I know the courtroom ain’t
the set of a music video, ain’t
Coachella or the BET Awards, ain’t
MTV, VH1, or the Grammys
But still
there’s an audience
of fans, experts, and judges
Eyes watching through filtered screens
seeing every lie, reading every made-up word
like a black hoodie counts as a mask
like some shit I do with my fingers
counts as gang signs
like a few fights counts as uncontrollable rage
like failing three classes
counts as being dumb as fuck
like everything that I am, that I’ve ever been
counts as being
guilty