The Price of Almost

A cycle of poems «Everything Hurts and I Am Almost Famous»

I climbed so high just to slip and fall,
One hand on the dream, no net at all.
The billboard reads "You Almost Won!"
But almost means the pain's still on.

They take my tears, they call them art,
Frame my failure, sell my heart.
I'm the "next big thing" that never came -
Just a name they'll mispronounce in vain.

I paid the price of almost,
In blood and chords and rusted trust.
Close enough to taste the flame,
But never close enough to change.
I'm the king of could-have-been,
A trophy wrapped in never-seen.
The spotlight loves to watch me crawl -
It shines the brightest when you fall.

My guitar’s got more breaks than me,
Strings snap like my sanity.
The labels say "We love your sound!"
Then leave me bleeding on the ground.

They want the hustle, not the hurt,
Turn my trauma into merch.
"So sad, so real, so underground!"
But no one buys when trends move on.

I paid the price of almost,
In blood and chords and rusted trust.
Close enough to taste the flame,
But never close enough to change.
I'm the king of could-have-been,
A trophy wrapped in never-seen.
The spotlight loves to watch me crawl -
It shines the brightest when you fall.

I was almost enough!
Almost loved...
Almost broke through!
Almost drowned...
Now i'm almost gone,
And no one's even noticing now...

I paid the price!
Of almost!
In every show where i was ghosted!
Almost famous...
Now i'm just a hashtag in a comment section,
A "remember them?" conversation...

"Next up... somebody new.
Thanks for coming out, y’all -
Don’t forget to tip your bartender."