*. Tupac lyrics behind le cut .*
Come on come on I see no changes wake up in the morning and I ask myself
Is life worth living should I blast myself?
I’m tired of bein’ poor and even worse I’m black
My stomach hurts so I’m lookin’ for a purse to snatch
Cops give a damn about a negro pull the trigger kill a nigga he’s a hero
Give crack to the kids who the hell cares one less ugly mouth on the welfare
First ship ’em dope & let ’em deal the brothers
Give ’em guns step back watch ’em kill each other
It’s time to fight back that’s what huey said
2 shots in the dark now huey’s dead
I got love for my brother but we can never go nowhere
Unless we share with each other we gotta start makin’ changes
Learn to see me as a brother instead of 2 distant strangers
And that’s how it’s supposed to be
How can the devil take a brother if he’s close to me?
I’d love to go back to when we played as kids
But things changed, and that’s the way it is
[bridge w/ changing ad libs]
Come on come on that’s just the way it is things’ll never be the same
That’s just the way it is aww yeah
[repeat]
I see no changes all I see is racist faces
Misplaced hate makes disgrace to races
We under I wonder what it takes to make this
One better place, let’s erase the wasted
Take the evil out the people they’ll be acting right
’cause both black and white is smokin’ crack tonight
And only time we chill is when we kill each other
It takes skill to be real, time to heal each other
And although it seems heaven sent we ain’t ready, to see a black president, uhh
It ain’t a secret don’t conceal the fact
The penitentiary’s packed, and it’s filled with blacks
But some things will never change
Try to show another way but you stayin’ in the dope game
Now tell me what’s a mother to do bein’ real don’t appeal to the brother in you
You gotta operate the easy way
I made a g today but you made it in a sleazy way
Sellin’ crack to the kid. I gotta get paid,
Well hey, well that’s the way it is
[bridge]
[talking:]
We gotta make a change...
It’s time for us as a people to start makin’ some changes.
Let’s change the way we eat, let’s change the way we live
And let’s change the way we treat each other.
You see the old way wasn’t working so it’s on us to do
What we gotta do, to survive.
And still I see no changes can’t a brother get a little peace
It’s war on the streets & the war in the middle east
Instead of war on poverty they got a war on drugs so the police can bother me
And I ain’t never did a crime I ain’t have to do
But now I’m back with the blacks givin’ it back to you
Don’t let ’em jack you up, back you up, crack you up and pimp slap you up
You gotta learn to hold ya own
They get jealous when they see ya with ya mobile phone
But tell the cops they can’t touch this
I don’t trust this when they try to rush I bust this
That’s the sound of my tool you say it ain’t cool my mama didn’t raise no fool
And as long as I stay black I gotta stay strapped & I never get to lay back
’cause I always got to worry ’bout the pay backs
Some buck that I roughed up way back comin’ back after all these years
Rat-a-tat-tat-tat-tat that’s the way it is uhh
You are appreciated...
When I was young, me and my mama had beef
17 years old kicked out on tha streets
Though back in tha time, I never thought I’d see her face
Ain’t a woman alive that can take my momma’s place
Suspended from school, scared ta go home
I was a fool with tha big boys breaking all tha rules
Shed tears with my baby sister
Over tha years we wuz poorer than tha other little kids
And even though we had different daddies
Tha same drama when things went wrong we blamed mama
I reminised on tha stress I caused, it wuz hell
Hugg’en on my mama from a jail cell
And who’ed think in elementary, heeeey I’d see tha penitentiary
One day
Running from tha police, that’s right
Momma catch me--put a whoop’en to my backside
And even as a crack fiend mama,
Ya always was a black queen mama
I finally understand for a woman
It ain’t easy--trying ta raise a man
Ya always wuz commited, a poor single mother on welfare,
Tell me how ya did it
There’s no way I can pay ya back
But tha plan is ta show ya that I understand.
You are appreciated......
