Never Would’ve Bet On Me

[Verse 1 – gritty, steady rhythm with an edge]
I was the smoke behind the bar,
The fight just one word too far.
I was the phone that never rang,
The son they said would never change.
I had the cuffs, had the debt,
Had a name folks don't forget.
Burned a few too many bridges,
Lived more lives than I’d admit.
[Chorus – proud, unpolished, raw redemption]
Never would’ve bet on me — not then, not there,
But here I stand, breathin' clean air.
I don’t blame ‘em for thinkin’ I’d fall again…
Hell, so did I, way back when.
But I turned that wheel, fought for some grace,
Look at this life I built in place of disgrace.
I’m the proof that the past don’t own your feet…
Even if no one else believed — I still bet on me.
[Verse 2 – confessional, but firm]
I said sorry more than I got sleep,
Lost good love I didn’t keep.
Let my pride write checks I couldn’t cash,
Learned the hard way — the fire don’t ask.
Now I build slow, talk less,
Keep my circle tight, clean up my mess.
Ain’t perfect, but I’m pointed right,
And I ain’t missed a step since I saw the light.
[Bridge – whispered, then builds]
They remember who I was.
That’s fair.
But I know who I am now.
And that’s rare.
[Final Chorus – band hits full, steady and powerful]
Never would’ve bet on me — just a name in the dirt,
But I planted roots where there used to be hurt.
A shaky past, but a solid today…
And I walked every mile that stood in the way.
Let ‘em talk, let ‘em doubt — I don’t lose sleep.
'Cause the man I became is the one I get to keep.
Didn’t need the odds, just the will to believe…
That even if no one would — I’d still bet on me.
[Outro – just guitar and voice]
You never would’ve 

Country-Rock /southern soul with a redemption arc