From the Woods, by Jackson Whalan

From the Woods

by Jackson Whalan

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Full Digital Discography

74

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Includes unlimited streaming via the free Bandcamp app, plus high-quality downloads of This Hits Different, Mindset, Big Things, Source Code (prod. by GES), Take Off, Greatness, Encourage (Instrumental), Bring It Back (feat. Jam Young), and 66 more. , and , .

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1.	Hot Sauce 02:24	lyrics	buy track
Painting pictures with these words like Bob Ross My rhymes got more power than a mob boss Not everyone can handle it I'm spitting that hot sauce My mind stable like a camera that's locked off If you ain't down for the ride you getting dropped off If I ain't going all in I'm calling it a lost cause Quarantine bars everything is on a long pause Aiming for perfection going way beyond flaws Until I drop jaws breaking what you call laws Keep it revolutionary like 60s rock songs Having dreams that I'm rolling with some all-stars I got everything you need but this ain't Walmart's Every syllable I speak is boutique a la carte Dropping more jewels and gold than pawn shops This rhyme is non-stop lyrical onslaught I don't need much land give me a small plot Until the plot thickens and I'm growing a tall crop Marvelous celebrating like I'm watching the ball drop While you chasing after me like Paul Blart the mall cop You think these new rappers good but they all not I came to change that before I catch a bald spot Sanitizing the game until it's all mopped Cuz these lames got no skill all props Fashion and make up don't make up for the rhymes you can't drop I ride with intelligence like a Smart Car Linking up with the greats call me Nardwuar Getting up standing up I will fall not Rapping's not a choice to me it's all I got I'm hip-hop like doing a throw up on a wall spot Breaking open surfaces like it's wall rot But compared to the universe I know I'm just a small dot So I look up at the stars when my ego is all fraught
2.	The Machine (Interlude) 00:28	lyrics	buy track
There is a time When the operation of the machine Becomes so odious Makes you so sick at heart That you can't take part You can't even passively take part And you've got to put your bodies upon the gears And upon the wheels Upon the levers Upon all the apparatus And you've got to make it stop And you've got to indicate to the people who run it To the people who own it That unless you're free The machine will be prevented from working at all
3.	Angry 02:53	lyrics	buy track
I’m just angry But I know what do to Yeah yeah We’re standing at your front door demanding all the answers A thousand deep cramming deep into your mansion Until we see some real reparations and advances We ain’t letting up under any circumstances In the pandemic oppressive in the summer heat When police killing back people in the fucking street Every week who’s the next one gonna be? Future ain’t bright like Bart Steve Bannon I’m pushing the needle and fighting the evil Like Evel Knievel over the Grand Canyon Wings spanning like an eagle Keeping it regal when there’s no sequel Spit out what the media feeds you Until you can see what you have agreed too I’m just angry But I know what to do I know what to do I’m just angry But I know what to do Yeah yeah I’m just angry But I know what to do I know what to do I’m just angry But I know what to do Yeah yeah I’m just angry and I’m ready for a face off I could either stand in the way or just play soft The rich getting paid off we get laid off And POTUS a fraud like Bernie Madoff Making deals when they play golf and name drop Private jet take off Back to the estate to calculate percentages And influence society over cold beverages We got centrists complying with white supremacists And both of sides of the aisle don’t even know what a rebel is And when I take a stand the news is so sickening Contradicting all of the solutions we’re envisioning It’s a feeling inside I can’t shake off I’m alone in my zone had to break off From all these narcissists looking for applause Destroying the environment to safe face for lost jobs Lost cause enacting all the tactics While questioning America’s life liberty and happiness The situation hazardous anger is my catalyst No more being passive when there’s sympathy for fascists I’m just angry But I know what to do I know what to do I’m just angry But I know what to do Yeah yeah I’m just angry But I know what to do I know what to do I’m just angry But I know what to do Yeah yeah
4.	From the Woods 04:01	lyrics	buy track
Flipping back woods material Long hikes and scenic sights Cops running red lights Where young tikes ride bikes Tourists coming from New York To spend a couple nights While the local youth Getting kicked off the street like mice Tucked in these hills Liberal voters second homeowners Organization donors Local business owners mostly white A lot to comprehend When I’m sitting down to write a rhyme Before I venture out To find another mountain to climb But hip-hop made it’s way Deep into the heart of sticks So I’m kicking written's to the stars Peep this lunar eclipse Everyone like what yo what’s good What you doing this Friday Ciphers at house parties Down deep dark driveways Toured across the country Drove on single highway Passing through your hometown To make your speakers vibrate Getting home in a hurry Had to pass on the right Out in the 413 Exit two off the mass pike Worldwide what's good We're bumping hip-hop To the city from the woods From the top of the mountain To your local neighborhood It's a way of life man This is understood But we know where it started at What's good We're bumping hip-hop From the city to the woods From the