Composed and recorded by Izzy Skinner 

Lyrics

Well I 
I used to know this guy 
We were in a small town 
With nothin’ much around 

Yeah l 
I used to know this guy 
Yeah he was real mean 
He was real sly 
Not a nice guy

Yeah I 
I used to know this guy 
We never did shit 
Coz there was nothing to do 

Yeah I 
I used to know this guy 
He said we’d never leave 
Said I’d die if I tried 
A real mean guy

Well I 
I used to know this guy 
We were in a small town 
With nothin’ much around 

Yeah l 
I used to know this guy 
Yeah he was real mean 
He was real sly 
Not a nice guy

Yeah I 
I used to know this guy 
We never did shit 
Coz there was nothing to do 

Yeah I 
I used to know this guy 
I decided to leave 
So I said my goodbyes
So goodbye

I used to know this guy

When The Lights Shut Off

Ku Klux Klan TV

[Intro]
They shoot the lights out
Hide 'til it's bright out
Oh, just another lonely night…
Tell me, are you willing to sacrifice your life?

[Verse 1]
They’re bombing Iran today, saw it on my phone scroll
They were bombing Israel yesterday, lost all control
We’re at war with Russia, but the real war’s for your soul
They’re starving kids in Gaza while the Beeb reports the drama, takes its toll
Look, we're the monsters, state-approved bloodsuckers
Fat-cat motherf*ckers, now look who's in trouble
As you scroll through the rubble, all you see is trouble
This ain't a Kanye sample, this a bleedin' real example!

[Chorus]
Propaganda, blud, you just got to stop it!
Everybody knows we're the motherf*ckin' monsters!
I'm gonna need to see your bloody hands at the conference!
I'm gonna need to see your bloody hands at the conference!
Profit, profit, fam, they still got it!
Everybody knows we're the motherf*ckin' monsters!
So put your fist up for peace at the concert!
Yeah, put your fist up for peace at the concert!

[Verse 2]
Less talk, more dread right now, yeah?
And my screen glows red where the terror is
They take it to another level, mate, it’s perilous
Everlasting war is the way they control us, telling us…
That Allah is my God, or Jehovah is my God
Then they pit us all against each other, ain't it odd?
The lack of desire is what I seek, try to break the pod
But we are lost, our future’s bleak, it’s a bloody fraud!
I heard the beat and the same old speech that gave the track pain
They bought the jet that gives our bleedin' taxes back pain
Suffer the children to come to me, a wise man once said
Now on the TV tonight, pictures of them injured or dead.

[Chorus]
Propaganda, blud, you just got to stop it!
Everybody knows we're the motherf*ckin' monsters!
I'm gonna need to see your bloody hands at the conference!
I'm gonna need to see your bloody hands at the conference!
Profit, profit, fam, they still got it!
Everybody knows we're the motherf*ckin' monsters!
So put your fist up for peace at the concert!
Yeah, put your fist up for peace at the concert!

[Bridge]
Sasquatch, Godzilla, King Kong, Loch Ness?
Nah, the real ghoul’s a zombie with no conscience
The Prime Minister, the President, the whole damn swamp is…
Full of ghouls who don't care where your response is.
First comes the war, then comes austerity’s chill
They bomb and pillage a village, women and children, still…
Everybody wants to know what my Achilles heel is?
It’s seeing my people believe all the lies that he spills.

[Verse 3]
Pull up the broadcast, another war for the gangsters
With a sad-eyed mother who came from Afghanistan
Yeah, I'm in this council flat, colour of Willy Wonka’s wrappers
You could be the king, but watch the people conquer!
Hotter than a Middle Eastern conflict, silent
While they dutty wine on yachts, we riot.
Thick smoke, no gas, gives your kids asthma
They think big, get cash, while the sink fasts.
We are all brothers and sisters, money is not our God
Love should be the battle cry that’s heard across the sod
So don’t you cower in your hole, don't you dare just nod
Our fight for the innocents should not cease, fam, it’s not a facade…
We need to kill the monster inside us.

