It’s funny the things that life throws, I was singing in the back rows of rock concert for Ben Folds, And this dude goes, “Wanna sing the lead vocals, In our band and complete your life goal?” But they broke up before I could start, I guess I shouldn’t put the horse before the cart, So I stuck with rock singing background vox, Playing drums from then until a decade off I wrote a rhyme at work in an email draft, I liked Watsky but didn’t think I could rap, ‘Til my son and I saw MC Lars, And he said, “Work hard and this could all be yours!” He let me use his instrumentals to get my feet wet, Wrote on my lunch breaks, recorded with my headset, The beats aren’t mine so it’s online for free, The Beating a Dead Dinosaur EP (Chorus) This is the intro, I’m not great at rap so I’ll keep it simple Yes, I’m a drummer, yes, I’m white, yes, I spit rhymes ‘cause I like to write, This is the intro, what rhymes with intro? I’m not great at rap so I’ll keep it simple Yes, I’m a drummer, yes, I’m white, yes, I spit rhymes ‘cause I like to write I didn’t choose drums, drums chose me, I’ve been keeping a beat since I was negative three, I was gonna play the trombone, and my mom groaned, “You always hit stuff, play that boom!” And my mind was blown I didn’t choose rap, rap chose me, After twenty-some years in the industry, I had the beats down pat, but the lyrics fell flat, So rather than sing I just spoke really fast I didn’t choose hip-hop, it chose me, So I thought, let’s not just talk about this dream, It might a new scene, but I wanna be a front man, Stepping on stage like I am what I am I didn’t choose rhymes, they chose me, When my sister read to me Shel Silverstein, And she bought me Busta Rhymes for my first CD, She doesn’t like my rap, but she helped create AJB

Everybody take a seat, if you don't have one make a seat, This'll only take a second, and that second's gonna take a week, I break a beat, you're making me Wanna lose my mind while I'm taking heat, Getting burnt like I'm bacon meat, And I know I speak slow, but t I rap so-so, So I blast off with jet pack of a hot track, Everybody better scoot back! (here we go!) I talk tough when I put it on paper, Big like an RV, me and Tom Raper, An unfortunate last name, but I don’t blaspheme ‘Cause he was made by the Maker I see you libel and slander us, so scandalous, Shame that you never took a chance on us ‘Cause we bring something new to the table, Tell me are you able to see passed a right angle? Are you being obtuse? You follow your nose like I'm a box of Fruit Loops Nose out of my business, if you don’t end this, I will stand up to defend this Sticks and stones can break my bones, But Facebook and Twitter hurt (ouch!) While we're out here doing the work, You just bully the world from your couch, jerk (Chorus) You don't wanna mess with me, I am not the best with feelings, But if you wanna test me, then you best be believing you will be leaving burnt You don't wanna mess with me, I am not the best with feelings, But if you wanna test me, then you best be believing you will be leaving Burnt, burnt, burnt, Ya burnt, Ya burnt, Ya burnt Burnt, burnt, burnt, Ya burnt, Ya burnt, Ya burnt (1st time only) Burnt, burnt, burnt, Ya burnt, Ya burnt, Ya burnt Burnt, burnt, burnt, Ya burnt, Ya burnt, Ya burnt Not sure what you thought of me? I'm an oddity, hardly a hot commodity, I don't know what I outta be, but I gotta be Stepping up my game while you're mocking me Take a stab at my family, And I will actually bring a catastrophe, Putting words down 'cause the weight's unbearable, And it's terrible, watching you break irreparable Our friendship, I saw you burn that bridge like a ten worst dressed list, You must be joking me, it was safer when you walked away Than to stay here provoking me So can you handle me? Maybe, I write like Stan Lee and Jack Kirby had a baby, My superpower is my voice, And my Uncle Ben says I gotta make the right choice Chorus I've got a short fuse and a sharp pen, So let's address the elephant in the chat room rather than pretend, That you're not troll cruising, Using the internet as a mouthpiece, looking for a bruising Wanna hear an oxymoron? SOCIAL MEDIA! That's a triple word score on Scrabble, you don't wanna dabble In things you don't know, but I know I'm sick of your babble All you do is blah-blah-blah, You'd better love your neighbor and say kum-by-yah, Or you’ll soon buy a one way ticket to the tomb by ya 'Cause there's room by ya, Hi-ya! Watch my ninja chop, It won't stop ‘til I drop this cop like a wet mop Take me out on YouTube? Ya better get used to Making out with the ground with a loose tooth Chorus

