Common Album

I want to be as free as the spirits of those who left
I'm talking Malcom, Coltrane, my man Yusef
Through death through conception
New breath and resurrection
For moms, new steps in her direction
In the right way
Told inside is where the fight lay
And everything a nigga do may not be what he might say
Chicago nights stay, stay on the mind
But I write many lives and lay on these lines
Wave the signs of the times
Many say the grind's on the mind
Shorties blunted-eyed and everyone wonderin' where I'm
Bush pushing lies, killers immortalized
We got arms but won't reach for the skies
Waiting for the Lord to rise
I look into my daughter's eyes
And realize that I'ma learn through her
The Messiah, might even return through her
If I'ma do it, I gotta change the world through her
Furs and a Benz, gramps wantin 'em
Demons and old friends, pops they hauntin' him
The chosen one from the land of the frozen sun
When drunk nights get remembered more than sober ones
Walk like warriors, we were never told to run
Explored the world to return to where my soul begun
Never looking back or too far in front of me
The present is a gift
and I just wanna BE

(feat. Kanye West, The Last Poets)

[Verse 1: Common]
Memories on corners with the fours & the moors [pronounced foes and moes]
Walk to the store for the rose talking straightforward to
Got uncles that smoke it some put blow up they nose
To cope with they lows the wind is cold & it blows
In they socks & they souls holding they rolls
Corners leave souls opened & closed hoping for more
With nowhere to go rolling in droves
They shoot the wrong way cause they ain't knowing they goal
The streets ain't safe cause they ain't knowing he code
By the fours I was told either focus or fold
Got cousins with flows hope they open some doors
So we can cop clothes & roll in a Rolls
Now I roll in a "Olds" with windows that don't roll
Down the roads where cars get broke in & stole
These are the stories told by Stony & Cottage Grove
The world is cold the block is hot as a stove
On the corners

[Hook: Kanye West]
I wish I could give ya this feeling
I wish I could give ya this feeling
On the corners, robbing, killing, dying
Just to make a living (huh)

[Spoken: The Last Poets]
We underrated, we educated
The corner was our time when times stood still
And gators and snakes gangs and yellow and pink
And colored blue profiles glorifying that

[Verse 2: Common]
Streetlights & deepnights cats trying to eat right
Riding no seat bikes with work to feed hypes
So they can keep sweet Nikes they head & they feet right
Desires of streetlife cars & weed types
It's hard to breath nights days are thief like
The beast roam the streets the police is Greeklike
Game at it's peak we speak & believe hype
Bang in the streets hats cocked left or deep right
Its steep life coming up where sheeplike
Rappers & hoopers we strive to be like
G's with 3 stripes seeds that need light
Cheese & weaves tight needs & thieves strike
The corner where struggle & greed fight
We write songs about wrong cause it's hard to see right
Look to the sky hoping it will bleed light
Reality's and I heard that she bites
The corner

[Hook]

[Spoken: The Last Poets]
The corner was our magic, our music, our politics
Fires raised as tribal dancers and
war cries that broke out on different corners
Power to the people, black power, black is beautiful

[Verse 3: Common]
Black church services, murderers, Arabs serving burger its
Cats with gold permanents move they bags as herbalist
The dirt isn't just fertile its people working & earning this
The curb-getters go where the cash flow & the current is
It's so hot that burn to live the furnace is
Where the money move & the determined live
We talk play lotto & buy german beers
It's so black packed with action that's affirmative
The corners

[Hook]

[Spoken: The Last Poets]
The corner was our Rock of Gibraltar, our Stonehenge
Our Taj Mahal, our monument,
Our testimonial to freedom, to peace and to love
Down on the corner...

(feat. Kanye West, John Mayer)

[Chorus]
(Go) go, go, go, go, go and on the count of three
(Go) go, go, go, go, go and on the count of three
(Go) go, go, go, go, go, go
Uh, on the count of three everybody run back to your fantasy, now
(Go) go, go, go, go, go and on the count of three
(Go) go, go, go, go, go and on the count of three
(Go) go, go, go, go, go, go
And on the count of three everybody run back to your fantasy, now

[Common]
(Go) She was a bad (uh), the type at the club niggaz would grab her
(Go) Fantasized when I had her, in the bathroom sweatin' with her ass up
(Go) The body of a dancer, we had chemistry cuz she was a Cancer
Thought forever it would last for, but forever move faster, so I had to
(Go) Still I gotta pause when I think about her in dem draws
(Go) And a ooh baby she liked it raw and like rain when she came it poured
(Go) And like a car that I can't afford I would want it then want some more
The positions our frames explored let me know she was secure, back for more I
wanna

