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downCHANTS

by MADlines

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1.
THE END IS NEAR! Or the beginning Yeah, I think it's the beginning Yup Yup it's the beginning I ain’t going back to normal 'Cause I’m ready for change Rearrange the whole dynamic People over profits No more profits over planet Normal was grinding Normal was minding My business as usual But that’s delusional It ain’t suitable I like to dream like Yasiin Let’s describe the inscrutable I break cages in your brain They tried to make us go insane Said we couldn’t feel the pain From Haiti to the JA Worked to death - what’s a payday? Oh that’s chocolate to rock with In the cradle of humanity My black imagination Can never reach capacity Fact is black is so rich It's impossible mess with That’s why I’m crying then I’m laughing Like the griots in the Middle Passage That's why I'm dancing then I'm resting Gwan and tell the masses Divided we're less strong like the Diaspora Wars Twerk about it, dance about it, gwan and hit the floor Our music they adore, dem naw ready to explore Our thriving bodies and our souls so the truth gone get exposed! 'Cause I ain't going back to normal
2.
I dream furious dreams Getting free Getting free My dreams grow roots and blossom I dream profound like the deepest recesses of the ocean floor My dreams break into song they rage and shake tectonic plates I dream urgent dreams because my dreams simply cannot wait They fly to space to feel the highest But our climate is in crisis Must want us all to say your highness And dead our dreams so we’ll be silent It's all a form of violence Injustice IS the virus Enough! Enough is enough is enough is enough Enough! Enough is enough is enough is enough
3.
Peaches 03:33
Sucking on my titties like you wanted me calling me all the time Yea this pussy is divine but I ain’t rehab get yo life haunting me, stalking me tryna find a wife I call that prison for a price ya’ll don’t wanna see me fly I almost died I ain’t bitter I’m just wise I got bliss between these thighs used to ask God: why me? now i’m begging you to try me tongue sharp but then I speak so sweet fall into the sheets of my queen I’ma show you what worship means I’ma show you what healing brings sit back let me hold them reigns let me know what you like – I’m game out of body like I took some molly swear I'm falling promise I won't hurt nobody Chorus I wasn't built for the faint of heart so let's say goodbye before we even start before we even start Used to love so hard I got lost in them clouds like Amelia Earhart and they never found my body swear I’m here and I’m a hottie and we in this bliss together getting dirty, getting naughty let’s not start what we can’t finished light a fire we can’t extinguish sweating bullets this is fitness stretch let me give you the vitamin S the more that you lend me your flesh the more that we can learn to forget (chorus) Can't tie me I defy gravity Seen a whole lot Still I move lightly Can't tie me I defy gravity Seen a whole lot Still I move lightly can't tie me can't tie can't tie me can't tie me down
4.
Wild Seed 00:52
They call me wild seed They call me wild seed They call me wild seed Face the music metaphysical my verses can be fire can be water also known as flow can be air cool breeze or the earth to help you grow au natural like some vegetables ya’ll some vegetables in a comatose been known to roast been known to diagnose make you face yourself then nurse you back to health its like you took an L as in lesson why you stressin off the ego death bet you thought that there was nothing left take a breath and have some self respect Doubt is merely emotional clutter I’m a mother to you muggles Don’t get in trouble just stay humble Might burn you to the ground just to see what’s growing from the rubble Might build you up like the pyramids I make simpleton delirious I’m serious bout nurturing this inner child Like the earth I’m kinda wild call me wild
5.
He stands in one corner of a cell in Juvenile Hall they call them rooms not cages guards are called counselors not correctional officers and you might hear words like rehabilitation even though discipline is rule of thumb There is nowhere to run no way to escape demons of self-doubt or reason with adolescent fears, seething no mirrors to face, just corners blank as stares from past self this is how we “help” some of the most traumatized children in this nation Tears run, blood runs but bodies rarely run except in secret he’ll sprints through space-time, close his eyes he ditches dull beige, becomes cocooned in the full color spectrum outside, where children play he once prayed for an end to agony he’d skip school or pop pills to escape greeted some mornings by the sting of a broken rib, bellyache he was taught evil lurks is in the next room he was taught borders are a certain kind of surgery If he had superpowers he’d move through concrete walls his body composed of pure cunning not flesh, not bone right now he is alone the truth is he feels safe off chaotic streets, roof over his head, food, structure this process is called institutionalization the institution is no place for empathy this is where he learns to be hard to swallow solitude, to never crack a smile Enter yours truly: the Teaching Artist I visit all of the units each Friday I share the poetic process as necessity I ask kids to go there, to write and they run with it, accessing ancestral magic their pencils dance across blank pages his restless becomes poem, becomes tangible he makes me laugh often he oozes of style, innovation My incarcerated students trace their roots to the Fillmore, the Tenderloin, Mission, HuntersPoint, Potrero Hill— the hoods the city keeps secret from its picturesque skyline San Francisco’s not-so-subtle systemic injustice feels like phlegm in this Abolitionist’s throat I’m trying to speak but I’m choking up In a separate class, one girl’s stomach growls, its emptiness loud as an eviction notice when someone says she’s too sensitive she turns herself inside out in verse this poem is where she stores daddy issues tumors crowding the crevasses of her ribcage this simile is where she