Mos Def - We Are Hip Hop Me You Everybody [compilation] (2002) by Mos Def (보컬) on maniadb.com

[Talib Kweli]
We fantastic, flippin on tracks like gymnastics
Small brats get they ass kicked, me and Mos smash it
Top gun like what comes after the, fist rockin' knife
Check the keys that get played on the roads of life
Yo the rhyme is so heavy like a load of my chest
Travel on these mc's, leave 'em broken like house pets
Priceless like the streets I'm on, my word is born
You like Paula Abdul-ka-ka compared to Sarah Born?
Sayin, what did I do to be so black and blue
Mc's sayin damn what got it goin after you
Slam my microphone and do just what I have to do
Aiyyo, I'd like to stop and chat but I'm just passing through
You know I'd like to stop and chat but I'm just passing through

[Mos Def]
I'm on my way back to Louis Avenue
Inside Brooklyn the b-boy capital, lot of cats travel to black eratical
Say, my response is invatically yes
We invatically fresh, you dramatically stressed
These mc's proceed to cease the presidential palace
And burn Babylon like a ?
Strive to maintain balance
With the God given talent
Articulate the article, eliminate the fossical
Black Star Line shine remarkable, they style ain't even talkable
These socalled criminals is fictional they make the party turn miserable
We document the memorable
Then break 'em up like syllables
Straight down to earth like minerals
Your style is foul like down? chemicals
We five-dimensional, audio, visual, physical, spiritual, lyrical
Another world

Another world, y'all
We transmit another world
Another World, y'all
We transmit another world
Another World, y'all
We transmit another world
Black Star 'bout to shine from what

[Talib Kweli]
Yo Mos, ain't it a shame how these people treating life like a game
Ain't gonna give you no fame by callin out your name
Just explain how I do it and, lead by example
Stay away from repetition don't wanna sound like no sample
You can't handle this Messiah
My shit is classical we get bug' like Umfufu, "You treat me like animal!"
Just 'cus you got money, don't mean you made it
Just 'cus you make it don't give you the right to be a ?
Matter fact stay out my face
I can't take it like them stupid big horse bills
Your defense is nill, my chatter, shatter your forcefield
Kweli and Mos Definition with more lines then a petition
Yo my mission is to break shit in half, like intermission
Then get missin' with Hi-Tech or anyone like that
Costin' one million pounds 'cus it sound so fat
Lay you flat like the carpet
Take the tobacco out my spliff before you spark it
The only tye I rock is chocolate
Makin profits like Spacely Sprockets, you can't stop it
The topic, we always gonna be black like markets
From the underground, look around and tell me what you see
Another picture painted perfectly by yours truly

Another world, y'all
Say what, another world
Another world, y'all
Say what, another world
Travellin' through, time and space
On the the Black Star galactica
Yo, another world
'nother 'nother, 'nother, 'nother, 'nother world

[Mos Def]
Never never never soap opera
Whether you, indian, dominican, jamaican or bolivian
No matter what disc recorder or part of town you livin' in
I recommend you listenin' to these distinguished gentlemen
Who take the proper measurement to represent
The solo's ? chrome is known to built on
Gleam on the measurement
Master mc carpentry
Talib kwa, the Kweli in quality
Put the groundation down properly
You can't trespass the property
Ain't takin' or breakin', robbery
Got the whole owner blast-back policy
Follow me, descendant of the grand master armery
Where cats rock the Wallabe and Kangols, mc's exchange flows
The same goes on, they'll be here when we gone
Hope they heart stay strong for
The other world

The other world y'all
Say what, another world
Another, 'nother 'nother 'nother
Say what, another world...
'nother 'nother 'nother....

( INTRO: Mos Def )
Baba-baba-baba-baba-baba, you been so good to me
When I was a little boy you were the only one I wanted to be
To be like pa duke and ma duke
How much I love the both of you
I know all the strain we been through
But it's of no consequence cause I'm comin through

( VERSE 1: Mos Def )
Check it
I first stood ???? in the ??Brakalak??
In the center of ??Islam??, started ????
This had to be about ten years back
Before I ever even heard of a 24 track
Talkin about you was an MC was ??quite the?? move
Cause if you said you had skill well then you had to show and prove
And if there ever was a party, son, yo, I would set it
And tell the deejay run the beat from (Ultra-magnetic)
I grabbed the mic and then I leave the party buzzin
Tellin all my honeys I was Slick Rick's cousin
When they knew I wasn't, but I had no shame
Pa, you know the name, the Mos always had game
Back in the day ?????
Brothers knew how to act before glocks and crack
And Wendy C was doin radio shows
And 'crossover' meant that you wore your mom's clothes
When Sweet G was talkin about the games that people play
I used to sit back and say: yeah indeed, someday
And as I grew older my kung fu grew better
Instead of shootin the humbles I was shootin ????
And now my time has come
And now hip-hop's an industry polluted by bums
Posin with guns they're puffin mad blunts
Aiyo, brothers just started rhymin last month
They gettin fat deals on any major label
When they only see other people hold the mic cable
Five years ago when peoples danced to house
When the deejay played hip-hop then you walked out
But now you're hard, talkin about you paid mad dues
I used to see your ass ???? wearin platform shoes
I ain't confused, who you think you're foolin with that get-up
You ain't genuine, so don't waste your time
Riffin over here cause here ain't no chance
That you could break the sound, son, you ain't that advanced
Times are gettin critical across the land
???? the b-boy, introduce the b-man, understand?
The M-O-S D is who I am, now check it out, y'all

( CHORUS )
My kung fu is the style you haven't mastered

( VERSE 2: DCQ )
At the age of 18 made a little money
And I needed some advice on how to live my life
Was goin through strife, people couldn't understand
That I was comin into my own, becomin a man
I had to have a plan cause I know what I'm here for
So I can't waste time, y'all
Gotta be on the ball and represent for my peeps
(Where?) in the streets
I make beats and kick facts over fat tracks
It's all of that from the ??Brakalak??
Goin through problems as a adolescent
A lot of troubles and turmoils, there was persistence
And I know that I stutter
But it don't matter cause I'm a bad -
I flip a verse either backwards, sideways
I rocks my (edited) from here, Mondays, Fridays
Saturdays and I get a weekend off
My (edited) ain't soft
(Well, excuse me, baby)
You paid your dues cause I'm the boss
So mother(edited) Bruce Springsteen and Diana Ross
Because they know what the time is
I rock (edited) for the fly kids, b-men, bouncin ?? bombastics
Kick it drastic, you get tossed like an ash, kid
Youknowmsayin?