[Chorus]
(Go) go, go, go, go, go and on the count of three
(Go) go, go, go, go, go and on the count of three
(Go) go, go, go, go, go, go
Uh, on the count of three everybody run back to your fantasy, now
(Go) go, go, go, go, go and on the count of three
(Go) go, go, go, go, go and on the count of three
(Go) go, go, go, go, go, go
And on the count of three everybody run back to your fantasy, now

[Common]
(Go) Freaky like the daughter of a pastor, said I was bait for her to master
(Go) Little red corvette now she was faster, wet dreams Le'maire cream the
bathroom
(Go) We made love and then laughter, and anyway I wanted I could have her
Said there were some girls that did attract her, a new chapter she was after so
I said let's
(Go) To a place that you wanna be, uh get what you want from her and me uh
(Go) Free love I wanna see uh, hot sex in the third degree uh
(Go) You gettin' served while servin' me uh, dirty words encourage me to
Rock steady and sturdily on, you turnin' me no turnin' back the further we

[Chorus]
(Go) go, go, go, go, go and on the count of three
(Go) go, go, go, go, go and on the count of three
(Go) go, go, go, go, go, go
Uh, on the count of three everybody run back to your fantasy, now
(Go) go, go, go, go, go and on the count of three
(Go) go, go, go, go, go and on the count of three
(Go) go, go, go, go, go, go
And on the count of three everybody run back to your fantasy, now

(feat. Bilal, John Legend)

[sample] Faithful to thee
[Common] We got to be
[sample] Faithful to thee
[Common] I want to be
[sample] Faithful to thee
[Common] Yes, its for the people, God moves, yeah

[Verse 1]
I was rollin' around, in my mind it occurred
What if God was a her?
Would I treat her the same? Would I still be runnin' game on her?
In what type of ways would I want her?
Would I want her for her mind or her heavenly body?
Couldn't be out gettin' bogus with someone so godly
If I was wit' her would I still be wantin' my ex?
The lies, the greed, the weed, the sex
Wouldn't be ashamed to give her part of my check
Wearin' her cross, I mean the heart on my neck
Her I would reflect on the streets of the Chi'
Ride wit' her, 'cause I know for me she'd die
Through good and bad call on her like I'm chirpin' her
Couldn't be jealous 'cause other brothers worship her
Walk this earth for her, glory, I'm grateful
To be in her presence I try to stay faithful

[Chorus]
[sample] Faithful to the end
[sample] Faithful to the end
[sample] Faithful to the end
[sample] I'd like to be her very best friend

[Verse 2]
He worked with her, she was his lady's best friend
Even if they don't try some ladies test men
And this was a test that was bigger than him
Some believe its the nature that is given to men
He had a good gig, a wife, a kid, a decent home
One reason or another couldn't find peace at home
She asked, "Why do men always have to stray?"
He said, "I'm bad, not as bad as Eric Benet"
"I used to take 'em out to eat but they wasn't really eatin'
Mighta got a little head but I wasn't really cheatin'"
It's hard when your lady don't believe what you say
And what you did in the past you gotta live with today
She asked if they could spend the night together
He thought, and said, "I'm tryin' to get my life together"
Went home to his lady, these were his confessions
"Baby you a blessin' and my best friend"

[Chorus]

[Bilal with his voice overlapping] Faithful to thee
[Bilal] Faithful to thee
[John Legend singing]
[John Legend & Bilal] I'm gonna be, I'm gonna be, I'm gonna be so faithful
[John Legend & Bilal] I'm gonna be, I'm gonna be so faithful

[Repeat 3x]
[Bilal] So
[Bilal] So
[Bilal] So
[John Legend] So
[John Legend] So
[John Legend] So
[John Legend & Bilal] So faithful

[Bilal] So
[Bilal] So
[Bilal] So
[John Legend] So
[John Legend] So
[John Legend & Bilal] That's what I'm gonna do
[John Legend] Faithful to the end
[John Legend] That's what I'm gonna do
[John Legend] Faithful to the end
[John Legend] That's what I'm gonna do
[John Legend] Faithful to the end
[John Legend] Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah

