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| 1. |
| 3:52 | 
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(Hook)
I got a part to play, we going hard these days Fuck the harder way, we doing it the smarter way To my god I pray, that's how I start my day The bullets start to spray the revolution starts today I say the shit these people ain't got the heart to say Fuck the harder way, we doing it the smarter way To my god I pray, that's how I start my day The bullets start to spray the revolution starts today (1st Verse) You say you never scared there's kids in other countries Making jerseys, jeans, and sneakers they could never wear Parents never there, they're busy building homes they can't afford to buy Cars they can't afford to drive Working jobs that don't support their life You busy screaming gangsta, gangsta all that talk is trife You already lost the fight if you don't know the cost of life These kids is forced to fight a war they can't outrun Ain't got no shoes but got a gun Now where the fuck he pulled that out from? People ask me how we wearing diamonds When there's little kids in Sierra Leone Losing arms for crying while they mining Probably an orphan who's momma died of AIDS He built a coffin working often but he never paid Forever slaving in the world that's forever cold Becoming the man of the house at 11 years old This reality rap, I get inside the mentality that... Terrorize you like a cowardly act (c'mon) (Hook) I got a part to play, we going hard these days Fuck the harder way, we doing it the smarter way To my god I pray, that's how I start my day The bullets start to spray the revolution starts today I say the shit these people ain't got the heart to say Fuck the harder way, we doing it the smarter way To my god I pray, that's how I start my day The bullets start to spray the revolution starts today (2nd Verse) I was sold to a sick European by a rich African battlin' Middle Passages, I can't go back again Battlin' years of denied history, lies and mysteries Wives with misty eyes watchin' their husbands be beaten viciously Battle in the wilderness of North America Run by the river, only stoppin' to pray chased by predators Terrorists with etiquette who vote and kill their president Their capacity for evil so evident and prevalent Ain't no hesitation involved, a nation dissolved While we sit back waitin' to evolve Those who would trade in their freedom For their protection deserve neither Not a name, not tradition Religion, you learn Jesus Turn the other cheek Inherit the Earth, just stay meek Fuck the way you speak Try to run, we chop off your feet Fast forward to 2004 we selling Yo this ain't what I'm settling for I want more, yo (Hook) I got a part to play, we going hard these days Fuck the harder way, we doing it the smarter way To my god I pray, that's how I start my day The bullets starts to spray the revolution starts today I say the shit these people ain't got the heart to say Fuck the harder way, we doing it the smarter way To my god I pray, that's how I start my day The bullets start to spray the revolution starts today |
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| 2. |
| 3:38 |
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(Talk)
Woe, yeah, yeah, when you doing you and you real fly wit it It's like niggas always wanna check you, no what I'm sayin? Always wanna make sure you keepin'it real, keepin'it real nigga Nigga, do you (Chorus) Back up offa me(Hi-Tek) Back up offa me Won't you, get out my face? Better stay in ya place Fed up, how much can I take? Yo, you need to just Back up offa me(Here we go yaw)Back up offa me I got money to make and not a minute to waste I need space when I'm trying to create, you need to just Back up offa me (See me in the cut) Back up offa me (Tryin' to roll up) Back up offa me (We can roll up) Back up offa me (Hey yo, muhfuckah hold up) (Verse) Tone, what is this? I know he ain't talkin This is grown man business, be your own man Stand up on ya feet, I thought we was homies But ya coming at me like you don't know me You think you do,well you're probably wrong I'm surrounded my babies than Ashanti songs Oh baby,I know ya don't get it Ya trying to walk in my shoes, I know you won't fit it Just cause I know you and ya flow too Theres more to it, you won't get it I don't owe you, you want Hi Tek to do a record for you So niggas is checking for you Comfortable, cause niggas get respected for you Get your own repect Duke,that aint mean or evil (nope) Ain't no crutches in the crew, my crew a crew of equals (yup) Shit was cool when we was teen-agers, we grown men You my people, but I don't need you moanin'and groanin' I can't feed you, I already gotta kid How a nigga try to regulate that's not his? I ain't trying to sign I'm just the artist nigga I'm just trying to rhyme and go the hardest, nigga (Chorus) Back up offa me(Hi-Tek) Back up offa me Won't you, get out my face? Better stay in ya place Fed up, how much can I take? Yo, you need to just Back up offa me(Yeah)Back up offa me I got money to make and not a minute to waste I need space when I'm trying to create you need to just Back up offa me (See me in the cut) Back up offa me (Tryin' to roll up) Back up offa me (We can roll up) Back up offa me (Hey yo, muhfuckah hold up) (Verse) Radio suckers never play me cause I don't