[INTRO — SPOKEN, BREATHLESS] Get off me... Let me breathe. I'm tired of everybody pulling at me. Everybody wanting something. Everybody talking, nobody listening. For once in my damn life... LET ME BREATHE! [VERSE 1] Everybody's got a piece of me, Taking what they want, then blaming me. Everybody's got a story to tell, While I'm barely surviving my own private hell. You want my time, you want my soul, You want the pieces when I'm not even whole. You push my buttons, then you watch me break, Then call me crazy for the mess you make. I'm tired of defending every word I say, Tired of explaining why I feel this way. You don't hear me, you just hear yourself, While I'm screaming for a little help. [PRE-CHORUS] My chest is tight, my mind won't rest, A thousand pounds upon my chest. You keep on pushing, can't you see? There's barely anything left of me! [CHORUS — EXPLOSIVE] GET OFF ME! LET ME BREATHE! Quit taking everything I need! Get out my head, get off my back, I'm tired of living under attack! GET OFF ME! LET ME GO! There's so much pain you'll never know! I'm not your punching bag, your place to scream, I'm a living woman with a dying dream! GET OFF ME! LET ME BREATHE! For once, just let me be me! [VERSE 2] You tell me you love me, then tear me apart, Put another damn crack in my already broken heart. You say I'm the problem, you say I'm insane, But never take credit for causing the pain. And everybody else comes knocking at my door, Wanting what I've given a thousand times before. I help, I listen, I give till I'm dry, But who's gonna catch me when I finally cry? I'm sixty years old, I've earned my peace, I'm not asking for much, just a little release. I don't need another lecture, another excuse, Another person treating my kindness like something to use. [PRE-CHORUS] I'm not a machine, I'm flesh and bone, And I'm tired of feeling so damn alone. You want an answer? Here's one from me: Back the hell up and let me breathe! [CHORUS — FULL FORCE] GET OFF ME! LET ME BREATHE! Quit taking everything I need! Get out my head, get off my back, I'm tired of living under attack! GET OFF ME! LET ME GO! I'm not the woman you think you know! I've swallowed words, I've buried screams, I've sacrificed my own damn dreams! GET OFF ME! LET ME BREATHE! There's still a woman underneath! [BRIDGE — QUIET, EMOTIONAL] I wasn't always angry... I wasn't always this way. I used to wake up smiling, Looking forward to the day. I used to laugh at nothing, Dance when no one was around. Now I listen for the footsteps, And the next fight coming down. I don't want your pity. I don't need your sympathy. I just want a single moment Where nobody's hurting me. [BUILD — VOICE RISING] Don't touch my peace. Don't steal my air. Don't say you love me When you act like you don't care! I gave you years! I gave you ME! Now I'm begging for the simplest thing... [FINAL CHORUS — SCREAMED WITH EMOTION] GET OFF ME! LET ME BREATHE! I'M NOT THE ENEMY YOU SEE! STOP YOUR YELLING, STOP YOUR LIES, STOP PUTTING TEARS INSIDE MY EYES! GET OFF ME! SET ME FREE! FROM ALL THIS NOISE SURROUNDING ME! I DON'T WANT WAR, I DON'T WANT TO FIGHT, I JUST WANT TO SLEEP IN PEACE TONIGHT! GET OFF ME! LET ME BREATHE! I'VE GIVEN ALL YOU'LL EVER NEED! [OUTRO — SPOKEN, QUIET BUT FIRM] I'm not asking you to save me. I'm not asking you to understand everything I've been through. I'm asking you to stop making it harder. Stop talking over me. Stop pulling me apart. Stop making me fight just to exist. I have a heart. I have a voice. And I have a right to peace. So please... Get off me. And let me... Breathe.