[Common]
She walk into the court her knees buckle
Saying for a man to survive he needn't hustle
Seen and been through struggle her whole life
Made a transition from being his ho to his wife
Stifling, the night upend the ATF bust in
Her daddy was a hustla so she love them
Looked at the jury how can they judge him, she screamed

[sample]
Before you lock my love away, before you lock my love away
Before you lock my love away, before you lock my love away
Please let me testify

[Common]
Fear in her chest her face in tears, had her mans back he was facing years
In her name though the place was his
They trying to take everything except the kids
But years she been through stumbling fights
While he trying to hustle that white
Up all night wondering if hes alive
Seeing him tried she bubbled inside and screamed

[sample]
Before you lock my love away, before you lock my love away
Before you lock my love away, before you lock my love away
Please let me testify

[Common]
The judge called for order the court reporter makin her words shorter
His lawyer sat next to him, she could see how the trial was affecting him
It hurt for her eyes to connect with him, using her lies for protecting him
They arrested him for murder, and gun possession
As they read back her confession she screamed

[sample]
Before you lock my love away, before you lock my love away
Before you lock my love away, before you lock my love away
Please let me testify

[Common]
The court awaited as the foreman got the verdict from the bailiff
Emotional outbursts tears and smeared makeup
He stated, he was guilty on all charges
She's shaking like she took it the hardest
A spin artist, she brought her face up laughing
That's when the prosecutor realized what happened
All that speaking her mind testifying and crying
When this bitch did the crime- the queenpin...

[sample]
Before you lock my love away, before you lock my love away
Before you lock my love away, before you lock my love away
Please let me testify

You accuse me of a, you accuse me of a, you accuse
Please let me testify, please let me testify
You accuse me of a, you accuse me of a, you accuse
Please let me testify, please let me testify

Yeah, yeah

[Chorus]
How beautiful love can be
On the streets love is hard to see
It's a place I got to be
Loving you is loving me
How beautiful love can be
On the streets love is hard to see
Gotta reach that frequency
Loving you is loving me

[Verse 1]
Yeah, you know what love is
Even found it on the ground where the thugs live
My man had to dig deep to find his
Couldn't sleep 'cause on the real he had five kids
Live nig's, real niggaz express and taste it
At crap games, black dames and big faces
Cases in court, fam' showin' love and support
You and your baby's mom thought that love was a sport
As men we were taught to hold it in
That's why we don't know how 'til we're older men
If love is a place I'ma go again
At least now, now I know to go within
At time it can take ya for a spin
Heartbreak hotel then you're home again
I've seen love make a nigga soul pretend
Like a story that he don't want to end
Yo

[Chorus]

[Verse 2]
It's all love where we come from
In the hood love we was told to run from
That same hood where the guns sung
We holla love, hopin' it would come one
Crack got so many lives undone
From lack of love many hide some run
I knew this girl with a son who dreamt of actin' in plays
Demonstration with her man had her trapped in a maze
Tryin' to find herself again, much of that she'd have gave
Love can free us, to it some of us react as a slave
Funny, we love 'em more when they're relaxed in a grave
Wonder if a thug is raw, is he actin' afraid?
Everybody loves sun, why do I attract shade?
Heard of the love of money, but compassion it pays
Talk about it with my youth so she'd understand
What it is to be loved by a man
Uh

[Chorus]

[Verse 3]
Some say that I'm a dreamer 'cause I talk about it often
Seen the hardest nigga soften wit' his homie in a coffin
We walk and stand in, fall in it
With the right companion we all in it
Mary sang a song about it, having broad limits
In the game of life, it's the scrimage
Reminiscing on letters I wrote in my small days
A letter to the people, love always
Yeah

[Chorus]

[Chorus]
[Common sample] And you say Chi city
We don't stop naw we don't quit
[Repeat 4X]

[Common]
I rap with the passion of Christ, @#%$ cross me
Took it outta space and @#%$ thought they lost me
I'm back like a chiropract wit b-boy survival rap
This ain't '94 Joe we can't go back
The game need a makeover
My man retired, I'ma take over
Tell these halftime @#%$ break's over
I'm raw hustlas getcha bakin' soda
Too many rape the culture
Leave rappers with careers and their faith over
It's a war goin' on you can't fake bein' a soldier
In the basement listenin' to tapes of Ultramagnetic to the fact I'm a science
black
I turn the TV down we could take it higher than that
I wonder if these wack @#%$ realize they wack
And they the reason my people say they tired of rap
Inspired by black Muslims and Christian
Pushin' Cutlasses, dope, and other traditions
In the conditions of the city, the city, the city, the city, the city, the city,
c'mon