street corner To your rural neighborhood It's a way of life man This is understood But we know where it started at Leaves falling on the forest floor In this rural corridor My people swinging hammers Working pulling up some floor boards I’m Gandalf in the shire You like Froto out in Mordor I’m out in nature contemplating All the greats that came before Bringing hip-hop folklore While whack emcees are waging war Cuz being fake could pay you more But that’s not what we do this for I’m rap's Bruce Springsteen Bob Dylan Pete Seeger With LL Cool J and Beastie Boys up in your speaker For teachers and truth seekers For the students and the preachers For the crowds up in the bleachers Small towns and the believers For the activists Fighting warlords and evil leaders If you coming from the woods I see ya Worldwide what's good We're bumping hip-hop To the city from the woods From the top of the mountain To your local neighborhood It's a way of life man This is understood But we know where it started at What's good We're bumping hip-hop From the city to the woods From the street corner To your rural neighborhood It's a way of life man This is understood But we know where it started at
5.	Work 03:47	lyrics	buy track
This is for the people On the frontline of the struggle Struggle for justice Human rights Equality People fighting to save the planet From climate catastrophe People fighting to save lives People learning how to take a stand I'm with you I ain't been ignited before like this To resist share my thoughts Until you catching the gist Planet on the brink of catastrophe No plan b But it ain't to late To make it what it can be You understanding me Humanity's a family Just because we're different Doesn't mean that I'm your enemy Put the people first That's the message At the top of the check list Like this And everyday I'm feeling like We need a blank slate A lot of politicians Campaigning on hate While the temperature's rising At an unprecedented rate A racist president Thought that he could make America great Yo our faith is getting tested So now we're asking lots of questions While I'm turning on the news To see what I missed Yo we got to come together soon If we want to get a grip but If this will not work I don't know what will Put the people first This is how we feel If this will not work I don't know what will Put the people first This is how we feel I don't think that they really Understand or see how we feel yet There's a lot of work To be done Marching through the streets Until the system is defeated Before natural resources Become depleted No slacking Time to demand a ban on fracking Retracting all the bills And legislation they’re passing Moving in an orderly fashion Bringing passion Regardless of the reaction Or people trying to demean it A few have all the human rights Many need some Watching injustice Play out on a re-run Just look at Shawn King's IG defund Healthcare for all That should be a free one And chances are I agree with how you feel And we both wanna live to see a Green New Deal I’m a product of ambivalence Rough times and dark thoughts I know we the people gonna make it Through the tough parts No breaks We ain’t gonna slow down We about to take over It’s a showdown If this will not work I don't know what will Put the people first This is how we feel If this will not work I don't know what will Put the people first This is how we feel
6.	Probation (Interlude) 00:34	lyrics	buy track
Hi this call is for Jackson Whalan We have your money card ready If you want to come down to the jail And pick it up Just come to the front door And buzz the bell And they will send you back And you can go get it I'm calling to let you know What I heard from probation and parole They can meet with you that afternoon You'll also have to get an A.S.I. done By their A.S.I. writer That's an assessment on substance abuse I'm calling you in for a random test today
7.	Never Gonna Come Down (feat. Kyle Bent) 04:22	lyrics	buy track
I've been riding around moving work all day I feel like I'm on top of the world now Got a girl by my side riding on the highway I feel like I'm never gonna come down Never gonna come down Never gonna come down Cross country trip Had some pounds up in the whip I was getting ready to flip For some cash I could grip When I saw them lights flashing I knew it was a wrap Highway patrol With the K-9 in the back Searching my car and I’m getting arrested The universe testing me sending a message But I ain’t confessing to more than possession They're taking my weed and they treat it like crack Checking me in and they taking my fingerprints Guilty until proven innocent I was on the edge I was living it But now it’s a cell that I’m sitting in Stuck in jail till I posted bail Then I found my car Now I got my lawyer telling me That I could catch a charge I guess that’s just the price you pay When you’re living large Now it’s either gripping microphones Or prison bars One year later got the P.O. knocking on my door I ain’t slipping up Cuz I know that’s what their watching for But when I go to sleep I’m still having dreams that I've been riding around moving work all day I feel like I'm on top of the world now Got a girl by my side riding on the highway I feel like I'm never gonna come down Never gonna come down Never gonna come down I remember when I went out Everything was sunken I was let down Had to learn to live for my best Everyday was a threat And I stressed but I made it bounce Couldn’t die had to rise too alive Seen a knife never mind Not strong enough to cross that line Man I knew my life had strong ties One way or another I’m gonna a conquer Even if it take a long time In my head traveling through thick and thins Gotta make that money man Yo my debts were not glamorous Thousands on thousands owed Still tryna make my music pop Real life can get dangerous And we are not no movie props Had to blast back to the top Working for my only shot Walking miracle ok I kid you not Matter fact what I knew before Is left back in the fog I am never going back I’m with the stars I've been riding around moving work all day I feel like I'm on top of the world now Got a girl by my side riding on the highway I feel like I'm never gonna come down Never gonna come down Never gonna come down