All of the hype that your money can buy, All of the hype that your money can buy In the beginning was hype, The loud fanfare as I grabbed the mic, Suckah MC's stepped with no clout, Don't quit your day job or your paper route, Fantastic and so spastic, Drop dope rhymes like sonic booms, That's the kind of hype that could clear this room Got hype so big, it's stacked so high, Other MC's just stand and cry, Brad slapped your mama, your mama asked, "why?" When Brad says, "hype", you do or die, Implausible, impossible, We drop dope rhymes like sonic booms, That's the kind of hype that could clear this room (Chorus) The packaging is nice, we're building it to sell, Call all your people in Hollywood and Nashville, It's one in a million, in fact we broke the die, It's all of the hype that your money can buy It's the fattest rhymes, it's the hypest hype My name’s AJB so pass the mic, This song is good, don't ask me why, It's all the hype that your money can buy, Falsified, unjustified, Drop dope rhymes like sonic booms, That's the kind of hype that could clear this room, yeah It's so wrong, so far from true, in secret I'm just like you, It's so wrong, so far from true, so far from true Chorus

Take a misappropriation vacation, Don’t embezzle tunes from your radio station ‘Cause we’ve been stealing beats since the dawn of creation, The underground railroad is now underground segregation It’s just another lather, rinse, and repeat, Change the lyrics and the story, but keep the beat, So we’re taking off dirt from walking streets In another man’s shoes, so that dirt was never under our feet I wanna be like you, I wanna talk like you, But I’m too scared to walk a block like you do, So when I take a sound built on slavery, Racism, prejudice, and systemic poverty, And I filter out the parts that were hard, You get clean, white music you can play in your back yard, They think that it’s better for kids, it’s not, If we don’t understand our past, fight will never be fought (Chorus) I wanna sound like me when I speak, I wanna sound like AJB, I wanna sound like me when I rap, And when those beats go boom, I wanna bap bap bap I wanna sound like me when I speak, I wanna sound like AJB, I wanna sound like me when I rap, And when those beats go boom, I wanna bap bap bap Who dat? Who dat? AJB! Who dat? Who dat? AJB! Who dat? Who dat? AJB! Who dat? Who dat?   So when you hear that, “Who dat? Who dat?” It’s not I-G-G-Y, She doesn’t sound like that when she speaks, neither do I And as much as we try, neither one of us could ever deny, If we’re not who we are we’re a lie We did not invent this, but we stand on relentless Backs who stood up to present this, If my inflections start to sound pretentious Remember that they are, notwithstanding my intentions, Even if I’m not on stage in black face, All the music I play can’t be traced Back to my race, but if I make space, If I use hip-hop to engage, diffuse the enraged Or just to talk about my privilege And clearly overstate that is what this is, I use my privilege as a mouthpiece, and when my mouth speaks, Then I’d better well sound like me Chorus 2x White supremacists, this is not your anthem So keep silent like Charlie Chaplin, I’m not saying black and white, I’m saying blended, And that rap music should be respected Even if I’m not on stage in black face, All the music I play can’t be traced Back to my race, but if I make space, If I use hip-hop to engage, diffuse the enraged Or just to talk about my privilege And clearly overstate that is what this is, I use my privilege as a mouthpiece, and when my mouth speaks, If it’s something I believe, then I’d better well sound like me Chorus 2x

