RESTRAINT
Lyrics
RESTRAINT
[OPENING]
[Voice 1 — scared Female — Spoken]
“You need to calm down!…”
[Voice 2 — angry female whisper — dark laugh]
“Calm down?!… Oh, I’m pissed…”
[beat]
[Voice 2 — angry female whisper]
“This is me being calmer than I could be.”
[sinister laugh]
“I’m behaving.”
⸻
[VERSE 1]
I’ve swallowed sparks til they burned beneath my tongue,
I bit down on the truth just to keep the peace for someone.
I wore silence like a halo,
Called surrender something holy
As the peace kept disappearing
And real safety lost its meaning.
I learned to swallow what I knew,
Mistook compliance for release.
Blamed the fire for the smoke,
Called the silence something like peace.
I bent until the truth looked small,
Till I could barely see it clear.
Then I saw what fed the flame—
And why the smoke was always here.
⸻
[PRE-CHORUS / TRANSITION]
I’m done swallowing my voice,
Done mistaking silence for peace.
I’m taking back the reins—
But I won’t let fury lead.
⸻
[CHORUS]
[Female lead — explosive]
You call it anger—
I call it restraint.
You call it bitterness—
I call it giving grace
You call it weakness—
I know it takes strength.
(Restraint)
I’m holding back—
You have no idea what that takes.
(Restraint)
There’s a storm behind my silence,
There’s a fire underneath.
You have no idea
How much I choose not to unleash.
[Background — building]
“Restraint…
Restraint…
Restraint…”
⸻
[VERSE 2]
I used to measure every word,
Just to keep the peace intact.
I learned to swallow what I felt,
So others wouldn’t feel attacked.
I made myself small,
So everyone could breathe.
But silence was a curtain call
When someone else pulled the strings.
Now I know exactly what I hold,
I know what I could unleash.
But I don’t have to lose control
To prove the fire lies underneath.
You wanna say I’m dangerous?
Sit down and think of why.
My self-control- it threatens you
Just because I won’t comply
[3 drum beats like a knock on the door]
[spoken in spite]
“You’re not my boss”
⸻
[PRE-CHORUS 2]
I could let the anger drive,
I could let the old me return.
But I’ve already fought to survive,
I’ve already learned what anger can burn.
⸻
[CHORUS]
You call it anger—
I call it restraint.
You call it bitterness—
I call it giving grace
You call it weakness—
I know it takes strength.
(Restraint)
I’m holding back—
You have no idea what that takes.
(Restraint)
There’s a storm behind my silence,
There’s a fire underneath.
You have no idea
How much I choose not to unleash.
[Background — building]
“Restraint…
Restraint…
Restraint…”
⸻
[BREAKDOWN / BRIDGE]
[music drops almost completely out]
[Female — spoken]
“You think this is the worst of me?”
[pause]
“No.”
“This is me behaving.”
“This is the fire with a boundary I decide.”
“This is the thunder choosing not to strike.”
“This is every word I could have shot like a bullet.”
“Every reaction… I chose to simmer down and control it.”
Because my anger doesn’t get to drive.
My pain doesn’t get to choose.
And vengeance?
[long pause]
“That’s not mine to carry.”
⸻
[LATE-SONG REVELATION]
[music slowly begins building again]
[Female — low, exhausted, completely controlled]
“I’m not calm.”
[beat]
“I’m controlled.”
[male backing vocals — low, steady, almost like a grounding presence]
“Stay steady…”
[female]
“I feel every ounce of it.”
[male backing vocals]
“Let it pass…”
[female]
“But it doesn’t get me.”
[music rises]
[male backing vocals]
“Choose.”
[female]
“I choose what comes next.”
⸻
[FINAL CHORUS]
You call it anger—
I call it restraint.
You call it bitterness—
I call it giving grace
You call it weakness—
I know it takes strength.
(Restraint)
I’m holding back—
You have no idea what that takes.
(Restraint)
There’s a storm behind my silence,
There’s a fire underneath.
You have no idea
How much I choose not to unleash.
[Background — building]
“Restraint…
Restraint…
Restraint…”
[hard musical hit]
[low synth pulse]
[Female — quiet, controlled]
“I’m not calm.”
“I’m controlled.”
“There’s a difference.”
