About the song
A story for this song hasn’t been added yet.
Words from the artist’s archive
Agreeable Gray lyrics
Artist-supplied lyric sheet, matched by title. The sheet may differ from this released performance. Production notes and alternate promotional cuts are omitted.
Read the lyric sheet
Intro
They painting over the history, fam. One coat at a time. Watch the colors fade.
Verse 1
It started with a mural on the bricks that were peeling Then a truck with fifteen-dollar sandwiches, I’m reeling The taco stand is gone, now it’s succulents and soap They selling us aesthetics while they stripping out the hope I see fewer work boots, now it’s joggers in the street Running past the people that they never speak to when they meet The handwritten signs in the window disappeared Replaced by printed banners for the companies we feared From the bodega loosies to a boutique full of scents The only thing that’s rising on this block is just the rent
Pre-chorus
The silence is the loudest part, the block is getting quiet Used to be a block party, now it’s like a private diet Landlord stop fixing things, he waiting for the flip Slow motion eviction, yeah, he waiting for the slip
Chorus
Now the whole vibe shifting from a community to commodity They love the city feel but they don't want the harsh reality Paint it all over in that "Agreeable Gray" Pushing all the culture and the soul out of the way Yeah, they want the brick walls but they don't want the people Priced out the congregation, now they selling off the steeple Agreeable Gray.
Verse 2
Come home to a notice taped up tight upon the door "Renovation" means you gotta go, you can't stay anymore You got thirty days to scramble, calling cousins for a spot Looking at a smaller room that costs everything you got Now you doing the shuffle, pushed out to the fringe Two-hour commute just to work, it makes you cringe Code-switching in your hallway, head down, walking fast Feeling like a stranger in the place where you had a past New neighbor calling cops cause the music’s loud at noon They killed the heartbeat, now we humming to a different tune
Bridge
They name the new bar "The Foundry" or "The Mill" To honor all the workers that they forced against their will Irony is heavy, man, it costs too much to drink A Tesla parked beside a pothole, make you stop and think Improvements weren't for us, the lights and bike lanes too They were prepping up the stage for the ones replacing you
Verse 3
So I walk past the building where I used to scrape my knee Now there's a keypad and a camera watching me A ghost in the machine, backdrop for the 'Gram Trying to hold onto the memory of who I am But the grit is polished off, it’s just a shiny shell Heaven for the buyer, but for us, it feels like hell
Chorus
Now the whole vibe shifting from a community to commodity They love the city feel but they don't want the harsh reality Paint it all over in that "Agreeable Gray" Pushing all the culture and the soul out of the way Yeah, they want the brick walls but they don't want the people Priced out the congregation, now they selling off the steeple Agreeable Gray.
Outro
Just an aesthetic now. Your side of the bed... expensive. The silence... Yeah, the silence is the loudest part.
Inside the recording
They painting over the history, fam. One coat at a time.
The silence is the loudest part, the block is getting quiet Used to be a block party, now it’s like a private diet
Just an aesthetic now. Your side of the bed... expensive.
Excerpts from artist-supplied lyric files matched by title. Lyric sheets may differ from the released performance.