He coulda been a CEO, they told ‘im
If he could just stop holdin’ on to this ol’ dream
To choose the money over love ain't somethin’ he believe in

He coulda dined with the rich and the famous
And when he died he’d have a nice marble grave that read:
“Another man who was sad while livin’ like a king”

Coulda had a job running stocks off like a bandit
Had a midlife crisis at 35 and a cocaine habit

It was all he never wanted
So what was ‘e supposed to do, when
All he ever thought of
Was singin’ and writin’ music
No one expected he’d take it to this stage
They said: “C’mon, you crazy, you know this is just a phase”
And now they’re out in the crowd singin’ with the tunes

Some friends and family told ‘im to look into gangsta rappin
They said, “Y’know Eminem made a killin talkin bout ho-slappin’”
But he could never imagine himself
Sayin' any of those things about Katherine or anyone else
Met some executive who said it don’t matter, he said
“Who you tryin’ to fool, man, I’m a geetar-playin’ cracka”
Besides he couldn’t endorse lyrics for children
‘bout cheatin on his wife just because you make millions

It was all he never wanted
So what was ‘e s’posed to do when
All he ever thought of
Was singin’ and writin’ music
No one expected I’d take it to this stage
They said: “Boy, you crazy, man, you know this is just a phase”
Now they’re out in the crowd, an' I see ‘em
And they're dancin' to the music and they're swayin' to the rhythm
This was all he ever wanted