The Boy Who Played the Harp – English Lyrics

• By: Dave

Lyrics & Translation

Dive into 'The Boy Who Played the Harp' by Dave to experience a masterclass in lyrical depth and introspection within UK Hip-Hop. This track, drawing heavily on biblical allegory and modern moral dilemmas, offers a complex, vulnerable look into an artist grappling with his purpose and legacy, providing a rich tapestry of storytelling that rewards close listening.

[English]

Yeah, I sometimes wonder

What would I do with the next generation?

In 1940

If I was enlisted to fight for the nation

Or in 1960

If I had to fight for the rights of my people

And lay down my life on the line

So my grandkids could live a life that's peaceful

Would I be on that? Would I be frontline?

That's what I'm thinking

If I was alive in the 1912

On the Titanic and it was sinking

Who am I saving?

Am I fightin' women and children, or am I waitin'?

I wonder

What would I do in the next generation?

Battle of Karbala

If they captured me for the sake of my father

Would I stand on my honor like Hussein did

And tell them to make me a martyr?

Would I read, get smarter

Forgive my oppressor, stick to the creed

If I got locked inside like Nelson Mandela

But never was freed

I see a white man dance to rumba

Ain't study Patrice Lumumba

But get on the stage and sing like sungba

Lajaja-ja-ja, sungba

Fuck it, I wonder

What would I do with the next generation?

Would I fight for justice?

Is it the reason my mum named me David?

How can you be king?

How can you be king? Don't speak for the people

Them man try draw me out and compare

Like me and these niggas are equal

I'm a black man and this bozo sayin'

My music socially conscious

While the mandem troll in responses

This world's gone totally bonkers

I sometimes wonder

What would I do in the next generation?

But I'm knowin' the answer

'Cause what am I doin' in this generation?

Afraid to speak cah I don't wanna risk it, my occupation

We got kids under occupation

Our parents, they wouldn't get that

The people that died for our freedom

Spoke on justice, couldn't accept that

I talk 'bout the money in all my accounts

So why don't I speak on the West Bank?

Remember growin' up prejudiced

The damage 7-7 did

Extremist and terrorist

I was afraid of the Taliban

Can't speak out on illegal settlers now

I'm afraid of a shadow-ban

What would I do in the next generation?

Critiquin' African leaders

For sellin' our country's natural resources

To the West for peanuts

If they don't hear, they'll feel us

I question what I'm alive for

And can you say you're alive

If you ain't got somethin' you're willin' to die for?

What am I willin' to die for?

What am I doin' in this generation?

I get in my head sometimes

I feel like I'm in despair

That feelin' of total powerlessness

I get that sinkin' feelin'

That good ain't defeatin' evil

I put that pain on vinyl

But feel like that shit ain't movin' the needle

Retweetin' people, raisin' awareness

In all fairness

Ain't gonna bring Chris back to his parents

But there's no other option, it's a process

Gotta stand and protest, cah they want man silenced

Cah they want man dead or they want man hopeless

In the next generation

I spoke with my ancestors in the night

And I showed them

They spoke with tears in their eyes

For the brothers they lost and said it was progress

"How can it be progress?"

I asked him, confused, disgusted

They said, "David, just so you can fight this

You know how much sufferin' touched us?

And you got a chance, we come from

A time and a place where you couldn't get justice

Had to find peace in the fact

That we all answer to the one what we trust in

And in our generation

We did do peaceful protest, just like you

Burnt buildings, just like you

Did boycotts, just like you

Sat in a hostel, powerless

Did feel powerless just like you

And I know that it may sound strange

But we made some change and we're just like you

I know that you question your character

I know that you suffer in silence

I know that it don't feel right

When you go to the club in Victoria Island

'Cause how can you dance in the club?

There's a hundred people beggin' outside it

I know the sins of your father

I know that you're desperate to fight them

So step in your purpose

Speak for your people, share all your secrets

Expose your emotions

You might not see, but there's people that need it

Never demand it

And if God can grant it, manifest it and receive it

Your name is David and that covenant's sacred

You gotta promise, so keep it"

Deep it, them man talk on the ting, but I bleed it

Man wanna speak on the scene, but I seen it

Tried in the fire by Ghetts, I'm anointed

Kano passed me the torch, I received it

God told me I'm the one, I believed it

Shout Hollowman 'cause he helped me achieve it

I'm the youngest of my brothers

Father eased the burden on our mothers

Give these niggas money, see their colors

Don't mix me with them, I'm not the one

Grind and miss the summer, when it comes

I'm Abraham, I sacrifice the sun

Where I'm from, they sacrifice their son

Hold up, I ain't finished, I ain't done

My ancestors

My ancestors told me that my life is prophecy

And it's not just me

It's a whole generation of people gradually makin' change

There ain't a greater task

Shift that, make a name, make a star

They don't know what they're facin' when they ask

With the will of David in my heart

The story of the boy who played the harp

...

