Lyrics

Intro – Spoken (over sparse piano and news-bed textures) “An Immigration and Customs Enforcement officer shot and killed a Minneapolis driver this morning… Officials call it self-defense; the mayor calls it reckless and unnecessary. South of downtown, near the old immigrant markets… just a mile from where George Floyd was killed. Witness video. A crowd. By evening, a vigil.”

Hook/Chorus (R&B, soulful, choir-ready) Hold up your candles, lift ‘em to the sky, Snow on the ground but our hope still high. You can shake our windows, you can freeze our skin, But love don’t break and we won’t give in. Minneapolis, sing it from within— We rise, we rise again.

Verse 1 (R&B lead) Headlights fade on Hennepin, breath in the air, A 37-year-old sister—God, it’s not fair. Family in the front seat, fear in their eyes, Another name in the winter, another night of why. They said “self-defense,” the mayor said “reckless,” We stand in the cold, every heart on a checklist: Mercy. Justice. Truth we can trust. Snow keeps falling, but it won’t quiet us.

Pre-Chorus (lift) If you’re shaking, take my hand, I’ll steady you, If you’re breaking, lean on me, I’ll carry you. We turn pain into promise, street into choir, From Lake Street’s hush to a North Star fire.

Chorus Hold up your candles, lift ‘em to the sky, Snow on the ground but our hope still high. You can shake our windows, you can freeze our skin, But love don’t break and we won’t give in. Minneapolis, sing it from within— We rise, we rise again.

Rap Verse (hip-hop—urgent, clear, nonviolent) I see red and blue lights paint the winter white, Another headline cuts like a siren in the night. “Crackdown city,” that’s the story they tell, But we the ones living every echo, every bell. Immigrant markets, smell of spice in the snow, We built this corner, watch the roots still grow. Phones in the air, witness truth on the lens, Hundreds in the street—this is where it begins. No more hush; let the heartbeat lead, We speak for the living and the ones who bleed. Not one more reckless pull in a neighborhood, We want protection that protects like it should. Hold the line—law with a human face, Justice isn’t vengeance, it’s a safer place. For every voice shaking, let a thousand stand, We’re Minneapolis strong with an open hand.

Post-Chorus (R&B ad-libs + choir pads) Ohhh, we won’t go quiet, Ohhh, love is our riot (peaceful, steady), Ohhh, hands up in kindness— North Star guide us, guide us.

Verse 2 (R&B lead) I see candles at the curb where the cold wind bites, Prayers turning breath into little blue lights. Name on a poster, flowers at the bend, We grieve, we gather, we begin again. If protection’s the promise, then honor the vow, If power holds weapons, let wisdom say how. We want the kind of badge that guards, not breaks, We want the kind of dawn that no fear takes.

Bridge (call-and-response, gospel lift) Call: We remember, we remember. Resp: But we still rise, we still rise. Call: We want safety—real safety. Resp: With human eyes, with human eyes. Call: Keep us whole, keep us honest. Resp: Tell the truth, no disguise. All: Snow can fall, but not our will— The North Star never dies.

Chant/Outro (crowd energy, drums drop to claps) Hands up—hearts up—eyes up—rise up. ICE out—fear out—hate out—rise up. Say her name—hold that flame—be that light—rise up. Minneapolis, Minneapolis—rise up, rise up.

Final Chorus (bigger melody, stacked harmonies) Hold up your candles, lift ‘em to the sky, Snow on the ground but our hope still high. You can shake our windows, you can freeze our skin, But love don’t break and we won’t give in. Minneapolis, sing it from within— We rise, we rise again.