Left my home with just my jeans
My money and a stash aimed to Philadelphia
I need a place to crash cold in Philadelphia
Cold in Philadelphia

His name was Pasquale and he
Came here from Sicily
He came here alone at 17 no family
The government told him he was
A natural born criminal
Compared to primates and said
His intellect was minimal
They told him southern Italians
Were savages and rapists
But he was only here to look
For work and they was racist
He just wanted to find a
Wife and have children
But had to live in fear
Because they were Sicilians
Trouble communicating because he ain't
Speak the language
If you don't know English then
You ain't nothing but baggage
Started his own business with some
Money that he saved up
But nobody supported his business
He almost gave up stuck it out, worked hard
Livin' in a shanty
Found himself a wife then he
Had himself a family
He still dealt with discrimination
But wasn't mad
And fear is a great motivator in man
Decades later his family
Comfortable with clout
And most of them will want to build
A wall and keep him out!

Excuse me please sir, if you will
Can you spare a dime?
Do you have a cigarette to
Help me pass the time? Cold in Philadelphia
Cold in Philadelphia

His name Abdullah he here to escape Assad
He need to find a home and a
Place he can pray to God
A full-scale civil war broke out in Syria
Uprising turned violent country in hysteria
In Syria he a doctor in Philly he sort boxes
His wife and 4 children in a 2 room apartment
He work all hours of
The night making garments
His sons worked after school
Shifts at the market
Airstrikes and raids forced them
Out of their home
So they left for Jordan overnight
Prayed to get through
3 years in Jordan then they
Finally made it here
The older daughters had to go
To Spain and disappear
Back in Philly Abdullah struggling
To make the rent
Winter coming soon but the heating bill spent
His sons picked on in school
Suffer from embarrassment
They been here for a year
And only speak Arabic
They stayed where they was
They would be killed by Assad
But the trouble and the struggle
Is fulfilling to God

Can't find work because my hair has
Got to be too long
Cold in Philadelphia, I tried to get along
Cold in Philadelphia cold in Philadelphia