“Restraint.”
[OPENING]
[Voice 1 — scared Female — Spoken]
“You need to calm down!…”
[Voice 2 — angry female whisper — dark laugh]
“Calm down?!… Oh, I’m pissed…”
[beat]
[Voice 2 — angry female whisper]
“This is me being calmer than I could be.”
[sinister laugh]
“I’m behaving.”
⸻
[VERSE 1]
I’ve swallowed sparks til they burned beneath my tongue,
I bit down on the truth just to keep the peace for someone.
I wore silence like a halo,
Called surrender something holy
As the peace kept disappearing
And real safety lost its meaning.
I learned to swallow what I knew,
Mistook compliance for release.
Blamed the fire for the smoke,
Called the silence something like peace.
I bent until the truth looked small,
Till I could barely see it clear.
Then I saw what fed the flame—
And why the smoke was always here.
⸻
[PRE-CHORUS / TRANSITION]
I’m done swallowing my voice,
Done mistaking silence for peace.
I’m taking back the reins—
But I won’t let fury lead.
⸻
[CHORUS]
[Female lead — explosive]
You call it anger—
I call it restraint.
You call it bitterness—
I call it giving grace
You call it weakness—
I know it takes strength.
(Restraint)
I’m holding back—
You have no idea what that takes.
(Restraint)
There’s a storm behind my silence,
There’s a fire underneath.
You have no idea
How much I choose not to unleash.
[Background — building]
“Restraint…
Restraint…
Restraint…”
⸻
[VERSE 2]
I used to measure every word,
Just to keep the peace intact.
I learned to swallow what I felt,
So others wouldn’t feel attacked.
I made myself small,
So everyone could breathe.
But silence was a curtain call
When someone else pulled the strings.
Now I know exactly what I hold,
I know what I could unleash.
But I don’t have to lose control
To prove the fire lies underneath.
You wanna say I’m dangerous?
Sit down and think of why.
My self-control- it threatens you
Just because I won’t comply
[3 drum beats like a knock on the door]
[spoken in spite]
“You’re not my boss”
⸻
[PRE-CHORUS 2]
I could let the anger drive,
I could let the old me return.
But I’ve already fought to survive,
I’ve already learned what anger can burn.
⸻
[CHORUS]
You call it anger—
I call it restraint.
You call it bitterness—
I call it giving grace
You call it weakness—
I know it takes strength.
(Restraint)
I’m holding back—
You have no idea what that takes.
(Restraint)
There’s a storm behind my silence,
There’s a fire underneath.
You have no idea
How much I choose not to unleash.
[Background — building]
“Restraint…
Restraint…
Restraint…”
⸻
[BREAKDOWN / BRIDGE]
[music drops almost completely out]
[Female — spoken]
“You think this is the worst of me?”
[pause]
“No.”
“This is me behaving.”
“This is the fire with a boundary I decide.”
“This is the thunder choosing not to strike.”
“This is every word I could have shot like a bullet.”
“Every reaction… I chose to simmer down and control it.”
Because my anger doesn’t get to drive.
My pain doesn’t get to choose.
And vengeance?
[long pause]
“That’s not mine to carry.”
⸻
[LATE-SONG REVELATION]
[music slowly begins building again]
[Female — low, exhausted, completely controlled]
“I’m not calm.”
[beat]
“I’m controlled.”
[male backing vocals — low, steady, almost like a grounding presence]
“Stay steady…”
[female]
“I feel every ounce of it.”
[male backing vocals]
“Let it pass…”
[female]
“But it doesn’t get me.”
[music rises]
[male backing vocals]
“Choose.”
[female]
“I choose what comes next.”
⸻
[FINAL CHORUS]
You call it anger—
I call it restraint.
You call it bitterness—
I call it giving grace
You call it weakness—
I know it takes strength.
(Restraint)
I’m holding back—
You have no idea what that takes.
(Restraint)
There’s a storm behind my silence,
There’s a fire underneath.
You have no idea
How much I choose not to unleash.
[Background — building]
“Restraint…
Restraint…
Restraint…”
[hard musical hit]
[low synth pulse]
[Female — quiet, controlled]
“I’m not calm.”
“I’m controlled.”
“There’s a difference.”
“Restraint.”
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