| I’m a manchild born in the promised land
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| Captain of my destiny, guidin my faith through the turbulence of life
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| See, in order to be who you are, you’ve got to know who you are
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| In order to get to where you want to go
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| You’ve got to know from whence you came
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| See, it was Malcolm X who said
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| «A man who doesn’t have nothing to stand up for
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| Will fall for any god damn thing!»
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| Damn, Woke up again…
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| Down my face drop tears, it’s like nobody cares
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| I swear, life ain’t fair, sometimes I wanna disappear
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| Only Blahzay Blah', I got mad gray hairs, I’m a young old man
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| What part of «Shit Iz Real» don’t you understand?
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| Twin got murdered, caught one to the temple
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| You ain’t been what I been through, Can It Be All So Simple?
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| I got bad nerves, it’s absurd, I’m disturbed
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| So, I suggest you watch the words that you blurb
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| Out your mouth, or it’ll be a shoot out
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| I’ll leave you stretched out, I’m thugged, inside and out
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| And it ain’t by choice
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| I’m screaming out loud for love (AHHHH!), do anybody hear my voice?
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| Pardon the noise, I’m just a black ghetto boy
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| Went through the rain and pain, where’s the sunshine and joy?
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| I can’t seem to find it, trapped in the black cloud
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| Watching my life go down, to hide the suffering, I smile
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| Running these streets can be so
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| Trying these trying times
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| Manchild in the promised land
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| Who of you will understand?
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| Running these streets can be so
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| Trying these trying times
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| Manchild in the promised land, hey-ay…
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| My aunt died from AIDS, I watched her deteriorate
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| She told me fucking wit drugs, was her biggest mistake
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| Put my moms on to it, sticking needles in her veins
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| Being sons of addicts drove me and Cane insane
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| We packed bags at Pathmark, we both humped Tamika
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| We used to go to the pool, just to steal kids' sneakers
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| Rocked cut-off beepers, wore old clothes for Easter
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| Shit was so real, we had to split a slice of pizza
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| I was born at six months, (damn) premature
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| My moms birthed a thug like, Afeni Shakur
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| I’m surprised I ain’t crazy, from the bugged shit I saw
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| I caught my mother buying crack on the first floor, before
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| I never thought I’d be in a cell, smoking a Newport
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| With all sorts of thoughts, running through my mind
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| Know I ain’t leaving, caught, D.A. |
| talking jail time
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| I glanced at my mom’s eyes, she looking like she wanna cry
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| They say I’m an accident waiting to happen, G
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| Miss Ann from the first floor said she gon' pray for me
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| She had a bad dream, that they murdered me
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| I said, «Miss, truthfully, I don’t believe in dreams»
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| Hope lives miles away, from where I stay
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| Who knows the way? |
| Pssshhh… shit, I’d pay
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| For the directions, my whole family’s in corrections
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| Fake friends half-stepping, I’m stressing, answer question
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| Can I trust you? |
| (Uh-huh), then I love you (Yea)
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| If not? |
| straight up and down, fuck you!
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| Bottom line, real people do real things
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| Play your position… (running these streets can be so…)
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| You see, its like this
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| You’ve got to plan your work and work your plan
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| Cause he who fails to plan, plans to fail
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| Execute your strategy and seize your goal
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| Cause see, persistence overcomes resistance
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| Peace |