Key Vocabulary

Vocabulary	Meanings
wonder /ˈwʌndər/ A2	verb - to think about something curiously or uncertainly
fight /faɪt/ A1	verb - to take part in a physical conflict
generation /ˌdʒɛnəˈreɪʃən/ B1	noun - all the people born and living at about the same time
justice /ˈdʒʌstɪs/ B1	noun - fairness in the way people are treated
peaceful /ˈpiːsfəl/ A2	adjective - free from disturbance; tranquil
honor /ˈɑːnər/ B1	noun - high respect; great reputation
martyr /ˈmɑːrtər/ B2	noun - a person who suffers death because of their beliefs
oppressor /əˈprɛsər/ B2	noun - a person who oppresses others
conscious /ˈkɑːnʃəs/ B2	adjective - aware of and responding to one's surroundings
occupation /ˌɒkjuˈpeɪʃən/ B1	noun - a job or profession
prejudiced /ˈprɛdʒədɪst/ B2	adjective - having or showing a bias or prejudice
extremist /ɪkˈstriːmɪst/ B2	noun - a person who holds extreme political or religious views
protest /ˈproʊtɛst/ B1	verb - to express strong objection
ancestors /ˈænsɛstərz/ B1	noun - a person from whom one is descended
purpose /ˈpɜːrpəs/ A2	noun - the reason for which something is done
sacrifice /ˈsækərˌfaɪs/ B1	verb - to give up something important for someone or something else
gradually /ˈɡrædʒuəli/ B1	adverb - happening or developing slowly or by degrees
prophecy /ˈprɑːfəsi/ C1	noun - a prediction of what will happen in the future
covenant /ˈkʌvənənt/ C1	noun - a formal agreement or promise
manifest /ˈmænɪfɛst/ C1	verb - to show something clearly through signs or actions

Key Grammar Structures

• If I was enlisted to fight for the nation

  ➔ Second conditional (unreal past condition)

  ➔ This uses the second conditional to describe a hypothetical situation in the past. "If I "was" enlisted" implies something that didn't happen, with "to fight" showing purpose.

• What would I do with the next generation?

  ➔ Question form with modal verb

  ➔ The question uses "would" (modal) to speculate about future actions. Inversion isn't needed as it's a wh-question.

• Would I be on that? Would I be frontline?

  ➔ Yes/no questions with 'would' inversion

  ➔ These are yes/no questions with inversion: "Would I be" instead of "Am I going to be". It emphasizes rhetorical speculation.

• If they captured me for the sake of my father

  ➔ Complex conditional with passive voice

  ➔ "Captured" is passive (past simple). The full conditional is embedded, with "for the sake of" showing purpose or motive.

• How can you be king?

  ➔ Rhetorical question with inversion

  ➔ Question uses inversion ("How can you") for emphasis, not expecting an answer; "you" is subject.

• I'm a black man and this bozo sayin'

  ➔ Present continuous with contraction

  ➔ "Sayin'" is contracted present continuous of "saying"; connects two clauses with "and", contrasting states.

• What am I doin' in this generation?

  ➔ Present continuous question with contraction

  ➔ Wh-question in present continuous: "What am I doin'" (contracted "doing"); reflects ongoing introspection.

• We got kids under occupation

  ➔ Present perfect with 'got' as auxiliary

  ➔ "Got" here is auxiliary for present perfect (meaning "have"); "kids under occupation" refers to a continuing state.

• Can you say you're alive

  ➔ Modal question with contracted form

  ➔ "Can" is modal; "you're" contracted "you are"; rhetorical question emphasizing vitality or engagement.

• If God can grant it, manifest it and receive it

  ➔ Imperative with conditional and parallelism

  ➔ "Manifest it" and "receive it" are imperatives in parallel with the conditional "If God can grant it"; emphasizes prayer or will.