( CHORUS )

( VERSE 3: Ces )
Well, I'm sleek and I freak a beat
For you and your peeps to bump inside your jeeps
Your Acura, Honda or whatever
Bump it in the Benzi and get your head together
Strollin down the F.D.R.
Playin the microphone star
Deep in your car
With the thump-diddy-thump-da-thump-da-thump-thump
Pop up the trunk and let the bass bump
If you ain't got a ride, well, that's alright
Let the U keep you company on your hike
Trekin down the ave. with your headphones on
Take em off for a sec, you still feel gone
You're pressin rewind, many, many times
I must rock the mic cause it's only right
Comin right up offa Eastern ground
This is how you get down, I hope you like the sound
Thermo offering number one
There's more in store, there's more to come
We far from done, no, the show ain't over
So when we comin through don't say I never told ya
That

( CHORUS )

Same story, same target, different time
Cyclical reaction from the prisoners of the bilnd
Trying to fight time, it's a battle of the mind
Waiting for redemption, surviving in a bind
Same story, same target, different time
Cyclical reaction from the prisoners of the blind
Trying to fight time, it's a battle of the mind
Waiting for redemption, surviving in a bind
(black thought)
Yo, talk about paying the ultimate price
Hurricane been incarcerated all of his life
Started out at like twelve
Trapped in a belly of hell
Grew into a man inside of a cell
Yo, anger just swell up
At a early age that develop
Hot head and now it ain't shit y'all could tell him
They said he's on a road to become a felon
But instead he swung blows that'll spilt your melon
He did his thing and was the king of the ring, undisputed
Started making noise but they tried to mute it
They put him through it
For him to make the system look stupid, (yo)
They rather look you in the face and shoot it
And leave your spot looted (or what)
Or leave your whole life blank futured and caught
When you scream at it and do it
With sweat leaking from the outline of your silhouette
Don't understand the point that you at
Or how the hell you came to it?
Flashback to images of that night, out in patterson
They pulled him over heading home from a gathering
And when they told him the charge it kind of baffled him
Murder in the first for the champ, we on that again?
Chorus
Hurricane
Accuse a hurricane
Ain't change a damned shame
It's life for hurricane, hurricane
(black thought)
*overtop of sung chorus*
Forever, imagine your locked down forever
Could y'all stand the weather?
Could you hold it together?
You tell me that you know the pain
Yo, imagine if your life was like a hurricane, a hurricane
Forever, imagine your locked down forever
Could y'all stand the weather?
You built for that weather?
Yo, know what'm saying?
Know what'm saying?
(common)
You gotta fight for what you believe in
Nobody knows the troubles seen
This flick left me wondering
'what can become of kings and young kids? '
Summer dream deferred, incident occured, freedom blurred
A freedom that would only be retrieved again in words, later on
The cops, y'all know what they be on
A nigga's life is like a field that they play upon, away and gone from
Natural lifer, a soul he had to fight,
Learn it himself, sleep days, stay up half the night
Amongst dead man walking, he got afterlife exercising,
Developing his knack to write
Never leaving his cell, in this world he trapped himself
What he loved on the outside world, detached himself
You know the cards blacks get dealt by the system
He drew a picture of freedom with many dimensions
This picture proved to be bigger than black and white
A young soul named lesra brought him back to life
It's amazing to a man what a book could do
And how certain books seem to look for you
This is the story of a champion's fall and rise
The story left me wiping my eyes
Peace ru
Chorus
Hurricane
Accuse a hurricane
Ain't change a damned shame
It's life for hurricane, hurricane
(black thought)
*overtop of sung chorus*
Yo, yo, forever, imagine your locked down forever
Could y'all stand the weather?
Could you hold it together?
You tell me that you know the pain
Yo, imagine if your life was like a hurricane, a hurricane
Forever and ever yo, locked down forever
Could you stand the weather?
Yo, yo I can't even explain the pain
Just imagine if your life was like a hurricane

(mos def)
Yes, I am the inescapable, the irresistable,
The unnegotiable, the unchallenged (who dat? )
I am time
I scroll in measurements, control the elements,
I hold the evidence, I tell the story (say what? )
I am time
I know no prejudice, I bare no sentiments
For wealth or settlement, I move forward (who you? )
I am time
You can't recover me, conceal or smuggle me,
Retreat or run from me, crawl up or under me,
You can't do much for me besides serve
Me well and have good dividends returned to you
Or attempt to kill me off and have me murder you
Many have wasted me but now they are facing me,
Treated me unfaithfully and now endure me painfully
Plaintively, I wait to see what history will shape to be,
Who's hearts will never die inside the sake of me
Angel's scribe the page for me,
Keep a full account of all the names for me
And make a special mark for hurricane who (? ) patiently
Chorus
Hurricane
Accuse a hurricane
Ain't change a damned shame
It's life for hurricane, hurricane
(black thought)
*overtop of sung chorus*
Yo, yo, a hurricane forever,
Imagine your locked down forever
Could you stand the weather?
Could you hold it together?
I can't even explain the pain
Imagine if your life was like a hurricane, a hurricane
Forever, imagine your locked down forever and ever, ever
Could you hold it together?
Yo, can't explain the pain with words, know'm saying?
Just imagine if your life was like a hurricane
(verse 4)
The clouds clashed and the heaven's gave birth to star
God placed it in a man on the day he was born
Convicted minutes after, a true natural disaster
Framed for manslaughter, the hurricane carter rising
From out the south water, like torrential rains
In the ring no opponent escaped unscathed
You can't believe the world we live in's injust
All I see is more proof, there's no place for us
They had my man carter locked in a cage, like an animal
Drive him to the point where the mind work mechanical
Or works by remote control
It was done to all of us, they tapped directly into our soul
Either it's sing-sing, or it's bars around your mind
There's no where to run, no where to hide
In a six-by-six a guilty man cries
For repentance and lost is what innocence is
Same story, same target, different time
Cyclical reaction from the prisoners of the bilnd
Trying to fight time, it's a battle of the mind
Waiting for redemption, surviving in a bind
Same story, same target, different time
Cyclical reaction from the prisoners of the blind
Trying to fight time, it's a battle of the mind
Waiting for redemption, surviving in a bind
Chorus
Hurricane
Accuse a hurricane
Ain't change a damned shame
It's life for hurricane, hurricane
(black thought)
*overtop of sung chorus*
Your locked down forever
Could you stand the weather?
Could you hold it together?
I can't even explain the pain, know'm saying?
Your life was like a hurricane, a hurricane
Forever, imagine behind bars forever
Could you stand the weather?
You built for that? is you cut for that?
Don't be telling me that you know the pain
Your life was like a hurricane, yo
Same story, same target, different time
Cyclical reaction from the prisoners of the bilnd
Trying to fight time, it's a battle of the mind
Waiting for redemption, surviving in a bind
Same story, same target, different time
Cyclical reaction from the prisoners of the blind
Trying to fight time, it's a battle of the mind
Waiting for redemption, surviving in a bind