let them They're like a pimp only hoes sweat them When I do a show I like to catch the ladies eyes Dodge the paparazzi, I don't want to see no lady die Sports, entertainment, academics, business or politics Ya find hoes that swallow dick for dollars quick Young broads, roll up in gangs, like the Young Lords Jump off, satutory rape, now you done for What, you thought that your shorty was going to act her age? No, right now, somebody's daughter is backstage (yup) It's a master-slave relationship, but guess who's Toby? It's the white girl in Colorado, but guess who's Kobe? Tried to tell you not to fuck with these debutants That's more Kobe beef than Japanese restaurants Don't need diseases or cases, ain't trying to catch nothing And when they're throwing pussy best believe you catching something(hey) (Chorus) Back up offa me(How hot is that?) Back up offa me (Hey) Won't you, get out my face? Better stay in ya place I'm fed up, how much can I take? Yo, you need to just Back up offa me(Yeah, hey)Back up offa me I got money to make and not a minute to waste I need space when I'm trying to create you need to just (Talk) Yeah man, this nigga,(shh)Back up off you Nigga, you talkin' bout me, know what I'm sayin'? I know that nigga talkin' bout me, know what I'm sayin' man? Who you think put him on? Okay, I put him on (Back up offa me)Talib Kweli That's supposed to be his rap name or somethin' like that? Nigga's name is Henry Abernathy, that's his real name Henry Abernathy, from 51st Street He just gonna go out there and get money with out me, (Ya know) But I gotta book of rhymes, I gotta book of rhymes Ya know what I'm sayin? (Back up offa me) Back up off you, you need to back up off me But I'm serious, if he come back around the block If he come back around the block If he comes in my line at the grocery store I tell ya right now, as soon as I bag his groceries Ya know what I'm sayin? I'm a take lika-lika little snapple bottle And just crack him across his forehead And I'll be like, Yeah Talib |
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| 3. |
| 3:11 |
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(Pharrell) Kweli!!!
(T. Kweli) Yeah! They wasn't expecting this! that's why ya (Pharrell) Hahaha (T. Kweli) Gotta hope for the best and play 'em for the worst, c'mon! (Pharrell) Muhfuckers is history! (T. Kweli) C'mon!! (Verse - Talib Kweli) This the story of - Lucy In The Sky Wit Diamonds Ask her why she crying, she wanna live, she got no time for dying Was a science, dreams too big for a small town She gotta get to New York and watch a door fall down Hopped off the Greyhound, gotta make her way now She sleeping on the park benches in the playground But cash burn quick, don't wanna have to turn trick Ready to quit 'til she met the super pimp Flashing his toothy smile that drove little Lucy wild She quick to hop up on his dick straight Hoopie style She let the fella hit but she sang she sell-a-bit (celebate) He ain't buying that, she ain't selling it She looking for love in all of the above Believing videos, trying to back up all on a thug Who wanna - put it in her, withdraw like a Citi card But now she shake that ass for tips at the titty bar (Chorus - Talib Kweli) (Pharrell) Broken glass - everywhere! (IT'S LOUDER!!) Louder - than a bomb shattered in in the air (IT'S LOUDER!!) Try to hold back your tears baby! (IT'S LOUDER!!) Wait a second, what happens here baby? (IT'S LOUDER!!) Broken glass - everywhere! (IT'S LOUDER!!) Louder - than a bomb shattered in in the air, yeah (How many of y'all think you can do what we do?!) Yeah! Wait a second (One! Two! Three! C'mon!) (Verse - Talib Kweli) Dreams shattered like broken glass Press ignore it and your hopes get broken fast You complain for the life you supposed to have But when you try to make plans God is known to laugh Throw a song on the phonograph, and Lucy start wilin The trick start smiling, watch the loot start flying The Gucci start pilling up, she live designer plush Start lining up the coke so she could find a rush Time's up, she's about to turn 33 Her shit started to sag, she got surgery Now cats are used to drive past her like a Church van Acting on thirst, 'She Wants To Move' like a N.E.R.D. fan Bigger house, 10,000 dollar purse fam She let you in, she wanted rent by the 1st man She the ring leader in a clique of birds And they shadowy, like the silhouette behind the curtain (Chorus) (Verse - Talib Kweli) She was a small city girl with big city dreams Niggaz try to figure how to get up in them jeans Put her in them scenes, get her on the team Hit her wit the cream 'til they figured out the schemes Now she all up in the club looking for a new love Really like Huey Lewis looking for a new drug Cause coke's getting old, started free basing Graduated to crack, smack on occasion Not catching the bus, but back at the station Back and forth pacing, acting all impatient Last hundred dollars, she got to 'Get By' Now gotta make a choice, go home or get high Mommy and daddy miss her, she left for the fame Now what's left is the dirt that's thrown on her name She need a ticket home if it's the right course Instead she bought a ticket to ride the white horse (Chorus) |
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| 4. |
| 3:45 |
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(Intro) (Talib Kweli)