cries, afraid to bear children behind bars this is where she whispers beneath her breath a million prayers for each being locked inside the system And after work I run I push buttons and go through five doors to get back out again I breathe fresh, free air I never turn around once I pass the corner if I did, I’d see my enemy looming in the distance a grey façade of grandiose a barbed-wire giant a stain on our psyches this beast, the P.I.C., its wrath is a coroner’s report I’ve heard lost hope hover on a boy’s breath as he associates his existence with his conviction I’m convinced there are other solutions, proven still, our state outsources kids to group homes and they run we force kids to attend failing schools and they run we rarely invest in their innate creativity they run and when a child kills another child we forget to mourn both children the lethal violence of sentences dubbing survivors damaged folks ask me,“ how do you manage?” I say, “I’ve been in my feelings lately” been tripping over triggers I’m tethered to the way kids look up at me as I’m speaking seeking, in my pupils, similar sorrows they swim towards each class period a guard handcuffs a kid the facts tug of war with my intestines don’t get used to this I tell myself don’t get used to concrete and doors doors heavy as they slam shut I feel myself getting closer yet farther from the source of our collective suffering I want to disrupt the cycle of violence I want to laugh often the sound is a spellbound echo in the cavernous of my memory California still spends six times more to incarcerate youth than to educate them yet, statistics have become a dull sting of antiseptic to the jaw line pulling teeth to get anyone to pay attention She stands in one corner of her cell in Juvenile Hall they call them rooms not cages guards are called counselors not correctional officers and you might hear words like rehabilitation even though discipline is rule of thumb is there nowhere to run? My students are unique genetic fingerprints they trace themselves across galaxies she used to paint her lips midnight she shit talks the Grim Reaper into a pile of shadows she smells Sunday dinner cooking on the stove her face becomes warm as her abuela’s embrace she watches her stories come to life on the page the ceremony of letters, litanies, is like locking eyes with her first love She’ll expand like the tracks of the BART train as it weaves through the region like the rap bars boys in the Bayview bust into dark closet booths he’ll expand like longing, like the itch to get out and back into something real, tangible like the way our people dance through nightmares, exquisite with our schemes, always eluding the oppressors sick dream no sentence can untangle the intricate webs of warrior tactics we’ve spun so please, don’t ever believe, for one second, that there is nowhere to run
6.
This song is dedicated To the children locked in cages The look that paints your faces Words can’t express my anguish And the rage it comes in stages Fire burning up these pages But see your medicine is ancient You grieve and practice patience Like butterflies you’re weightless And life is what you make it These leaders are all naked Their words are filled with hatred In truth we’re all related Holy cross but they degraded The seeds now remain nameless How could they disrespect the sacred? Acknowledge where you stand... This is capture land capture land capture land Acknowledge where you stand... This is capture land
7.
Femme Future 00:52
Ancient as the future Like the earth I have no ruler Passing through on this plane of existence No disses throw kisses like glitter stardust - in god-dess we trust Fierce fairies destroy the gender binary Ain’t just a flex its a hex against the patriarchy It's all malarkey in our bodies Bad mouthing machismo I’m naughty, nerdy and lethal Mi gente, my people Move the needle on the closed - minded Forward movement but rewind it Land back to the first nations I’m saying Fires raging, smoke all up in our lungs Why you thinking I’m banging on these war drums Ear to the streets, favella, the slums Empty stomachs like a punch in the gut Hating women? why you think so stuck? On stupid stupido I need my money rapido I’m really rapping though HUSH This massive sound is in my blood I give youth dem nothin but love Nothing but love Nothing but love Femme as fuck!
8.
"Revolutionaries don’t drop from the moon we are created by our conditions." - Assata Shakur Species are dying! I’m tryna find the silver lining But they shrugging at the science Why you think I’m so defiant? kinda stressed but new optics got me optimistic a spaceship left after it landed now I’m stranded guess I’m glad I missed it can’t be pessimistic can’t abandon the planet gotta understand it gotta respect our existence every creature is a teacher I’m gonna follow them as leaders!
9.
Bike Life 01:01
yo yo yo I’m just riding gettings lifted no emissions I’m just riding getting lifted no emissions life is like riding a bike to keep your balance just keep moving don’t trip I used to have a car but it got bipped now I cruise no banana seat still I split traveling from the dirty thirties to the dubs from the lake to the Golden Gate all the drivers stop and wait stuck in traffic hella heated I got legs for days - guess I”m undefeated fellas be like, “can I ride with you?” I’m too witchy for them to pursue flying past when they harass plus I wear a helmet that’s what gangstas do watch me rolling solo I don’t need a crew watch the sky become a crimson hue moving my body in alignment with the truth everything is better with a bike they build entire cities for cars the freeways for white flight please no parking in the bike lane that's that stuff I don’t like
10.
