Released: July 20, 2016

Featuring: Sebastian Lundberg

Songwriter: Sebastian Lundberg Lupe Fiasco

Producer: ​iSHi

[Verse 1: Lupe Fiasco]
Uhh, I just need a minute to replenish who I am
And who I am is so dependent on exactly where we stand
I stand in any pose, anythin' but tippy-toes
Don't want you to feel smaller, always taller
Now I'm a cheerleader, she a baller
The difference in height isn't aight, I left my ego at the altar
Now every ring's a sting and everythin' I taught ya
Is comin' back around to me, just like revolvers
And every single click is just hammerin' it home
Who knew Russian Roulette involved answerin' the phone?
Until my signal dwindles or my channel is in roam
Or my cellphone dies or it's cancer in my dome
And dear nix the tone, as I pour my fuckin’ pain out
One of your short nodes, might blow my fuckin' brains out
But you ain't even pick up
Talkin' to myself, exactly what you sick of

[Pre-Chorus: Sebastian Lundberg & Lupe Fiasco]
Feeling kinda restless
Did you get my message?
It's swirling around and so (yeah, c'mon!)
No, don't tell me that you care (uh huh)
When I know you're standing there (yeah)
I left the story of my life on your answering machine (what's up? Yeah)

[Chorus: Sebastian Lundberg & Lupe Fiasco]
Hello, can you hear me?
Hello, are you there?
Hello, would you pick up the phone?
Hello, can you hear me?
Hello, are you there? (yeah, are you there? Are you there? Are you there?)
Hello, would you pick up the fuckin' phone?

[Verse 2: Lupe Fiasco]
We were like, if a tree falls in the forest and
No one is around, does it really make a sound?
That's romantic and profound, but now
We're like lumberjacks holdin' the axes that brung it down
So I'm now on your message, talkin' 'bout "Remember?"
Silence in return, that sound like 'Timber!"
There's some that can't see the forest because they're liars
But I can't see the forest 'cause of the fire
And in our prehistorics, the flowers was rootin' for us
Brontosaurus ate the flowers, T-Rex ate the Brontosaurus
And then the T-Rex turned around and ate the florist
That's why I lost my FTD endorsements
But that's really not important
My sadness' a snitch, my melancholy informant
Despair wears a wire, my longin' rappin' a song
My worry is a rat, my lonely tappin' the phone

[Pre-Chorus: Sebastian Lundberg & Lupe Fiasco]
Feeling kinda restless
Did you get my message?
It's swirling around and so (uh huh, uh huh, uh huh)
I wanna give you reasons (yeah)
Tell you what I'm feeling
But none of these lines are secure (nah)
No, don't tell me that you care (uh huh)
When I know you're standing there (yeah)
I left the story of my life on your answering machine (what else? Uh huh)
My tears run off your shoes (yeah)
Like waters from a goose (uh)
You try to wash off all the dirt
But your hands aren't getting clean

[Chorus: Sebastian Lundberg & Lupe Fiasco]
Hello, can you hear me?
Hello, are you there?
Hello, would you pick up the phone?
Hello, can you hear me?
Hello, are you there? (are you there? Are you there? Are you there?)
Hello, would you pick up the fuckin' phone?

[Verse 3: Lupe Fiasco]
The make-believers on receivers as you sit back and observe
As the rubber curly cord just absorbs all my words
Will you collect us then connect us or neglect us on the whole?
Into the wall, then cross the wires on the telephone poles
Then bounces off the towers, then up into the satellites
Then falls down back to Earth to bring a broken heart back to life
Happens all the time, lost an appetite and lack of sleep
If it's dead and flatten line, I'll leave a message at the beep

[Chorus: Sebastian Lundberg & Lupe Fiasco]
Hello, can you hear me?
Hello, are you there? (Hello, are you there? Yeah)
Hello, would you pick up the phone? (Come on)
Hello, can you hear me? (Come on)
Hello, are you there? (Come on)
Hello, would you pick up the phone?
Would you pick up the phone?
Would you pick up the phone?
Hello, would you pick up the fuckin' phone?

Lupe Fiasco

The Chicago born Wasalu Muhammad Jaco first tasted success when he featured on Kanye West’s hit “Touch the Sky”, a track that shortly preceded his real breakout, his 2006 debut album Lupe Fiasco’s Food & Liquor, and he never looked back. He has established himself as one of the greatest urban wordsmiths of all time, with Genius even dubbing him the ‘Proust of Rap’.

While he’s now regarded of one of the 21st Century’s Hip-Hop greats, he wasn’t always a fan of the genre, initially disliking it due to the prominence of vulgarity and misogyny within it. In his late teens, he aspired to make it as a lyricist. In his early twenty’s, he met Jay-Z, who helped him sign with Atlantic Records in 2005. The following year, he released his debut album (Lupe Fiasco’s Food & Liquor), which was met with acclaim from fans and critics alike, as did his sophomore effort, Lupe Fiasco’s The Cool.

The following eight years of his career saw far less output than many would’ve anticipated. This can be partly attributed to his struggles with Atlantic Records. The executives wanted him to sign a 360 deal; however, as he refused to do so they instead shelved his already completed 3rd album, Lasers, and wouldn’t promote him as they had previously. The overseers at the label also interfered with his music (as they had tried to do with his fan-favorite track “Dumb it Down”); subsequently effecting the quality and sound of his third and fourth albums.