BAD HOP brings ‘Champion Road’ from their self-titled album. Lyricists Bark, T-Pablow and others write the story, while the performers and JIGG create the music.
Released: December 22, 2023
Champion Road
Bad Hop • From “BAD HOP”
BAD HOP’s Champion Road Japanese Lyrics English Meaning
BAD HOP writes ‘Worn to the bone, I see the exit.’ The artists describe tattoos, stolen cup noodles, and cash from broken vending machines. They recall the climb from Kawasaki’s streets.
Omoidashite miro gaki no koroThink back to when you were just a kid,
Tsurai kankyou mawari no kotothose harsh surroundings and everything around us.
Kami kara no shiren de ima wa boroboroWe’re worn to the bone from the trials sent from above,
Dakedo choudo deguchi mieta tokobut I’ve just spotted the exit.
Honmono wa kioku kara kienaiThe real ones never fade from memory,
Densetsu wa shindemo shinikirenaiand a legend doesn’t truly die even in death.
Oozei no hitotachi ga wasurenaiSo many people won’t ever forget,
Dare hitori sasenai ze kanchigaiI won’t let a single soul get it twisted.
Ike kamase koeroGo on, show ’em, surpass it all,
Kawasaki kara tsuzuku Champion Roadon this Champion Road starting from Kawasaki.
Kurikaeshite mou nandome no Day 1I’ve repeated it, I don’t know how many times it’s been Day 1,
Fumishimeru shikabane to chizu mudastepping over corpses, the map’s useless now.
Mata junsuishi ni shippai wo negai auPraying for each other’s failure in pure malice,
Yuganderu ai no machi de ubai autearing things from each other in this twisted city of love.
Ano hyouten ga hikui fuddo no kyouki ga fushinshiThe madness of that freezing hood is a total mystery,
E ni naranai jinsei wo gaku ni osameru irezumitattoos that frame a life that’ll never be a perfect picture.
Onaji ana no mujina no dachiWe’re brothers from the same struggle,
Konna kankyou ni ireba shiin sura kakikaerareruin this environment, even your cause of death gets rewritten.
Hashiru kinchou shinobiasi deTension runs high as we move on tiptoe,
Haneru shinzou satsu wo maku zehearts pounding as we scatter the cash.
Pakutta kappu men mitashita ibukuroFilled our bellies with stolen cup noodles,
Kozeni surane seikatsu nukete mukau Topescaping that life of scraping for change to reach the top.
Kojiaketa jihan ki kakiatemeta kaneWith money scraped together from broken-open vending machines,
Narubekushite naru kojitsuke janee Storythis story was meant to be, not some forced narrative.
Kawasaki South side koujou chitai shokunin no machiKawasaki South side, the industrial zone, a city of craftsmen,
Omaera wa aruku ore-ra ga housou shita michi woyou’re all walking down the road that we paved.
Hitori nokorazu uchikomu Head shotI’m landing a headshot on every single one of ’em,
Hanenokete kita yaji to puresshaapushing through the heckling and the pressure.
Hajimeta toki mumei no maenzaWe were unknown nobodies when we first started,
Tsukuribanashi yori dekita eigabut we’ve made a life better than any fictional movie.
Ikiru densetsu awasero fookasuLiving legends, focus your lens on us,
Sokobe kara kita okuman choujamillionaires who rose from the very bottom.
Tokei no naka to wa atama ni wa kankanThe ticking inside the watch rings loud in my head,
Ibara michi no saki ni aru ouzareaching the throne at the end of this thorny path.
Shuushoku saki kara janakuteIt wasn’t from some job placement office,
Keisatsu kara hairu naishinbut internal reports coming from the police.
Gooru de kiritieeWhat I want to cut at the finish line
Kireina shiroi teepuis a beautiful white tape,
Ieroo teepu nanka janee nukedasu zenot some yellow police tape—I’m getting out of here.