Hey Y'all I feel good right? (mmm...hmmm...) Yeah, ok, uhh.. Now what that make me talk about? Love, love, love, love...(echoes) Yeah, that's what the world need, ha Yo, that's what your girl need All right, we gon' put it down like this I'll tell you about myself (1st Verse) (Talib Kweli) My name is Kweli and I love to spit it homie I rap about love and life, ladies get to know me If you feelin' lonely, I can be your one and only I put it out in the world, so people show me... love (echoes) Yeah, I always get it back This ain't no pimp game here, that's a different track We talkin' this and that, we need to get with this I keep it realer than most, this is our business (Chorus) (Faith Evans) What we gotta do to make them see We got a good thing going on Wanna tell the world if they don't know That what we have is real Wanna shout it from the mountains baby That I love you, but if they don't hear me I know, you know, we know (2nd Verse) (Talib Kweli) Heheh, yeah.. Yo, hey baby look like you need a break tonight Let me make it right, baby won't you stay the night I got a lot of love as you know you're my favorite right? Hey my lady, what we gon' make tonight (our love...) That's the dream, but I never sleep Across the crowded room, our eyes forever meet But without doubt and gloom, cuz we can never be That's why I got to go, cuz you're my impossible love Your the horizon I can see but never ride off into I sound better than the cat who rappin' to you now That's between me and you, what happened to us now? Got you hopin' for the glorious Waitin' for that victorious feelin' wanted by all of us Kneelin' and praying that the lord in us will help us love ourselves So much that the confidence attract to someone else (Chorus) (Faith Evans) What we gotta do to make them see We got a good thing going on Wanna tell the world if they don't know That what we have is real Wanna shout it from the mountains baby That I love you, but if they don't hear me I know, you know, we know (3rd Verse) (Talib Kweli) Yo, Rockin' Los Angeles, House of Blues in Sunset Performin' like an orgasm, my girl ain't even cum yet Seen her by the side of the stage givin' me energy Potentially, wife material connectin' mentally I felt like heaven sent for me, you're meant for me The doubters and the haters had to acknowledge eventually You was a non-believer too if memory serves And a heart that gives shit, tryin' to play your boy for the her The harder that I run to you, the farther you become It's like my heart was part of some movie that hadn't yet begun This woman moves me and I'm a mountain of a man You pull me in like the waves do the grain of sand (love, love, love...) Yeah, I love the way you bring it to me I wrote a song for you, I love to hear you to sing it for me And let the melody carry me through the jealousy And we can cruise like Tom and Phenelope (Chorus) (Faith Evans) What we gotta do to make them see We got a good thing going on Wanna tell the world if they don't know That what we have is real Wanna shout it from the mountains baby That I love you, but if they don't hear me I know, you know, we know (Repeat 2x) |
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| 5. |
| 3:36 |
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(Intro - Talib Kweli)
7-18 stand up (c'mon) Talib Kweli, BK MC Turn it up (yeah) We 'bout to drop it low Baby I got the flow (yeah) to work your abdominal (I'm goin in) It's the lava flow (yeah) strictly A game Rock it fast, rock it slow (whoa) You got to rock it fast, rock it slow (whoa, whoa) Rock it fast, rock it slow (c'mon, yeah) You gon' rock it fast, rock it slow (whoa, whoa, yeah, yeah!) (Talib Kweli) Black rock and roll, black hotter flow At the end of the black brick road, lets get it goin yo Geffen don't fuck the shit up, ship it gold So I could sell like the whole Jigga back catalo' Matta fact I'm tryin to sell out, concerts and merch' fam Always get the story straight accounts first hand (yeah) That nigga, the crack spitter, the black fitted low Give you that bit of information so You could know what you see when it's your time to go The diamond flow cut glass, crack binary code You're kinda slow, you need a new career (yeah) You're kinda old, you need to hang the mic up on the wall like a souvenir Don't blame the mangers, "Be All You Can Be" Join the Army like Canibus, niggaz avoidin me like the draft and run to Canada, flash like a camera That's when his girl asked me to dance with her - so we gon' (Chorus) (Hop to the beat and then stop) Yeah, drop it low Baby I got the flow to work your abdominal (Ladies I know I get hot) Like lava flow Strictly the A game, rock it fast, rock it slow (Hop to the beat and then stop) Yeah, drop it low Baby I got the flow to work your abdominal (Ladies I know I get hot) Like lava flow Strictly the A game, drop it fast (Talib Kweli) That's how we do it all the way live.. I put it down so hard that I developed a rep (c'mon) From the punchlines to cave in your delicate chest The fella can test, let's see how jealousy get I smell the fear in the air and I could tell he was pet' Kweli - look in my eyes and you could tell I'm a threat I wet my throat and get bent like a pelican's neck I make a gentleman's bet with my ghetto connect And got a .9 in my mind you can't metal detect I pull it out, put it to your head and shoot from the hip I fired 13 shots and left 2 in the clip (yeah) I spit the truth, that's it, I'm not confused one bit (c'mon) I'm so New York City streets that I'm abusin your whip Cruisin the strip, sunny day sky blue like a Crip (c'mon) For the rush hour Enuff threw this in the mix Quarter to six, Amadeus is producin the hits (oh, oh, oh) To get a screw loose in your chick, son she losin her shit (whoa) (Chorus) (Interlude - 4x) Check me out, yeah, yeah, yeah Get your ass up on the dance floor No we don't stop, when we in the dance off Baby girl whatchu wanna get into? I wanna get in too, bring your friends too (Chorus) |