[Outro]
I… I crossed the limelight…
And I’ll… I’ll let God decide…
And I… I wouldn’t last these shows…
So I… I am headed home…

Monsters

[Intro]
Living in this 21st century, seeing something true in it
Spit it better than anyone you’ve ever heard do it
Screams from the kids' pitch got a nice ring to it
I guess every postcode needs its own theme music

[Chorus]
No one spot should have all this power
The sun is beatin’, I just count the hours
Stop whinging, I'm buzzin' off this power

[Verse 1]
The system's knackered, the schools out, the pub is open
We ain’t got much to prove, my bredrin, we’re rolling
Yeah? My bredrin, we’re rolling
Parked on the road, just sitting, watching scenes unfolding
Frumpy mothers with their new tats showing
White legs, white arms, bright white shoes glowing
Like new, yours for cash, a motor someone’s offloading
In this baked-out world, we’re the ones knowing
The real script, yeah, I’ll see you in the morning
Huh? I'll see you in the morning
This is way too much, I need a moment… to take it all in

[Chorus]
No one spot should have all this power
The sun is beatin’, I just count the hours
Stop whinging, I'm buzzin' off this power
'Til then, f*ck that, this patch is ours
And they say, and they say
And they say, and they say
And they say, and they say

[Verse 2]
Forget your Love Island and the whole cast
Tell 'em N9 said they can kiss my whole arse
More specifically, they can walk on my grass
I’m a local? You city boys got jokes
You short-sighted lads, your thoughts are miniscule
My creps are blinding, my swagger brought the girls in
Walking on my island, summer dress, a big chest in it
Short girl, big hips, she knows she’s so bloody gifted
I just needed a quiet moment with my own thoughts
Got treasures in this manor, can't unlock my own forts
My estate-kid creativity, purity and honesty
Is honestly getting baked by these grown-up thoughts
Reality is catching up with me
Blasted music is the atmosphere, fighting for custody
Of the aux lead, and the responsibilities entrusted to me
As I look down at my pint with the condensation on the piece

[Chorus]
Thinking no one man should have all this power
The clock’s ticking, I just count the hours
Stop tripping, I'm tripping off the powder
...Sherbet dip from the corner shop, this world is ours
And they say, and they say
And they say, and they say
And they say, and they say

[Verse 3]
Pint glasses, Austin Powers
Lost in translation with the lads for a few hours
On the football field, that’s the battleground for cowards
They say this is the damnation of the London nation
Well that’s a pretty weak start to the conversation
At the end of the day, goddamnit, I’m killing this shit
I know damn well you lot are feeling this bit
I don’t need your approval, fam, I’m on my own trip
I ain’t gotta power trip, who you goin' home with?
How’s N9 doing? It’s surviving
Was in the car earlier, now I’m arriving
At the social hub, where you hiding?
I got the power to make this life so inviting

[Outro]
Now this will be a beautiful evening
I'm watching the fox darting, letting the sunlight go
Letting the sunlight go
Mmm, now this will be a beautiful evening
Just watching the world turning, letting the pressures go
Letting the pressures go
Now this will be a beautiful ending
To a summer's day, letting everything go

N9 in the Summertime

"Good thing..." 

[Intro]
I want love and all the trappings...
Yeah... you're such a good thing...

[Verse 1]
Yo, the best damn thing in my world
Is up and gone, and I deserve the hurt
Yeah, I played the fool, I broke the pacts
Now I’m staring at your faded tracks
She's moved along, I can't see where
To a place that I can't pay the fare
I’ve been a bad boy, that’s the honest truth
Wasted your time and I wasted my youth, check it

[Pre-Chorus]
The sweetest high didn't last for long! (Oh, no, no, woo-hoo-hoo-hoo!)
My eyes were closed and you had moved on! (Yeah, yeah, yeah!)