Here come the Spartans, the first quarterback, Barton, B. Philly’s back, take him off the milk carton, We’re not starting something, we’re here to finish it, In a little bit, this is how you’ll remember it, He blew past you, he got a good block, And did not stop or give thought to try to ask you If you wanted the ball, wanted to call your momma to say, “Warm up the bus because they beat us all!” This is our season, and we’ve got a reason To take you out because clout is appeasing, So let’s scream and shout, tell me can you hear this? Get those hands up and stand up to cheer this, Isn’t that the scoreboard? (Yes, that is the score board) And isn’t that the winning side? (Yes, that is the winning side) And isn’t that the losing side? (Yes, that is the losing side) Winning side, losing side, winning side, losing side Winning side, losing side, winning side, losing side Chorus O, WHS, we love you, there is none above you That is why we smash, crash, and shove these fools, Win or lose, we leave it out on the field, And never yield, we’re like phalanx, make the shield Cheer, cheer for ol’ Waynesville High You know why, fight and hold ‘em is our victory cry, So when you hear that trumpet sound, Here come the Spartans, and this is how it’s going down Brookville is going down, Carlisle is going down, Milton-Union going down, Dixie is going down, Bellbrook is going down, Madison is going down, Northridge is going down, Franklin is going down Oakwood is going down, Eaton is going down, Monroe is going down, Preble Shawnee going down, And if the Spartans go down, It’s the Valley View Spartans and not my town Chorus 2x

(Chorus) Gimme that kick drum, BOOM! pa-rum-pa-pum-pum, Gimme that snare drum, pat-a-pan, pat-a-pan-pan Gimme that kick drum, BOOM! pa-rum-pa-pum-pum, Gimme that snare drum, pat-a-pan, pat-a-pan-pan Gimme that kick drum, BOOM! pa-rum-pa-pum-pum, Gimme that snare drum, pat-a-pan, pat-a-pan-pan Gimme that kick drum, BOOM! pa-rum-pa-pum-pum, Gimme that snare drum, pat-a-pan-pan Gimme that boom, that bass, I’m all up in your face with a rhythm I embrace And a pace so tasty I liken it to a pastry, Don’t be hasty, sit down and listen to the rhythm that makes me Dance, like I got new pants, Like it’s “Obi-Won Kenobi you’re my only hope” last chance There’s a fat chance that I will let that phat bass pass by, No lie, I never know why People go to concerts to sit, aren’t you into it? Don’t you feel that boom-boom-boom in your pit? Get your legs moving like the room took a hit, And if you’re not grooving then you can’t hear that kick drum Man! Trouble filling 16 bars? Just hit it with the kick like you're MC Lars, It holds the beat together like a Christmas sweater, You can keep your snare drum, the kick drum’s better Chorus   What about that snare? That flare? That savoir faire? If you're sitting down, standing, marching, I don't care, Gimme that rat-a-tat-tat, or whatever you dare, No Kevlar, let me hear that air down there to the wires Tap it so they rumble around, it inspires, Cadence like we blew into town, Using the sound, getting people moving around, Losing the pounds, dancing like we’re bruising the ground What would Neil Peart be without a drum roll? Left without a snare, that man would never solo, It would be like TCBY without Fro-Yo, Like Princess Leia without a Han Solo (too soon) Hear that snare drum keep that beat steady Whether it's punk song or a rock medley, Like a heartbeat but sharper and deadly, Coming back with that tap so you'd better be ready Chorus You see my snare drum’s blue and like The Who playing halftime, Acrylic, seeing straight through to the backline, And you can hear it straight through to the back nine, Custom-made, never paid anybody back a dime That’s why my snare drum’s close to me, Because a couple friends who mean the most to me, Picked up a birthday present that they chose for me, It was a deep, dark snare that was totes for free Well you’re always gonna know when the kick drum’s near, Like a T-Rex shaking in your rear-view mirror, Don't restrain, bring the pain, make it rain, break the levy, That 808 box rocks your socks when it's heavy Make a clap of Thunder like your Thor with Odin, Speaking with the voice of the Omnipotent, And if you break it down, make it hot like the devil ‘Cause I’m all about that bass, ‘bout that bass, no treble Chorus