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| 6. |
| 4:25 |
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(Talib Kweli)
Yeah, yeah New Talib Kweli Yeah, you know what it is Come on, come on, yeah Hey yo *repeats* (Hook: Mary J. Blige) I try, I try (that's all we can do) I try, you know I try I try, I try (yeah) I try, you know I try (Verse 1: Talib Kweli) K. West! Kweli! Got searched on the plane, Arabic first name Disturbed by the fame just like Kurt Cobain Breath of life, kiss of death, my lips pursed the same You flirt 'til she came Nothin' hurt like the pain and torture Daughters of the dust lookin' for a vein Something to take in vain like the Lord's name Put your hands together, got 'em all sayin' (Hook: Mary J. Blige) I try, I try I try, you know I try I try, I try I try, you know I try (Verse 2: Talib Kweli) Yo, it's all ghetto in gear higher, the floor settle More metal for beef that we don't let the law settle I try to navigate the treacherous waters of America's ghettos that set up the slaughteres But there's more of us Although we speak in different languages We all pretty familiar with what anger is Young and dangerous, ??? Get up on some gangsta shit Guns to bang ya wit' And we put it on records to entertain ya wit' I'm grown with pains way deeper than my receivers Our uniforms is white sneakers and white T-shirts On top of wife beaters We like to light reefers The 'hood need us for rappers, just ain't the right leaders I put a lot into it This is my product and I gotta move it Stop the industry but you can't stop the music (Interlude: Mary J. Blige) An upside down kingdom where life is just not fair (upside down kingdom) Some many sufferin' cuz deep inside they're scared (so scared) Fear pumped into their veins to keep them from their destiny Where would they be if you and I don't care? (Hook: Mary J. Blige) I try, I try, you know I try I try, I try, I try, you know I try (Verse 3: Talib Kweli) Yo, the things I'm seein' on the news is insane A stock broker shoot his kid and throw himself in front of a train A mother leave her baby home for two weeks all by himself Three years old, eatin' ketchup and mustard, cryin for help Tryin' to bring your struggle to life The label want a song about a bubbly life I have trouble tryin' to write some shit To BANG in the club through the night When people suffer tonight Lord knows I try (Hook: Mary J. Blige) I try, I try, I try, you know I try I try, I try, I try, you know I try (Interlude: Talib Kweli) Life is a beautiful struggle People search through the rubble for a suitable hustle Some people usin' the noodle, some people usin' the muscle Some people put it all together, make it fit like a puzzle Come on, say it now Life is a beautiful struggle People search through the rubble for a suitable hustle Some people usin' the noodle, some people usin' the muscle Some people put it all together, yeah (Outro: Mary J. Blige) I try, I try, you know I try I try, oh Lord I try Everyday I {*Mary J. Bliges harmonizes with the beat*} Upside down kingdom Oh, they're so scared Everyday on the news we can't look around with something somewhere I try, I try, you know I try I try, I try, I try, you know I try Lord knows, Lord knows we try Yeah |
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| 7. |
| 4:48 |
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(Chorus)
Around my way... Around my way... All the corners filled with sorrow All the streets are filled with pain Around my way... Around my way... Around my way... All the corners filled with sorrow All the streets are filled with pain Around my way... (1st Verse) People let me paint a picture You know I ain't a christian I ain't a muslim, ain't a jew I'm losing my religion I speak to god directly I know my god respect me Cause he let me breathe his air and he really blessed me I ain't knocking you, but I don't fuck with hospitals Spit the gospel, truly knowing jesus like apostles do Return like the prodigal son to honor Mohammed too Stay away from ham like Abraham, Lord'll follow you Even when you took my man Chaka God and what I'm a do You gave the hood a modern day martyr in Brother Amadou I'm on the block, I'm tracing your footsteps, I keep the faith in you Your love, plus hard work and ambition We gonna make it through, my songs is psalms I'm spiritual when I'm lyrical This is for my soldier niggaz looking in the mirror who Sitting home scratching off serials eating cereal The way we find a way to survive, shit is a miracle We got mice in the crib and roaches in the toasters, rice in the fridge Bread in the oven by the roaster We be takin' gypsy cabs and chasin' 50 bags They be laced with shitty