[Chorus]
GOOD THING! Tell me what I've done wrong! (Doo, doo-doo-doo)
My GOOD THING, I need you where you belong! (GOOD THING! Doo, doo, doo-doo-doo)
I want the sweetness that it brings!
My GOOD THING, give me back everything! (GOOD THING! Doo, doo, doo-doo-doo)

[Verse 2]
They always say just to forget
"There's other fish, man, don't break a sweat."
Easy for them, they didn't feel the fire
Didn't know the peak of my desire
They always say she's living fine
Through second-hand stories online
But I ain't tryna hear that noise, for real
I only care how you’re makin' me feel

[Pre-Chorus]
That's not the truth I want to hear! (Oh, no, no, woo-hoo-hoo-hoo!)
I need to hear you want me near! (Yeah, yeah, yeah!)

[Chorus]
GOOD THING! Tell me what I've done wrong! ( Doo, doo-doo-doo)
My GOOD THING, I need you where you belong! (GOOD THING!  Doo, doo, doo-doo-doo)
I want the sweetness that it brings!
My GOOD THING, give me back everything! (GOOD THING!  Doo, doo, doo-doo-doo)

[Post-Chorus]
Hey, good thing... come here.
Let me touch your skin...

You’re such a good thing.

[Bridge]
And just last night, you walked back in my head
I felt so blessed by the words we left unsaid...
Sunlight breaks across the empty room... (Yeah, yeah, yeah, woo-hoo-hoo-hoo!)
Caught me calling out, a lonely fool... (Yeah, yeah, yeah!)
Feel your breath whispering on my own...
Take off your clothes, girl... let me bring you home.

[Outro]
GOOD THING! Ah-ah-ah, my good thing! (Doo, doo-doo-doo)
My, my, my, my sweet thing, where have you gone?! (GOOD THING! Doo, doo, doo-doo-doo)
My good thing, yeah, my good thing! ( Doo, doo-doo-doo)
Good thing, good thing, what have I done?! (GOOD THING! Doo, doo, doo-doo-doo)
It's been so long, my God, girl! (Come on!) (GOOD THING!  Doo, doo-doo-doo)
My God, girl! My God, girl! (Yeah!) (GOOD THING!  Doo, doo-doo-doo)
My God! (You’re such a good thing...) (GOOD THING! Doo, doo-doo-doo)
My God, girl...
"Good thing..."

Good Thing

[Intro]
I Think I Fell In Love With A Porn Star
I met her through a glitch in my firewall
I think she wanted me for my NFT art car
She was looking for a signal, through it all

[Verse 1]
Yeah, I think I just fell for a pixel star
Flick the screen on, she's a work of art
Cruisin' timelines in a digital car
Call the coders, do a system restart
Her download speed gave my old feed an ulcer
Her bittersweet data made his whole feed break, uh
Make the bandwidth shake, make an AI faint, uh
Make a chatbot blush, make him self-terminate, uh
Move to the cloud now, cop some server space, uh
Livin' life like we won the digital sweepstakes, what!
We’re headin' to a crash for heaven's sake, huh!
Well I'ma de-res, make the algorithm wait, yeah!

[Chorus]
Have you lost your mind?
Tell me when you think we crossed the wire
No more work for me, your code and Wi-Fi is all I need
Plug me in and baby we'll live a hell of a life
Never in your wildest code, never in your wildest code
In your wildest…

[Verse 2]
You could hear the loudest static, comin' from inside the screen
You a wild thing… a corrupted JPEG dream
Tell me what I gotta pay to be that client
Said her bitrate goes down, if she ever streams with that new guy
Or does a collab, or shares a new file
It's kinda crazy that's all considered the same trial
Well, I guess a lotta users share the same files
And if we share links, we’re all on the same chain, child
Runaway avatars all on a blockchain
Ping, ping, ping, ping, ping

[Chorus]
Have you lost your mind?
Tell me when you think we crossed the wire
No more work for me, your code and Wi-Fi is all I need
Plug me in and baby we'll live a hell of a life