[Mos Def]
Aight, uhh, alright y'all slow down I'm tryin ta
Aight, yo I I only took a little bit of Spanish you gotta
Aight I hear what you're sayin but yo, aight okay
Alright okay, alright okay okay
Alright okay, I'm feelin you, okay
Alright okay, alright okay okay
Alright okay, I'm feelin you yo
All my people in Brooklyn and you know we're hot, I say
We don't stop, the Body Rock
All my people in Queens and the land in between say we
Don't stop, the Body Rock
Shaolin and L-I say you know we're fly, say we
Don't stop, the Body Rock
From the East to the West son we take it to the chest say we
Don't stop, the Body Rock

Check me out y'all
I'm in the lab with Ab, I got the band they're fat
My man T-A-S-H take it to your breastplate
It's the Mighty Mos Def, complete the trilogy
Just shot myself a dime, see are you feelin me?
Son I'm wicked and nice when I'm on facility
Let me take a sec to review what I wrote.. *paper rustling*
.. "Mos Def and I sound par fresh" OK it's dope
let's record this ('cord this) they gonna want dis (want dis)
And all area crew is gonna flaunt this *clapping*
And when we step to the plate Pah it's flawless
My man T-A-S-H with styles glory great
Great, great great, great great uh uhh uh uhh uh uhh uh

[Tash]
Up next we got CaTash with that West coast rhymin
Bombin niggaz with the style that's dangerous as mountain climbin (ahhhh!)
Cause the Alkie words I'm spittin be twistin while you listenin
Plus I'm in this motherfucker with the Likwit coalition
Gotta leave you in position, twist it backwards like dough go
While you starin down my throat like, "Is he drunk or is he sober?"
WHO KNOWS, all I know is Tash got flows
and got the technique to get the ladies out of they clothes
I been overly exposed to the forty-oh's and chickens
So I'ma keep it pumpin til the beat stop kickin
or til the plot thickens, cause this is how we do
CaTashTrophe, Mos Def, and the brother man QUE!!!!

[Q-Tip]
What's up Tash, hey yo, Tip can't call it
Sure as Mos is Def and you Alkaholik
I'ma be surfin at, thing that's worth dealin
Hypodermically, shoot up your feelin
Figuratively, speakin of course now
old and greedyness, seekin it's course now
what we gonna do, eradicate them
Shoot them from the jam, they fear disease

[Mos Def]
Tash Love... are you ready to rock the mic?
Q-Tip... are you ready to rock the mic!
Mos Def... are you ready to rock the mic?
We got the universal style that you got to like!
And ain't nobody steppin up when we got the mic
So turn the A.C. up cause it's hot tonight!
And til the bright early morn' we be rockin you all
Don't stop, the Body Rock!

[Tash]
Cause I'm next to flex, and I'm technically advanced
to turn you on like cybersex, so in less than two sec's
I blind MC's like Thomas Dolby with the Science that'll leave
they braincells fryin slowly (FIRE!) so slowly I flow and
express written consent, from the undergroundin niggaz
Coast II Coast I represent cause gettin bent, I do
but I'm doper than sherm plus the way I put it down
could burn the perm off Big Worm, so peace and pipe this greeting
of the Last Action Hero that be freezin rappers dead in they tracks
like Sub Zero (Zero), cause Rico ain't no joke
I eat your flows and yo' beat up rappers even feel my presence
when I'm home with my feet up

[Mos Def]
for what you skied up or treed up
Relax and pull a seat up, make your landlord turn the heat up
Got the opposition shook like Tiger Woods about to tee up
So niggaz no competition with the clear Mos Definition
MC's screamin now for years can't rhyme without they mom's permission
You just a young'un comin out, gettin gassed to run your mouth
Wildin on the Runabout, Baby Pah you comin out
Barkin that you want a bout but son you know the comeabout
when Mos Def blow up and, you don't, nuttin
Don't you know nuttin? My crew go huntin
We keep it on the norm then we transform som'in
And while, we do it, you bounce to it
The cops wanna stop the Body Rock but don't do it

[Q-Tip]
DY-NO-MITE!!! Like Jimmy J.J.
Swap down pen-ny, somewhere in L.A. (A)
Now we got to bond like Voltron (tron)
Tash you the bomb, Mos you the won ton (ton)
Q will pick the lead, I must drop on thee (thee)
A-B-S, I bust down, facility (ty)
T-R-A-C-T is the MC (cee)
It's the LL, inside the place to be (be)

[Mos Def]
Tash Love... are you ready to rock the mic?
Q-Tip... are you ready to rock the mic!
Mos Def... are you ready to rock the mic?
We got the universal brothers that you got to like!
Now ain't nobody steppin up when we got the mic
So turn your A.C. up cause it's hot tonight!
And til the bright early morn' we'll be rockin you all
Don't stop, the Body Rock!

All my people out in Queens that know you're hot, you say
Don't stop, the Body Rock!
All my people out in Brooklyn and you know we're hot, say
Don't stop, the Body Rock!
Shaolin to L-I and you know we're fly, said
Don't stop, the Body Rock!
All the people on the Greens and the land in between said
Don't stop, the Body Rock!

... no stoppin
... no stoppin
Out in Jersey ... no stoppin
Philadelp-i-I ... no stoppin
Chi Town gettin down ... the playgrounds
Detroit you say ... no stoppin
In Cali ... no stoppin
And the great V-A ... no stoppin
Cause in the Brooklyn town ... no stoppin
And the Boogie Down ... no stoppin
L-I and Queens ... no stoppin
And you see Medina Greens ... no stoppin
You know we, Lyricist Lounge ... no stoppin
And my man Abstract ... no stoppin
Cause see we never the wack ... no stoppin
Don't stop, the Body Rock
D-dah, don't stop

Yes yes yes yes
(Whoo woo woo woo woo woo woo WHOO!)