swag and it really get me mad The way we saluting flags, wrapping them around our heads when niggaz ain't become American till 9/11 Feeling like you gotta sneak into heaven When the reverend looking like a pimp and the pimp look like the reverend (Chorus) Around my way... Around my way... All the corners filled with sorrow All the streets are filled with pain Around my way... These conditions make us strong And we create our own businesses so later on Our children have things in their name that they can say they own A mix tape freestyle become your favorite song No place like home when the cops ask you about your neighbors Beat on you, threaten to incarcerate you Till you spill your guys like you a Garcia Vega We roll blunts not the papers Cop the greatest take it coast to coast L.A. to Chicago like Smooth Operators Cop the Dro and cop the blacks Cop the four, cock it back Drop the flow, rock a hat on top a stocking cap Be a doctor or a lawyer or make your momma a promise that You'll finish school, but when you got a dream you gotta follow that And make sure when you make it out the hood, you always holler back Think about what you got from that And always put your dollars back On top of that, this is a legacy and we a part of that The hood is where my heart is at Catch me around my way (Chorus) Around my way... Around my way... All the corners filled with sorrow All the streets are filled with hate Around my way... Around my way... Around my way... All the corners filled with sorrow All the streets are filled with pain Around my way... |
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| 8. |
| 3:20 |
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(Talib Kweli)
Yeah! Come on! What it is It's the P-l-a-n-e-t R-o-c-k Kweli, BK, se-la-vis You could tell I be hell-a-free like college radio WQHT gonna play me though this hot shit is to fly like the cockpit got spit like a french kiss chicks lock lips coming from the deep black like the Loch Ness now bring apocalypse like the heart of darkness it's like the heart of the artist become a target pop music is the black market recently we witness bizarre shit the war hit the same time as SARS hit terrorists send bombs at the concert the show must go on yo regardless I'm just some hip-hop kid to pop shit and get on some rock shit and start a mosh pit (Hook) Yeah We got the beat to make the planet roooccccckkk (Come on, Come on) Yeah, Come on We got the beat to make the planet rooocccckkkk (Come on, Come on) (Talib KWeli) Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah We got the planet to rock, Kweli's standing on top I'm like a panther when I answer to cops and bust back before the man get a shot and the blood on their veins run cold like the cannibal lox and bring heat like the blood of the mammal that's hot and keep fighting like the boy with the mechanical heart and watch time count down on the hands of the clock till the hour when the pinnacle start wow, and go fast like the bullet that ran through the dark the hollow tip ripped a man apart, blaow yo these soldiers die in petroleum wars think they fighting for the holiest cause it don't matter if you muslim, hebrew, or you a christian information is the newest religion, is a true way of living ain't no rule to a superstition stop me with going through with my mission come on man (Hook with minor variations x2) (Talib Kweli) Come on get down, get down, get down, get down go ladies, go, go, go ladies, go, go Come on all my ghetto people stand strong we rocking on and on one for me, now rocking with the best and is Kweli you ain't no MC like me, you just a clone like KFC Come on, B-Boys, B-Girls, we rocking the world (Hook) (Talib rhyming over hook) Can't believe niggaz running the place man everything is dangerous nothing is safe, nigga think you a man with a gun in your waist let the cops disrespect you right in front of your face take it out on your girl, punch her in the face you ain't a thug you a waste of space nigga get out the way, B-boys gonna rock till the break! how much can the planet take (Repeat until end) We got the beat... |
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| 9. |
| 4:19 |
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[1st Verse]
The temperature got tempers flaring people sweat when the weather hot They argue and they fret a lot then set up the plot To whet up the block Wheter or not the blood is red up in the gutter Music is my bread and butter I got a show in Brooklyn cause the ghetto love us Pulled up in Mtulu's truck I'm suited up I'm cool as fuck security tripping on my baseball hat promoter knew what's up Plus Chaps had on some denim shorts and white tee shirt and I told the bouncer they being disrespectful cuz like you we working I ain't a custy or a patron and trust me no one would be paying To come in this crusty ass club if I wasn't playing He's like "I'll put you the fuck out" And when you put your word like that its like third strike black you struck out His man tried to rush me from behind Chaps stuck out a size nine Seen him trip face first into the line Cats is cowards with no spine and they power tripping too The next level is the violence so what y'all niggaz wanna [Hook] Work it out We should try to work it out People lie, people cry, people die to work it out Read the book, pray to god