly
misfit /ˈmɪsfɪt/ B2	noun - a person who does not fit in
bandit /ˈbændɪt/ B1	noun - an outlaw or thief
swagger /ˈswæɡər/ B2	noun - a confident, arrogant manner
escape /ɪˈskeɪp/ A2	verb - to break free from confinement noun - an act of breaking free
crew /kruː/ A2	noun - a group of people working together
freedom /ˈfriːdəm/ A2	noun - the state of being free

Key Grammar Structures

• First got it when he was six, didn't know any tricks

  ➔ Past Simple & Subject-Verb Agreement

  ➔ Uses "**got**" and "**didn't know**" to describe past actions. Subject-verb agreement is correct.

• Now we can end the story right here

  ➔ Modal Verb "can" & Present tense

  ➔ Uses the modal verb "**can**" to express ability or possibility. The main verb "**end**" is in the present tense.

• He knew he couldn't doubt it, couldn't understand it

  ➔ Modal Verb "could" in the past tense (couldn't)

  ➔ Uses the past tense of "**could**" (couldn't) to express inability or lack of permission in the past.

• Labeled a misfit, a bandit

  ➔ Past Participle (Passive Voice)

  ➔ Uses the past participle "**labeled**" in a passive sense to describe the subject's categorization.

• So, he was banished to the park

  ➔ Past Passive voice

  ➔ Uses the past passive voice, "**was banished**", to show the action was done to the subject

• When they said "It's getting late in here

  ➔ Present Continuous Tense ("getting") & Reported Speech

  ➔ Uses the present continuous "**getting**" to describe an ongoing process and reported speech by quoting what was said. "**It's**" (It is) is present simple.

• Just a rebel to the world with no place to go

  ➔ Prepositional phrase "to the world" and infinitive clause of purpose

  ➔ Uses a prepositional phrase "**to the world**" to describe the subject's relationship with the world and an infinitive phrase "**to go**" expressing a lack of purpose or destination.

• Love is what-what was happening to him now, ugh!

  ➔ Emphasis and Inversion

  ➔ The repetition "**what-what**" emphasizes the idea. The sentence structure is unconventional but used for emphasis. The use of "**was happening**" also shows past continuous

• But I'm engaged to these aerials and varials

  ➔ Figurative Language/Metaphor

  ➔ Uses figurative language; compares the commitment to the board to a commitment to marriage. Uses "**engaged to**" with the board, which is a metaphor.

• Before he knew, he had a crew that wasn't no punk

  ➔ Subordinating Clause & Double Negative

  ➔ Uses a subordinating clause "**Before he knew**". Uses the double negative "**wasn't no punk**", which emphasizes that they were not. Often considered grammatically incorrect, but used in spoken language for emphasis.