8.	Don't You Let Go (feat. Bailey Morgan) 03:43	lyrics	buy track
Don’t you Let go I’m on the edge don’t let me Fall in Love again I can’t take much more I’m Almost over Last time that I saw you Can we forget Everything we been through It's just I got So much on my mind and When you Around me I'm not thinking straight I’m Losing Control You just made me do that Don’t you Let go Don’t You Let go Don' t you let go Don't you let go Don' t you let go Don't you let go Don't you let go I'm ready to listen cuz I need to Let you put it on the line Make it be true I'm calling But it's kind of hard to reach you I was walking Thought that I would see you And I'm falling Into memories I dream through Cuz I'm all in I ain't ever gonna leave you This life is one take no redo But I'm stalling Waiting for a sequel Hitting rewind now we back to scene two Acting like we need to Have each other to lean to Riding waves like we're lost in the deep blue When you feeling like the storm Could defeat you You better turn it right around Let it teach you I'm too busy trying to re-watch the preview And replay every episode Cuz I can't let it go Even though it's over I keep feeling like I need you The universe was holding us Bigger than the both of us When we were both showing up The whole world had woken up I'm on the edge of a cliff And I'm hanging Even when I fall away I can here you saying Don’t you Let go I’m on the edge don’t let me Fall in Love again I can’t take much more I’m Almost over Last time that I saw you Can we forget Everything we been through It's just I got So much on my mind and When you Around me I'm not thinking straight I’m Losing Control You just made me do that Don’t you Let go Don’t You Let go Don' t you let go Don't you let go Don' t you let go Don't you let go Don't you let go
9.	Financial Liberation (Interlude) 00:26	info	buy track
10.	Nice Em Up (feat. Dominik Omega) 03:42	lyrics	buy track
Even when the price is up I nice em up cuz life is rough I give the nicest nugs To those who like to puff I brighten up the Day cuz life is trife enough I give the tightest hugs Righteous love shake the cipher up And put your lighters up Give you the jacket off of my back Give you directions follow the map You can just have it give you the bag Up on the stage throwing the cash Into the crowd like Rocafella Make you a star interstellar When it’s raining I give you an umbrella Give a beat maker an a cappella Put some change up in your jar Nicing you up I’ll buy you a car Doesn’t matter whoever you are Buy you a drink when I’m up in the bar Sticking together we all going far Making sure that you’re up to par Keeping it humble Running through the jungle like a jaguar 413 that’s where I’m at Keeping it generous never the whack Nicing you up with a microphone if you’re here to rap I nice it up with the illest lyricism Keep it on beat Ain’t going nowhere unless we all eat Nice em up Nice em up along the way When your people gotta eat And you got nothing to pay Nice em up Nice em up along the way When your whole team grinding Working hard every day Nice em up Nice em up along the way When the people on the street Ain’t got nowhere to stay Nice em up Nice em up along the way Cuz if we stick together then we’ll never fade away Damn these kids nice From the vocals to the mix See these locals kind of sick From the bricks to the sticks You's a hopeful won't you sit Thought I told you we's legit Catch us in the viper pit 0 1 2 3 fucking 6 We nice with generosity Pipes we got velocity Build and break bread With you youths and spit philosophy Iliad and The Odyssey Honestly flip this homilies Hubris that's mixed with modesty Camaraderie and quantity All love a prophecy Hatred never stopping We just keep slaying Staying in pocket just like a wallaby Fuck it youngin follow me I'll open my neurology To gift you with pathologies Like spiritual geometry Motown mixed mahogany Titanium tip technology Mash on mobs monstrously With rhythm ripped responsibly See the new democracy Do this shit impossibly Nice these fuckers up It's standard operating policy Nice em up Nice em up along the way When your people gotta eat And you got nothing to pay Nice em up Nice em up along the way When your whole team grinding Working hard every day Nice em up Nice em up along the way When the people on the street Ain’t got nowhere to stay Nice em up Nice em up along the way Cuz if we stick together then we’ll never fade away
11.	Dino (Interlude) 00:55	info	buy track
12.	On My Mind (feat. Ian Evans) 03:10	lyrics	buy track
