[Verse 1]
Before D. Swain there was Daniel
A scrawny kid in sandals
Handled his Yamaha with ease
He didn't need a manual
Example: samples were hurt
Trampled into the dirt
Only thing older than records he'd flip
Maybe his flannel shirts
But, but, but..."yo Danny how'd your sh** turn out so phat
And, and, and...ain't never heard drum patterns sound like that"
He envied his MPC
It deserved credit, and not he
For all he'd ever have to do
Was whatever it asked him to
At two in the morning, yawning
Cookin' up beats without warning
Throw a little horn in, Pete Rock would be proud
But will +They Reminisce Over You+?
So he did a freestyle, freeform
D is reborn, no more late nights and cheap p**n for him
Drum kits, come spit
On my tracks you dumb sh**
No takers, no one was takin' him serious
Here he is makin' this heat, older heads were just leery it's
Apparent, starin' at his figure, figured if he gets slimmer
Then these dreams gon' have to be his dinner
Bon appetit, n***a
Came in the game with a frame of mind that
Anything he'd spit, they would say "rewind that"
Sign of the times
He's combinin' his rhymes with his sound designs
It sounds divine
But initially it was a mixed reaction
People tried to tell him "don't commit to rappin'"
But he stayed with it, played with it
They hated it, so he took the negativity
And built a barricade with it
Marinate, b**hes
Vindication was an indication of his innovation, he told you so
Not neo-soul, not soul nouveau
But a whole new show, starring him
Flipped the script, and he'll flip it again
My man
[Chorus]
Keep dreamin', 'cause life's too short for second guessin'
I keep steam in my locomotive destined for success
Yes...and I don't care what you (or you) or you may have to say
I'ma live my dreams and do things my way
So keep dreamin' and if they try to bring you down
Just keep believin', what goes around will come around
(Who, me?) Yes...and I don't care who you are
Long as you reach for the stars
And keep them dreams in a jar
The world is ours
[Verse 2]
Need a light? Right
I write because the beat's tight
Retire twenty times a year
Because it keeps my teeth white
But I need to lighten up
Think of the hope that I give these kids
Think of the dope sh** I did, sh**
Got a little dose of exposure, s'posed to
Pave the way for these babies who
Say "Yo D, I wanna be like you"
Show them it's cool, to be yourself
n***a had no help, picturin' a Grammy on the shelf
Was my inspiration, dying to go
To the show, now I've been two times in a row
Man, talk about perks
Opportunist's hoppin' out the woodworks, I
Dap 'em up and keep it movin'
Deep down inside they jealous cause D. Swain just keep improvin'
Old rappers just don't know what time to quit
So they sit
On they a**, complain and b**h
Too much pride to give me props
So they cop
Out and call me Carolina's Kanye West
I'm not vexed
I brush it off 'cause I'm the best
Thing to come out of S.C. since Jesse Jackson
"Let's retract our statements once he makes it big
Say we loved him way back when
Yo D. Swain, how'd you make that Grammy list?"
I tell 'em
[Chorus]