Follow God by Kanye West Lyrics Meaning – Unpacking the Spiritual Struggle in Modern Hip-Hop
Lyrics
Stretch my hands to You
Lifelike, this is what your life like, try to live your life right
People really know you, push your buttons like type write
This is like a movie, but it’s really very lifelike
Every single night right, every single fight, right?
I was looking at the ‘Gram and I don’t even like likes
I was screamin’ at my Dad, he told me, “It ain’t Christ-like”
I was screamin’ at the referee just like Mike
Lookin’ for a bright light, Sigel, what your life like
Riding on a white bike, feeling like excite bike (stretch my hands to You)
Pressin’ on the gas, supernova for a night light
Screamin’ at my dad and he told me, “It ain’t Christ-like”
But nobody never tell you when you’re being like Christ
Only ever seein’ me only when they needin’ me
Like if Tyler Perry made a movie for BET
Searchin’ for a deity, now you wanna see it free
Now you wanna see if we, let’s just see if three a piece
Tell me what your life like, turn it down, a bright light
Drivin’ with my dad, and he told me, “It ain’t Christ-like” (stretch my hands to You)
I’m just tryna find, I’ve been lookin’ for a new way
I’m just really tryna not to really do the fool way
I don’t have a cool way, bein’ on my best, though
Block ’em on the text though, nothin’ else next though
Not another word, letter, picture, or a decimal (Father, I stretch)
Wrestlin’ with God, I don’t really want to wrestle
Man, it’s really lifelike, everything in my life (stretch my hands to You)
Arguing with my dad, and he said, “It ain’t Christ-like”
Man
You know, it’s like
Somebody only close who can get you, like, off your
I be on my
I woke up this morning, I said my prayers
I’m all good, then I tried to talk to my dad (stretch my hands to You)
Give him some advice, he starts spazzin’ on me
I start spazzin’ back, he said “That ain’t Christ-like”
I said, “Aah”
Kanye West’s ‘Follow God’, a track off his 2019 album ‘Jesus Is King’, finds the enigmatic artist in the midst of a spiritual tug-of-war. The song’s booming bass and soulful sample provide a background to West’s introspective verses, where he confronts his own imperfections and the challenge of living up to a Christ-like example amidst the chaos of the modern world.
With ‘Follow God’, Kanye meshes his journey towards Christianity with the very human experience of faltering while striving for ideal behavior. This piece dives into the lyrics, unraveling the complexities hidden beneath the surface, exploring the overarching message, and dissecting West’s knack for raw, heartfelt expression.
Father Figures and Faith: Kanye’s Cry to the Heavens
‘Father, I stretch my hands to You’ these words open and close the song with a vulnerability that anchors Kanye’s reflection. While the phrase originates from a traditional gospel song, Kanye repurposes it, reaching out not just to God but also to his earthly father with whom his relationship seems fraught. This duality begins to craft a picture of a man grappling with spiritual and personal lineage.
The lyrics oscillate between respect and conflict, a mirror to many parent-child dynamics and the push-and-pull between the mortal and divine fathers. When Kanye says, ‘I was screamin’ at my Dad, he told me,