(Chorus) I don’t miss Mark, ‘cause he missed the mark I don’t miss Mark, ‘cause he missed the mark I don’t miss Mark, ‘cause he missed the mark But don’t diss Mark From the start you treated me like I’m an obligation, Forced get to know me and to show me a salvation of which I’m glad to say I’m already aware, You should’ve skip to the part where you actually start to care And got to know me, stop on by and take a run, Just us guys, exercise, it could be fun, But you preferred to give the Spanish Inquistion, Asking questions like you’re phishing, but you never really listen to me I see why people think I’m hard to get to know, I have opinions and refuse to be controlled, I think that actions deafen anything I’m told, I thought I needed new friends, but this friendship’s getting old One time you called me up so you could call me out, And say you’re tired of getting texts inviting people to my house, I guess it’s cool if you don’t wanna be included, But what makes qualified to speak for others you’ve excluded? You’ve polluted all the good intentions that I had, Turned my meekness into mad, waged a war like Stalingrad, And it’s sad to watch as yet again you miss the mark, I can see the speck in my eye, can you see the Noah’s ark in yours? You criticized my walk with Jesus Christ, You put me down when I was trying to be nice, You told me once and you don’t need to tell me twice, Because I’m tired of hearing the pot giving the kettle bad advice Chorus 2x Dear Mark, read between the lines, this is you! Preaching God loves everybody whether Gentile or Jew Unless you’re new, and you don’t go to group on Friday nights, Unless you’re gay or have a thing to say for basic human rights, Unless you’re nice, I used to be, but now I’m punching lights out, Tried to hold it in me, now the fights out, I think it’s finally time and you should finally hear it, You’ve been feeding people junk instead of fruit of the spirit So now you’ve heard the way I outwardly process, I just need to find the switch so I can stop this, If I can offer you forgiveness, then I’ve got this, As a novice, I think I lost the truth when I was honest ‘Cause we become like those we can’t forgive, Love your enemies is so much more than live and let live, Shot through the heart, you give love a bad name, So I pray for you and pray for me that I don’t do the same Chorus 4x

Oh no, where did the beat go? I guess the bass took the place of your ego, Here we go, feel the music, Bring the pain on, and then push right through it Oh no, where did the beat go? I guess the bass took the place of your ego, Here we go, feel the music, Bring the pain on, and then push right through it Mad ripped, more jacked than a jack lift, Skills like Jackie Chan just did a back flip, Riff tracked it, Operation Condor, On like the encore, strong like a matador Matt adores when you bring the hustle, So if you want the muscle, make the playlist shuffle, Eins, zwei, try harder, kick it up a notch Like your Five Iron's Kickstarter Hit your goal and then raise the bar, Like a strong man competition, raise a car, Phasers are set to stun, blaze afar, Get mad like Aladdin in Return of Jafar Cause whenever you go, dude, there you are, I don't know how you made it this far, tomorr- ow, You'll be waking up oh so sick with your bones so stiff Saying, "bro, do you even lift?" Getting strong like a dinosaur, Kinda sore, but I’m more like Parasaurolophus, Can you focus? Do you see what you wanna be, Lowe and behold this? I play tennis like Dennis the Menace, So I’m training for my goals like I’m Dennis Kucinich, And I’m dropping Dennis names ‘til your mind’s blown, Culp like a trombone, Quaid like The Alamo, what? (Chorus) Bring the pain on, we bring the pain on, Bring the pain on, let me bring the pain on, The pain on, we bring the pain on, Bring the pain on, let me bring the pain on Fast like a taxi with a rathertar in the backseat When you’re running late to the track meet, Get the fact sheet, can you click 12 parsecs? Far-fetched and far from relaxing Done like a kessel run in the Falcon, One with a vessel that’s one in a thousand, Wookie with crossbow, shoot from the hip, Don’t mess with my boss, bro, Yoda’s my pimp So there is no try, there is only do, There is no Dana, only Zuul, There is no Danny, Mrs. Torrance, There is no tree, there is only forest, There is no water if you’re a fish, There is no spoon, so who ran away with the dish? There is no gain unless you bring the pain on, Bring the pain Bring the pain Bring the pain Bring the pain There is no gain Unless you bring the pain on, Bring the pain Chorus 2x Life is pain, highness, anyone who says differently Is selling something worthless or priceless, You should diet like Andre the Giant, ‘Cause he wasn’t always like this He turned his life around, lost the pounds, Gained a few the muscles, and gained the ground, Bang, bang, what’s that sound? It looks like the gun show came to town! Oh no, here we go again, Take a deep breath, and then count to ten, If you thought lifting would be so zen You can’t