Cold as December, but never remember what winter did
I wouldn't blame you for mistakes I made or the bed I laid
Seems like I point the finger just to make a point, nowadays
Smiles and cold stares, the temperature goes there
Indigenous dispossession, feel like we belong here
I know the walls, they can listen, I wish they could talk back
The hurt becomes repetition, the love almost lost that
Sick venom in men and women overcome with pride
A perfect world is never perfect, only filled with lies
Promises are broken and more resentment come alive
Race barriers make inferior of you and I
See, in a perfect world, I'll choose faith over riches
I'll choose work over bitches, I'll make schools out of prison
I'll take all the religions and put 'em all in one service
Just to tell 'em we ain't shit, but He's been perfect, world
" - Meaning and context.">

Now, in a perfect world, I probably won't be insensitive
Cold as December, but never remember what winter did
I wouldn't blame you for mistakes I made or the bed I laid
Seems like I point the finger just to make a point, nowadays
Smiles and cold stares, the temperature goes there
Indigenous dispossession, feel like we belong here
I know the walls, they can listen, I wish they could talk back
The hurt becomes repetition, the love almost lost that
Sick venom in men and women overcome with pride
A perfect world is never perfect, only filled with lies
Promises are broken and more resentment come alive
Race barriers make inferior of you and I
See, in a perfect world, I'll choose faith over riches
I'll choose work over bitches, I'll make schools out of prison
I'll take all the religions and put 'em all in one service
Just to tell 'em we ain't shit, but He's been perfect, world

— Kendrick Lamar

What It Means

This is a placeholder explanation generated by the low-overhead model. It interprets "Now, in a perfect world, I probably won't be insensitive
Cold as December, but never remember what winter did
I wouldn't blame you for mistakes I made or the bed I laid
Seems like I point the finger just to make a point, nowadays
Smiles and cold stares, the temperature goes there
Indigenous dispossession, feel like we belong here
I know the walls, they can listen, I wish they could talk back
The hurt becomes repetition, the love almost lost that
Sick venom in men and women overcome with pride
A perfect world is never perfect, only filled with lies
Promises are broken and more resentment come alive
Race barriers make inferior of you and I
See, in a perfect world, I'll choose faith over riches
I'll choose work over bitches, I'll make schools out of prison
I'll take all the religions and put 'em all in one service
Just to tell 'em we ain't shit, but He's been perfect, world
" in the context of "Pride" to mean that wisdom is timeless.

Quote Image
Source: Wikiquote: "Kendrick Lamar" (Song lyrics: All lyrics written by Kendrick Lamar., DAMN. (2017)) The 'What it means' explanation text was generated by Google Gemini Flash (accessed January 18, 2026). https://gemini.google.com/app
Kendrick Lamar

About Kendrick Lamar

Kendrick Lamar Duckworth (b. 17 June 1987) is an American rapper, songwriter, and record producer. In 2018, he became the first non-classical and non-jazz artist to be awarded the Pulitzer Prize for Music.