Intro: Sampled Dialogue

[male vocal] (Intro: Sampled Dialogue) (Sound of a dial-up modem connecting, then cutting off abruptly. A heavy rain starts to patter.) Sample (HR Manager): "...regrettably, due to restructuring, your position has been eliminated." Sample (Jack, Whispering): "Eliminated? I was the backbone..." (Verse 1: The Illusion) Yo, it started with a paycheck, looked big on paper, felt thin Eighteen an hour, but the cost of livin’ was a sin Taxes took a bite, the mortgage screamed for blood Car note, insurance, yeah, it’s lookin’ like a flood I’m in the Suburbs, white picket, American Dream But my bank account? It’s thinner than it seems Got a wife, two kids, mouths to feed, a roof to keep But the foundation’s crackin’, buried six feet deep I’m walkin’ on a tightrope, no net underneath One gust of wind, and it’s a permanent leave I’m tellin’ myself, "Jack, you’re stable, you’re straight" But the interest rates on my debt are sealin’ my fate. (I thought I was safe...) (Chorus) One step over the line, that’s the Kill Threshold From a corner office to sleepin’ in the shadow, yo System check, checkmate, watch the American Dream go From 36.5°C to 4°C, watch the color fade slow Yeah, the Kill Threshold, it don’t care 'bout your name You’re just a number, a liability, a statistical game. (Verse 2: The Combo) Then the hammer dropped, yeah, the layoff memo came "Thank you for your service," now I’m playin’ a different game Unemployment? Chump change, barely covers rent The savings? Three G’s, yeah, that capital went Fast as a flash, the clock is tickin’ down Miss a payment, get a notice, frown upon a frown Credit score plummets, 780 to 6-0 Can’t get a job now, 'cause the system says "no" "No credit, no hire," that’s the new rule Tryna find a lifeline, but I’m playin’ the fool Back’s actin’ up, the pain is real, sharp as a knife But the ER bill? Man, that’s the end of my life (If I go in, I’m broke. If I stay, I’m broke.) I skip the doctor, pop a friend’s pill, feel the high Just to numb the panic, just to watch the hours fly. (Bridge) The house got foreclosed, kicked out to the curb Sleepin’ in the Motel 6, watchin’ life go berserk Phone gets shut off, no address, no trace Tryna apply online, but I’m losin’ the race Wife took the kids, went back to her ma Left me with the demons and the cold winter air I’m 42 years old, feelin’ ancient and frail Trapped in a system designed to fail. (Verse 3: The Point of No Return) Now I’m on the sidewalk, cardboard is my bed Join the ranks of the ghosts, livin’ life without a thread Tryna get a job? "No address? Get lost." Tryna get help? "The line’s at the cost." Back’s shattered, lungs weak, breathin’ in the damp Tryna stay warm, tryna find a crumb of lamb The cold sets in, the hunger bites deep The only friends I got are the rats and the street sweep They say "Move along," treat me like trash One bad decision, one final smash A needle for the pain, a sip to forget But the debt keeps comin’, ain’t no amnesty yet I’m just a statistic, a body in the street Another casualty of the concrete. (Outro) (The beat starts to distort, slow down, and fade.) From the office to the alley, yeah, the fall was steep No margin for error when you’re tryna keep Your head above water in this capitalist sea One ripple, one hiccup, and they’re scrapin’ the debris. I’m just... cold. Just... tired. (Sound of a distant siren, then silence.)