[Chorus]

A black figure, in the middle of chaos and gun fire
So many raps about rims, I'm surprised @#%$ ain't become tires
On the street you turn code and then go screech
I tell em @#%$ em, like I do the police
The beast in runnin' rampant
I'm in between sheets tryna have sex that's tantric
But the getto, tryna make a get up stand up anthem
You spit hot garbage son of Sanford
What you rappin' for to get fame or get rich
I slap a @#%$ like you
And tell him Rick James bitch
Witcha Hollywood stories on porches
We poli hood stories on who became rich
And whatever light they hit, we wanna hit the same switch
You didn't know where to aim it, you still remain bitch
I'm forever puttin' words together
Some'll sever mothers from daughters and fathers from sons
The name Com has never been involved in Run
Unless it's DMC or runnin' these broads to bein' free
I'm hotta than the times, you hardly scary
Holdin' gats inside, you cats is Halle Berry
They ask me where hip hop is goin', a Chicagoan
Poetry's in motion like a picture now showin'
It's the city, the city y'all, the city, the city y'all
C'mon

[Chorus]

(feat. Kanye West)

[Dave Chappelle]
Tonight's musical guest
Two of Chicago's Finest emcees!
Give it up for Common and Kanye West!

"It's Common Sense!"

[Intro - Common]
Yeah! "Common Sense!" - [scratched]
It's Common Sense! With Kanye West!
On the Dave Chappelle Show!
Everybody gotta eat right?
It's the food baby!

[Chorus - Kanye West]
I walked in the crib, got two kids
And my baby mama late (uh oh! uh oh! uh oh!)
So I had to did, what I had to did
Cause I had to get (duh-ough! duh-ough! duh-ough!)
I'm up all night, getting my money right
Until the blue and white (po po! po po! po po!)
Now the money coming slow, but a least a - know
Slow motion better than (no-oh! no-oh! no-oh!)

[Verse - Common]
You love to hear the story, again and again
About these young brothers, from the City of Wind
Like juice and gin, in the city we blend
Amongst the hustle, titties and skin, fifties and rims
Y'all know the Sprewells and trucks that's detailed
Heartless females that wanna ride in em
Felt the southside venom in raw hides and denim
Pimp minds collide wit em, a system that tries victims
We living in, my man in the fast lane pivoting
On the block white is selling like Eminem
On the block it "Jump Off" like Kim and them
On the block it's hot, you can feel it, in your skin and then
Shorties get the game but no instructions to assembling
Eyes bright, it seems like the fight is dimming them
Call my man cuzo, like I'm kin to him
He trying to stay straight, the streets is bending him

[Chorus]

[Verse - Common]
It's all good in the hood, like raps and gems
Throwbacks and Timbs, blacks and rims
Whether on ball courts, attires of all sorts
We never fall short, wit us it's Our Force like And 1's
Some waves, some air guns, the days of the fair one is over for
Cats is colder than four below, wit self I go toe to toe
Wondering if it's for the art or for the doe
Though I know to grow a - gotta learn to let go
Though I know the doe I got to bring back to the ghetto
Arrows on Terot cards pointing to the grind
Po' livin in more prisons, pointing to my mind, shine the light up
Clench my fists tight, holding the right up
Freedom fight in dark gear for the years to get brighter
Situations, and jobs get tighter
My man trying to get his weight and height up, c'mon!

[Chorus]

[Bridge - Kanye West]
I - I know I could make it right
If I could just swallow my pride
But I can't run away or put my - away
You can't front on me
I - no I can't let it ride
No no not tonight
See I can't run away or put my - away
You can't front on me

[applause]

[Intro]
Yeah, yeah, you know how me and 'Ye do

[Verse 1]
Real People walk in the streets, the streets is talkin'
Often it's beef this city never does
People walk and talk in they sleep
Cold sweats and wet dreams
On how to get green our faith is all in a jeep
Black souls raw and they deep
Hypes tryna talk with no teeth
Shorties sayin' ball or retreat
A lesson we all speak at one point or another
Whatchu expect from one who smoke a joint with his mother
Anointed hustlers in a fatherless region
Through the pain wish they know that God was just teachin'
We want decent homes
So dreams we say out loud like speakerphones just to keep em on
It's like a colored song that keep keepin' on
I guess knowin' I'm weak is when I'm really bein' strong
Somehow through the dust I could see the dawn
Like the Bishop Magic Juan, that's why I write freedom songs
For the real people

