The Roach
Unveiling the Hidden Metaphors: Genesis Owusu's 'The Roach'
Lyrics
Stay back
Expressing a desire for distance or separation.
No, I don't play that
Emphatic refusal to engage in certain behaviors.
Like, I'm not jaded
Denying feelings of cynicism or disillusionment.
Why'd you say that shit?
Questioning and seeking clarification for someone's hurtful words.
Why'd you say that shit?
-Why'd you say that shit?
-Stay back
-No, I don't play that
-Like, I'm not jaded
-Why'd you say that shit?
-Why'd you say that shit?
-Why'd you say that shit?
-I was trapped (woo)
Feeling confined or restricted.
Trapped, trapped in the black
Metaphorically trapped in a challenging situation or mindset.
I'm a roach, don't knock me on my back (woo)
Identifying as a resilient figure, like a roach.
Legs in the air, hope God don't attack
Expressing vulnerability and hoping for protection.
Not tryna see my head on the plaque
Avoiding a negative outcome or consequence.
Hm, always watched but never seen
Feeling observed but not understood.
Said my skin was never clean
Facing judgment for one's appearance.
Tried to turpentine me (tried to turpentine what?)
Attempts to erase perceived flaws or impurities.
Only fit for the fiends
Associating oneself with those society deems undesirable (fiends).
Said the popes and the queens
Reference to authority figures who dismiss or marginalize.
I'm the king of the unseen
Asserting an unseen or overlooked importance.
Stay back
Repetition of the earlier theme of distancing and refusal to engage.
No, I don't play that
-Like, I'm not jaded
-Why'd you say that shit?
-Why'd you say that shit?
-Why'd you say that shit?
-Stay back
-No, I don't play that
-Like, I'm not jaded
-Why'd you say that shit?
-Why'd you say that shit?
-Why'd you say that shit?
-Feeling like Gregor Samsa
Feeling metamorphosed or transformed negatively, referencing Franz Kafka's Gregor Samsa.
A bug in the cog of a grey-walled cancer
Describing oneself as a disruption in a dysfunctional system (grey-walled cancer).
I'm tryna break free with a penciled stanza
Expressing a desire for freedom through creative expression (penciled stanza).
So are we human or are we dancer?
Pondering the nature of humanity and identity.
I'ma waste a life tryna chase an answer
Chasing answers and struggling with the purpose of life.
A big boy suit with a paid for candor
Wearing a facade of maturity or conformity.
We all just comics tryna place a lander
Comic metaphor for the struggles of finding one's place.
For the pests I'm the great commander (the roach, the roach)
Claiming leadership and empowerment despite societal judgments (the roach, the roach).
The roach
Reiteration of identifying as the roach, a symbol of resilience.
La-la-la, la-la-la
Repeating the refrain, introducing a contrasting theme of fearing and loving the roach.
La-la-la, la-la-la
-La-la-la, la-la
-La-la-la, la-la-la
-La-la-la, la-la-la
-La-la-la, la-la
-La-la-la, la-la-la (fear the roach)
-La-la-la, la-la-la (love the roach)
-La-la-la, la-la (fear the roach)
-La-la-la, la-la-la (love the roach)
-La-la-la, la-la-la (fear the roach)
-La-la-la, la-la (love the roach)
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