On My Count (Up)

[Intro – Upbeat Motown stomp; handclaps & tambourine; All-Female Ensemble “Hey!” shouts] [Female Lead] Two and four, baby—Detroit, keep time! [Verse 1 – Female Lead; bright horns, walking bass] East side buses, courthouse lines, Tap the rail—watch bodies realign. Clip that mic, hush that roar, I open lanes like revolving doors. You want the street? Hit the beat I ride— Count it in, sugar—dance or step aside. [Pre-Chorus – Female Lead + Female Trio (echo)] [Female Lead] One clap—doors glide wide, [Female Trio] Glide wide! [Female Lead] Two taps—hot heads slide, [Female Trio] Slide, slide! [Chorus – All-Female Ensemble; soaring strings, sax stabs] On my count, on my count— Step in time or clear the way. On my count, on my count— Feel that push on two and four all day. [Female Lead] I’m Miss Rhythm, tight and clean, Make a city’s heartbeat hit between— On my count… march or move aside! [Verse 2 – Female Lead; tambourine sparkle] Snap of fingers—latches slack, Backbeat buckle sends the rushers back. Thumper pucks make orders fade, Choir-rail blooms through the barricade. No crush, no kids, keep pride intact— But I’ll break your stride if you break the pact. [Pre-Chorus – Female Lead + Female Trio (call/response)] [Female Lead] Three hits—wedge goes weak, [Female Trio] Fall back! Don’t speak! [Female Lead] Low hum—bad plans leak, [Female Trio] Drip-drop, off-beat! [Chorus – All-Female Ensemble; bigger harmonies] On my count, on my count— Step in time or clear the way. On my count, on my count— Two and four make feet obey. [Female Lead] I’m the metronome queen of this Motor night, Put your little thunder back in time. [Bridge – All-Female Gospel Lift; organ swell, handclap break] [Female Trio] Move with the pulse when the hand says go, [Female Trio] Bend those knees, keep it low. [Female Trio] Open the lane with a hush in the air, [Female Trio] Count to four—walk clean through there. [All-Female Ensemble] Two—four—city in a line, Order’s got a backbeat—fall in time! [Break – Percussive “clap cannon” hits; girl-group ad-libs] [Female Lead – half-spoken] Tap once—buzz that visor; tap twice—kill that feed. I don’t swing harder—I just make you heed. [Chorus – All-Female Ensemble; key lift, horn punches] On my count, on my count— Step in time or clear the way. On my count, on my count— Feel that Motor rhythm sway. [Female Lead] Love it, hate it, talk big outside— But when the beat drops—move aside! [Final Chorus – All-Female Ensemble; double-clap tag, stacked vocals] On my count, on my count— Two and four, we rule the ride. On my count, on my count— March in step or step aside. [Female Lead] I call the tempo, you choose your pride… [All-Female Ensemble] On—my—count—move aside! [Outro – Ritardando; tambourine & claps fade like a passing train] [Female Lead – soft grin] City’s a band; I just choose the guide— Count it in, darling… march or move aside.