Look inside to work it out We should try to work it out Yo what y'all ladies wanna do Work it out To get fly she work it out People lie, people cry, people die to work it out Read the book, pray to god Look inside to work it out Show the love Lose the hate Work it out Work it out [2nd Verse] Peolpe placed in situations they cant take and what they facing Is the trials and tribulations to make them say the lords forsaken them Their loved ones intervening but they always blaming them For problems they don't realize what they part is in creating them Like men who so insecure think they women cheating on them And women who think the proof that they man love them is they beating on them Keep sleeping on them soon they partner creeping on them Committing crimes of passion they in caskets mother weeping on them With her head in her hands There's only one thing that the dead understand that it's better to be alive Now what you gonna do stick your head in the sand You probably the type to fall for anything and take that instead of a stand Now that's a mouse instead of a man I cherish my role as the head of my fam And on the road I meet incredible fans I rock with singers an a DJ instead of a band we at a theatre near you So what y'all niggaz wanna do [Hook] [3rd Verse] Stay civilized when they try to kill my high I try to think through problems Bring honesty to rap like Cam'ron brought the pink to Harlem You could be on the brink to stardom and suddenly you sink to bottom Tell the truth about the war and suddenly you linked Saddam Hate the topic but the closet people get to patriotic Is red bull white vodka mixed with the straight hypnotic Paper prophets sell the revolution so they make a profit Trust they got it fucked up with your taxes started making rockets Take it off the top like politicians speaking proper diction Stuffing dollars in they britches like they do a lotta stripping Got the top position bitching about the quality of life All that bullshit get exposed as soon as Kweli sees the mic They cutting down the tree of life the sun rays is running out The babies ain't eating right so the guns keep coming out See how they play the streets an night slap the taste out your mouth To show you what they work about So what y'all niggaz want to do [Hook] |
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| 10. |
| 4:47 |
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(Intro: Talib Kweli)
Ghetto to ghetto, backyard to yard We tear it up y'all, bless the mic with the gods (come on) Precious metals round our necks and arms (yea) We tear it up y'all, bless the mic with the gods Ghetto to ghetto, backyard to yard We tear it up y'all, bless the mic with the gods (come on) Precious metals round our necks and arms (yea) We tear it up y'all, bless the mic with the gods (Hook: Anthony Hamilton) Whatever in your heart is where you want to be My hood is the ghetto Even when you look Its never what you see My hood is the ghetto I've been down before up is just a reach Cause my hood is the ghetto Catch a second wind Then begin again My hood is the ghetto (Verse 1: Common) Black magic in the hood, its tragic but understood Crack addicts, crack windows, crack wood Even whats bad becomes good, status becomes stood Upon the pedestal welcome to the ghetto show Federal buildings, pissy hallways filled with children pushing children Fiends lips peeling, shit seems real and What's real is the estate of mind that we're in The situation feels great My man peels weight, so he can fill plates You might get love but you still feel hate Through and chain plates, we communicate Chicago to brooklyn nigga real ones do relate (Verse 2: Talib Kweli) If lyrics sold then truth be told I'll probably be just as rich and famous as jay-z Truthfully I wanna rhyme like common sense Next best thing I do a record with common sense Cause its the music, its blues, its jazz, its acoustics Soul, rock and roll the hip hop we be producing yea It's the gear, it's the flare, it's the stare Nowadays they'll shot you where they used to shoot the fair Remember the lost soldiers, pour a beer, shoot the air We got our own elected officials, no matter who the mayor I know you know what I'm talking about From New York to the South, take off your shoes when you walk in the house (Hook) (Verse 3: Talib Kweli) Yo I grew up where they're playing skele in the parking lot And sell paintings of Aaliyah, BIG and Pac up in the barbershop Buildings too big so you don't really see the stars a lot But rapping, drinking, and going to prison you see them bars a lot I feel the spirit in the dark and hear it in my heart And always keep my ears to the block till I dearly depart Hip hop is really the art We have to express the part of ourselves that make us want to martyr ourselves It ain't harder to tell when somebody stick you up and put the hammer to you They want them dead presidents like Stickman and Mutulu With a gun to your jaw, these kids don't run anymore Kicks is a hundred or more (Verse 4: Common) A man in front of the store, begging for money and mercy I told him say a prayer under his breath, he cursed me Niggaz is thirsty, I heard it's a drought Up early, serving from their grandmother's house Sometime the ghetto feels desolate, yo the eyes of the hood yo is desperate Effected by the deficit, times and lessons get hard Either get by or get god, but but you try to get by It's like the block keep blocking You try to make moves, its like the car just keep stopping We shorties in the court, need cochran yea I tell them why the weed seeds popping, in the game you need options No time for feet watching, me and kwe keep rocking for the ghetto Hook times 2 |
