Track 6 of the compilation Transfer Point · 2009
Rent Is Due, Heart Is Too
by Kane Rivers
“The first of the month never gets easier. I wrote this one with the envelope still in my hand.”
rap · conscious rap · soul-sample · 3:17
Lyrics
First of the month and the envelope's thin Counting up the numbers, where do I begin Lights on the table, a little stack of bills Mama's voice in my head says we climb the hills Skipped the fancy dinner, made a pot of rice Pennies in the jar, every one's a slice I ain't mad at the grind, I ain't mad at the cost I'm just writing down the days that I didn't get lost Rent is due, heart is too Doing what I got to do Rent is due, heart is true Every day I make it through Bills on the counter, love on the wall Still standing tall, still standing tall Neighbor knocks with a plate of something warm Says we all been there, we all weathered the storm Little thing like that is a gift, a prayer Reminds me that the block still got people who care Overtime shift and a bus ride home Stars through the window, but I'm not alone Thirty-day cycle, a tide that returns Every time I fall, there's a lesson I learn Rent is due, heart is too Doing what I got to do Rent is due, heart is true Every day I make it through Bills on the counter, love on the wall Still standing tall, still standing tall Sunday morning light on the kitchen floor Coffee in a chipped cup, who could ask for more One day I'll own a key to a door with my name But right now I'm grateful for this little flame Write the verse in the margin of the monthly slip Turn the bad math into a rhythm and a trip If you're counting too, I see you, keep on We gon' make it to the other side of dawn Count it up, count it down Little by little, we're not drowned Count it up, count it right Every dollar's got a light Rent is due, heart is too Doing what I got to do Rent is due, heart is true Every day I make it through Bills on the counter, love on the wall Still standing tall, still standing tall Still standing tall Still standing tall