(Verse 1) Stumbled through the gutters with my pockets turned out, Echoes of my failures like a choir of doubt. Used to count my losses like coins in the cracks, Sleeping on regret with the past at my back. Mama told me steady, but the streets had a say, Every door that I closed was a lesson to pay. I learned the hard math: scars plus time equals scars, But I flipped the equation, turned the wounds into bars. Punchlines as protest, breath short like a choke, Rhymes like a rope so I climbed, no joke. Hunger in my chest, avalanche in my lungs, Spit against the silence until the silence was stunned. (Pre-Chorus) They said I was broken, I said I was bent, Put the pieces in a suitcase and packed my intent. Every brick that they threw I stacked into stairs, Now those same bricks are the steps to my stairs. (Chorus) I hit rock bottom, dug my name in the dirt, Bled the cold out my bones, swallowed every hurt. Rose from the wreckage with fire in my throat, Clawin’ up the ladder while I rewrite every note. From the ash, from the pain, from the scream that I dropped, Hard life, harder nights — made it back to the top. (Verse 2) Late-night demons on the porch, knocking for a hook, I fed ‘em rhyme after rhyme like I was writing my book. Every “no” was a fuel line, every slam was a song, I turned the noise into rhythm — now the doubt’s all gone. Cracked windows, cold coffee, promises spent, I stitched the seams with hustle and a reckless intent. No silver spoons, just tin cups and grit, Made a throne from the rubble, wore survival like a fit. They watch me now with binocular eyes, plotting the take, But I rehearsed the falls so my footsteps won’t break. I learned to breathe through the betrayals and lies, Count my wins in the rearview, future in my eyes. (Bridge) I took the lightning and learned how to ride the storm, Rewired the thunder till the lightning felt warm. Knuckles scraped, knees buckled, yet I never stopped, Built a crown from the rubble, made the bottom a prop. Resilience in my veins, grit tattooed on my heart, Every broken beginning was just practice for the art. (Chorus) I hit rock bottom, dug my name in the dirt, Bled the cold out my bones, swallowed every hurt. Rose from the wreckage with fire in my throat, Clawin’ up the ladder while I rewrite every note. From the ash, from the pain, from the scream that I dropped, Hard life, harder nights — made it back to the top. (Outro) Now I stand where the skyline meets sweat and ambition, No magic, no luck — just blood, grit and revision. If you see me at the summit, don’t praise fate or luck, See the climb, the fall, the crawl — the night I was struck. I’m proof that a shattered man can gather the pieces, Hard life taught the lesson, rock bottom taught the thesis. Made it back to the top with a roar, not a whisper, From the ash to the apex — survivor to victor

Apex from ashes