Preview – Locked Away (Rock City) –[Multimedia-English videos]

Princess, I'm leaving.
Look at all these bills, aren't they going to get paid?
You have the right to remain silent.
Anything you say can and will be used against you in a court of law.

If I got locked away
And we lost it all today
Tell me honestly would you still love me the same?
If I showed you my flaws
If I couldn't be strong
Tell me honestly would you still love me the same?

Right about now
If a judge for life me, would ya stay by my side?
Or is you gonna say goodbye?
Can you tell me right now?
If I couldn't buy you the fancy things in life
Shawty, would it be alright?
Come on, show me that you are down

..."sitting around and playing video games... figuring things out... you are yelling at me, man. Come on, don't do me like that, man. Can you trust me?
How are they gonna be paid? what is your plan?
I'm trying, I have a plan, You doesn't to trust me, man?

Let's get it diddly-dong-dong-dong dang
All I wanna is somebody who really don't need much
A girl that I know I can trust
To be there when money low
If I did not have nothing else to give but love
Would that even be enough?
Gal, me need to know

Now tell me would you really ride for me
Baby tell me would you die for me
Would you spend your whole life with me
Would you be there to always hold me down
Tell me would you really cry for me
Baby don't lie to me
If I didn't have anything
I wanna know would you stick around

If I got locked away
And we lost it all today
Tell me honestly would you still love me the same?
If I showed you my flaws
If I couldn't be strong
Tell me honestly would you still love me the same?

Tell me tell me would you want me
Tell me tell me would you call me
If you knew I wasn't balling
Cause I need a girl who's always by my side
Tell me tell me do you need me
Tell me tell me do you love me
Or is it just tryna play me
Cause I need a girl to hold me down for life

If I got locked away
And we lost it all today
Tell me honestly would you still love me the same?
If I showed you my flaws
If I couldn't be strong
Tell me honestly would you still love me the same?

If I got locked away
And we lost it all today
Tell me honestly would you still love me the same?
If I showed you my flaws
If I couldn't be strong
Tell me honestly would you still love me the same?

would you still love me the same?

LOCKED AWAY= Put in prison. Placed in a place where someone cannot escape.

TELL ME HONESTLY= /'ɒnɪstlɪ/ Tell me the truth.

WOULD YOU STILL LOVE ME THE SAME?= Would you still love me in the same way, identically? Would you stand by me no matter what? Would you be there for me?

FLAW= /flɔ:/ Defect, imperfection.

RIGHT ABOUT NOW= (Informal, AmE) At almost exactly this moment.

IF A JUDGE FOR LIFE ME= If a judge locks me up for life (a life sentence).

WOULD YA STAY BY MY SIDE= Would you stay with me, never leave me and always remain with me, no matter whether it is good times or bad times.

IS YOU GONNA SAY GOODBYE?= (not standard English) The band R.City are from the US Virgin islands, and so speak a variety of Caribbean patois. 'Is you gonna say' could be a real piece of Virgin island/African American slang, or just a piece of poetic license for the purpose of the song's rhythm, or simply black slang.

RIGHT NOW= At this very moment.

FANCY= /'fænsɪ/ Elegantly fashionable or sophisticated.

SHAWTY= /'ʃɒtɪ/ (Slang) Young attractive girl or woman. The term orginated in Atlanta and, in the beginning, referred to a short person or child, is a derivation of "shorty" or "shortie". It has multiple meanings: a good friend, a small child, a newcomer, someone shorter than you. But the most prevalent use, and the one found in these songs is to describe a girlfriend or particularly attractive woman. Although it looks like a derogatory term for women, among the rappers community it’s just a flirty term and girls accept it normally. Rhonda Baraka of the Marietta, Ga.-based media consulting firm Soulstice Media says it's "a term of endearment".

YOU ARE DOWN= You feel sad, depressed, in low spirits.

RIDE FOR ME= Related with the next verse 'die for me', 'ride or die' is a hip-hop term for loyalty.

WHOLE LIFE= The entire life.

HOLD ME DOWN= (Idiom) The act of having someone's back, or watching out for a person safety.

BABY= (Informal) Sweetheart, dear. Used as a term of endearment.

WANNA= (coll.) Want to.

STICK AROUND= (Informal) To stay, remain.

FIGURING THINGS OUT= Trying to understand things or solve problems.

YELLING AT ME= Shouting at me.

MAN= (coll. AmE) A cool expression to address someone (e.g. "hi man, how are you). It is primarily used when talking to men, but it can also be used to address a woman, as in this song.

GONNA= (coll.) Going to.

WHEN MONEY LOW= (not standard English) When money is low, when we don't have enough money.

DIDN'T HAVE NOTHING= (not standard) Double negatives are not standard English but are used in colloquial English, esp. in black American English and patois.

GAL= (coll. AmE) Girl.

The song peers into the anxieties and insecurities in many relationships. The official music video features three different scenes: a soldier leaving his family to return to service, a man and a woman fighting to make ends meet, and a father and daughter torn apart by her arrest. R. City did it this way because they wanted everybody to connect to the song’s message of perseverance through hardship.

The brotherly duo R.City explains: “It was inspired by true events. Our dad was locked up for five years. And during the time he was gone, our mom held it down. She’d take us to see him. They’re still together to this day. They’ve been together for 36 years. So we thought that that was a great story to write a song about.”