mBaileyz · Music Diary
Before Battle
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Before Battle lyrics
Artist-supplied lyric sheet, matched by title. The sheet may differ from this released performance. Production notes and alternate promotional cuts are omitted.
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Intro
[No humming, clear articulation] Toll beep, rain slap, chess clock click. 305 noir, receipt curling by the stove. Before battle, count what breath is owed.
Verse 1
Carol City heat got the stop signs sweating. Opa-Locka clouds hang low over fencing. Lauderhill bus bench, auntie taps her knee. Orange vest, cracked knuckles, lunch bag by her feet. I-95 hum like a warning in the floor. Turnpike toll light blink, who you moving for? Liberty City window got a candle in a jar. In the 954, silence travels farther than cars.
Pre-chorus
I count the cost before the phone light rings. I read the rain before I say a thing. If I look weak, I’m saving up my reach. Move slow, see more, let the loud ones leak.
Chorus
Win before battle, move slow, see more. Leave pride at 79th by the corner store. Best victory is everybody breathing. No crown worth a mother in the window grieving. Win before battle, low voice, clean floor. If they show the teeth, I study what they need it for. Click-chess clock, toll beep, rain on glass. I don’t chase the smoke; I let the smoke pass.
Verse 2
Rent due Monday, court on a Tuesday. Phone screen cracked, still lit with a new case. Overtown stairwell smell like bleach and wings. Cousin in Miramar asks what the mailman brings. I got resources written on a grocery receipt. Gas at half, AC coughing under the passenger seat. Every loud choice charges interest at dawn. So I keep my hand closed, let the wrong move talk.
Pre-chorus
I count the cost before the phone light rings. I read the rain before I say a thing. If I look weak, I’m saving up my reach. Move slow, see more, let the loud ones leak.
Chorus
Win before battle, move slow, see more. Leave pride at 79th by the corner store. Best victory is everybody breathing. No crown worth a mother in the window grieving. Win before battle, low voice, clean floor. If they show the teeth, I study what they need it for. Click-chess clock, toll beep, rain on glass. I don’t chase the smoke; I let the smoke pass.
Verse 3
Beat drop low, I meet my face in the microwave door. Same anger wearing yesterday’s shirt once more. My enemy got my name when I’m tired and unpaid. Whisper says swing now, wisdom says wait. Little Haiti rain paints lines down the tile. I ask what I gain if my people lose a mile.
Verse 4
Hollywood night, I hear bait in the laughter. Pembroke Pines text says, “pull up,” I answer after. Not with a threat, with a map and a time. Who benefits if I step out of line? Davie road dark, Palmetto full of sirens. I hide my plans where my heartbeat quiets. When they call me soft, I let the rumor eat. The loudest room never sees the quiet feet.
Pre-chorus
I count the cost before the streetlight swings. I read the room before I clip my wings. If I look gone, I’m studying the breach. Move slow, see more, let the lesson teach.
Chorus
Win before battle, move slow, see more. Leave pride at 79th by the corner store. Best victory is everybody breathing. No crown worth a mother in the window grieving. Win before battle, low voice, clean floor. If they show the teeth, I study what they need it for. Click-chess clock, toll beep, rain on glass. I don’t chase the smoke; I let the smoke pass.
Verse 5
I told my little cousin by the 62nd light: “Don’t give your whole spirit to a ten-second fight.” Know your own weather, know the other man’s storm. Read the road twice before the horn gets warm. Victory ain’t noise, it’s a locked front door. Family fed, rent paid, keys still yours.
Outro
Toll beep, rain slap, chess clock click. 305/954, receipt dry, pulse still. Before battle, breathe. Click.
Inside the recording
Toll beep, rain slap, chess clock click. 305 noir, receipt curling by the stove.
I count the cost before the phone light rings. I read the rain before I say a thing.
Toll beep, rain slap, chess clock click. 305/954, receipt dry, pulse still.
Excerpts from artist-supplied lyric files matched by title. Lyric sheets may differ from the released performance.
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Stay in these worlds.
Before Battle appears in 3 verified playlists.
DetailsRelease dates, duration and original source
Song record
Published facts.
- Release date of this source
- June 19, 2026
- This source on YouTube · Eastern
- June 18, 2026
- Playlist addition · Eastern
- Not recorded
- Duration
- 4:34
- YouTube views
- 14
- Catalog source video ID
- SH75efHlO2Q
Original Music Diary
Where this song entered the catalog.
- Release type
- Single
- Date added
- May 25, 2026
- Status
- live