Chords for My World - George "Fiji" Veikoso

_ It _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _
_ _ was the most beautiful sight.
_ _ _ Any artist would stand there and be in awe [N] of the greatness of our people. _
_ _ It _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ confirmed everything we, more than we ever dreamed of. _ _ _
_ [A] I don't want to be anything other than an island artist, _ _ [Db] _ representing our cultures,
our languages. _ _ _ _ _ _
_ [Eb] _ _ _ [B] _ _ _ _
_ _ _ _ [E] _ _ _ _
_ _ _ [B] _ _ _ _ _
_ _ _ _ _ [Gb] _ _ _
_ [B] _ For me, it was _ the herbs.
_ My favorite all time.
_ [Gb] That's why I had to do Hip Hop [B] Alaskan.
A lot of people don't understand that.
_ [E] I'm a big fan of the herbs.
_ [Eb] _ _ [Dm] _ _ [Cm] _ _ _
_ _ _ _ [Eb] _ _ _ _
_ [Bb] _ I'm _ [Cm] _ _ _
_ _ _ _ [Fm] [Eb] one of those grateful kids coming from a humble [Cm] beginning in Fiji, and I'm grateful
for [Dm] _ [Eb] _ _ _
the connection.
I was [Cm] born in a _ _ _ very low [C] income housing called Rewanka.
You have to do humbling things like going next door and asking for salt or sugar.
[Eb] _ _ _
[Cm] Like, what?
_ _ My mama asked for some sugar.
_ [Dm] _ [Eb] _ _ _
_ _ _ _ [Dm] _ _ _ [Eb] _
_ _ _ _ [Dm] _ [Eb] _ _ _
[Gm] _ _ _ _ [C] _ _ _ _
_ _ _ _ [Dm] _ [Eb] I'm grateful for it now [Am] because many [Cm] things that I learned [F] from the struggle [Dm] and [Eb] from being poor.
[F] I appreciate a lot more _ [Gb]
things in my life as I grow up. _ _ _
[G] _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _
_ _ _ [D] My _ _ _ real dad, I never met him. _
_ _ _ [D] _ _ There's an [G] old _ _ saying, they say, if you're either looking to be a father or you're looking
[E] for a father. _
I haven't quite really [G] answered that question yet.
_ _ _ _ _ So now [N] that I have children, _ it's a slap in the face, right?
_ _ Music helps [D] me cope and learn. _ _
Thankful for my mom [Ab] who _ [A] kind of teaches me and my surroundings, people that I love that
are close to me, they help _ me _ have a better _ understanding of _ [D] that relationship. _ _ _ _ _
[G] _ _ _ _ _ [A] _ _ _
_ _ _ _ [D] _ _ _ _
_ _ [G] _ _ _ _ _ [D] _
_ He's a vocal [Bm] king.
He's like a magician.
He hypnotizes [A] you.
I guess we connect to his music through [Em] our own sort of _
[G] experiences as being Pacific Islanders,
[A] and we [D] definitely can relate to [G] his music and his words. _
_ _ _ _ [A] _ _ _ _
_ _ _ _ _ _ _ [D] _
_ _ _ _ _ _ _ [Dm] _
_ _ _ _ _ [E] _ _ _
_ [G] _ _ _ I love [Gbm]
Fiji's music a lot.
I think it's more the memories associated with it.
[Db] Growing up, I would always [Bm] hear his voice on the radio and just [Dbm] always think, wow, I
just [Bm] love how powerful [E] his voice was.
I was like eight [B] years old.
Now [Gb] it's 17 years later, [Dbm] and we're _
[B] running a festival together.
So [Dbm] I think it just means a lot to me to be [D] _ [C] around him.
_ [Am] _ _ _
_ _ _ [C] _ _ Hawaii is _ _ so dear to my heart.
[F]
When I was trying to do music, it was [D] just the local guys, so it was [C] very _ [Am] hard [C] to get in there.
[C] So I did a lot of background singing, whatever they allowed me to do.
When I finally got a chance [G] to do a record, I worked as hard as I could to _ _ [C] express not
only the music that I grew up on, but also the feeling that I felt _ listening to music.
_ [Dm] _ _ _
[G] _ _ _ _ [F] _ _ _ _
[C] _ _ _ _ _ [A] _ _
[G] I've lived in the United States now for [G] 33 _ [Cm] years _ [Fm] and still speak fluent.
It's the one thing that keeps [Bbm] me rooted _
_ [C] and trying [Ab] to do is _ _ _ encourage each and every one
_ [Db] _
_ of their _ [Bb] ethnicity in the [Cm] Pacific and to be proud [Ab] of your language. _
You come from a great people.
_ _ I've always felt [Eb] _ this is where I want to be or come to visit.
It's like the [Gb] motherland, you know?
So that's [Fm] how I feel about Aotearoa. _
_ [Eb] Thank you, _ Aotearoa.
[Bbm] _
Thank you.
From [Eb] my heart, _ what a blessing.
[Db] _ _ _ _ _ [Gb] _
_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _
_ _ [Ebm] _ _ _ [Bbm] My name is Fiji and keep it fresh.
[Eb] _ _ _