I’m staying diligent step into the void and I’m filling it I’ve been in my element killing it since I was a little kid Peep the message I’m distilling it sharpen up my skill a bit Thrilling kids cuz I’m sticking to the syllabus When I was a young boy anger was my job But I began to find my purpose bumping Illmatic by Nas And overnight I let the rhymes take hold Start writing from the soul 'til I could hold a mic expose the light Oh he's just a white rapper from Berkshire County But when I start to win is when is you're wishing you were around me I’m putting in all the hours cuz respect doesn’t come quick Ten years deep and I was opening for Slick Rick Hopped in his car he was sitting in the back Promoter gave me the dough so I could hand his wife the cash It takes ten years to blow up overnight That’s why we’re celebrating while we light this dynamite ay It's the only thing keeping me alive I do what I gotta do just to survive Why do I do this just to give you a vibe Got my mind on the music and the music on my mind It's the only thing keeping me alive I do what I gotta do just to survive Why do I do this just to give you a vibe Got my mind on the music and the music on my mind I masterfully drop into the beat so casually I'm lyrically gifted naturally Lifted and that was back in the day kid I can barely remember how we did Before Collie Buddz and Homegrown Bermuda I was riding around in the back of town on a scooter Out in Sommerset dockyard shows puffing on the buddha Dr. Bernie swimming with sharks and barracuda Port-au-Prince was ghettomatic Konbit music was lit before the static Speak the kréole gramatic Chanmas with Kiko and Rebel was black magic Leaving Delmas 33 was fucking tragic Konshens and Barrington shows in the states Best of best had us raising the stakes Opened for Ri Ri in L.A. and it don't matter no way At the end of the day I do this music thing my way It's the only thing keeping me alive I do what I gotta do just to survive Why do I do this just to give you a vibe Got my mind on the music and the music on my mind It's the only thing keeping me alive I do what I gotta do just to survive Why do I do this just to give you a vibe Got my mind on the music and the music on my mind
13.	Cuz I'm Dope 02:46	lyrics	buy track
I'm verified cuz I’m dope Got that check mark I'm a pro Cuz I lift em up and give em hope And now I'm bout to drop another post About about how I'm Verified cuz I'm dope This is for my people in the front row This is for the new ones who didn't know I'm not just verified cuz I'm dope Let me tell you how I used to be struggling broke Now I'm sitting on a pot of gold And I know you heard that before But the story really must be told I've been hungry I've been stuck out in the cold On tour broke down on the wrong road Couldn't believe I made it when I got home Got nothing to lose so I press record Cuz when you independent trying to grow You need a whole team showing you which way to go For a while I was trying to take it slow But this time it's about to blow I'm from the small town in the woods Don't meant that I don't got the flow Challenging the status quo Cali to Brooklyn touring the U.S. shows I booked them To big for the small town I grew up in Big fish in a small pond they hooked him The chosen one they found him Going hard regardless of the outcome Hustling jobs to fund the next album Now that he's verified everyone surround him I'm verified cuz I’m dope Got that check mark I'm a pro Cuz I lift em up and give em hope And now I'm bout to drop another post About about how I'm Verified cuz I'm dope This is for my people in the front row This is for the new ones who didn't know I'm not just verified cuz I'm dope
14.	Music is the Drug (feat. Kyle Goldstein) 03:41	lyrics	buy track
Music is the drug yeah Got me coming up yeah Now they showing love yeah I could never O.D. I could never O.D. yeah Man this shit is crazy No drugs up in my system but I still be spitting wavy Just play me on the daily make that shit your fix With sober living more is giving and I'm still legit But I still see shit like track marks in my backyard And the sad part is that that's not it shit that's not lit Yeah you could never blast on it Until you're like really that's all shit Do you need more when you see more Ticking time bomb that's C4 Shout out to C Force Stick to we more beef or you need a needle Zoned out watching reruns when you need bumps See fentanyl is upsetting y'all But you still buy and don't expect to fall It can happen to anyone except for ya'll You're just lucky and blessed that's all Get high off the fucking music dude Cuz that's the power of what music do Shit light a blunt I don't a fuck Anything other than taking bumps Or taking pills it's lame just chill This ain't a game this shit is real It's not lame to feel even if it hurts Get through that shit man put in work Even if it's tough I'll show the love You need the truth man I got the stuff I got enough and I am the plug To make music the fucking drug like Music is the drug yeah Got me coming up yeah Now they showing love yeah I could never O.D. I could never O.D. yeah Music is the drug yeah Got me coming up yeah Now they showing love yeah I could never O.D. I could never O.D. yeah Just look at all friends that we’re burying All because of the heroin Chance of survival very slim Escape reality very grim My patience wearing thin You ain’t facing the burdens you been carrying Walk around looking all arrogant I wan’t the real you no comparing it I found my purpose and I’m sharing it That’s why I got this music and I cherish it In high school you were very lit But now you looking like you perishing You staring at me so strange Cuz I ain’t in your bathroom doing cocaine No shame big picture whole frame For hometown hear me out Lost more friends than my hands can count It’s getting old like a hand-me-down So I make a new track and I air it out Watching the old folks as stare me down While I bump it in the car and I blare it out While I’m driving by another one of my best friends In a stretcher getting carried out Rock bottom pivotal I been down low feeling cynical Powerless and pitiful feeling like I was invisible But now I’m under the influence of dope beats Standing on my feet right here with my mind super clear yeah Music is the drug yeah Got me coming up yeah Now they showing love yeah I could never O.D. I could never O.D. yeah Music is the drug yeah Got me coming up yeah Now they showing love yeah I could never O.D. I could never O.D. yeah

