Verse 1:
Yea, uh, yea
The six years that it took me
I was giving right into my fears when they shook me
Judging by the cover and that's why they never book me
I was just a kid when I felt it and it hooked me
Went off to college and f**ed up a lot
Decided who I was, who I am, who I'm not
I burned a lot of bridges, built many more
I've dealt with negativity, but nothing like before
Give into the people, fall into the system
You don't even like him, still went and kissed him
Why do we become what we think we ought to be
It starts with yourself and I know it's hard to see
Got my degree, not for a job
People don't agree and they think I got robbed
Cheers to a chapter, full of liberation
Life's getting faster, I've waited so long
Graduation
Will Smith interview (part I):
Well you know, uh, I absolutely feel that there are certain gifts and certain talents that, that God has blessed me with. That it would be spiritually criminal to only use, to make money
Verse 2:
Life seems to pa** so quickly
Thought that I'd be ready for it all when it hit me
Man, I'm still figuring it out, trying to get rid of the doubt
How to thank everybody that's been with me
People ask everyday, and I don't know what to say
Cuz I see the world in color, and they looking at it grey
Remember being a kid, being pissed at the world
Will it ever be okay if I kiss with a girl?
I think about it all the time
People hate me before they get to know me
And they talk about corruption and how we need change, but that love is something they never showed me
I get blamed for it all, like I planned this sh**
Like I'm in love with the whole situation
So I'll cheers to a chapter, full of liberation
I've come so far
Graduation
Will Smith interview (part II):
You, you don't try to build a wall, you don't set out to build a wall. You don't say, "I'm gonna build the biggest, baddest, greatest wall, that's ever been built." You don't start there. You say, "I'm gonna lay this brick, as perfectly as a brick can be laid."
Verse 3:
I'll be honest right now, I was scared of this
I have convinced myself, I'm prepared to miss
I won't even try to lie cuz I've thought about quitting
Haven't gotten a dime for the hours that I've given
But it's not about the money, I just want to have freedom
Give the same feeling that I get when I meet 'em
I don't need friends, never there when you need them
They'll stab you in the back and they never need a reason
You were like a brother to me, you were my family
I'm pissed that you lied
And now you're mad that I can't let it go, but I want you to know
Man, I promise I tried
So I tightened the circle, I know I've been hurtful
And cut any bond that we tied
So we cheers to a chapter, full of liberation
It's time to move on
Graduation
Will Smith interview (part III):
You do that every single day, and soon you have a wall. And I think, psychologically, the advantage that, that gives me over, a lot of people that I have been in competition with in different situations is, it's difficult to take the first step when you look how big the task is. The task is never huge to me, it's always one brick
Charlie Rose: Me too, it is amazing how, you know, people are paralyzed from doing anything, because they can't take the first step. Where as you just said, look, all I'm doing is laying this one brick, I am not building the Great Wall of China