Light up the sky like the 4th of July
Everything in this life son they've got two sides
It's part one (part one) part two (part two)
Get together with my crew and we gon' do
Feast for Hi Teknological neurological
whatever we've got to do uh huh UH!
It's unstoppable check it out..

I'm fantastic FURIOUS like the Five from B'lawn
Brooklyn phenom'
Diss all peons, flow for eons
Mos Def is beyond, in fact most cats can agree on
Cause we on the same frequency, if not
then the re-bonics keep heat like, Hamid's weed speech
change your dial and get on it, I flip on this here beat
Hit the deep street sonnets, who want it?
Hoppin dancin so sonic, you need tonics
Don't get yours from your schoolboy comets, all blazin
on your man chronic, I twist the hard caps back
to blue bonnets, I repeat WHO WANT IT?
The principle, YOUR academics inadmissiable
Daytime on the list of time on the tradition, of combustion
Ignition, propulsion, put MC's on expulsion
You're indefensible, my style is so comprehensible
You temporary like a weather pattern
Forgot I'm like you never happened
Cats take it to heart like a ventricle
North and South both, cause it sound DOPE
Don't never say whatever happened to Mos?
My light shine boast from the East to the Left Coast..
Boy your boy sound CHOKED with the next man's style
between your teeth tongue and throat like *SOUND EFFECT*
Got to wash your mouth out with soap
My penstroke, is leavin other men broke
It controls the soul of your foes and kinfolk
Maintainin my scope from beginnin to end quote
What I invoke is never asleep, ever woke
Like ba-biti-dabi-dida-da-dah-dah
Pretty High Noon riders get clipped and shot down
Unstoppable, title wave in this shit, we powerful
Reach behind, Teknological, neurological

Now raise your hands in the air now everybody get with it
B-Boy Scientific, you don't stop
It go ON to the rhythm you don't, bust it!
The Universal, Magnetically
So raise your hands in the air now everybody get with it

The Universal, Magnetically
You see I'm comin to the party in the b-boy stance
I rock on the mic.. on the mic, yo

Son it's in my chromosomes to rock this, I got this
Watch this! Assemble mo' raps, tap your pockets
Knock this, stimulate nerve ends and shock wrists
Smart art breakin apart hearts in darkness
Down for the longest, son peep the songlist
Radiate enormous, pure peak performance
Vocal chords the strongest, acapella or cordless
WHOO! How Def flow we gone and
Hit town, draw crowds like space shuttle launches
Brooklyn New York make the world moonwalk like John Glenn
Son I'm sendin it out, for the short to long haul
Earth sky, left right inbetween it and all y'all

Now raise your hands in the air now everybody get with it
The Universal, Magnetically
B-Boy Scientific, you don't stop
It go ON to the rhythm you don't, bust it!
So raise your hands in the air everybody get with it
B-Boy Scientific, you don't stop
The Universal, Magnetically
You see I'm comin to the party in the b-boy stance
Fly like a dove, that come from above
I rock on the mic make your girl wanna dance
From rockin on the mic and you can call me Mos Love

'Now listen'
[Mos]
..doin this song for you.
All my little brothers.. out in the street.
Strugglin to survive.. keep your eyes on the prize, you know

[Kweli]
Yeah, the revolution will not be televised
Or broadcast live on the net
My man Mos said it's personal.. knamsayin?
It's gotta start from right up in here, you know

[Mos & Kweli]
You can't stop, you know [3x]
You can't stop when we rep

[Kweli]
We rep the ain't-gots
Ain't nobody can't start no party like us, we crush the faint hearts
From Hallsey to St. Mark's, walk in the main blocks
Painted with blood that's still hot, so deep it stain socks
The pain spark frustration, situations lead to hatin
Some deal with drug distribution, others walk the plantation
Some know the code a' the streets, some got a college education
Come down on the weekend, and peep the conversation

[Mos]
Yo
On the corner, units stormed out
Ghetto lookin bombed out
Police waited to roll, for those who walk the wrong route
Shorties goin all out, they got they swords drawn out
Ready to brawl out, gettin fought til they fall out
Black like Morehouse, 40 o'z is tossed out
For brothers that they mourn bout, get wrecked til it's dawn out
Whether they broke or flossed out, honeys pass they draws out
Lookin for a ticket out the poor-house
A jungle out here
Lions keep they claws out, fangs and jaws out
Weak just get forced out
Names is called out, ghetto-fame is sought out
You wanna be the man that they talk bout
I walked out
I had some things on my mind to sort out
I thought bout the wild circumstance we born out
Remember myself at your age, when I was just like you
If that was now, I don't know what I would do
My answer's? closest to me
So what I say to you is goin for me
Son we both still growin indeed
But where you at, I was, and where you been, I left
Utilize my experience to guide your step
Some people get love but don't command respect
It's somethin that you can't ride with a check
Over-rollin your lex or icy links that hang from your neck
If it's real, who need to deal with the special effects?

[Kweli]
Come here, come here, yo
Lemme drop this on ya, look they gotchu cornered
The corner of the block is hot, I ain't got to warn ya
'Cause I see you every day, trapped in every way
'Shit, I'm a thug, and that's all that I can say'
Who are you anyway?
Mary J.? I spend, many nights awake, watchin you while you sleep
Tryin to figure out how to be the example, 'cause talk is cheap
As you walk the streets, study cats on the real
In a convo, just make your point to relax and chill
[Niggas] wanna destroy each other in a cypher instead a' build
Be a- man of will, don't be- standin still
If you- don't plan ahead, then you- plan to fail
Do ? in a daze when the ways reveal
Like they funny style but I'm not laughin
Serious [niggas] makin money while the police is passin
Can't wait for opportunity to knock, you gotta make it happen
It ain't about no spectacular ways a' rappin
Just immaculate ways a' action.. dig?

