 It's been a long and whining roadEven though time keeps a changinI'm-a bring it all back homeI been told I spit lyrics wit politicsWhy wouldn't I?Says negro on my birth certificate
Born in 1960 in a nationThroughout / I've been a spokespersonFor a generationWithin the same ol' fear of a black planet20 years of blood sweat and no tears for fanatics
So damn itIf times is hardTime is godUnderstand itNever took time for grantedIt's all right MaAs child of the sixtiesAll along the watchtowerI can't bet they gonna miss me
I'm only bleedingEvery grain in meFans if not for youThere be no P.E.From the Nashville skylineGirls in south countryIn this world gone wrongSo here's another love song
We came a long way babyYou know whats amazinThe surprise we told these new guysFlav has always been crazyHit London '87 like it was an invasionToured the world for 3 yearsHell with vacationVocation of vocalizationEspecially with the impact of "It Takes a NationOf Millions to Hold Us Back"You bet there's blood on them bomb squad tracks"Black Steel," "Baseheads," "Party for Your Right to Fight""Prophets of Rage," Bring the Noise""Don't Believe the Hype""Can't Do Nuttin for You Man""911 is a Joke"20 years we got here by actin like common folkTouring the world like a rolling stoneThen the nineties cameWelcomed y'all to the TerrordomeSome threw it away, instead of something to sayCause the streets still ended up havin no namesSince "Rebel without a Pause" beats were never the sameAnd by 1998 we still had game.
Only a pawn in the gameChastised for namin namesWhat was said and who said itAnti-nothing so forget itTears of rage left a friendBlowin in the windBut time is godBeen back for 10 years and black againSome of them same catsHelp usher in gangster rapDamn our interviews were better than a lotta them acts.Praised the gangstaJust because it soldWhile consciousnessWent from platinum to goldSeen a nation reduce "Fight the Power" to gin and juiceSome people gave it up and turned it loose.
Beethoven, Bach, BrahmsI want some James BrownEven Bruce, Brian, Bono, Beck, yeah Chuck BerryPrince, Stevie, Sly, Smokey, Johnny Cash in my ChevyHeard some call me an Uncle TomNow that's pettyI'm a songwriter foolI condense sense from right and wrongLivin in the key of protest songsFrom basement tapesBeyond them dollars and centsChangin of the guards spentWhere the--wentMost of their time out of mindHatin my mess age rhymesCant truss it, shut em down call it whatcha wannaBut they made a day fit for a kingBy the time we got to Arizona
Tommorrow's a long timeWe got God on our sideOver bass and drum beats hear the good rhymes rideA poison goin onShelter from the stormHard rain gonna fallStill the people rock on.
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