[Verse 2]
I wonder is the spirits of Bob Marley and Haile Selassie
Watch me as the cops be tryna and pop and lock me
They cocky, plus they mentality is Nazi
The way they treat blacks I wanna snap like paparazzi
We're the children of a better God searchin' for better jobs
We could cop ghetto cars tryin' not to catch a charge
They say the dope game is sour
Now they doin' homework that's when they follow you for hours
Come to your crib and devour all that you work for
Must be more than paper these niggaz hurt for
Through the purple haze I circle days I rhyme that work for pays
Tryna reverse the slave's mind and insert the brave mentality
Heard that it's drama at home
Can a dude break free and still get honored at home
I was told by a chief it's the games nature
When you're glowin' some will love and some will hate ya
It's real people

[Verse 3]
Black men walking wit white girls on they arms
I be mad at em as if I know they moms
Told to go beyond the surface, a person's a person
When we lessen our women our condition seems to worsen
The weary cursin' the sky
Talkin' to themselves givin' the version of why help and hurt in they eye
I live across from it, some of it I do be in
I be showin' niggaz lives
Like UPN
It's real people

Yeah.
For you and yours
Good music
Forever
Yeah
Rock on
We keep on
Uh.. Yeah
Yeah, yeah
The real...

(feat. John Legend, Kanye West)

[Chorus: John Legend]
They say "What's happenin'?"
We say the facts and if, they lie...
We comin' back for them
They might say... but they don't know!
(They say, They say...)
They don't knowwwww

[Verse 1: Common]
They say a nigga lost his mind
But in the scheme of things I never lost a rhyme
The thin line between love and hatred
I'm the black pill in the Matrix, the saturated life
They say life is what you make it
So I wait quick on a spaceship so I can take it
As high as the stakes get when paper get low
I be tellin Derick, "Tell Kara get us a show"
Little Com, I make righteous bitches get low
The richest man aint necessarily the nigga wit dough
They say "You ripped" "Wow..." Yea, that's what they say
My niggaz couldn't tell it was me, like Jamie in Ray
Paintin a day, wit focused crime, broads, and good wine
They say "Dope is sour so it's homework and hood crimes"
I stood mine, for forever and a day so goodbye
They never could say - tell 'em, J

[Chorus]

[Verse 2: Kanye West]
Ahh... The sweet taste of victory
Go head and breath it in like antihistamine
I know they sayin "Damn, Yay snapped wit this beat!"
Fuck you expect? I've got a history
Groupie love now, gotta be them wheels!
Haters back down, gotta be that steel!
I know they cant wait till ya outta ya deal!
Look how they did D'Angelo ask em how do it feel!
My best friends worry bout me
Cause they know when you famous/fame-ass
And you had made cash the media aims at us and you be up so high
if you ever fall off, it feel like a plane crash
But God don't ever give me nothin I cant handle
So please don't ever give me records I cant sample
So I could vacate where it aint no channels
but it's quite ok for a gangsta to wear sandals
They say because of the fame and stardom
I'm somewhere in between the church and insane asylum
I guess it's messin with my health then
And this verse so crazy when I finish
I'm just gon check myself in - again

[Chorus]
[Kanye West:] "Uh!" (hey!)

[Verse 3: Common]
They say "Dude think he righteous"
I write just to free minds, from Stoney to Rikers
Amongst the lifeless, in a world crazy as Mike is
On my paper, whether its weed or Isis
They say "life is a game," so I play hard
Writin for my life cause I'm scared of a day job
They say "Sef kept the hood together"
I tell the young, "We can't play the hood forever"
Play my cards right, they say I went to left
They showed me strange love, like I was Mr. F
Played chess in this game of, pawns and knights
Now I claim "King" like Don, or Frank White
They say my life is comparable to Christ's
The way I sacrificed, and resurrected, twice
They say "The crochet pants and the sweater was wack"
Seen "The Corner", now they say "That nigga's back," uh...

