Heather's first demo working out 8th graders Abhiram Tammana and Nikitha Tokala's winning entry for Chords of Courage student songwriting contest.
MIDDLE SCHOOL SONG LYRICS
#1 WARRIOR
Abhiram Tammana & Nikitha Tokala
8th grade, Windsor Knolls Middle School
You left Ohio with high hopes
That were bigger than this small town
You were a deck of cards, so fragile
Never thought they’d be blown down
The silence in the air, life hit the pause button
That September night when the worst turned right
The frozen stares, you were shaking and scared
The life that you dreamed of flashed in front of your eyes
But, even when they shot at you
You climbed your way back up the roof
You don’t know, but someone’s gotta say
You’re a warrior On a battlefield
No sword to fight Or a shield to hide behind
You’re going headfirst You’ve got no path to lead the way
But as you always used to say
“You can’t wait till life’s not hard to be okay”
Okay (You’re a warrior)
Okay (On a battlefield)
“You can’t wait till life’s not hard to be okay”
The sirens in the air, life hit the pause button
When he broke the “us” into “me and you”
Marriage oath they signed with trust,
Their love vanished in the dust
You found yourself when you lost him
But, finally felt like you could breathe
The weight on your shoulders disappeared
You don't know, You don't know, You don’t know
Even when they shot at you
You climbed your way back up to the roof
You don’t know, but someone’s gotta say
You’re a warrior On a battlefield
No sword to fight Or a shield to hide behind
You’re going headfirst You’ve got no path to lead the way
But as you always used to say
“You can’t wait till life’s not hard to be okay”
Okay (You’re a warrior)
Okay (On a battlefield)
“You can’t wait till life’s not hard to be okay”
You sang your melodies on that stage
The gold confetti falls down like rain
The lyrics painted captured your pain
In a single night, the world knew your name
The stage, you sang a heartbreaking ballad
You smile through it like it never happened
I guess your smile is just your way
Of saying that you’re doing okay
February 19th, when the worst turned right
I heard on the news that you died
Your words were built to inspire
Everyone with the desire
To be happy when your struggling bad
To bring laughter into your own hands
To say “The bad things that come by don’t define me”
To bring change to a world that’s blinded
So though you think you lost the battle, just know you won
The curtains might’ve closed but the show must go on……
You’re a warrior On a battlefield
No sword to fight Or a shield to hide behind
You’re going headfirst You’ve got no path to lead the way
But as you always used to say
“You can’t wait till life’s not hard to be okay”
Okay (You’re a warrior)
Okay (On a battlefield)
“You can’t wait till life’s not hard to be okay”
#2 MARTIN'S DREAM
Jovie Hall & Ariana Ferraco
6th grade, Brunswick Middle School
Our hero was born 1929
Martin saw what he had to do right
Martin has a dream, to give everyone their rights
Men & women, black or white
He went through challenges, to bring peace
He was arrested 29 times
He led marches and protested
He was a leader to me
He had a dream
To give peace
He fought for fairness
And, all their rights
People fought for voting 1965
Nothing was going right
As he said, our lives begin to end
The day we become silent,
about the things that matter to us
Oh, he hasn’t given up
Oh, he knows, God knows
He’s helped us through it
He fought for fairness against the law
Yeah, he fought for us
He had a dream
To give peace
He fought for fairness
And, all their rights
There was a problem, so he stepped up
At first, they thought he was a fool
But then they saw, what good he do
That’s why he stepped up
Don’t let darkness drive out darkness
Only light can do that, The roads were rocky
He kept the confidence, to keep marching on
Just because people let you down, don’t stop moving
You saw Martin, so don’t give up
We can achieve his dream
To give peace
We’ll fight for fairness
And, all our rights
#3 HARRY'S SONG
Kyleigh Mcgee
7th grade, Oakdale Middle School
I can’t see through your eyes.
I can’t feel all the emotions inside.
Through everything I’ve seen.
All I can do is STEP UP walk the walk with you
STEP UP understand what you’re going through
STEP UP help in every way I can
STEP UP and hold your hand
You are you and I am me
we can have endless possibilities.
The sun and moon will not align.
Black and white will never rhyme
We are different in our own ways
Although Words were said and letters were told
remember the flower still grows during a hurricane.
All I can do is STEP UP walk the walk with you
STEP UP understand what you’re going through
STEP UP help in every way I can
STEP UP and hold your hand
One day I hope you know
How your actions helped my soul
You are my inspiration
All you can do is STEP UP walk the walk with them
STEP UP understand what’s happening
STEP UP help in every way you can
STEP UP
#4 TURN ANOTHER CHEEK
Ryan Franko
8th grade, Boonsboro Middle School
Just another day of living the American dream
Just another day but this one will be different
With just one bang I’m thrown into a nightmare
I can’t even see out my eyes
When times are getting down
Just turn another cheek
Don't need to fight back when you can use love
to make the world a better place
All it took was one day for my life to fall before me
All it took was one day for my dreams to be shattered
A man stole my vision, But he can’t steal my power
Didn’t dwell on hate and built myself a new dream
When times are getting down
Just turn another cheek
Don't need to fight back when you can use love
to make the world a better place
After a while they found the man that took away my vision
But I fought to save his life from death in prison
When times are getting down,
Just turn another cheek
Don't need to fight back when you can use love
to make the world a better place
When times are getting down,
Just turn another cheek
Don't need to fight back when you can use love
to make the world a better place
Want to hear last year's songs?
Click here for Chords of Courage, Volume 1.