Crooked Smile Lyrics
Even though I—
On my way, on my way, on my way down
On my way, on my way, on my way down
You were the one that was tryna keep me way down
But like the sun, know you know I find my way back round
[Verse 1: J. Cole]
They tell me I should fix my grill ‘cause I got money now
I ain't gon' sit around and front like I ain't thought about it
A perfect smile is more appealing, but it's funny how
My shit is crooked—look at how far I done got without it!
I keep my twisted grill, just to show the kids it's real
We ain't picture perfect, but we worth the picture still
I got smart, I got rich and I got bitches still
And they all look like my eyebrows: thick as hell
Love yourself, girl, or nobody will
Though you a woman I don't know how you deal
With all the pressure to look impressive and go out in heels
I feel for you, killin' yourself to find a man that'll kill for you
You wake up, put makeup on
Stare in the mirror, but it's clear that you can’t face what’s wrong
No need to fix what God already put his paintbrush on
Your roommate yelling, "Why you gotta take so long?!"
What it's like to have a crooked smile
Even though I—
On my way, on my way, on my way down
On my way, on my way, on my way down (This crooked smile)
You were the one that was tryna keep me way down
But like the sun, know you know I find my way back round (Yeah)
[Verse 2: J. Cole]
To all the women with the flaws, know it's hard, my darling
You wonder why you're lonely and your man's not calling
You keep falling victim ‘cause you're insecure
And when I tell you that you're beautiful you can't be sure
‘Cause he don't seem to want you back and it's got you askin'
So all you see is what you lackin', not what you packin'
Take it from a man that loves what you got
And baby girl, you a star, don't let 'em tell you you're not
Now is it real? Eyebrows, fingernails, hair
Is it real? If it's not, girl, you don't care
‘Cause what's real is somethin' that the eyes can't see
That the hands can’t touch, that them broads can’t be
And that’s you, never let 'em see your frown
And if you need a friend to pick you up, I’ll be around
And we can ride with the windows down, the music loud
I can tell you ain’t laughed in a while
But I wanna see that crooked smile
Even though I—
On my way, on my way, on my way down
On my way, on my way, on my way down
You were the one that was tryna keep me way down
But like the sun, know you know I find my way back round
[Post-Chorus: J. Cole T-Boz & Chilli]
We got the crooked smile, we can style on 'em
Back round, crooked smile, we can style on 'em
You were the one that was tryna keep me way down
But like the sun, know you know I find my way back round
[Verse 3: J. Cole]
We don't look nothin' like the people on the screen
You know, the movie stars, picture perfect beauty queens
But we got dreams and we got the right to chase ‘em
Look at the nation
That’s a crooked smile braces couldn’t even straighten
Seem like half the race is either on probation or in jail
Wonder why we inhale, ‘cause we in Hell already
I ask: If my skin pale, would I then sell like Eminem or Adele?
But one more time for the 'Ville
And fuck all of that beef shit, nigga, let’s make a mil
Hey officer man, we don’t want nobody gettin' killed
Just open up that cell, let my brother outta jail
I got money for the bail now, and well now
If you askin' will I tell now—ayy, hell nah
I ain’t snitchin' 'cause, man, they get them niggas stitches now
If you was around then you wouldn’t need a witness now
How you like this crooked smile?
Even though I—
On my way, on my way, on my way down
On my way, on my way, on my way down (That crooked smile)
You were the one that was tryna keep me way down
But like the sun, know you know I find my way back round
[Post-Chorus: J. Cole T-Boz & Chilli]
We got the crooked smile, we can style on 'em
Back round, crooked smile, we can style on 'em
You were the one that was tryna keep me way down
But like the sun, know you know I find my way back round
[Ad-Libs: Choir]
[Outro: Choir]
La la la, la la la, la-la—la—la
La la la, la la la, la-la—la—la
La la la, la la la, la-la—la—la
La la la, la la la, la-la—la—la
On my way, on my way, on my way down
On my way, on my way, on my way down
You were the one that was tryna keep me way down
But like the sun, know you know I find my way back round
Back round
You were the one that was tryna keep me way down
But like the sun, know you know I find my way back round
Back round
You were the one that was tryna keep me way down
But like the sun, know you know I find my way back round
Round
[Music Video]
About
Using his own imperfect set of teeth as an example, Cole reaffirms his belief that nobody’s perfect, as everyone has their own “crooked smile”, and that nobody has to be perfect, making worrying pointless. The first and second verse are directly addressed to women unhappy with their appearance, while in the third verse, Cole transfers the matter to society.
A Billboard editor commented saying this “track is an uplifting ode to all those who continue to hold their heads up, especially women, and the importance of inner beauty”. Consider this Cole’s take on Billy Joel’s classic “Just the Way You Are”.
Born Sinner’s second single features TLC’s T-Boz and Chili, additionally sampling Jennifer Hudson’s “No One Gonna Love You”, borrowing her track’s keys and her vocals which can be heard faintly during his verses.
The music video doesn’t so much focus on the song, but is rather a message of peace—both in the community and our minds. It was dedicated to a 7-year-old girl who was shot during a 2010 raid by the Detroit SWAT.
Cole later went on to release the previously unheard original cut as a part of his Revenge of the Dreamers album. Going in a different direction to the version we now know, the original focused primarily on his own “crooked smile”, detailing how it made him feel inadequate and insecure. It didn’t feature any guest vocals and used a different beat.
Watch J. Cole talk about what the song means to him:
Q&A
Find answers to frequently asked questions about the song and explore its deeper meaning
I’ve never worked this hard on a song, or for this long. The first version I had, I had 3 verses, 1 of which I knew was a keeper. The other 2 were good verses, but they kept it small. They kept it to a rap song, and I wanted it to be bigger than rap, I wanted it to be universal. So I kept tryna write these verses that would elevate the song and make it appeal to the world, and not just like a J. Cole song about his teeth.
“Crooked Smile” peaked at #27 on the Billboard Hot 100 for the chart week ending October 5, 2013. The song charted for 20 weeks.
- 1.Villuminati
- 4.Power Trip
- 6.Trouble
- 7.Runaway
- 8.She Knows
- 9.Rich Niggaz
- 11.Forbidden Fruit
- 12.Chaining Day
- 14.Crooked Smile
- 15.Let Nas Down
- 16.Born Sinner
- 17.Miss America
- 18.New York Times
- 19.Is She Gon Pop
- 20.Niggaz Know
- 21.Sparks Will Fly