[Verse 3]
One day I'm gonna marry an avatar
We'll have a big data-crib and a long LAN yard
We'll have a mansion with some AI maids
Nothin' to hide, our search history's on display
She wanna deepfake, 'til my hard drive's over
I'ma need a whole day, or a faster server
What Zoom call are we crashing on Oscar day?
'Specially if she can't render that dress from Oscar de
La Vector, they wouldn't select her, they couldn't take the lag
Snatched the texture off her model, told her, "Get back"
How can you say our whole life's wrong?
When you've never even logged on with the firewall gone…

[Chorus]
Have you lost your mind?
Tell me when you think we crossed the wire
No more work for me, your code and Wi-Fi is all I need
Plug me in and baby we'll live a hell of a life

I Think I Fell In Love With A Porn Star

[Chorus]
Ain't no question that I need it, I breathe it
Feel my legacy just slipping away from me
On the Overground, so why you faking? I'm saying
I will never let these concrete walls fall down, down, down

Not for nothing, I foresaw this, I dreamed it
Feel my future slowly drifting away from me
No more chances, if you waste this, you’re faithless
I will never let these concrete walls fall down, down, down

[Verse 1]
Council estate chances, the siren dances
And eventually answers to the call of crisis
All them falling for the talk of balling
Get caught with nothing, the cop just looks indifferent
Inter-city anthems based on inner-city problems
Based off the way that we're painted
Face it, my man gets more stops than a tourist
And in the station, they check right through my bag
And tell me that it's random
But we stay building
This whole scheme is a bad design, it needs a proper ending
And a new funding, and a new feeling
And some real opportunities that's fulfilling
This the real world, brother, school’s finished
They done stole the youth clubs, you don't know who did it
I treat this postcode the way the council treats hope
I won't be satisfied 'til all my people get it, get it?

[Chorus]

[Verse 2]
Is 'community' a euphemism for a new sedition?
The soul of Windrush that this new youth is missing?
But this is more than just my road to ambition
Gil Okoro got the whole estate locked in attention
Long as I'm in a tracksuit smiling, they think they own me
But they’d try to break me if they ever saw the real me
Thought I chose a field where they couldn't sack me
If a brother ain't kicking a football, winning a track meet
But this king is at the top of Brixton Hill, fearless
Ready for their games, this is my Olympics
They call us Humbaba when the tower gets pimpish
Sprayed a mural on the hoardings with a message
I insisted to get right up off their guest list
And these photo-ops, man, I can’t digest it
Reminds me how they treated my mother, so disrespected
If I ever wasn't for the people, I must have missed it

[Chorus]

[Verse 3]
I need less talk and more light
And that Home Office minister out of my sight
She told the papers she's trying to clean up the schools
Then sent Project Taurus with their riot-squad rules
It's been a minute since I watched the news
'Cause like a blocked drain, I got way too many blues for any more bad views
Was looking at my brother, feeling real blessed that day
They deploy the Bull of Heaven, now Kofi's yesterday
And what's a Black hero anyway? A fuckin' story?
I guess that's why they got my brother's name in their reports
My man said I need a different resort
'Cause people are looking at me like I’m gonna fall short
It's not a headline anymore, try different tropes
Tell 'em hug and kiss my grief, X and O
And kiss the ring while they at it, build a thing while I got it
Play strings for the tragic ending of that foul shit
Act like I ain't lost a brother in this madness
I ain't got him, I'm building over whoever who had us
I’m building over whoever, who had us
You blowing up our ends, that's good? Fantastic
That, y'all, it's like that, y'all
I don't really give a damn about a wrecking ball
'Cause the same system that tried to blackball me
Forgot about two things: these bricks and my memory

[Chorus]

[Verse 4]
Ayy, yo
I done seen plans, lived in vans, fam
Seen vulture funds, empty clubs, steal the land from these hands
Counting Ls, smoking, one hope
Live from the towpath, a Specu-Let bag, grabbing the plans, fuck it
Steam about a hundred and one lives
Kites off to Dawkins, buying time, running up in Bridge Park
That man’s archive was special
Matched every struggle with a victory, fighting policies for decimals
The older head, the bolder head, he trained a leader’s head
Said immortality’s a plant that you must water till you’re dead
That meant code-red, bent off the black smoke
From a burnt-out bus depot, he spoke his oath
If you can't live, you're building, you give or buy in...

