White Privilege - Macklemore

White Privilege - Macklemore Lyrics

[Verse 1]
I see so many people lost who really try to pretend
But am I just another white boy who has caught on to the trend?
When I take a step to the mic is hip-hop closer to the end?
'Cause when I go to shows the majority have white skin
They marketed the windmill, the air flair and head spin
And white rappers' albums really get the most spins
The face of hip-hop has changed a lot since Eminem
And if he's taking away black artists' profits, I look just like him
Claimed a culture that wasn't mine, the way of the American
Hip-hop is gentrified, and where will all the people live?
It's like the Central District, Beacon Hill to the South End
Being pushed farther away because of what white people did, now
Where's my place in a music that's been taken by my race
Culturally appropriated by the white face?
And we don't want to admit that this is existing
So scared to acknowledge the benefits of our white privilege
'Cause it's human nature to want to be part of something different
Especially when your ancestors are European Christians
And most whites don't want to acknowledge this is occurring
'Cause we got the best deal, the music without the burden
Of being black in a system that really wants you to rock
'Cause all you need is a program and you can go and make hip-hop
And we hate the mainstream 'cause we're the ones that took it
Now we listen to Aesop Rock and wear t-shirts that say "Brooklyn"
But it's not about black and white, right?
I mean good music is good music regardless of what you look like
But when you don't give them props isn't that selfish?
That's like saying rock was actually started by Elvis
So where does this leave me?
I feel like I pay dues, but I'll always be a white MC
I give everything I have when I write a rhyme
But that doesn't change the fact that this culture's not mine

[Pre-Chorus]
But I'm gonna be me, so please be who you are
This is something that's effortless and shouldn't be hard
I said I'm gonna be me, so please be who you are
But we still owe 'em 40 acres now we've stolen their 16 bars

[Chorus]
Hip-hop started off on a block that I've never been to
To counteract a struggle that I've never even been through
If I think I understand just because I flow too
That means I'm not keeping it true, nope
Hip-hop started off on a block that I've never been to
To counteract a struggle that I've never even been through
If I think I understand just because I flow too
That means I'm not keeping it true, I'm not keeping it true

[Verse 2]
Now I don't rap about guns, so they label me conscious
But I don't rap about guns 'cause I wasn't forced into the projects
See I was put in the position where I could choose my options
Blessed with the privilege that my parents could send me to college
Now who's going to shows, the kids on the block starving?
Or the white people with dough that can relate to my content?
Marketed the music, now adapted to the lifestyle
What happened to jazz and rock and roll is happening right now
Where's my place in the music that's been taken by the media
With white corporations controlling what they're feedin' ya?
I brought up Aesop Rock, but I'm not even dissing, dude
We love hip-hop, and what do you think caucasians are listening to?
And I speak freely when I write this
If a black MC examined race, there goes half their fan base, white kids
And this is so true
And we didn't even have to fight the system, we just went and picked up the microphone too
And we got good at it so we should be rappin'
But only supporting them is like burning Jimi and buying Clapton
Now Clapton's incredible, but no Jimi, no foundation
So here comes history and the cultural appropriation
White kids with do-rags trying to practice their accents
From the suburbs to the upper-class, mastering a language
But hip-hop is not just memorizing words
It's rooted in authenticity, something you literally can't learn

[Pre-Chorus]
But I'm gonna be me, so please be who you are
This is something that's effortless and shouldn't be hard
I said I'm gonna be me, so please be who you are
But as I'm blessed with the privilege, they're still left with the scars

[Chorus]
Hip-hop started off on a block that I've never been to
To counteract a struggle that I've never even been through
If I think I understand just because I flow, too?
That means I'm not keeping it true, nope
Hip-hop started off on a block that I've never been to
To counteract a struggle that I've never even been through
If I think I understand just because I flow, too?
That means I'm not keeping it true, I'm not keeping it true