Chorus
Laaaaady, don’t cha know we luv ya
Sweeeet laaaady, place no one above ya
Sweeeet laaaady, don’t cha know we luv ya
Ain’t nobody tell us it wuz fair
No luv for my daddy, cause tha coward wuzn’t there
He passed away and I didn’t cry
Cause my anger, wouldn’t let me feel for a stranger
They say I’m wrong and I’m heartless
But all along I wuz looking for a father--he wuz gone
I hung around with tha thug’s and even though they sold drugs
They showed a young brother luv
I moved out and started really hang’in
I needed money of my own so I started slang’in
I ain’t guilty cause, even though I sell rocks
It feels good, putting money in your mailbox
I love paying rent when tha rents due
I hope ya got tha diamond necklace that I sent to you
Cause when I wuz low, you was there for me
Ya never left me alone, cause ya cared for me
And I can see ya coming home after work late
Ya in tha kitchen trying ta fix us a hot plate
Just working with tha scraps you wuz given
And mama made miracles every thanksgiving
But now tha road got rough, your alone
Trying ta raise two bad kids on your own
And there’s no way I can pay ya back
But my plan is ta show ya that I understand
You are appreciated.....
Chorus
Laaaaady, don’t cha know we luv ya
Sweeeet laaaady, place no one above ya
Sweeeet laaaady, don’t cha know we luv ya
Pour out some liquor and I remenise
Cause through tha drama, I can always depend on my mama
And when it seems that I’m hopeless
You say tha words that can get me back in focus
When I wuz sick as a little kid
Ta keep me happy theres no limit to tha things ya did
And all my childhood memories
Are full of all tha sweet things ya did for me
And even though I act craaaazy
I got ta thank tha lord that ya maaaade me
There are no words that can express how I feel
Ya never kept a secret, always stayed real
And I appreciate how ya raised me
And all tha extra love that ya gave me
I wish I could take tha pain away
If you can make it through tha night, there’s a brighter day
Everything’ll be alright if ya hold on
It’s a struggle
Everyday gotta roll on
And there’s no way I can pay ya back
But my plan is ta show ya that I understand
You are appreciated.......
Chorus
Laaaaady, don’t cha know we luv ya
Sweeeet laaaady, place no one above ya
Sweeeet laaaady, don’t cha know we luv ya, sweeeet laaaady
Laaaady...[fades]...laaaady
Uhh,
Hit them with a lil' ghetto gospel
[Chorus - Elton John:]
Those who wish to follow me (My ghetto gospel)
I welcome with my hands
And the red sun sinks at last into the hills of gold
And peace to this young warrior without the sound of guns
[2Pac]
If I could recelect before my hood dayz
I'd sit and reminisce, nigga and bliss on the good dayz
i stop and stare at the younger, my heart goes to'em
They tested, it was stressed that they under
In our days, things changed
Everyone's ashamed to the youth cuz the truth looks strange
And for me it's reversed, we left them a world that's cursed, and it hurts
cause any day they'll push the button
and yall condemned like Malcolm x and Bobby Hunton, died for nothin
Don't them let me get teary, the world looks dreary
but when you wipe your eyes, see it clearly
there's no need for you to fear me
if you take the time to hear me, maybe you can learn to cheer me
it aint about black or white, cuz we're human
I hope we see the light before its ruined
my ghetto gospel
[Chorus - Elton John]
[2Pac]
Tell me do you see that old lady aint it sad
Living out a bag, but she's glad for the little things she has
And over there there's a lady, crack got her crazy
Guess she's given birth to a baby
I don't trip and let it fade me, from outta the frying pan
We jump into another form of slavery
Even now I keep discouraged
Wonder if they take it all back while I still keep the courage
I refuse to be a role model
I set goals, take control, drink out my own bottle
I make mistakes, I learn from everyone
And when its said and done
I bet this Brotha be a better one
If I'm upset, you don't stress
Never forget, that God hasn't finished with me yet
I feel his hand on my brain
When I write rhymes, I go blind, and let the lord do his thang
But am I less holy
Cuz I choose to puff a blunt and drink a beer with my homies
Before we find world peace
We gotta find peace in that war on the streets
My ghetto gospel
[Chorus - Elton John]
[2Pac]
Lord can you hear me speak!!
To pay the price of being hell bound...