Alexander Hamilton

Verse 1

They said I came without a penny, empty hands

Born broken, British hold—no home, no land

Mamma gone early, papa took off alone

A street short on mercy, cold stone, no throne

Hunger gnawed dreams till dawn, shoulders hunched

Seventeen bones and a hunch, I could punch through the punch

Name in the dirt, shirts torn, faith frayed

Determined digits, destiny, debts unpaid

Dragged to a dock, barrels bending the rules

Writing for bread, for hope, for schools

Wrote my own truth, fevered nights, candle burned

Ripped through rumor, rations, lessons learned

Chorus

I keep rising, rising, never quit, never run

Hurts keep me hurried, heavy work never done

How do you not break, held by thread and will?

I keep trying, trying—still

I keep trying, trying—still

Post-Chorus

Still

Still

Verse 2

Letters like ladders, climbing out of despair

Stakes too high for sleep, no one cared

Prayers for a push, one word at a time

Crowding the margins, forging the line

Storm in the street, French ships at bay

Plans in my head and debts to repay

Code in the quill, quiet, quicksilver mind

Tower of trouble, left honor behind

I wanted respect, I wanted that name

Carved in the paper—come fortune, come flame

A son of the Caribbean night, city's adopted son

Buries the past, turns pain into a gun

Chorus

I keep rising, rising, one fight after one

Mistakes don't define you, battle's never done

How do you not break, held by thread and will?

I keep trying, trying—still

I keep trying, trying—still

Post-Chorus

Still

Still

Bridge

Maybe my mind moves two paces quick

Maybe my mouth is a loaded stick

Maybe ambition is a sharp-tipped sword

Maybe I'm building, burning, bored

Maybe I dream too big, think too loud

Maybe my vision don't fit this crowd

Maybe I'm hated, fated, stung by pride

But still I ride, still I ride

Verse 3

Enemies everywhere—Aaron's glare across the room

Rose through the ranks, rage in full bloom

Led men through the mud, through fire and smoke

What’s lost is costly, broke but woke

My name ricocheting down marble halls

My hands making laws, my rise, my falls

Three things I trust: my pen, my pen, my pen

Written in wounds, again and again

Chorus

I keep rising, rising, never done, never gone

Past keeps me pressing, pressure's always on

How do you not break, held by thread and will?

I keep trying, trying—still

I keep trying, trying—still

Post-Chorus

Still

Still