African

From the banks of Victoria flows the nile
Not in a singular file
Split into streams, we are cultures different but same all the while

We're Africans,
Skin black and we call it golden
And just like the nile
Of blessings and riches our cultures are potent

But different and diverse still we are
Though we share our smiles and our scars
Our beauty sprinkled against the great expanse like nighttime stars

From the cape where two oceans meet
And diamonds lay underneath the amaxhosa's feet
We are blessed

From the roof of our house in Kilimanjaro
Down to the cratered depths of the Ngorongoro
We are blessed

From Simba's kingdom on the open Savannah
To Anubis's halls inside the pyramids deep in the Sahara
Ladies and gentlemen we are blessed

Blessed beyond measure
Our earth and hearts filled with treasure

But to ourselves curses we've laid too
Pain to many we've put, for the sake of the few
blood and tears we've shed often like morning dew

But sword cuts and bullet holes can't keep us down
They'll never keep us down
My sister's skin like her will is thick as bronze even if it's brown
And brother you're gonna have to work harder to snatch this dark haired crown.

Apologies if my poise comes as a surprise
In our time we've cheated death and demise

We're African, our soul is resilient even if it's pain we feel
We're African, our skin is gold and our hearts are steel
We're African, our resolve is undying and our wounds will heal

For we've seen darker chapters in our present and past time
But with the ocean tide came the sunrise as sure as my next rhyme

But we march on not to the sound of a drum
But to symphony of our heartbeat
We're African, so you know this vibe is as pure as the sun's heat.