"Know Yourself" by Kae Tempest (April 30, 2025)
Author: Kae Tempest
Tempest, Kae. “Know Yourself.” Self Titled, Island Records, 30 Apr. 2025.
[Intro]
If you saw the younger you, what would you say to them?
I would say, "Thanks."
I would say "Peace"
I'd tell "Soon child, you're going to find release"
[Verse 1]
Long time coming to right now pipe down lifetime looking for things I thought I'd found already,
falling to the floor like I'm alright I'm steady
I send myself back so I can tell me
Twenty years deep in the rhyme of beats and I'm still so far from finding peace
Every line is a ladder I can climb through time and I walk Straight faced through these winding streets
I eat the bread of rhythm I drink the milk of rhyme
I've been carrying a bag of shamе that's bigger than me
Pushing it ahead of mе, up an endless staircase, until the day I realised this doesn't mean what I think it does
I don't need to carry this forever, I left it in the clearing by the fire pit and ran
Back to the child I was looking for an elder I saw myself there I took myself by the hand
[Chorus]
When I was young I sought help from my older self I came into my head I told me know yourself
When I was young I sought help from my older self I came into my head I told me know yourself
[Verse 2]
I was seventeen heaven seemed close enough to touch I had never been happier, chest against the barrier
Watching Wu-Tang my own character starting to bloom
I was learning how to capture a room in two phrases
Twenty years deep in the rhymes of beats close my eyes and speak down the wires of time I go back to the child I was when I put myself on the line
I had to beg for the mic, I had to deal with they ignorance, had to get better I wanted bigger things
These days, those days they are far away, try and catch them in my sites but they start to fade
Now I sit amongst great loads of rhyme books and I think about the days that the time took I thank the little me that put the work in
Could you picture me when you were spitting sixteens?
Surfing the top deck penning them bars, underaged in the clubs taking charge of the mic
Precautious little nothing with the world in your sights
I am on it now I will work harder
This is peace to the kid I came after (Peace to the kid I came after)
The words of the bridge between the present and the past I know myself at last
[Chorus]
When I was young I sought help from my older self I came into my head I told me know yourself
When I was young I sought help from my older self I came into my head I told me know yourself
I told me know yourself
[Outro]
Soon child you're going to find release (Soon child you're going to find release)
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Paul Allison is a nationally-known educator and EdTech expert… (more)
Paul Allison is a nationally-known educator and EdTech expert… (more)
I really like your first thoughts—wondering about the dialogue between younger and older selves, and what is learned versus what remains to be learned. That’s such a thoughtful way to come into this piece! If you want to get deeper answers to your wonderings, try writing your own creative response to the poem using one of the sparks below. Sometimes, making something new helps you see both the poem and your own questions in a whole new way. Then, you can come back to the poem and read it again, like a writer, looking for even more sparks!
Here are three different writing sparks, each offering you an open path to explore your ideas about learning, growth, and the conversation between past and present selves. You can write anything—poem, story, letter, comic, song, or even draw a picture! Try using the lead line somewhere in your work to get started, keep going, or wrap things up.
Think about a time you wanted advice from your future self, or wished you could send a message back to your younger self. What would you say? Write, draw, or sing about the message you would give—or the one you wish you’d received.
You might use this line:
Before I knew, I…
[something misunderstood]
[a hope or dream]
[a fear or worry]
[a lesson learned]
[a mistake made]
Imagine you could step into a moment from your past and stand beside your younger self. What would you notice? What would surprise you? Write about the feeling of meeting yourself at another age, or create a scene where two versions of you talk, argue, or share secrets.
You might use this line:
In the space between us…
[an unspoken wish]
[a secret question]
[confusion or curiosity]
[a silent promise]
[a spark of understanding]
Think about something you are still learning, or something you hope your future self will understand. Write a letter to your future self, or let your future self write back to you. Try to imagine the advice, comfort, or encouragement you might need.
You might use this line:
Soon, you will…
[find your answer]
[let something go]
[feel at peace]
[meet a challenge]
[understand your path]
You’re already asking really good questions about learning and growth, and these sparks can help you dig deeper. Here’s how you can get started:
Would you like to see how I found these ideas in the poem, and how your question helped me create the sparks? I can share my thinking and show you what I noticed in the poem that led to each spark and lead line if you’d like—just let me know!
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