Lyrics Message to the Messengers - Gil Scott-Heron

Message to the Messengers

Hey, yeah, we the same brothas from a long time ago
We was talkin' about television and doin' it on the radio
What we did was to help our generation realize
They got to get busy cause it wasn’t gonna be televised
We got respect for young rappers and the way they’re freewayin'
But if you’re gonna be teachin' folks things, make sure you know what you’re
saying
Older folks in our neighborhood got plenty of know-how
Remember, if it wasn’t for them, you wouldn’t be out here now
And I ain’t comin' at you with no disrespect
All I’m sayin' is that you damn well got to be correct
Because if you’re gonna be speaking for a whole generation
And you know enough to handle their education
Be sure you know the real deal about past situations
And ain’t just repeating what you heard on a local TV station
Sometimes they tell lies and put them in a truthful disguise
But the truth is, that’s why we said it wouldn’t be televised
They don’t know what to say to our young folks
But they know that you do
And if they really knew the truth
Why would they tell you?
The first sign is peace
Tell all them gun totin' young brothers
That the man is glad to see us out there killin' one another
We raised too much hell when they were shootin' us down
So they started poisoning our minds tryin' to jerk us all around
And they tell us they got to come in and control our situation
They want half of us on dope and the other half in incarceration
If the ones they want dead ain’t killed by what they instigated
They put some dope on a brother’s body and claim it was drug-related
Tell 'em «drug-related» means there don’t need to be no investigation
Or at least that’s the way they’re gonna play it on the local TV station
All your nine-millimeter brothas, give them somethin' to think about
Tell them you heard that this is the new word
They got to work that stuff out
Somehow they’re feelin' in the wrong way with a gun in their hands
They’re feelin' real independent
But they’re just pulling contracts for the man
Five in five will tell you it’s hopeless out there on the avenue
But if they really knew the truth
Why would they tell you?
And if they look at you like you’re insane
And they start callin' you scarecrow and say you ain’t got no brain
Or start tellin' folks that you suddenly gone lame
Or that white folks had finally co-opted your game
Or worse yet implying that you don’t really know
That’s the same thing they said about us a long time ago
Young rappers, one more suggestion before I get out of your way
But I appreciate the respect you give me and what you got to say
I’m sayin' protect your community and spread that respect around
Tell brothas and sisters they gotta calm that bullshit down
Cause we’re terrorizin' our old folks and brought fear into our homes
And they ain’t got to hang out with the senior citizens
Just tell 'em, dammit, leave the old folks alone
And we know who rippin' off the neighborhood
Tell 'em, that BS has got to stop
Tell 'em you’re sorry they can’t handle it out there
But they got to take the crime off the block
And if they look at you like you’re insane
And they start callin' you scarecrow, thinkin' you ain’t got no brain
Or start tellin' folks that you suddenly gone lame
Or that white folks had finally co-opted your game
Or worse yet, saying that you really don’t know
That’s the same thing they said about me a long time ago
And if they tell folks that you finally lost your nerve
That’s the same thing they said about us when we said Johannesburg
But I think you young folks need to know things don’t go both ways
You can’t talk respect of every other song or just every other day
What I’m speakin' on now is the raps about the women folks
On one song she’s your African Queen, on the next one she’s a joke
And you ain’t said no words that I haven’t heard
But that ain’t no compliment
It only insults 8 people out of 10 and questions your intelligence
Four-letter words or four-syllable words won’t make you a poet
It will only magnify how shallow you are and let everybody know it
And if they look at you like they think you insane
Or they call you scarecrow, thinkin' you ain’t got no brain
Or start tellin' folks that you suddenly gone lame
Or that white folks have finally co-opted your game
Or you really don’t know
They said that about me a long time ago
If they finally start to tell people that you lost your nerve
That’s what they said about Johannesburg
You ain’t insane
You have got a brain
You haven’t gone lame
You have got your game
Remember, keep the nerve
Keep the nerve Keep the nerve
We’re talkin' 'bout peace