[Intro]
One, two, three, four
Tell the landlord at the door
Raise the roof
Not the rent

[Verse]
Raise the Roof, Not the Rent, let the whole block know
We been pushed too far, now the brass gonna blow
Empty towers shining where the families stood
Luxury silence in a working-class hood
They paint the lobby with a marble grin
While the old folks pack what they lived within
They call it progress, call it fresh cement
We call it Raise the Roof, Not the Rent

[Pre-Chorus]
If your home got priced like a dream for sale
If your street got turned into someone’s mail
Put your hands up high, let the message be sent
Raise the Roof, Not the Rent

[Chorus]
Raise the Roof, Not the Rent
Let the whole crowd represent
We need homes, not monuments
Raise the Roof, Not the Rent
Raise the Roof, Not the Rent
Every voice is evidence
We need roots, not punishment
Raise the Roof, Not the Rent

[Verse]
Coffee shop came and the rent went wild
School friend moved with her little child
Barber got a notice after twenty good years
Corner store gone and the street lost ears
But the beat still knows every name on the wall
Every kitchen light, every late-night call
If the city is a song that the people invent
Then Raise the Roof, Not the Rent

[Pre-Chorus]
If your home got priced like a dream for sale
If your street got turned into someone’s mail
Put your hands up high, let the message be sent
Raise the Roof, Not the Rent

[Chorus]
Raise the Roof, Not the Rent
Let the whole crowd represent
We need homes, not monuments
Raise the Roof, Not the Rent
Raise the Roof, Not the Rent
Every voice is evidence
We need roots, not punishment
Raise the Roof, Not the Rent

[Instrumental]
Bass slap hard, horns go bright
Drums make room in the crowded night
DJ cuts keys in the door
Crowd stomps louder than before

[Bridge]
A home ain’t a number on a screen
A street ain’t a brand-new marketing dream
A neighbor ain’t a vacancy sign
A city belongs to the living line

[Breakdown]
Rent up
No way
Homes now
Today
Roots deep
We stay
Raise the roof
Let it play

[Build-up]
From the basement to the balcony
From the shelter to the street
From the sofa where your cousin sleeps
To the march beneath your feet
One chant, one tent
One city, one intent
Raise the Roof
Not the Rent

[Chorus]
Raise the Roof, Not the Rent
Let the whole crowd represent
We need homes, not monuments
Raise the Roof, Not the Rent
Raise the Roof, Not the Rent
Every voice is evidence
We need roots, not punishment
Raise the Roof, Not the Rent

[Chorus]
Raise the Roof, Not the Rent
Let the whole crowd represent
We need homes, not monuments
Raise the Roof, Not the Rent
Raise the Roof, Not the Rent
Every voice is evidence
We need roots, not punishment
Raise the Roof, Not the Rent

[Outro]
Tell the tower, tell the tent
Tell the mayor what we meant
When the whole crowd came and went
Raise the Roof, Not the Rent