Battlecry Lyrics

[Verse 1: Shing02]
Yeah, sharp like an edge of a samurai sword
The mental blade cut through flesh and bone
Though my mind's at peace, the world out of order
Missing the inner heat, life gets colder

Oh yes, I have to find my path
No less, walk on earth, water, and fire

The elements compose a magnum opus
My modus operandi is amalgam
Steel packed tight in microchip
On my armor a sign of all-pro

The ultimate reward is honor, not awards
At odds with the times in wards with no lords
A freelancer
A battle cry of a hawk make a dove fly and a tear dry
Wonder why a lone wolf don't run with a clan
Only trust your instincts and be one with the plan

[Hook: Shing02]
Some days, some nights
Some live, some die
In the way of the samurai
Some fight, some bleed
Sun up to sun down
The sons of a battlecry
Some days, some nights
Some live, some die
In the name of the samurai
Some fight, some bleed
Sun up to sun down
The sons of a battlecry, battlecry


[Verse 2: Shing02]
Look, just the air around him
An aura surrounding the heir apparent
He might be a peasant but shine like grand royalty
He to the people and land, loyalty

We witness above all to hear this
Sea sickness in the ocean of wickedness
Set sail to the sunset no second guessing

Far east style with the spirit of wild west
The "quote-unquote" code stands the test of
Time for the chosen ones to find the best of
Noble minds that ever graced the face of
A hemisphere with no fear, fly over

The blue yonder where
The sky meets the sea

And eye meets no eye
And boy meets world

And became a man to serve the world
To save the day, the night, and the girl too

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About

Genius Annotation

This song is the intro for the popular Japanese anime, Samurai Champloo. The show’s creator, Shinichiro Watanabe, expressed in an interview with easternkicks the impact of hip-hop on Samurai Champloo’s creation:

When I first come up with the idea of what I am going to create, quite often the music appears at the same time. So, with Samurai Champloo it wasn’t that I had the story in mind and then added hip-hop to it. When I came up with the character of Mugen I heard hip-hop at the same time, and I thought he was going to be a rapper samurai.

It is told in a separate interview that “Nujabes was the first name that came to mind” when figuring out the musical direction of the show. Nujabes threw a beat at rap artist Shing02, and one of the most memorable anime opening tracks was born.

Main characters Mugen (left), Fuu (top right), and Jin (bottom right)

Q&A

Find answers to frequently asked questions about the song and explore its deeper meaning

What did Nujabes say about "Battlecry"?
Genius Answer

In an interview with MyDefinitionOfCool, Shing02 stated:

The anime was offered to me through Nujabes right before 2004 when it first aired, when I was living in Oakland. At the time all I knew was that this was going to be a late-night offering in Japan, so I never imagined it would be syndicated Stateside or that it would ever be a hit…Nujabes sent me the beat for “Battlecry.” I thought it was dark and abstract but since I have a Samurai background in my ancestry and I also had a friend who is a sword-smith in Japan, I just wrote to it and the rest is history.

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