NF - Motto Lyrics
Lyrics
Verse 1
I could write a record full of radio songs
Do a bunch of features that my label would love
Do a bunch of features that I don't even like
Just to build up the hype, yeah
I could sell my house and move out to LA
Get inside of rooms with the biggest of names
Hire fifty people just to give me advice
On the way I should write (Oh, God)
Yeah, sounds like a nightmare if you ask me
Yeah, went from my bedroom to the big leagues
You know how many times that I was told things
Wouldn't work? But worked out, havin' cold feet
Didn't keep me from success, but delayed it some
I used to be the guy who'd kill to get a number one
I had to hear "That song's a hit" before I thought it was
But nowadays I don't really give a " (What )
Chorus
Oh, God (Yeah)
Might catch me at the award show
Eatin' popcorn in the back row
Catchin' Zs with my hat low
No nominations, but it's cool though
Oh, God
You might see me in the same clothes
I had on last week, am I ashamed? No (Yeah)
You heard the sayin', "If it ain't broke
Don't fix it," that's my motto
Verse 2
Yeah, I miss buyin' CDs at the store
And thumbin' through the cases tryin' to make a choice (Yeah)
That don't make no sense to you? Well, of course
See, one man's inconvenience is another's joy
Wow, wow, how are you unemployed
Tellin' me to get a life? You should look at yours (Yup)
Congratulations, you can raise your voice
Hope you break both of your legs fallin' off your horse
(Oh, snap) This is the industry
Where it ain't how big you are, it's how big you seem
Where people sacrifice the art tryin' to chase a dream
Then they wonder why they music's lackin' creativity
(Oh, yeah) Would've gave anything
To be respected by the artist I was listening
To, but not no more, them days are history
Skip the red carpet, you lookin' for me?
Chorus
Oh, God (Yeah)
You might catch me at the award show
Eatin' popcorn in the back row
Catchin' Zs with my hat low
No nominations, but it's cool though
Oh, God
You might see me in the same clothes
I had on last week, am I ashamed? No (Yeah)
You heard the sayin', "If it ain't broke
Don't fix it," that's my motto
Bridge
Got my feet propped up
Leave my shirts untucked
I'm the boss, so what?
I do what I want (Oh, God)
You got the trophy, that's great
I'm happy for you, no hate
Still got a smile on my face
Chillin' in the back like, "Hey"
Chorus
Oh, God (Yeah)
You might catch me at the award show
Eatin' popcorn in the back row
Catchin' Zs with my hat low
No nominations, but it's cool though, oh, God
You might see me in the same clothes
I had on last week, am I ashamed? No (Yeah)
You heard the sayin', "If it ain't broke
Don't fix it," that's my motto
Video
NF - MOTTO
Meaning & Inspiration
Most people don’t get it. They see the music, the numbers, the fame, and they think it’s about arriving. They think if they just get to the right room, with the right people, everything finally clicks. But NF—Nathan—he’s saying something else entirely. When he raps, "I had to hear 'That song's a hit' before I thought it was," it hits me right in the gut. That’s the lie, isn't it? That my worth is tied to whether the world thinks what I’m doing is valid.
I spent a long time out in the dirt, trying to prove I was worth something. I was so busy curating a version of myself that people would applaud that I forgot how to actually live. I was chasing validation, thinking it was the same thing as love.
There’s this line in the chorus: "You might see me in the same clothes / I had on last week, am I ashamed? No." It sounds simple, maybe even a bit arrogant to some. But to me? It sounds like freedom. It sounds like a guy who’s tired of the performance.
It reminds me of the passage in Matthew 6 where Jesus talks about the lilies of the field. He says they don’t toil or spin, yet even Solomon in all his glory wasn't arrayed like one of them. The world tells us we have to be constantly reinventing ourselves, upgrading, shifting shapes just to keep the spotlight on us. But when you’ve been where I’ve been—lost, hungry, covered in the filth of the pig pen—you realize that chasing the "next big thing" is just a way to keep running from the One who already found you.
I’m still shaking the dust off my coat. I’ve still got the smell of the fire on me from places I shouldn't have been. And yeah, sometimes I feel like I don't fit in the "back row" of the church, either. I see people posturing, trying to look holy, trying to curate their testimony to sound just right for the crowd. It makes me want to put my feet up, like NF says, and just be honest.
Is it "broken"? Maybe. Maybe I’m still a mess. But I don't have to keep fixing the outside to appease the gallery. If it’s been redeemed, it’s not broken anymore. It’s just human. I’m done trying to be the "hit" everyone wants. I’d rather just be the kid who made it back home, even if my clothes are a little wrinkled and I don’t have a trophy to show for it. I’m just glad to be in the room.