They swear it trickles down but it ain’t rained in a while You see us dancing? I mean marching? I mean charge it To the game its rigged against the masses Some of y'all simping for the wealthy classes Brainwashed with them rose colored glasses Fact is I’m seeing RED whole nation in the RED And the math ain’t mathin' this song slaps it ain’t smacking That’s food for your contemplate I stay mad - quite irate you can’t you see? Panoramic billionaires stackin' cancel student debt let's get it crackin' This racial wealth gap ain’t a gap its a chasm Investing in police like WE the target practice Put your money where your mouth is They foaming at the mouth to go to war Our competing to explore outer space The houseless need a space to rest their heads STILL ink bleed no oil spill 98’ Till INFINITY HONESTLY We need a solidarity economy honestly we need a solidarity economy honestly we need a solidarity economy
11.
Hate on mute so I don’t even trip It’s like I’m kin with the bass and treble Trouble is, nxggas always in my shit Hate on mute and I don’t read lips Your silence is golden You bought getting noticed ‘Gone be hot of a moment I burn slow shit smolderin’ I stay in the Bay, got bills to pay, ills to slay You ain’t tryna hustle? Get out of the way ‘Cause all these techies driving up the cost of living But its still hood—might get robbed for your equipment Move careful might get caught slippin’ There’s no mercy not even for the children It ain’t pretty in the dubs, in the dirty thirties Some of these baddies is workin’ girlies—all the cops is pigs We don’t bang just banging on the system till it feels our wrath and shit So anyway I’m an artist eating good no more starving I beg your pardon was you speaking on a sovereign? I stay grindin while ya’ll dilly dally That’s why I’m potent like the kush in Northern Cali like the kush in Northern Cali Aye Aye Aye Cuz the mind is a terrible thing to waist Mind ya business why don’t you mind ya business? (hater, hater, hater, hater) Mind ya business why don’t you mind ya business? (hater, hater, hater, hater) Yous a hater (Repeat) Hate on mute so I don’t even trip Try not to slip Too far cuz we in the ER I’m the surgical incision You anesthesia. How you spittin? I’m just kidding, I’m just swimming And the sharks is in a frenzy ya’ll woke just cuz it’s trendy No longer enemies with the inner me lookin like a centerpiece legs for days, centipede It's that balance and achieve see a demon… then you better bob and weave ‘cause the mind liable to put you in a choke-hold I seen a man get shot it was in the North Pole Seen eyes with the light, make that soul twitch Seen eyes vacant like a motel 6 See the mind plays tricks So mind yo damn business! (chorus)
12.
Pause 00:46
Pause Now flaunt your flaws like they’re in fashion Why compete for a seat at a table lacking self compassion? Pause See we have seasons just like fall, winter, spring and summer Why resist the changing tides don’t let them sink you under? Pause Humans are animals that like to beg to differ Why waste away when precious days feel like they’re moving swifter? Pause Presence - a feeling - you can’t put a finger on it Why not rest - you’re yawning Besides you’ll need a good amount of sleep A new day is dawning Pause A new day is dawning
13.
Hunger 00:54
In our minds Or in these streets The fights right here in the belly of the beast Get free From the belly of the beast From the belly of the beast Get free From the belly of the beast From the belly of the beast this hunger Is so much more Is so much more this hunger Is so much more Is so much more
14.
You exhausted by this digital existence? I swipe and click and send Or burn the candle at both ends I feel alone? well, it depends Since now I’m so connected Well respected, followers just seem to grow So? I wanna feel the sand beneath my toes watch some fireflies look how they glow love sick - sycamore see how she grows a hundred ft. towards the heavens trees clear the air yet keep me breathless transcending nature IS the remedy I wanna free-style with the clouds like doe ray me singing praises - ya’ll ain’t hearing me the earth can make you put your phone down make you gaze in awe - you can’t capture like the moon when she’s full and blooming the grass is greener in a meadow we’ll be spooning scoop me up like a breeze - got me moving we should start a movement 'cause I’m exhausted by this digital existence
15.
"To change everything We need everyone To change everything We need everyone" Life is all organisms Working to survive these changes Our bodies mostly water Still in our hearts fire rages Burning to light our paths So scientific that its spiritual The earth is humming An ancestral drumming ‘Cause we’re running OUT of time
16.
Gratitude 00:59
So many activists have fought - don’t stay numb There's a war going on outside no one is safe from no one is safe from no one is safe from These carbon numbers is off the charts I’m PARCHED Like I’m trapped up in a food desert Like i’m waiting on clean water in flint Like i’m running out of breath Heart pounding in my chest Can’t give it a rest I confess In never thought I was a climate warrior but the truth is it ain’t a choice Either I join and have a voice or get drowned out by the noise Of corporate greed Every social justice issue is connected to the seed of an idea and it’s this: WE EITHER PERISH OR PERSIST Come quick Join the movement Cuz we HOMESICK They polluted this precious planet I can’t stand it I want justice I demand it!
17.
I WILL change the world with my art I laugh till my stomach’s in knots Nurture my inner child unconditionally Rest like on mother’s chest, hot cradle heartbeat, heat rising I WILL speak in vibrations, voice simmering Bedtime stories spells like the people could fly my eyelids fluttering, imagining wings beating feathers singing generating heat refuse to starve instead sing the blues refuse to be tortured raw and bruised anew generate heat I matter, you matter We are artists and we matter in this world Soul shatter only to make mosaics colorful as Langston Hughes described sunset in the Caribbean,“God having a hemorrhage blood coughed across the sky” I honor those that die father’s face is a study in Summer mouth subtleties, mythical smile
18.
19.
Tryna stay on my monk like Shaolin but ya’ll think I threw the towel in I ain’t even broke a sweat I ain’t even scratched the surface these verses is curses to the undeserving the way I word it there ears be hurting they be questioning their purpose GOOD Babylon is burning let the empire collapse this is planetary struggle we gonna get the last laugh
20.
Mind Trip 01:06