Walls of Brixton

[Intro]
Beggin' on her knees for the ache to stop... yeah
Just one more time 'fore the curtains drop... ohh

[Verse 1]
Yeah, first she go look for the dope, no, she can’t hit on no brakes
Her whole life is outta control, she’s tellin’ you, nothing is safe
She been livin' her life in limbo, her high, it came with a chase
She's so low, she gotta hide her face, this ain't a rockstar phase
It's an emo stage in a dark space
Heroin, heroin, heroin, tells her spirit to go change
Monkey on her back, baby, she got on two pains
Rolls another memory and she might just fuckin' faint
Spin on the block, got a pure soul stained
She just put on her hoodie, ain’t worried 'bout the rain
Put her own self down, no Channel 2 front page
She was just askin' for some change, and now she's completely changed
Yeah, I told ya, yeah, without that money, shit gets strange
They can't see her in this squalor, baby, 'cause it changed her name
We stand on the same block, but we are not the same
She was just outside shiverin', movin' off the H, feelin' the strain

[Chorus]
Young dope user, needin' dope, is she like that? (Is she like that?)
Noddin' in the alleys, is she like that? (Yeah)
Young lost soul, losin' hope, is she like that? (Yeah)
All day long, she on go, is she like that? (Is she like that?)
A daughter from the suburbs really like that? (Is she like that?)
Shiverin' in the gutter if she like that (Is she like that?)
Pop another bubble if she like that (Is she like that?)

[Post-Chorus]
She was once a star from around the way…

[Verse 2
These people talkin' out of they necks
Don't see the coffin behind her eyes, the life she barely protects
Ayy, ayy, let's get it, though
The needle, the sickness, the lack of respect
The last one is heavy
Say, it's a lot of good souls with no check
I mean, ah, I hope her memories ain't symbolic
Ah, her temperament's hollow, she chose the narcotic
Okay, let's get it up, it's time for her to prove she's not the problem
But the city cliquin' up and she can't be legit, no, tell 'em
Stickin' to the cold, now her soul is for the street
She put the needle in her vein, it’s gon' make her spirit leak
She was her mother's daughter, and the world was a glow
Then everything went wrong, and she didn't even know
Think I won't drop her story? I still got PTSD
Motherfuck the whole world, drilla, it's just big need
Drilla, bum
What? She's really like that
And her best days are a light pack
Drilla, the villain outlived the hero track
Drilla, bum
'Fore all her hope's gettin' buried
That's a K-hole with these lies, she gon' see Pet Sematary
Drilla, bum

[Chorus]
Young dope user, needin' dope, is she like that? (Is she like that? Yeah, yeah)
Noddin' in the alleys, is she like that? (How? Yeah)
Young lost soul, losin' hope, is she like that? (Heroin, heroin, yeah)
All day long, she on go, is she like that? (Is she like that?)
A daughter from the suburbs really like that? (Is she like that?)
Shiverin' in the gutter if she like that (Is she like that?)
Pop another bubble if she like that (Is she like that?)

[Post-Chorus]
She was once a star from around the way…

[Bridge]
She smiles when she remembers time gone past
All gums as she yearns for her next blast
This must be what hell is like... a sentence that will last
Except to get to hell you're judged... and she was just a victim cast... aside.

[Outro]
Came in needin' dope, she was young, feelin' the power
Lost inside the high, now she fades out by the hour
Locked in and now she's got the pavement and the shower... of rain
Took chances in her youth like Nevada
Just bones and pale skin, used to be a stunner
Gotta devour, yeah, what she learned in the gutter...
She was just a victim... a mother's daughter...

