“H-O-P-E” Original Lyrics by Triston Harper

An old country soul is the best way to describe American Idol contestant Triston Harper, who’s just 15 years old. Someone check his birth certificate! In a recent episode he performed an original song called “H-O-P-E” and I’ve transcribed the lyrics below. I’m a little (a lot) embarrassed by whatever I was doing at 15 years old (sitting on the bench of my school’s JV basketball team).

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“H-O-P-E” Triston Harper

Well, I’ve seen the pain
and I’ve seen the sorrow.
Well, I witness it every single day.
It kind of makes me wish that there isn’t a tomorrow.
Cause I’ve heard all the lies, back to back.
Over and over again.

But it don’t ever end.
No, it won’t ever end.

Hope stands for hold on, pain ends.
Where’s the joy when you need it?
It makes you want to get down on your knees and cry.

But crying don’t make it end.
So why do you keep doing it?
I’ve asked myself about a hundred thousand times.

He said, How long till you give up, quit, and just lay down and die?
Lay down and die
Lay down and die
Lay down and die.

Hope stands for hold on, pain ends.
Where’s the joy when you need it?
It makes you want to get down on your knees and cry.
But crying don’t make it end.
So why do you keep doing it?
I’ve asked myself about a hundred thousand times.
He said, How long till you give up, quit, and just lay down and die?

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-Out of the Wilderness