about

I created this album to uplift and inspire.

These songs were made after I experienced one of the biggest challenges in my life.

I couldn't have completed this without my allies: family, friends, collaborators, fans, and listeners.

Enjoy and share.

credits

released January 29, 2021

Produced by Jackson Whalan
Co-Produced by Ian Evans

Mixing Engineer: John Davis
Mastering Engineer: Robert Macchiochi

Recorded at Jackson Whalan Music production studio in Housatonic, MA
Mixed at The Bunker Studio in Brooklyn, NY
Mastered at Subvert Central Mastering (UK)

Lead vocals and beat making: Jackson Whalan
Keyboard, vocals, and various instruments: Ian Evans

Ananda Vaughan: electric guitar on “Hot Sauce”
Ariel Shrum: trumpet on “Hot Sauce” and “Don’t You Let Go”
Miles Lally: bass guitar on “Work”
Clayton Squire: electric guitar on “Never Gonna Come Down”
Kyle Bent: featured vocalist on “Never Gonna Come Down”
Bailey Morgan: featured vocalist on “Don’t You Let Go”
Dominik Omega: featured vocalist on “Nice Em Up”
Kyle Goldstein: featured vocalist on “Music is the Drug”
Ian Stewart: trumpet on “Music is the Drug”

Album Cover
Photography by Amy Inglis (Avida Love Photography)
Designed by George Cox (Outpost)
Handwriting by Jackson Whalan