Houritsu ka pake sabaku ka sarawareWhether it’s the law or the street game, being swept away,
Yumemiteita rich sabaku ka rakuendreaming of becoming rich or finding paradise.
Deai wa mayonaka no semai kouenWe met in a cramped park at midnight,
Wakare wa yumemiteita dekai kouenbut we’ll part in the massive ‘stadium’ we always dreamed of.
Rekishi kawaru isama na koukeiA valiant sight as history changes,
Shattaa kitta kichou na ryomeprecious moments captured through the lens.
Arukeba mukerareta shiroi meWe used to get cold stares whenever we’d walk by,
Kedo rappu de eta machi no shiminkenbut we earned our rights in this city through rap.
Raibu no toki wa kaze hiiteruCatching a breeze of fame whenever we’re live,
Tiketto kanbai de seki konderuevery seat’s packed ’cause we’ve sold out the show.
Uirusu mitaku ore in fundeRhyming like a virus,
Zenkoku ni baramaite kita DNAspreading our DNA across the whole country.
Hitori nokorazu uchikomu Head shotI’m landing a headshot on every single one of ’em,
Hanenokete kita yaji to puresshaapushing through the heckling and the pressure.
Hajimeta toki mumei no maenzaWe were unknown nobodies when we first started,
Tsukuribanashi yori dekita eigabut we’ve made a life better than any fictional movie.
Ikiru densetsu awasero fookasuLiving legends, focus your lens on us,
Sokobe kara kita okuman choujamillionaires who rose from the very bottom.
Tokei no naka to wa atama ni wa kankanThe ticking inside the watch rings loud in my head,
Ibara michi no saki ni aru ouzareaching the throne at the end of this thorny path.
Kono karuchaa ni sasagete kita miI’ve dedicated my whole being to this culture,
Ore-ra dekaku noru shiin no kyoukashowe’re featured big in the textbooks of the scene.
Uranai ze nakama to tamashiiI’ll never sell out my brothers or my soul,
Ikura ureteiru ore-ra demono matter how famous we’ve become.
Kieteitta yatsu nanka owanaiI don’t chase after those who’ve faded away,
Kienai Pain wakeatta kyoudaijust my brothers who shared the pain that never leaves.
Nagedasanai sekinin wa juudaiI won’t give up, the responsibility is heavy,
Kokoro ni hotta irezumi wa Mobb lifethe tattoo etched on my heart is the Mobb Life.
Fake friends yanda machi irane yo b#tchDon’t need fake friends or this sick city, btch,
Tokyo koko ittara tobiori souif I went to Tokyo, I’d probably feel like jumping.
Kemutee BHG Kawasaki SouthSmoky BHG, Kawasaki South,
Goryu mitsuketa jibun no ibashoI finally found where I belong at the junction.
Ikiba wa densha de kaeri wa koukyuushaI used the train to get there, but I’m coming home in a luxury car,
Toukaidou rain kiseru kara Bentaygafrom dodging fares on the Tokaido Line to a Bentayga.
Dare nimo kuzusene foomeeshonThis is a formation that nobody can break,
Fukanou ka kanou ima shoumei shiyouimpossible or possible, let’s prove it right now.
Hitori nokorazu uchikomu Head shotI’m landing a headshot on every single one of ’em,
Hanenokete kita yaji to puresshaapushing through the heckling and the pressure.
Hajimeta toki mumei no maenzaWe were unknown nobodies when we first started,
Tsukuribanashi yori dekita eigabut we’ve made a life better than any fictional movie.
Ikiru densetsu awasero fookasuLiving legends, focus your lens on us,
Sokobe kara kita okuman choujamillionaires who rose from the very bottom.
Tokei no naka to wa atama ni wa kankanThe ticking inside the watch rings loud in my head,
Ibara michi no saki ni aru ouzareaching the throne at the end of this thorny path.
Champion Road Music Video
What does ‘Champion Road’ mean? The lyrics map a journey from struggle to success. BAD HOP delivers the track in Japanese.