handle the truth like “A Few Good Men” Will you make it? Will you try now? Fight or flight, Eye of the tiger, gonna fly now, Finish your reps and take off the head set, Or cry to your momma ‘cause your bed’s wet Hear that beat thump like a speed bump, can you keep up? Pump it up on the dump truck, hold onto your lug nuts! No, don’t slow down! Everything looks like it’s “Eight Mile” now, In the Rabbit jamming Yo Gabba Gabba, I’m never flattered when the battery stamina’s barely adequate to jam a shama-lama-ding-dong! Think long, think wrong, I speak to the beat of this sweet song If the back beat can’t attack please take the flac of this track, And Wakka Flakka your own rap feat, Are your goals met? Are you focused? Are you so in control? Are you swoll? Are you there yet? It’s a fair bet, it will never scare you to get hands dirty or your hair wet, Share that new photo on Instragram, dang kid, take a look at what the pain did Chorus 4x Fast like a taxi with a rathertar in the backseat When you’re running late to the track meet, Get the fact sheet, can you click 12 parsecs? Far-fetched and far from relaxing Done like a kessel run in the Falcon, One with a vessel that’s one in a thousand, Wookie with crossbow, shoot from the hip, Don’t mess with my boss, bro, Yoda’s my pimp So there is no try, there is only do, There is no Dana, only Zuul, There is no Danny, Mrs. Torrance, There is no tree, there is only forest, There is no water if you’re a fish, There is no spoon, so who ran away with the dish? There is no gain unless you bring the pain on, Bring the pain

I wear my mosquito bites like badges of summer, The days turn to nights, I can’t tell the one from the other, But I’ll hold these memories ‘til the day that I die, Catch of piece of life and let it fly A baby screams when she comes into this life, But we’ve been here 10,000 years, and it's alright, I wonder if we’ll be afraid of the next night, The next place we go when we close our eyes You think I’m brave, but I find it scary, Not knowing where I go or how best to prepare me, But there will be a time when I'm not here to share me, So pass me on as I pass Charon on the ferry Does it turn black? Do we walk toward a light and we can't look back? Am I supposed to take a deep breath and jump in? Do I need to let go and sink or hold on and swim? But if our bodies turn to dust and our souls don't last We'll be the one form of matter in life that won’t pass, So with science in mind, I don't believe that, I'll be here when you get here, Sincerely, Dad (Chorus) Oh, how wondrous when all these moments find us, And we see them too, Slow down just enough to see, taste, hear, and touch, Right now’s the best we can do Dear son, I didn’t mean to write this to you, This was meant to be a poem to help me get through The losses of friendships, the ones who passed on, Or the bonds that were never mended Forgiveness gets harder when you get older, But only if you let your heart get harder and colder, I pray that you grow thick skin and not the former, The world could use a heart that is warmer You inherit the world when you are meek and appreciate it Life is short, play the game, don't officiate it, And offer grace to the ones you don't understand Everybody's dealt a different hand I love you and your sister I’ll miss you, and I’ll miss her, Every single day is a gift were Given, this is the one life we live in, let it speak, Don’t wait for truth to find you, go and seek Chorus Tiny girl, when you were born my whole life changed, You brought a steadfast calmness, a break in the rain, And as the storm raged on, we rolled on like thunder I wonder if we would’ve gone under without you I doubt you will ever know what you mean to me, Both of my children encompass a dream for me, And when you grow then I hope you’ll be proud of me, I was always so proud to see The way that you smiled at your brother, I want you to love and to trust each other, A way to look back and a way to move forward, There will be some blocks in the road as your goals you work toward I don’t want to miss a thing you do, But wherever you go, my love will find you Always persevere, find a way to push through, And when you come home, I’ll be here for you Chorus 2x I wear my mosquito bites like badges of summer, The days turn to nights, I can’t tell the one from the other, But I’ll hold these memories ‘til the day that I die, Catch of piece of life and let it fly