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| 11. |
| 5:04 |
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(Talib Kweli)
I do it for the people, I do it for the love I do it for the poet, I do it for the thug This is for victory, and this is for the slaughter I do it for my mother, I do it for my daughter Promise I'll always love ya, I love to kiss and hug ya You and your brother should be lookin out for one another I'm so blessed, man, y'all the reason I got up Somebody put his hands on you I'm gettin locked up I'm not playin, that's the prayer I'm sayin for Diani And if I die then she'll be protected by Amani That's her bigger brother and I love the way he love her She a girly-girl, she love to imitate her mother But she a Gemini, so stay on her friendly side She'll put that look on you, it's like somebody' friend just died My pretty black princess smell sweet like that incense That you buy at the bookstore supporting black business Teach her what black is; the fact is her parents are thorough She four reading Cornrows by Camille Yarborough I keep her hair braided, bought her a black Barbie I keep her mind free; she ain't no black zombie This is for Aisha, this is for Kashera This is for Khadijah scared to look up in the mirror I see the picture clearer thru the stain on the frame She got a black girl name, she livin black girl pain This is for Makeba, and for my mamacita What's really good, ma? I'll be your promise-keeper I see the picture clearer thru the stain on the frame She got a black girl name, she livin black girl pain (Hook) My mama said life would be so hard Growin up days as a black girl scarred In so many ways though we've come so far They just know the name they don't know the pain So please hold your heads up high Don't be ashamed of yourself know I Will carry it forth til the day I die They just know the name they don't know the pain black girl (Jean Grae) This is for Beatrice Bertha Benjamin who gave birth to Tsidi Azeeda for Lavender Hill for Kyalisha ALTHLONE, Mitchells Plain, Swazi girls I'm reppin for thee Mannesburg, Guguletu where you'd just be blessed to get thru For beauty shinin thru like the sun at the highest noon From the top of the cable car at Table Mountain; I am you Girls with the skyest blue of eyes and the darkest skin For Cape Colored allied for realizing we're African For all my cousins back home, the strength of mommy's backbone The length of which she went for raising, sacrificing her own The pain of not reflecting the range of our complexions For rubber pellet scars on Auntie Elna's back I march Fist raised caramel shinin in all our glory For Mauritius, St, Helena; my blood is a million stories Winnie for Joan and for Edie, for Norma, Leslie, Ndidi For Auntie Betty, for Melanie; all the same family Fiona, Jo Burg, complex of mixed girls For surviving thru every lie they put into us now The world is yours and I swear I will stand focused Black girls, raise up your hands; the world should clap for us (Hook) My mama said life would be so hard Growin up days as a black girl scarred In so many ways though we've come so far They just know the name they don't know the pain So please hold your heads up high Don't be ashamed of yourself know I Will carry it forth til the day I die They just know the name they don't know the pain black girl |
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| 12. |
| 5:01 |
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(Verse One)
I know there's a first time for everything First time I let her in my bed she got wetter then the perfect storm That we weathering together and This the first time that I've ever considered wedding rings But first things first yo I met her at the bar rolling with three wise men like I followed the star There she is shorty bi coastal Thick like bifocals, stacked like 2Pac vocals her body so loco Jewel of the Nile so I'm romancing the stone The rhythm is to the words and I watched her dance to my poems The way she move them hips let me know in advance that she grown I pictured it like Paris Hilton when she answered the phone, yo Dancing alone because she extra fly But I got good look so I catch her eye Gave the rest a try now give the best a try Leave your nest and I'll fly make you testify Damn baby I know we got some haters and. (Hook) I don't care what people say As long as you and me okay Because I never been in love before See I use to be a player and All of this is new to me And this ain't what I'm used to see Because I never been in love before (Verse 2) You running back to the kid like this was home base Or a marathon I let you set your own pace Your own space and the beautiful struggle Now baby tell what's it gonna take to prove that I love you When I'm gone you be missing me too It let me know that my prayers is the music God be listening to Don't get it confused I'm trying to get religious with you I never thought I feel like this its like a miracle you You You stole my heart like a crook