Gm F I am not throwing away my shot … Bb G7 I am not throwing away my shot … Cm Yo, I’m just like my country I’m young, scrappy, and hungry Dm Eb D And I’m not throwing away my shot Gm I’m ‘a get a scholarship to King’s College F Bb I prob’ly shouldn’t brag, but dag, I amaze and astonish G7 Cm The problem is I got a lot of brains, but no polish Dm Eb -nc- I gotta holler just to be heard … With every word, I drop knowledge Gm F I’m a diamond in the rough, a shiny piece of coal … Bb Tryin' to reach my goal, my power of speech… Cm Dm Only nineteen, but my mind is older … Eb D These New York City streets getting colder, I shoulder ev’ry Gm F Burden, ev’ry disadvantage I have learned to manage … Bb I don’t have a gun to brandish -nc- I walk these streets famished Cm Dm The plan is to fan this spark into a flame … Eb D But damn, it's getting dark, so let me spell out my name Gm F Bb I am the A-L, E-X, A-N, D, E-R -nc- We are meant to be … Cm Dm A colony that runs independently … Eb D Meanwhile, Britain keeps xxxxting on us endlessly Gm F Essentially, they tax us relentlessly … Bb G7 Then King George turns around, runs a spending spree … Cm He ain’t never gonna set his descendants free Dm Eb D So there will be a revolution in this century -nc- Enter me! Gm -He says in parentheses- F Bb Don’t be shocked when your history book mentions me G7 Cm I will lay down my life if it sets us free DmEb D Eventually you’ll see my ascendancy Gm F And I am not throwing away my shot -my shot- … Bb G7 I am not throwing away my shot -my shot- … Cm Hey yo, I’m just like my country I’m young, scrappy, and hungry Dm Eb D And I’m not throwing away my shot Gm F I am not throwing away my shot … Bb G7 I am not throwing away my shot … Cm Hey yo, I’m just like my country I’m young, scrappy, and hungry Dm Eb D And I’m not throwing away my shot Gm It’s time to take a shot! … F I dream of life without the monarchy … Bb G7 … The unrest in France will lead to "onarchy" … Cm Dm "Onarchy?" How you say, how you s…Oh, anarchy! Eb D … When I fight I make the other side panicky Gm With my my shot! F Yo, I’m a tailor’s apprentice … Bb G7 And I got y’all knuckleheads in loco parentis … Cm I’m joining the rebellion ‘cuz I know it’s my chance Dm Eb D To socially advance, instead of sewin’ some pants Gm I’m gonna take a shot! F Eh, but we’ll never be truly free … Bb G7 Until those in bondage have the same rights as you and me … Cm Dm Eb You and I, do or die, wait ‘til I sally in on a stallion D With the first black battalion Gm Have another shot! F Geniuses, lower your voices … Bb G7 You keep out of trouble, and you double your choices … Cm Dm I’m with you, but the situation is fraught … Eb D You’ve got to be carefully taught: Gm If you talk, you’re gonna get shot! F Burr, check what we got … Bb Mr. Lafayette hard rock like Lancelot G7 Cm I think your pants look hot Dm Laurens, I like you a lot … Eb D Let’s hatch a plot blacker than the kettle callin’ the pot Gm F What are the odds the gods would put us all in one spot … Bb Poppin’ a squat on conventional wisdom, like it or not G7 Cm Dm A bunch of revolutionary manumission abolitionists -nc- Give me a position, show me where the ammunition is Oh, am I talkin’ too loud? Sometimes I get over excited, shoot off at the mouth I never had a group of friends before I promise that I’ll make y’all proud Let’s get this guy in front of a crowd! D Gm F I am not throwing away my shot … Bb G7 I am not throwing away my shot … Cm Hey yo, I’m just like my country I’m young, scrappy, and hungry Eb D And I’m not throwing away my shot Gm F I am not throwing away my shot … Bb G7 I am not throwing away my shot … Cm Hey yo, I’m just like my country I’m young, scrappy, and hungry Eb D And I’m not throwing away my shot Everybody sing! Gm Bb Woah-woah, woah-oh-oh … Ebmaj7 Hey, woah-oh-oh Wooh!! D7 Woah-oh-oh Sing, let ‘em hear ya -Yeah- Gm Bb Let’s go! Woah-woah, woah-oh-oh … Ebmaj7 I said, shout it to the rooftops, woah-oh-oh D7 Said to the rooftops, woah-oh-oh Now come on -Yeah- Now come on, let’s go! Gm Bb Rise up when you’re living on your knees, you rise up Ebmaj7 Tell your brother that he’s got to rise up D7 Tell your sister that she’s got to rise up When are these colonies gonna Gm Rise up -Whoa, woah- E Bb When are these colonies gonna rise up -Woah- G7 Cm When are these colonies gonna rise up -Woah- Dm Eb When are these colonies gonna rise up -Woah- D -nc- Rise up … Gm I imagine death so much it feels more like a memory Bb When’s it gonna get me? In my sleep? Seven feet ahead of me? Ebmaj7 If I see it coming, do I run or do I let it be? D7 Is it like a beat without a melody? Gm See, I never thought I’d live past twenty Bb Where I come from some get half as many Ebmaj7 D7 Ask anybody why we livin’ fast and we laugh, reach for a flask We have to make this moment last, that’s plenty Gm Scratch that! Bb This is not a moment, it’s the movement … Ebmaj7 Where all the hungriest brothers with something to prove went … Foes oppose us, we take an honest stand D7 We roll like Moses, claimin’ our Promised Land Gm Bb And? If we win our independence? … That a guarantee of freedom for our descendants? Ebmaj7 Or will the blood we shed begin an endless D7 Cycle of vengeance and death with no defendants? Gm I know the action in the street is excitin’ Bb But Jesus, between all the bleedin’ ‘n fightin’ Cm I’ve been readin’ ‘n writin’ … Eb We need to handle our financial situation … D Are we a nation of states? What’s the state of our nation? Gm …I’m past patiently waitin’! F Bb I’m passionately smashin’ every expectation G7 Every action’s an act of creation Cm I’m laughin’ in the face of casualties and sorrow D -nc- For the first time, I’m thinkin’ past tomorrow D7 Gm F And I am not throwin’ away my shot … Bb G7 I am not throwin' away my shot … Cm Hey, yo, I’m just like my country I’m young, scrappy, and hungry Eb D And I’m not throwin’ away my shot Gm We’re gonna rise up, time to take a shot -Not thrown’ away my shot- F Bb We’re gonna rise up, time to take a shot -Not thrown’ away my shot- G7 Cm We’re gonna rise up, rise up -Rise up, rise up- It’s time to take a shot Gm -Rise up, rise up- Cm It’s time to take a shot -Rise up, rise up- Gm -Woah, oh, oh- Time to take a shot -Rise up- Take a shot, a shot, a shot -Woah, oh, oh- D7 A-yo, it’s time to take a shot -Woah, oh-oh oh- Time to take a shot -Woah-oh- And I am And I am not throwing away my Gm Not throwing away my shot!
