Talib Kweli Album

(Instrumental)

[Mos Def]
Against the canvas of the night
Appears a curious celestial
phenomena
called Black Star, but what is it?

[Talib Kweli]
Black people unite and let's all get
down
We got to have what? We got to
have that love

[Mos Def]
What is the Black Star?
Is it the cat with the black shades,
the black car?
Is it shinin from very far, to where you
are?
It is commonplace and different
Intimate and distant
Fresher than an infant

[Talib Kweli]
Black, my family thick, like they're
striped molasses
Star, on the rise, in the eyes of the
masses
Black is the color of my true love's
hair
Star's are bright, shining, hot balls of
air

[Mos Def]
Black like my baby girl's stare
Black like the veil that the muslimina
wear
Black like the planet that they fear,
why they scared?
Black like the slave ship that later
brought us here
Black like the cheeks that are
roadways for tears
that leave black faces well traveled
with years
Black like assassin crosshairs
Blacker than my granddaddy armchair
He never really got no time to chill
there
Cause this life is warfare, warfare

[Talib Kweli]
Deep on the front lines, and blacks is
all there
Black like the perception of who, on
welfare
Black like faces at the bottom of the
well
I've been there before
To bring the light and heat it up like
"la cocina"
Make without imagine happen but
maybe I'm just a dreamer
I love rockin tracks like John Coltrane
love Naema

[M] Like the student love the teacher
[T] Like the prophet love Khadeja
[M] Like I love my baby features
[A] Like the creator love all creatures

[Talib Kweli]
Who acknowledge truth and peace
seekers
We on point like heat seekers
Targettin the black marketing
strategists
Run up on em with the heaters
Everybody followin with no leaders
Feelin like we killin ourselves
because I know they can't defeat us
It don't stop til we complete this, keep
this fly
There's so much to life when you just
stay Black and God

[Mos Def]
Blacker than the nighttime sky of
Bed-Stuy in July
Blacker than the seed in the
blackberry pie
Blacker than the middle of my eye
Black like feh-lah man cry
Some man wan ask "Who am I?"
I simply reply, "The U.N.I.,
V.E.R.S.A.L. Magnetic"
Work to respect the angelic, climb
the mountaintop
and tell it til the valley's enveloped
You're full of big chat but you nah
know me
I'm dark like the side of the moon you
don't see
when the moon shine newly

[M] You know who else is a Black
Star? (Who?) Me
[T] You know who else is a Black
Star? (Who?) Me
[A] You know who else is a Black
Star, who we? (And we)
[A] be shinin and shinin, when we
rhymin and rhymin
We be shinin and shinin, when we
rhymin and rhymin

[Mos Def]
Now everybody hop on the one, the
sounds of the two
It's the third eye vision, five side
dimension
The 8th Light, is gonna shine bright
tonight
It's the third eye vision, five side
dimension

[T] You know the light
[M] Go from the dark
[T] The other way is ass-backwards
[M] It's absurd
[T] Make you wanna crow like a
blackbird
[M] That's right
[T] You livin from your first day to your
last night
[T] Sometimes you show your ass like
[M] Lint on your clothes
[T] When you froze in
[A] THE BLACK LIGHT
[M] Dead that
[T] Before you get your head
wrapped
[M] Like Badu
[T] We see through your voodoo
[T] Just like Eve's Bayou, you dealin
with that black magic
[M] Try to civilize you
[T] Not walk on by you
[M] Like civil-(lies do get you black
listed) it'll
[T] Be unlucky for you like a black
cat
[M] A panther
[T] Revolution is the answer
[M] That's what we need
[T] Greed plague my people like the
cancer
[M] True indeed

[Mos Def]
Now black people unite, and let's
ALL GET DOWN
Now everybody hop on the one, the
sounds of the two
It's the third eye vision, five side
dimension
The 8th Light, is gonna shine bright
tonight
Everybody hop on the one, the
sounds of the two
It's the third eye vision, five side
dimension
The 8th Light, is gonna shine bright
tonight
It's the third eye vision, five side
dimension
Equalin up to eight, light sh

[Mos Def]
Lawwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwd,
lawd have mercy
All nice and peace and true, follow
me now, we say
Say Hi-Tek yes you're ruling hip-hop
Say J. Rawls yes you're ruling hip-hop
Redefinition say you're ruling hip-hop
Say Black Star come to rock it non...

