They call me Mr. Gla** [Verse 1] So gather 'round all your speakers to hear us It's the way we tell the stories like we're preachers at Easter It's a story that I'll tell in three chapters After introduction and the theme song is set in action And then you hear the music [Fade In] as the title plays And after that the stage is set, the crowd's waitin' Step into the light with my voice as the weapon And holding onto the mic, and I'll recount my story; steppin' Through my history my father worked the chemical plant 'Till the factories closed, and my family moved camps So we're down South; I learned that the color of my skin Could've set the tone for everything uncovered within And reflect on how we all can relate to each other We feel as though we brothers and sisters comin' from different mothers Individuals living on this planet together And holding up our umbrellas And combating the stormy weather Like what [Hook] (Just) Making music, telling stories with words So you listen in your headphones to the stories you've heard As I stroll throughout the timeline of life gone past And it's like when I do my thing It's so Ira Gla**! In This American Life we're all bearing the strife We inherited from our parents as we prepared for life I think back how life moved so fast And it's like when I do my thing It's so Ira Gla**! [Verse 2] (Radio!) Radio, somebody loves ya still Though they broke your will cause technology k**s (someone still loves you) The video star was hot for a minute until The internet took it over now we listen for thrills And broadcast up in your podcast still we never lost that Loving feeling got that after stations lost out Music melds with memories 'til it's heavenly And coaxial cables transmit Ira Gla**' telling me With no apology, emotional resonance And hesitant with technology the future is present Living in the machine you're just lucky to know That Life has lived through similar experience as you grow Into the person that you wanna be; this life isn't over
Just because somebody said, "You're too old, so move over!" It's a similar struggle that we all feel and heavy And so when I'm tuning in I'm feeling better already [Hook] (Just) Making music, telling stories with words So you listen in your headphones to the stories you've heard As I stroll throughout the timeline of life gone past And it's like when I do my thing It's so Ira Gla**! In This American Life we're all bearing the strife We inherited from our parents as we prepared for life I think back how life moved so fast And it's like when I do my thing It's so Ira Gla**! [Verse 3] Just a skinny kid who was busy reading the Aeneid Gla**es with thicker rims, a mind that's staying busy with Learning from civilians about things he could have never did But would have done just if he lived of those experienced We pa** the stories down through history critical Cause before we felt the pages, now we listen in digital And no matter your voice, and no matter your name You do your thing like Ira Gla** and baby it's all game! Start out talking to others and you live in their pain Listen to their victories and you give them a name And give every show a theme and produce it to d**h In the end you tell the human condition in one breath Cause This American Life, we're all paying the price And hoping that our legacy can be the reason we fight And it's whether you make a difference in the big or the small But when I see it on my iTunes I'm pressing Play All What [Hook] (Just) Making music, telling stories with words So you listen in your headphones to the stories you've heard As I stroll throughout the timeline of life gone past And it's like when I do my thing It's so Ira Gla**! In This American Life we're all bearing the strife We inherited from our parents as we prepared for life I think back how life moved so fast And it's like when I do my thing It's so Ira Gla**! (scratching) It's so Ira Gla**