Odes to Downtown Atlanta · Track 14 · middle
State Farm Arena and the Hawks
State Farm Arena — the Hawks home court (formerly Philips Arena), the NBA games, the concert venue, the way it shares the Centennial District energy with Mercedes-Benz Stadium and CNN. The dueling Bird logo above the entrance. Bo with the cheap-seat swagger.
Lyrics
[Intro] Yeah. You see that big bird over the door? Two heads, one lookin' in, one lookin' out. That's us. That's the whole damn thing right there. Let's go. [Verse 1] I remember the dust from the Omni. 1997. They took the old barn down, sent it to heaven. Two years later, Philips signs the check. November 6, 1999, first game, what the heck. New court smell, that weird mix of wax and steel. First time up the escalator, man, you feel it. This ain't the Omni. This is glass and light. But the roar's the same on a Tuesday night. [Chorus] Up here in the 300s, where the real sound lives. Where you feel the floor shake with what the whole crowd gives. We stomp the floor, a low-end thunder roll. For the Hawks, for the city, for the heart and soul. Under that Dueling Bird on Centennial Park Drive. This is where the cheap seats keep the whole damn town alive. [Verse 2] They changed the name, sure. State Farm in 2018. Slap a new sign on the same old scene. Still smells like hot dogs and spilled beer up here. Still see the whole game, crystal clear. They told me back then, the floor had a trick. A honeycomb thing, keep the wood from gettin' slick. Some engineer's dream. Down there they're playin' cool, up here we're lettin' off steam. [Chorus] Up here in the 300s, where the real sound lives. Where you feel the floor shake with what the whole crowd gives. We stomp the floor, a low-end thunder roll. For the Hawks, for the city, for the heart and soul. Under that Dueling Bird on Centennial Park Drive. This is where the cheap seats keep the whole damn town alive. [Bridge] Next door, the big silver pinwheel sleeps on a Sunday. Across the way, CNN tells the world about Monday. But in here, it's just us. Just the squeak of the shoes, the ref's whistle, the scoreboard fuss. It ain't about the logo on your credit card. It's about screaming 'til your throat is scarred. [Outro] Game over. We spill out into the night. The Benz is lit up, a hell of a sight. But I look back up. At that bird. One head watchin' us leave. One head watchin' the empty seats. Yeah. See you next time.