Take It Back

Ed Sheeran

I'm not a rapper, I'm a singer with a flow
I've got a habit for spitting quicker lyrics, you know
You'll find me ripping the writings out of the pages they sit in
I never want to get bitten cause plagiarism is hidden
Watch how I sit on the rhythm, prisoner with the vision
Signed to a label but didn't listen to any criticism
Thought you knew but you didn't, so perk your ears up and listen
The studio is a system and you could say that I'm driven
And now it's onto the next saga, we drink the best lager
I'll never try to win you over like your stepfather
I'll do my own thing now and get respect after
And I'm avoiding the cane like it was Get Carter
For four years I never had a place to stay
But it's safe to say that it kept me grounded like a paperweight
At 16 years old, yeah, I moved out of my home
I was Macy Gray, I tried to say goodbye and I choked
And went from sleeping at a subway station to
Sleeping with a movie star and adding to the population
Not my imagination, I don't wanna relax
Would it hurt your reputation if I put it on wax? I'll take it back now

Mmm, come on and take it back love
Come on and take it back for us
Don't you fade into the back, love
Oh

I take it back with the rhythm and blues
With my rap pack I'll be singing the news
Tryna act like Jack Black when I bring em to school
I'll make a beat with my feet by just hitting a loop
Bringing the lyrics to prove that I can fit in these shoes
I'll give you the truth through the vocal booth
And stars burst out when they seem like an Opal Fruit
They try to take aim like Beckham when he goes to shoot
But then again that's what they're supposed to do
And I'm supposed to be calm, I tattooed the lyrics onto my arm
Whispering "everything that happens is from now on"
I'll be ready to start again by the end of the song
And still they're claiming that I handle it wrong
But then I've never had an enemy except the NME
But I'll be selling twice as many copies as their magazines'll ever be
With only spectacles ahead of me and festival fees
Are healthier than a dalmatian or pedigree
Singing for the masses, rubber dinghy rapids
I keep this rapping a habit and keep em fashioning magic
I'm battling for respect, I don't know if I'll have it
This song's from the heart, covered the planet, I'll take it back now

Mmm, come on and take it back love
Come on and take it back for us
Don't you fade into the back, love
Oh

Now I don't ever wanna be perfect
Cause I'm a singer that you never wanna see shirtless
And I accept the fact that someone's gotta win worst-dressed
Taking my first steps into the scene, giving me focus
Putting on a brave face like Timothy Dalton
Considering a name change, thinking it was hopeless
Rhyming over recordings, avoiding tradition
Cause every day some lyrics and a melody could be written
An absence can make your heart break but drinking Absinthe
Can change your mind state vividly, need to let my liver be
And I'll say it again, living life on the edge with a closed hand for the friends
It's good advice from the man who took his life on the road for me
And I hope to see him blowing up globally
Cause that's how it's supposed to be, I'm screaming out vocally
It might seem totally impossible achieving livesteams
But, but I just write schemes, I'm never having
A stylist giving me tight jeans
Madison Square Garden is where I might be, but more likely
You'll find me in the back room of a dive bar with my mates
Having a pint of McDaid's, discussing records we made
And every single second knowing that we'll never betray
The way we were raised, remembering our background, sat down
That's how we plan it out, it's time to take it back now

(2x):
Mmm, come on and take it back love
Come on and take it back for us
Don't you fade into the back, love
Oh

My dreams keep me awake at night, written in rhyme
Till I deliver the hype, am I just living a lie?
With this you must know that the numbers just sold
Will keep me going through the tough times, dream with me
We forget 90% of it when we wake
But the other 10%, it never fades
Dreaming dreams of day-to-day goals, stay awake loads
Tried to make the cut like the paper with a razor blade
Oh, never give up, just remember just to hold out more
A couple years ago I couldn't just control that thought
You'd find me busking on the street when it was cold outdoors
Now I'm sweating on the stage of a sold-out tour
Writing love songs for the sake of it, never to make a hit
You can't fake talent and work ethic just to make it quick
I'm not a rapper, I'm a singer, I just take the piss
And most of these other guys are kids that [?]'s little sister has to
Babysit, that's just the way it is
Dreams are your own, just set your goals and have the upmost faith in it
Tread your own path, you'll never make it as a follower
You'll never know where you will go or you will be tomorrow
IGH!