in love Crossing the bridge to the Brooklyn love When I took above it's clear skies that's surrounding my earth Your love is drugs and I'm down to serve let's deal with it yo We go to the spot and you still get it low I get excited fast and still love to hit it slow till the walls come tumbling down like Jericho And you hear the sound is stereo Hear we go (Hook) I don't care what people say As long as you and me okay Because I never been in love before See I use to be a player and All of this is new to me And this ain't what I'm used to see Because I never been in love before (Verse Three) You looked good when I tried you on So I had to write a song Use to be the guy that always made her cry when I'm gone Always kept a stable and I never spent a night alone no cable or no hard line phone why I'm never home scared of commitment Ready to forever roam We at war like sister souljah and she welcome to my terror dome Head strong our connection proved them haters dead wrong From now to R.I.P. Proceeds my name up on the headstone Leave her be for five minutes Dudes try to dive in it first They want to spit on my name and tarnish my image I tell them do you I don't care who she speaking with Because I already know she made it clear who she leaving with And it feels so beautiful Put it in a rhyme because it feel so musical Plus you ain't no groupie hoe Sitting in the studio Before we do this though there something that you should know (Hook) I don't care what people say As long as you and me okay Because I never been in love before See I use to be a player and All of this is new to me And this ain't what I'm used to see Because I never been in love before |
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| 13. |
| 4:04 |
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(Sample)
This is a tear jerker (Intro) {*echoes*} The revolution is here, the revolution is here people I said it once, I'll say it twice You gots to be ready The revolution is inside of you People, the revolution is here, yeah (Hook) The revolution's here No one can lead you off your path You'll try to change the world So please excuse me while I laugh (yeah) No one can change your ways (rock with me for a second) No one can lead you off your path (come on) You'll try to change the world So please excuse me while I laugh (Verse 1: Talib Kweli) Yo, I heard it's said the revolution won't be televised But in the land of milk and honey there's a date you gotta sell it by Otherwise it just expires and spoils And these folks jump out the pot when the water too hot Cuz the fire boils inside You go to church to find you some religion And all you hear is connivin' and gossip and contradiction and You try to vote and participate in the government And the muh'fuckin' Democrats is actin' like Republicans You join an organization that know black history But ask them how they plan to make money and it's a mystery Lookin' for the remedy but you can't see what's hurtin' you The revolution's here, the revolution is personal They call me the political rapper Even after I tell 'em I don't fuck with politics I don't even follow it I'm on some KRS, Ice Cube, Chris Wallace shit Main Source, De La Soul, bumpin' "2Pacalypse Now" (Hook) The revolution's here (yeah) No one can lead you off your path (uh uh) You'll try to change the world So please excuse me while I laugh (ha ha, ha ha) No one can change your ways No one can lead you off your path (uh uh) You'll try to change the world ('scuse me) So please excuse me while I laugh (Verse 2) Yo, I speak at schools a lot cause they say I'm intelligent No it's cause I'm dope, if I was wack I'd be irrelevant I'm like the dope in your tracks until your high is settled in You leanin' to the left, the laughter's the best medicine But the troubles you have today you just can't laugh away Stay optimistic, they can change, it's gon' come like Donny Hathaway You have to pray, on top of that, act today Cuz opportunity shrivel away like Tom Hanks in "Cast Away" Everybody pass away, the past will pay, the family mournin' Everybody act accordin' to the season that they born in You fight in the streets, start bleedin' 'til the blood is pourin' In the gutter, mothers cry 'til the Lord be livin' by the sword and All that folks want is safety, they goin' gun crazy The same reason Reagan was playin' war games in the '80s The same reason I've always rocked dog chains on my babies The struggle is beautiful, I'm too strong for your slavery (Hook) The revolution's here (yeah) No one can lead you off your path (uh uh) You'll try to change the world So please excuse me while I laugh (ha ha, ha ha) No one can change your ways (yeah) No one can lead you off your path (uh uh) You'll try to change the world ('scuse me) So please excuse me while I laugh (yeah) The revolution's here No one can lead you off your path You'll try to change the world So please excuse me while I laugh No one can change your ways No one can lead you off your path You'll try to change the world So please excuse me while I laugh (Outro: Talib Kweli) It's a beautiful thing that's happenin' right now Right now G Yo, I'm rockin' with my man Hi-Tek on the track right now We fightin' the good fight The Beautiful Struggle Yeah, let's go (So please excuse me while I laugh) |
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