[Mos sings]
Little Brother
I know that times is hard
Keep your mind on guard
Stay clear of things that are harmin
You'll get along
I sing my song
For little brothers
Out there in the street
Strugglin to make ends meet
Gotta hold the heat
Strugglin so hard to compete
Stay clear of things that harm
Do it for y'all
Try to stay strong
Keep movin on [6x]

[shoutin out Little Brothers all over the area, simultaneous singing]

(Ces)
You are about to enter
the manifestation of a family cipher
The Urban Thermo Dynamics
is about to hit you right about now

(VERSE 1: Ces)
I'm just here to let you all know
I got the flow and the locks that grow
I love the nappy heads, the braids and afros
Kicks Adidas, jeans Girbaud
This is how we go and this is how we do
This how we be, we are the big U
You don't know me and I don't know you
But if you wanna set it, do what you gotta do
I keep my flow with the one and two
That equals three, first letter C
Second letter e, last joint s
Styles manifest from Key West to Budapest
Nevertheless don't need no S on my chest
"Yo, why Ces?" Cause I'm superblessed
Save all the stress 'fore I clean up the mess
And if it ain't no, then it must be yes
And if it's the bomb, then it must be Ces
And if it's the bomb, then it must be Ces
I got the exposure to keep my composure
I'm meetin quotas from Minnesota to Dakota
Takin no shit from the rap promoter
Cause if they ever try to, they shit is over
Murky mixture, what's goin on?
I leave the party bumpin till the break of dawn
Break of dawn, break ya down
Yo Mister (Name), I like that sound
Put on the weight cause it's more than a pound
So if you want some of what I have
Meet me on (Name) or Fulton Ave
Or Albee Square, a hop from the D
Manifest Destiny, it must be (What?)
Manifest Destiny, it must be (What?)
So check it out

(VERSE 3: Mos Def)
Well if it ain't red, then it must be blue
And if it ain't false, then it must be true
And if it ain't day, then it must be night
And if it ain't left, then it must be right
And if it ain't (?) then it must be hype
And if it ain't loose, then it must be tight
And if it ain't off, then it must be on
If it ain't here, then it must be gone
If the shit ain't proper, then it must be wrong
Whatever don't fit does not belong
Sunrise to sunset, that's dawn to dusk
The big U, a name that you can trust
The big U, a name that you can trust
The big U, a name that you can trust
Lay around on the middle ground, kid, you could die
It's game time, son, you better choose yo side
Half-measure will no abide
If you ain't all the way live, then step aside
The deep Medina Green is where I reside
And it's about time that this Brooklynite
Took the mic and made the world get hype
You wanna be hardcore, try livin right
Man, niggas be puttin up a hell of a fight
Many times I stumble off the righteous path
But (?) on my ass
But I promise on high plains I take the rocks
I got the (?), I will not be stopped
I gotta manifest des', what ock, you think not?
The verbal juggernauts will make a party lick shot
I tread a road more narrow than a (?)
Comin from the bottom, so I'm risin to the top
What, and you don't stop

(CHORUS: Ces, DCQ)
Self-actualize and realize, do what you got to do
If you can see it, you can be it, manifest, it's up to you
Everbody self-actualize and realize, do what you got to do
If you can see it, you can be it
If your mind can go there, then why can't you?
If your mind can go there, then why can't you?
If your mind can go there, then why can't you?

(VERSE 3: DCQ)
Nowadays heads be makin me mad
Talk a good game but they legs is bad
Yappin at the mouth with the wish I had
Hops, do yourself a favor and get off your ass
You (?) in between
Runnin round town sellin dreams and beans
Screamin word is bond, but what's your word worth?
Before you indict yourself, fool, think first
And if it's my word, then it must be bond
And if it's my word, then it must be bond
And if it's my word, then it must be bond
And the word is, the big U got it goin on
Cause in the (?) we takin down vultures
Peace to all those who represent the culture
To the kings and the queens of the universe
Aiyo, we gotta shine the light, aight?
Aiyo, we gotta shine the light, aight?
Aiyo, we gotta shine the light, aight?

(CHORUS)

[Talib Kweli]
We fantastic, flippin on tracks like gymnastics
Small brats get they ass kicked, me and Mos smash it
Top gun like what comes after the, fist rockin' knife
Check the keys that get played on the roads of life
Yo the rhyme is so heavy like a load of my chest
Travel on these mc's, leave 'em broken like house pets
Priceless like the streets I'm on, my word is born
You like Paula Abdul-ka-ka compared to Sarah Born?
Sayin, what did I do to be so black and blue
Mc's sayin damn what got it goin after you
Slam my microphone and do just what I have to do
Aiyyo, I'd like to stop and chat but I'm just passing through
You know I'd like to stop and chat but I'm just passing through

[Mos Def]
I'm on my way back to Louis Avenue
Inside Brooklyn the b-boy capital, lot of cats travel to black eratical
Say, my response is invatically yes
We invatically fresh, you dramatically stressed
These mc's proceed to cease the presidential palace
And burn Babylon like a ?
Strive to maintain balance
With the God given talent
Articulate the article, eliminate the fossical
Black Star Line shine remarkable, they style ain't even talkable
These socalled criminals is fictional they make the party turn miserable
We document the memorable
Then break 'em up like syllables
Straight down to earth like minerals
Your style is foul like down? chemicals
We five-dimensional, audio, visual, physical, spiritual, lyrical
Another world

Another world, y'all
We transmit another world
Another World, y'all
We transmit another world
Another World, y'all
We transmit another world
Black Star 'bout to shine from what

[Talib Kweli]
Yo Mos, ain't it a shame how these people treating life like a game
Ain't gonna give you no fame by callin out your name
Just explain how I do it and, lead by example
Stay away from repetition don't wanna sound like no sample
You can't handle this Messiah
My shit is classical we get bug' like Umfufu, "You treat me like animal!"
Just 'cus you got money, don't mean you made it
Just 'cus you make it don't give you the right to be a ?
Matter fact stay out my face
I can't take it like them stupid big horse bills
Your defense is nill, my chatter, shatter your forcefield
Kweli and Mos Definition with more lines then a petition
Yo my mission is to break shit in half, like intermission
Then get missin' with Hi-Tech or anyone like that
Costin' one million pounds 'cus it sound so fat
Lay you flat like the carpet
Take the tobacco out my spliff before you spark it
The only tye I rock is chocolate
Makin profits like Spacely Sprockets, you can't stop it
The topic, we always gonna be black like markets
From the underground, look around and tell me what you see
Another picture painted perfectly by yours truly

Another world, y'all
Say what, another world
Another world, y'all
Say what, another world
Travellin' through, time and space
On the the Black Star galactica
Yo, another world
'nother 'nother, 'nother, 'nother, 'nother world

[Mos Def]
Never never never soap opera
Whether you, indian, dominican, jamaican or bolivian
No matter what disc recorder or part of town you livin' in
I recommend you listenin' to these distinguished gentlemen
Who take the proper measurement to represent
The solo's ? chrome is known to built on
Gleam on the measurement
Master mc carpentry
Talib kwa, the Kweli in quality
Put the groundation down properly
You can't trespass the property
Ain't takin' or breakin', robbery
Got the whole owner blast-back policy
Follow me, descendant of the grand master armery
Where cats rock the Wallabe and Kangols, mc's exchange flows
The same goes on, they'll be here when we gone
Hope they heart stay strong for
The other world

The other world y'all
Say what, another world
Another, 'nother 'nother 'nother
Say what, another world...
'nother 'nother 'nother....