about

THE END IS NEAR! Or is it the beginning???

Inspired by Bob Marley and the Wailers’ classic tune, “Chant Down Babylon,” downCHANTS is a series of mostly short-form songs that interrupt a “return to normal,” centering our urgent need to face the ensuing Climate Emergency. Each downCHANT speaks to a unique aspect of the struggle, whether reminding us to “Respect the Sacred” or urging us to unplug from the havoc caused by our “Digital Existence.” The project uplifts MADlines' decade-long devotion to intersectional feminist activism through song and ceremony.

Please consider making a tax deductible contribution to her movement-making by purchasing her project and or sharing her work widely.

DONATE HERE: www.flipcause.com/secure/cause_pdetails/MTE0NzA=?



SPECIAL THANKS:

This project was funded in part by Creative Wildfire, a powerful, collaborate call to action against a "return to normal." Creative Wildfire also provided Maddy with valuable educational resources. Please visit creativewildfire.org to learn more!

credits

released November 15, 2021

Lead Artist, Lyricist:

Maddy “MADlines” Clifford is a writer, master of ceremony (rapper), digital creator and activist from Seattle. She has spent over a decade planting roots in Oakland. She's taught free poetry workshops to hundreds of Bay Area youth and has written for publications such as 48 Hills and KQED. Musically, MADlines has had the esteemed honor of collaborating with the late great Zumbi of Zion I on the song "Flame Go." She was also featured on the GRAMMY nominated album, “The Love” by Alphabet Rockers. You can find her making magic at the intersection of art and social change.

Producer/Beat-maker:

Charles “BLVK Samurai” Burchell is a brilliant producer, rapper, educator and multi-instrumentalist from New Orleans. He’s a Harvard graduate, he’s served as a hip hop cultural diplomat to El Salvador and has created content for Soundlfy, Splice and Roland. Charles currently lives in Rome with his partner and two children.

* Songs "Peaches," "Hate on Mute," and "Gut Feeling" were produced by Allie Howard

Engineering/Mixing:

Orion Blake is a rapper and engineer from Oakland. He works as part of Stay Diff Studios, a black-owned and operated in-house production studio based in Jack London Square.

Mixing/Mastering:

Elan Wright is a Seattle-based producer, engineer and musician at Ruby Room Music.

Cover Art/Photography:

Jenn Wong is a San Francisco based photographer, jewelry maker and activist.


Copyright Maddy "MADlines" Clifford, 2021

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MADlines Oakland, California

In a world of rude awakenings, MADlines' music soothes old wounds. She draws upon both her Seattle Grunge upbringing and her Jamaican ancestry to bring you her latest independent album, "downCHANTS." Inspired by Bob Marley and the Wailers' tune, "Chant Down Babylon" the project is composed of mostly short-form spells that highlight the urgency of the ensuing Climate Emergency. ... more

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