Heroine

[Intro]
Rrrribbit!
Now dis one dedicated to di man dem!
Wid di strong mind and di patient heart
Yuh know say ragamuffin Chaka Demus and mi bredda
Pliers come fi deal wid di case, yuh hear dat?
Step up my yute, listen close!

[Verse 1]
Me know a certain gyal, her name is Saline
Her body look good inna di tight-up clothes (Let her know!)
And when me see her pon di street, di way she walk and gleam
Me woulda say she is the sweetest rose, but!
Every time she pass, she fling a little smile
And whisper "call me" wid a look inna her eye
But round di corner, mi see a man a watch her style
Mi see the jealousy, mi know she tellin' a lie, so mi tell her!

[Chorus]
Trouble she bring, (fi real, fi real)
Trouble she bring
Her boyfriend ah watch me, from di corner him ah pree
Trouble she bring
If she want fi come talk to me
She haffi be pretty, and she haffi be free!

[Verse 2]
Watch ya now, it name
A flirty smile and hidden partner
Dat kinda drama cyaan hold Chaka, follow me!
A flirty smile and hidden partner
Dat kinda livin' nah go work fi Chaka!
Seh gyal yuh tempting
Yuh looks are tempting but yuh business stressing
Yuh wink yuh eye and den yuh start caressing
But yuh have a next man, dat is my guessing
And when him catch yuh in di act
Yuh start di confessing, 'fessing, 'fessing (Come now!)

[Chorus]
Trouble she bring, (Murderation man!)
Trouble she bring
Her boyfriend ah watch me, from di corner him ah pree
Trouble she bring, na na na
If she want fi come talk to me
She haffi be pretty, and she haffi be free!

[Bridge]
Watch yuh now, stand still!
Yuh man cyaan pay my rent bill, so doh tes' di ragamuffin
Mi nah go end up inna kill bill, gyal keep 'way
Caw yuh a problem, problem
An' di lyrics weh mi chat, a pure wisdom
Nuh watch mi lane, yuh nuh bring mi no champagne
So great is great, don't yuh underrate, follow me!

[Verse 3]
Yuh have one man, still yuh check fi mi an' Larry
An' when di man dem clash, yuh play like yuh sorry, sorry, sorry
Yuh tell yuh man yuh visitin' yuh Auntie Mary
But yuh deh pon di scene, a situation very scary
Yuh see di girls dem inna town, dem always flittin'
But check di background before yuh start committin'
One look from her boyfriend, him ready fi start spittin'
Dat is a warnin' sign, dat is a sittin' yuh quittin'!

[Chorus]
Trouble she bring, (Hear mi now man!)
Trouble she bring
Her boyfriend ah watch me, from di corner him ah pree
Trouble she bring, na na na
If she want fi come talk to me
She haffi be pretty, and she haffi be free!

[Outro ]
Excuse me! Gyal me now know how yuh stay!
Ragamuffin Chaka Demus flash it every day! Whoa, follow me!
A flirty smile and hidden partner...
Trouble she bring...
Dat kinda drama cyaan hold Chaka...
Her boyfriend ah watch me...
Seh gyal yuh pretty, yuh face it pretty but yuh story tricky...
Trouble she bring...
Yuh haffi be free!
She haffi be pretty, and she haffi be free!
So stand still... yuh man nah pay me...

Trouble She Bring

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Ezzy Elliott(ezzy.elliott@gmail.com) UK PBS TV and 
SPOTIFY: https://open.spotify.com/artist/0uVpNnaw3A0ars8GwlkoHl?si=HtnOH8eUS_iKpfTq0IXtyQ  | http://codingForJustice.org.uk. Passionate about justice, coding, autism, MUSIC & London N9. The views expressed in my songs are my own.

Trouble She Bring

Ezzy Elliott

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