Pink + White – English Lyrics

• By: Frank Ocean

Lyrics & Translation

Embark on a linguistic and emotional journey with Frank Ocean's "Pink + White," a track lauded for its lyrical depth and tranquil melody. This song offers a unique opportunity to explore English through its poetic narrative of life's unpredictable beauty, the bittersweet nature of memory, and the power of acceptance. Its smooth R&B and neo-soul sounds, combined with introspective lyrics, make it a perfect song to immerse yourself in the nuances of the English language and connect with profound human experiences.

[English]

Yeah, yeah oh

Yeah, yeah yeah

That's the way everyday goes

Every time we've no control

If the sky is pink and white

If the ground is black and yellow

It's the same way you showed me

Nod my head, don't close my eyes

Halfway on a slow move

It's the same way you showed me

If you could fly then you'd feel south

Up north's getting cold soon

The way it is, we're on land

So I'm someone to hold true

Keep you cool when it's still alive

Won't let you down when it's all ruin

Just the same way you showed me, showed me

You showed me love

...

Glory from above

Regard my dear

...

It's all downhill from here

In the wake of a hurricane

Dark skin of a summer shade

Nosedive in the flood lines

Tall tower of milk crates

It's the same way you showed me

Cannonball off the porch side

Older kids trying off the roof

Just the same way you showed me (You showed)

If you could die and come back to life

Up for air from the swimming pool

You'd kneel down to the dry land

Kiss the Earth that birthed you

Gave you tools just to stay alive

And make it out when the sun is ruined

That's the same way you showed me, showed me

You showed me love

...

Glory from above

Regard my dear

It's all downhill from here

Remember life

Remember how it was

Climb trees, Michael Jackson, it all ends here

Say what up to Matthew, to Shoob

Say what up to Danny

Say what up to life immortality

Bending up my Nikes

Running out the melpomene, nicotine

Stealing granny cigs (Take it easy)

Gimme something sweet

Bitch, I might like immortality

This is life, life immortality

...

Key Vocabulary

Vocabulary	Meanings
pink /pɪŋk/ A1	adjective - of a pale red color. noun - a pale red color.
white /waɪt/ A1	adjective - of the color of milk or fresh snow, due to the reflection of all visible rays of light; the opposite of black. noun - a white color or pigment.
black /blæk/ A1	adjective - of the darkest color; due to the complete absorption of light; the opposite of white. noun - the darkest color.
yellow /ˈjel.oʊ/ A1	adjective - of the color midway between green and orange in the spectrum; colored like ripe lemons or sunflowers. noun - a yellow color or pigment.
eyes /aɪz/ A1	noun - the organ of sight.
fly /flaɪ/ A1	verb - move through the air using wings. noun - An instance of flying; a flight.
cold /koʊld/ A1	adjective - of or at a low or relatively low temperature. noun - a low temperature.
land /lænd/ A2	noun - the part of the earth's surface that is not permanently covered by water, as opposed to the sea or the air. verb - to put (someone or something) on shore from a boat.
love /lʌv/ A1	noun - an intense feeling of affection. verb - feel deep affection for (someone).
glory /ˈɡlɔːri/ B2	noun - high renown or honor won by notable achievements.
hurricane /ˈhɜːrɪkeɪn/ B2	noun - a severe tropical cyclone usually with heavy rains and winds moving at 73 miles per hour or greater.
dark /dɑːrk/ A2	adjective - with little or no light. noun - absence of light.
summer /ˈsʌmər/ A1	noun - the warmest season of the year, in the northern hemisphere from June to August and in the southern hemisphere from December to February.
shade /ʃeɪd/ B1	noun - relative darkness and coolness caused by shelter from direct sunlight. verb - shelter from light
flood /flʌd/ B1	noun - an overflowing of a large amount of water beyond its normal confines, especially over what is normally dry land. verb - cover or fill (something) with water.
life /laɪf/ A1	noun - the condition that distinguishes animals and plants from inorganic matter, including the capacity for growth, reproduction, functional activity, and continual change preceding death.
trees /triːz/ A1	noun - a woody perennial plant, typically having a single stem or trunk growing to a considerable height and bearing lateral branches at some distance from the ground.

Key Grammar Structures

• That's the way everyday goes

  ➔ Present Simple Tense (General Truth)

  ➔ The sentence uses the present simple tense to express a general truth or recurring event. 'That's the way everyday goes' means that this is a constant or typical occurrence.

• Every time we've no control

  ➔ Present Perfect (experiential) / Omission of 'have'

  ➔ While grammatically unconventional, 'Every time we've no control' implies 'Every time we have had no control'. The "present perfect" is used to denote experience. The artist has simply omitted 'have'.

• If you could fly then you'd feel south

  ➔ Second Conditional

  ➔ This is a second conditional sentence. The structure is: If + past simple, would/could/might + infinitive. It expresses a hypothetical situation and its likely result.

• Up north's getting cold soon

  ➔ Present Continuous (for future arrangement/prediction)

  ➔ Here, the present continuous is used to express a future event that is likely to happen soon. It implies a prediction or arrangement.

• So I'm someone to hold true

  ➔ Infinitive of Purpose (to + verb)

  ➔ The phrase "to hold true" is an infinitive of purpose, explaining the reason why the speaker exists - to remain constant and reliable.

• Won't let you down when it's all ruin

  ➔ Future Simple (Negative) + Conditional Clause (when)

  ➔ This sentence uses the future simple in the negative ('won't let') to indicate a promise, combined with a conditional clause starting with 'when'. The clause specifies the condition under which the promise will be kept.

• Dark skin of a summer shade

  ➔ Noun Phrase (Prepositional Phrase as Modifier)

  ➔ The phrase 'of a summer shade' is a prepositional phrase that modifies the noun 'skin'. It specifies the type or quality of the skin.

• You'd kneel down to the dry land

  ➔ Conditional sentence type 2 (Result Clause)

  ➔ This is the result clause of a type 2 conditional sentence (although the 'if' clause is implied). It describes the consequence of an unreal or hypothetical condition, which is hinted at in the previous line: 'If you could die and come back to life...'. The structure 'would + verb' indicates the hypothetical result.