[Talib Kweli]
We fantastic, flippin on tracks like gymnastics
Small brats get they ass kicked, me and Mos smash it
Top gun like what comes after the, fist rockin' knife
Check the keys that get played on the roads of life
Yo the rhyme is so heavy like a load of my chest
Travel on these mc's, leave 'em broken like house pets
Priceless like the streets I'm on, my word is born
You like Paula Abdul-ka-ka compared to Sarah Born?
Sayin, what did I do to be so black and blue
Mc's sayin damn what got it goin after you
Slam my microphone and do just what I have to do
Aiyyo, I'd like to stop and chat but I'm just passing through
You know I'd like to stop and chat but I'm just passing through

[Mos Def]
I'm on my way back to Louis Avenue
Inside Brooklyn the b-boy capital, lot of cats travel to black eratical
Say, my response is invatically yes
We invatically fresh, you dramatically stressed
These mc's proceed to cease the presidential palace
And burn Babylon like a ?
Strive to maintain balance
With the God given talent
Articulate the article, eliminate the fossical
Black Star Line shine remarkable, they style ain't even talkable
These socalled criminals is fictional they make the party turn miserable
We document the memorable
Then break 'em up like syllables
Straight down to earth like minerals
Your style is foul like down? chemicals
We five-dimensional, audio, visual, physical, spiritual, lyrical
Another world

Another world, y'all
We transmit another world
Another World, y'all
We transmit another world
Another World, y'all
We transmit another world
Black Star 'bout to shine from what

[Talib Kweli]
Yo Mos, ain't it a shame how these people treating life like a game
Ain't gonna give you no fame by callin out your name
Just explain how I do it and, lead by example
Stay away from repetition don't wanna sound like no sample
You can't handle this Messiah
My shit is classical we get bug' like Umfufu, "You treat me like animal!"
Just 'cus you got money, don't mean you made it
Just 'cus you make it don't give you the right to be a ?
Matter fact stay out my face
I can't take it like them stupid big horse bills
Your defense is nill, my chatter, shatter your forcefield
Kweli and Mos Definition with more lines then a petition
Yo my mission is to break shit in half, like intermission
Then get missin' with Hi-Tech or anyone like that
Costin' one million pounds 'cus it sound so fat
Lay you flat like the carpet
Take the tobacco out my spliff before you spark it
The only tye I rock is chocolate
Makin profits like Spacely Sprockets, you can't stop it
The topic, we always gonna be black like markets
From the underground, look around and tell me what you see
Another picture painted perfectly by yours truly

Another world, y'all
Say what, another world
Another world, y'all
Say what, another world
Travellin' through, time and space
On the the Black Star galactica
Yo, another world
'nother 'nother, 'nother, 'nother, 'nother world

[Mos Def]
Never never never soap opera
Whether you, indian, dominican, jamaican or bolivian
No matter what disc recorder or part of town you livin' in
I recommend you listenin' to these distinguished gentlemen
Who take the proper measurement to represent
The solo's ? chrome is known to built on
Gleam on the measurement
Master mc carpentry
Talib kwa, the Kweli in quality
Put the groundation down properly
You can't trespass the property
Ain't takin' or breakin', robbery
Got the whole owner blast-back policy
Follow me, descendant of the grand master armery
Where cats rock the Wallabe and Kangols, mc's exchange flows
The same goes on, they'll be here when we gone
Hope they heart stay strong for
The other world

The other world y'all
Say what, another world
Another, 'nother 'nother 'nother
Say what, another world...
'nother 'nother 'nother....

"What'd you do last night?"
"We did umm, two whole cars
It was me, Dez, and Main Three right?
And on the first car in small letters it said
'All you see is..' and then you know
big, big, you know some block silver letters
that said '..crime in the city' right?"
"It just took up the whole car?"
"Yeah yeah, it was a whole car and shit..."

(spanish speaking woman) Escuchela.. la ciudad respirando
(translation of spanish: Listen to it.. the city breathing)
(3x)

(spanish speaking woman) Escuchela..

(Mos Def)
The new moon rode high in the crown of the metropolis
Shinin, like who on top of this?
People was tusslin, arguin and bustlin
Gangstaz of Gotham hardcore hustlin
I'm wrestlin with words and ideas
My ears is picky, seekin what will transmit
the scribes can apply to transcript, yo
This ain't no time where the usual is suitable
Tonight alive, let's describe the inscrutable
The indisputable, we New York the narcotic
Strength in metal and fiber optics
where mercenaries is paid to trade hot stock tips
for profits, thirsty criminals take pockets
Hard knuckles on the second hands of workin class watches
Skyscrapers is collosus, the cost of living
is preposterous, stay alive, you play or die, no options
No Batman and Robin, can't tell between
the cops and the robbers, they both partners, they all heartless
With no conscience, back streets stay darkened
Where unbeliever hearts stay hardened
My eagle talons STAY sharpened, like city lights stay throbbin
You either make a way or stay sobbin, the Shiny Apple
is bruised but sweet and if you choose to eat
You could lose your teeth, many crews retreat
Nightly news repeat, who got shot down and locked down
Spotlight to savages, NASDAQ averages
My narrative, rose to explain this existance
Amidst the harbor lights which remain in the distance

So much on my mind that I can't recline
Blastin holes in the night til she bled sunshine
Breathe in, inhale vapors from bright stars that shine
Breathe out, weed smoke retrace the skyline
Heard the bass ride out like an ancient mating call
I can't take it y'all, I can feel the city breathin
Chest heavin, against the flesh of the evening
Sigh before we die like the last train leaving