[Chorus]

[Verse 1]
Night blows, stoves don't work, hoes at work
A warrior, so I wear 'em on my shirt
Wish I was free as Che was, I spend a day buzzed
Trippin on heights, wishin for nights in different flavors
The age of Kane and Big Daddy, shown by the caddies
Uncles named Larry, that never really grabbed me
My mother gave birth but she really never had me
Left to the hood to play daddy
Raised by niggaz named Butch through the bay bay
With waists so they weigh they status on the streets
License plates that say they, motto
This is Chicago in the heyday
Similar to Good Times, I guess that I was Jay Jay
A skinny nigga, young girls with penny figures
So many niggaz, stacked up on each other
It's the black upon each other that we love so much
Wonder how many of us these drugs gon' touch
Used to gangbang, ain't really thug that much
Rather have some thick broads than the dutch to clutch
Went to school in Baton Rouge for a couple of years
My college career got downed with a couple of beers
Came back home, now I gotta pay back loans
Same nigga, same block, same shit they own
Only thing different, quicker, they click that chrome
In my defense, yo I had to hit that zone
Man to man, I'm good workin' with my hands
My generation never understood workin' for the man
And, of bein' broke I ain't a fan
Now I stand in the same spot as my old man
My life I planned not to be on this corner
I still wanna see California
But this is my world

[Chorus Repeated]
"It's your world"

[Common] Yeah

[Verse 2]
Life and death law around us
Four pounds and pounds a verb from out of towners
It's hard to stay grounded
We stay high, thats why old folks down us
Lost, nobody found us, the force that surrounds us
Ain't with us, they get us on the ground and hit us
We paint pictures of the chains under they names is scriptures
Removed from earth, only to return through birth
Knew this girl sellin her body
Wish she knew what it was worth
Between God and trash, lookin' in every car that pass
With a walk that suggests head
To milk niggaz she was breastfed
She know dairy so she say cheese to get bread
In the area where it's more weaves and less dreads
Kinda scary, amongst thieves and base-heads
Said it was her toes, but I could tell her soul hurt
She was cold turkey, growin up she got to know hurt
Very well in a world where self hate is overt
Her step-father thought he was aite, so her mother he striked
She got to like like-minded niggaz
Who liked crimes and figures
Doin white lines and liquor, see hard times had kicked her
In the ass, it used to be thicker
Life is fast, some choose to be quicker
I remember in high school she had a passion to sing
Now she see herself in a casket in dreams
These are the children of crack and rap, blacks done lack
Self-esteem, yo we forgot the dream
On our Jeffersons y'all but we forgot the theme
In the Chi, we even rootin for a garbage team
This queen never seen herself on this corner
She still wanna see California
But this is her world

[Chorus]

[The Kids]
I wanna be a pediatrician
I wanna be a governor
I want to be a artist
I wanna be a veterinarian
I wanna be a model
I wanna be a doctor
I wanna be a ballet dancer
I wanna be a football player
I wanna be a astronaut
I wanna be a obstetrician
I wanna be a doctor
I wanna be a nurse
I wanna be a fashion designer
I want to be a gym teacher
I wanna be a architect
I want to be a duck
I wanna be a wrestler
I wanna be a dancer
I wanna be the first African-American female president
I wanna be a police officer
I wanna be a rock star
I wanna be a gymnastics teacher
I wanna be a captain of a police station
I wanna be a drummer
I wanna be an actress
I wanna be a superstar

[Pops]
Be, be here, be there, be that, be this
Be grateful for life, be grateful to life
Be gleeful everyday, for bein' the best swimmer among 500,000
Be-nign, be you, be mom's mean pie
Be little black sambo with bad hair
Be aware of Willie Lynchism, Be, be boundless energy
Be a four-star ghetto general, be no one except I
Be food for thought to the growin' mind
Be the author of your own horoscope
Be invited, be long-living, be forgiving, be not forgetful
Be a proud run, only to return to fight another day
Be peaceful if possible, but justice in any way
Be high when you low, be on time but know when to go
Be cautious of the road to college
Takin' a detour through Vietnam or the Middle East
Be visual of foreclosure over your shoulder while beggin'
A nation built on free labor for reparation
Be a cartopographer, a map maker
Be able to find Afro-American land
Search thoroughly, it may be close to black land
Be amended 5/5ths, be amended 5/5ths human
Be the owner of more land than is set aside for wildlife
Be cupid, to world government
Be found among the truth, lost tribe
Be at full strength when walking through the valley
Be not foolish as temporary king of the mountaintop
Be a brilliant soul
Sparklin in the galaxy while walkin on Earth
Be loved by God
As much as God loved Ghandi and Martin Luther King
Be that last one of 144,000
Be the resident of the twelfth house
Be...eternal!