From the recording Levels
COMPLICATED
"Complicated" is a song about the gray areas of life—the moments when our hearts know exactly how we feel, but our circumstances refuse to give us a simple answer.
Not every relationship fits neatly into a box. Sometimes we're carrying the weight of our past while trying to embrace the possibility of our future. Sometimes we're emotionally available but practically unavailable. Sometimes the honest answer isn't "yes" or "no."
Sometimes...
It's complicated.
I wanted this song to tell the story of someone wrestling with those conflicting emotions. He's drawn to someone new, but there are unresolved pieces of his life that prevent him from offering the certainty she deserves. Rather than pretending everything is simple, he's choosing honesty, even when honesty sounds uncertain.
When I sing, "Not black or white, just shades of gray," I'm acknowledging that life is often more nuanced than we'd like it to be. Relationships are rarely defined by perfect timing. They're shaped by healing, growth, responsibility, and difficult decisions.
Voss opens the song with a rap that immediately places you inside that internal struggle, while Echo's vocals add another emotional dimension, giving the record both strength and vulnerability. Together with The Nu Funk Society, we built a groove that mirrors the tension in the lyrics—steady enough to move you, yet full of emotional twists that keep unfolding.
One of my favorite moments is the bridge:
"It's not a no... It's not a yes... It's tangled threads... It's a little mess."
Those lines capture the heart of the song. Life isn't always clean. Love isn't always convenient. And sometimes the bravest thing we can do is admit we don't have all the answers.
"Complicated" isn't about avoiding commitment.
It's about respecting the truth, even when the truth is difficult to explain.
Because sometimes the most honest answer isn't the easiest one...
It's simply, "It's complicated."
Written, Produced & Mixed by Derrick D'MAR Martin
Performed by D'MAR & The Nu Funk Society
Featuring Voss & Echo
Lyrics
COMPLICATED
Written Produced, Mixed by D'MAR Performed by D'MAR & The Nu Funk Society with Voss & Echo.
[RAP Intro Verse]
Yo, she hit me with the vibe, eyes sparkin' like the city lights
Said, "You free tonight?" I paused, caught between the fight
Of truth and the shuffle, my mind doin' double-dutch
Heart in a scuffle, words stickin', ain't sayin' much
I mean, there's someone else, but the lines blur like smog
Not clean, not clear, it’s a hazy kinda fog
You deserve the truth, not a riddle or a game
But the story’s got twists, girl, it ain't just my name
[Chorus]
It’s complicated
That’s all I can say
Not black or white
Just shades of gray
I’m here
I’m not
I’m caught halfway
It’s complicated
Please don’t walk away
[Verse]
You ask me where I stand
I shift my feet
Like sand in the hourglass
It’s never neat
I try to say it plain
But the words retreat
[Chorus]
It’s complicated
That’s all I can say
Not black or white
Just shades of gray
I’m here
I’m not
I’m caught halfway
It’s complicated
Please don’t walk away
[Verse 2]
I could tell you stories
But they’d blur the lines
Like a clock that ticks but skips the time
I’m not free
But I’m not confined
[Chorus]
It’s complicated
That’s all I can say
Not black or white
Just shades of gray
I’m here
I’m not
I’m caught halfway
It’s complicated
Please don’t walk away
Bridge
It’s not a no
It’s not a yes
It’s tangled threads
It’s a little mess
It’s not a chain
It’s not a wall
It’s something in-between
Can’t name it at all
Rap [Verse]
Yo, the web I'm in, tangled like my earbuds in my pocket
Words knotted, tryna explain, but can't unlock it
She askin' if I'm free, but freedom ain't my zone
Got a chain on my heart, still pickin' the lock alone
It's brunch with my past, dinner with my doubt
Dessert is a future I can't figure out
I want to say I'm open, but the door’s half-shut
A maze in my chest, every turn is a rut
[Chorus]
It’s complicated
That’s all I can say
Not black or white
Just shades of gray
I’m here
I’m not
I’m caught halfway
It’s complicated
Please don’t walk away