(Talib Kweli)
Breathin in deep city breaths, sittin on shitty steps
we stoop to new lows, hell froze the night the city slept
The beast crept through concrete jungles
communicatin with one another
And ghetto birds where waters fall
from the hydrants to the gutters
The beast walk the beats, but the beats we be makin
You on the wrong side of the track, lookin visibly shaken
Taken them plungers, plungin to death that's painted by the numbers
with Krylon applied pressure, cats is playin God
but havin children by a lesser baby mother but fuck it
we played against each other like puppets, swearin you got pull
when the only pull you got is the wool over your eyes
Gettin knowledge in jail like a blessing in disguise
Look in the skies for God, what you see besides the smog
is broken dreams flying away on the wings of the obscene
Thoughts that people put in the air
Places where you could get murdered over a glare
But everything is fair
It's a paradox we call reality
So keepin it real will make you casualty of abnormal normality
Killers Born Naturally like, Mickey and Mallory
Not knowing the ways'll get you capped like an NBA salary
Some cats be emceeing to illustrate what we be seeing
Hard to be a spiritual being when shit is shakin what you believe in
For trees to grow in Brooklyn, seeds need to be planted
I'm asking if y'all feel me AND THE CROWD LEFT ME STRANDED
My blood pressure boiled and rose, cause New York niggaz
actin spoiled at shows, to the winners the spoils go
I take the L, transfer to the 2, head to the gates
New York life type trife the Roman Empire state

(Mos Def & Crew)
So much on my mind I just can't recline
Blastin holes in the night til she bled sunshine
Breathe in, inhale vapors from bright stars that shine
Breathe out, weed smoke retrace the skyline
Yo don't the bass ride out like an ancient mating call
I can't take it y'all, I can feel the city breathin
Chest heavin, against the flesh of the evening
Sigh before we die like the last train leaving

(spanish speaking woman) Escuchela.. respirando ??

(Common)
Yo...on The Amen, Corner I stood lookin at my former hood
Felt the spirit in the wind, knew my friend was gone for good
Threw dirt on the casket, the hurt, I couldn't mask it
Mixin down emotions, struggle I hadn't mastered
I coreograph seven steps to heaven
And hell, waiting to exhale and make the bread leavened
Veteran of a cold war It's Chica-I-go for
What I know or, what's known
So some days I take the bus home, just to touch home
From the crib I spend months gone
Sat by the window with a clutched dome listenin to shorties cuss long
Young girls with weak minds, but they butt strong
Tried to call, or at least beep the Lord, but didn't have a touch-tone
It's a dog-eat-dog world, you gotta mush on
Some of this land I must own
Outta the city, they want us gone
Tearin down the 'jects creatin plush homes
My circumstance is between Cabrini and Love Jones
Surrounded by hate, yet I love home
Ask my God how he thought travellin the world sound
Found it hard to imagine he hadn't been past downtown
It's deep, I heard the city breathe in its sleep
Of reality I touch, but for me it's hard to keep
Deep, I heard my man breathe in his sleep
Of reality I touch, but for me it's hard to keep

(Mos Def & Crew)
So much on my mind I just can't recline
Blastin holes in the night til she bled sunshine
Breathe in, inhale vapors from bright stars that shine
Breathe out, weed smoke retrace the skyline
Yo how the bass ride out like an ancient mating call
I can't take it y'all, I can feel the city breathing
Chest heavin, against the flesh of the evening
Kiss the Ide's goodbye, I'm on the last train leaving

"1, 2, 3, 4" 10x

(88 Keys)
Yo, this is 88...
This is for Amadou Diallo
Rest in peace, you still here

(Fre)
Yo, I'm in a brownstone singin like Brownstone
Bird's eye view wit the bodega
Know Omega like Rakim
Thinkin about brother Diallo
I find it hard to swallow
Cuz 41 is a hard act to follow
Who is it, it can happen tomorrow
Goes down all the time in some African community
This one just hit closer to home
Cuz it happen it in our backyard
This that *shit* bring us closer to home
They ask "What you writin fo'? What you writin on that paper fo'?"
Don't ask me nuttin, just tell me
How is safer got me safe, that's why my raps sour
My peoples screamin "Black power!" and la razah
From the Bronx, police bustin, it's redemption time

(J-Live)
Now in the squad car, CPR's supposed to be the motto
But in they minds, they be like "Yo, I'ma do Diallo"
I guess master's noose was a bitter pill to swallow
Cuz nowadays, tips ain't the only things that's hollow
Constitution, 41 more holes in it
And cops swingin sticks like they tryin to win the pennant
And stickin sticks places where they ashamed to admit it
But that's the straw that broke the camel's back
THEY GON' GET IT!!

(Rubix)
Possessed by a nervous twitch and itchy writin finger
41 strokes through the barrel of pen for Amadou
More than a few of my personal friends
Since the beginning, it seems like it never ends
The story, ancient as lyrical allegory and it's all gory
The Little Shop of City Hall Horrors
Who bakes infiltrate, agent, provocator mission statement
Assassinate the Senate candidate, heavenly mandate

(Chorus: Mos Def)
We proceeded on a country road
His mother's eyes withered swoll
Her child was never comin home
Said a prayer for his soul
As the coffin had closed, committed to the earth below
First seed she would sew, would be a tree never grown
Shade that was never known
Who controls the Terrordome, the member hearts made of stone
Who love only what they own

(Invincible)
Stay on your toes for a true bruise description
Match blue suits, walkin round wit a stick and *edit*
Ready to blast wit the wrath of a hollow tip
And the fact is my task is a scholarship
I feel it in my chest cavitity
The only death's apathy, so I change it for who's next after me
And that's the fullest reward
Keep the face of the lost on my bulletin board

(Wordsworth)
Yo yo, it's blue uniform, sirens, names, and badge numbers
Clubs, walkie-talkies, recipies for bad summers
Frisked, pissed after I tuck in my stuff
I really think they just like touchin my *nuts*
What's real stain they thoughts
Swear, but they won't say it in court
All they do is change the report
Riots, tryin to keep the crowd under control
They even got shows, Cops, LAPD, Highway Patrol yo yo

(A.L.)
From the cradle to the grave, they made you a slave
Brainwash to kill each other, that's the plague that they made
I search em like readin scripts that could save you today
White is right, black is wrong, that's the label they gave
Fryin in hell, applyin jails, they got you dyin in cells
Triple six in the mix, Levine to ?spell?
Prepare for the worst, and try to hope for the best
I take a stare at the hearse, can we cope wit the stress?

