The Americanអាមេរិកាំង

(តុកតុកទេបង? តុកតុកទេ?) Nah, I'm good... I don't even know where I'm going. [Verse 1] Born in Khao-I-Dang, '81, blue tarp for a roof Mak carried me through the jungle, I'm the living proof Landed in Long Beach, three years old, couldn't say a word Anaheim Street, MacArthur Park, the first streets that I learned Mak sewing in the garage, Pa on the graveyard shift Every New Year at El Dorado, every saravan, every lift Seventeen, I made a choice that I can't take back Did my time, six years down, came home on the right track Got a job, got a wife, got a little girl Green card in a kitchen drawer, thought it covered my world Never filed the papers, never thought I had to America was all I knew [Hook] មាតុភូមិដែលខ្ញុំមិនស្គាល់ They sent me home to a home I've never known អាមេរិកាំង, that's what they call me here Long Beach in my heart, Phnom Penh in my ear [Verse 2] Six AM, a knock, my daughter in her pajamas Said goodbye through the glass, couldn't even hug my mama Twenty years since the case, man, I already paid it Now I'm paying it again, and nobody's gonna say it Chains on the plane, landed in the heat Motos everywhere, couldn't even cross the street Lady at the market laughing, asking me "ចេះនិយាយខ្មែរទេ?" I said "បន្តិចបន្តួច" Too Khmer for the country that raised me Too American for the country that made me [Verse 3] Now I teach English to the kids down by the river Teach 'em how to dance, how to rhyme, how to deliver Every dollar that I make, half of it goes west FaceTime at three AM, she's showing me her dress Prom night in Long Beach, I'm watching through a screen Fifteen hours ahead, she's the realest thing I've seen I don't ask for pity, I know the part I played But a kid from Khao-I-Dang shouldn't be the one that paid [Bridge] កូនអើយ... ម៉ែពរកូនឆ្លងព្រំដែន ដើម្បីឱ្យកូនរស់ ឥឡូវកូនត្រឡប់មកវិញ I'm back where you ran from, Mak... [Final Hook] មាតុភូមិដែលខ្ញុំមិនស្គាល់ They sent me home to a home I've never known អាមេរិកាំង, that's what they call me here Long Beach in my heart, Phnom Penh in my ear (Goodnight, Pa...) (ប៉ា says good morning, baby.) KHMER IN THIS SONG តុកតុកទេបង?: Tuk-tuk, brother? មាតុភូមិដែលខ្ញុំមិនស្គាល់: The motherland I don't know អាមេរិកាំង: American ចេះនិយាយខ្មែរទេ?: Can you speak Khmer? បន្តិចបន្តួច: Just a little កូនអើយ... ម៉ែពរកូនឆ្លងព្រំដែន: My child, I carried you across the border ដើម្បីឱ្យកូនរស់: So that you could live ឥឡូវកូនត្រឡប់មកវិញ: And now you've come back Created by Somleng Studio with AI-assisted music and visuals. A fictional story inspired by real Khmer American experiences.