(Kofi Taha)
I live in the land of punches
Illegal chokeholds and excessive gunshots
Where there's one millionaire for every billion empty pot
And Adolf Guily think we static but he's in for a shock
They come wit automatics but we flip it
Use the one, create the four glocks and while stocks get washed
While school doors get locked and when jobs get blocked
The confi-dence get's rock
And when the welfares drop into the jails we stock now
After Amadou wrestlin wit freedom tacks my mind into a headlock
But *fuck* H&R, I'm a true cat
Refundin power back to our Blocks

Chorus

(Tame One)
Good life, you can bubble or struggle
Use your brain muscle if you hustle
Don't let nobody touch you
Don't even trust the ones that trust you
Cuz the ones you showin love to might bust
Seekin as a cancer, my man got shot by Haitians or Jamaicans
? wit confrontations and school my mind's racin
I pride these sensations over this, now I'm hopin this
We shine for, I never got a chance to rhyme for
My role models sold bottles and stole cars
And when they got locked, I accepted all the phone calls
That's when *niggas* was real
Back before I had a deal
Back when people called Villsburg Hooterville
ILL!!!

(Jane Doe)
My mind wonders on melodic jams
An exotic bird, caged wit the rage and the violence of my words
The same things I down I turn around and do
The white cops say *Fuck you* but I say *Fuck you too!*
Truth be totally hypocrites
And materialistic society, spirituality shunned or
While young kinds get gunned on
Hibernatin in projects, which you project-ing
The pigs is crucifyin but Africans is resurrectin, Jane Doe

(Grafh)
Battacky, sends cops to come and catch me
He better send a runnin back to run and track me
When I'm runnin through the back streets
The rat teeth of beast lovin to black me
Eatin brothers like a picinic color cuz that's sweet
To lock a man up in prison, the standard of livin
Thinkin they make a better bred of man
Than the man when he went in
Rub up a man for sinnin
Handcuff his hands to the system, banned from his wisdom
Wit insanity in him, his mind roams wit like a cyclone
Damagin victim, his eyes hold savage within him
Wrath wit the venom, poison his life
No ointment to boisten the might
If it's on the left, walk to the right
Until death, do your part do your life
Like a boyfriend and wife, because the day times shorter than night
You know?

Chorus

(88 Keys)
Yo, black is fragile remember that
Cherish everyday
Live life to the fullest, aight?

Yo, this is to the entire critical mass, my nigga Ty Shawn (?), Jah Born and
Big 2.
This how we do, check it out:

Yeah
Day light disappears from sight,
sun bleeds on the bricks,
and brings forth the night,
the red serenade,
give shade to backstreets,
heads adjust the EQ,
for the bass in they jeeps,
sound like the drum
of a neighboring tribe,
absorb the vibe,
feels good close my eyes,
and swept out the loot
by the crisp night air,
I gotta stay aware,
God there's demons out here,
adjust the headset,
'fore I begin this trip,
insert the cassette,
press play on the deck,
the horns echo,
and I slip back in the zone,
it's time for
the high plains man to roll,
yo I be dealing with men but,
some say mellowdramat,
linguilly acrobat,
staying fluent in style,
I work my way
through your town
as the day goes down,
I got observatory view
of the sight and sounds,
I feel completely out of place,
in this wack rap race,
I'm the type of black man,
that need color and space,
heads be dealing with waste,
they be moving in haste,
heard there's something to prove,
want to stare in ya face,
brothers want to compete,
when there aint shit to win,
they playing high post now,
unprepared for the end,
they wanna profile they style,
like they got it so sweet,
it ain't about what ya earn,
it's about what you keep,
man passes by,
in an aimless stroll,
barefoot in the street,
as the night grows cold,
in reply to our sorrow,
he begins to dance,
he claps his hands,
share an awkward glance,

CHORUS
Mos Def:
Sun is Falling. . . Moon is rising. . .

Ces (in Background):
A yes yes ya'll. . . a break a break ya'll . .
a feel free ya'll . . . and ya don't stop

VERSE
Mos Def:
Keep leaning to myself
Aint got too many friends,
while they be lookin' for rocks,
I be searchin' for gems,
I got nothin' to lose,
might as well be a winner,
try to radiate the light,
as the world get dimmer
papa haven't ya heard.
there is power in words,
I contemplate to elevate
the average man on the curb,
who be slingin' his rock,
catchin' hell from the cop,
got the world on his back,
being male being black,
and it's crazy mad stress,
the city don't rest,
can't maintain ya poise
for the goddam noise,
so I'm watching my clock
until the day drifts off,
at night I reason with myself
so I can get shit off,
might be reading a book,
I might be drinking the stout,
I might be thinkin' it over,
might just need to be out,
I might be tryin' to get money,
I might be dealing with honeys,
might be geekin' off these devils,
cause they so fuckin' funny,
smokin' a stoge on the D-train chillin',
checkin' the skyline off the watchtower buildin',
images of black in the hills and the valleys,
from the tight business men
to the gods in the valley (peace God),
a basehead with the moldy shades,
a little girl with pretty eyes and her hair in braids,
a mother rests on her seat,
rubs her feet,
pulls back into sleep,
thousand fathoms deep,
(bah bah bah bah)

CHORUS

VERSE
Ces:
As the night time falls
I creep through the dark
I check out the scenes,
in Fort Green park,
lost souls in empty memory lanes,
no life to live,
and no goals to gain,
there's negatory provisions
thats all around us,
it's systematic and frantic,
the devil hounds us,
set to prevail I take back the night,
wake up my soul,
take back my life,
I sit back,
and I wait for the right time,
but I'm already here,
its in the night time,

CHORUS

VERSE
Mos Def:
Moonlight starts to fade away,
sun creeps up the bricks,
and brings forth the day,
sun is high and it's AM again,
a time for the killers to slay men again,
I'm real short and brisk,
doing business things,
I want this shit to be over,
got no time to play,
so if you want to help,
then do me this favor,
cut the nonsense
and let me handle this paper,
time is money,
and money is time,
ain't a damn thing free
so I must get mine,
it's 10 to closin,
yo son got to jettin',
headed back to the Brack
to watch the sun set.

CHORUS