Yo, from the first to the last of it,
delivery is passionate
The whole and not the half of it,
vocab and not the math of it
Projectile that them blasted with,
accurate assassin shit
Me and Kweli close like, Bethlehem
and Nazareth
After this you be pressing rewind on
top your master disk
Shining like an asterisk for all those
that be gatherin
Connectin like a roundhouse from the
townhouse to the tenaments
Cause all my Brooklyn residents, ?
heavy regiments
Don't believe, here the evidence,
where Brooklyn
WHAAAAAAAoohhhh
See that? Bound to take it all kid,
believe that
From where they sellin tree at, to
where the police be at
Talib Kweli e-Kweli-ty yo tell them
where we be at

[Talib Kweli]
Brooklyn New York City where they
paint murals of Biggie
In cash we trust cause it's ghetto
fabulous, life look pretty
what a pity -- blunts is still fifty cents,
it's intense
Tree scents is dominant can't be
covered with incense
My presence felt my name is Kweli
from the Eternal Reflection
People thinkin MC is short hand for
Mis Conception
Let me meditate, set it straight, came
to the conclusion
that most of these cats is
featherweight, let me demonstrate
Walkin the streets is like battlin, be
careful with your body
You must know karate or think your
soul is bulletproof like Sade
Stop actin like a bitch already, be a
visionary
And maybe you can see your name in
the column of obituary
Third rate teacher readin and talkin
about,
"I knew he'd amount to nothin"
Neighbors like, "He was the quiet
type,
who'd have thought they was
frontin?"
Talkin +Loud+ like you in RCA, get
carted away
with body parts and treys, what a way
to start your day
Yo it's like

Chorus: Mos Def and Talib Kweli

One two three
Mos Def and Talib Kweli
We came to rock it on to the tip-top
Best alliance in hip-hop, wyahhhhh
I said one two three
It's kind of dangerous to be a emcee
They shot Tupac and Biggie
Too much violence in hip-hop,
wyahhhhh

[Mos Def]
I said Manhattan keep on makin it
(Bo!), Brooklyn keep on takin it (Bo!)
So relax we're takin it back, Redhook
where we're livin at
Plenty cats be strugglin not hustlin
and bubblin
It ain't about production and -- what
else we discussin?
When the cock crows, my crop
grows, enable me to rock flows
Strivin for perfection ever since I was
a snot-nosed
COLOSSAL, true original b-boy
apostle
Standin on the rooftop with the, Zulu
gestapo

[Talib Kweli]
You think you the shit
somebody in the wings'll force you to
quit
It could be your crew or click
or some random kid you smoked
buddha with
Consider me the entity within the
industry without a history
of spittin the epitome, of stupidity --
livin my life
expressin my liberty, it gotta be done
properly
My name is in the middle of e-Kweli-ty
People follow me and other cats they
hear him flow
And assume I'm the real one with
lyrics like I'm Cyrano

[Mos Def]
Still sippin wishin well water, imported,
from Pluto
Three hundred and sixty milliliters for
all our believers
In miles or kilometers, most cats,
cannot proceed us
in the jungle with the leaders we the
lions you the +cheaters+
A cypher, will complete us if we come
through your receivers
You can play us and repeat us and
then take us home and read us
(line for line) Good Jesus, Mos Def
and Kweli just
make a pussy freeze up, thinkin we
will ease up

Chorus

What what what, what what, what
what, what what
Woaaaahhhhhhh!
One two three, Mos Def and Talib
Kweli
We came to rock it on to the tip-top
Best alliance in hip-hop, wayohh
I said, one two tree, Black Star shine
eternally
We came to rock it on to the tip-top
And Hi-Tek make the beat drop,
wayohh

[Talib Kweli]
RE:DEFinition, turning your play into a
tragedy
Exhibit level degree on the mic,
passionately
Niggaz is sweet so I bet if I bit I'd get
a cavity
Livin to get high, you ain't flyer than
gravity
We Die Hard like the battery done in
the back of me by the mad MC
who think imitation is the highest form
of flattery, actually
Don't be mad at me, I had to be the
one to break it to you
You get kicked into obscurity like
judo, no Menudo
cause you pseudo, tryin to compete
with reality like Xerox
Towards destruction you spiraling like
hairlocks, wipe them teardrops
Chasing stars in your eyes, playing
games with your lives
Now the wives is widows soakin up
pillows, weepin like willows
Still mo' blacks is dyin, kids ain't livin
they tryin
"How to Make a Slave" by Willie
Lynch is still applyin
Regardless, the Mos is one of my
closest partners
Rockin ever since before Prince was
called The Artist
Rocker before Funkmaster Flex was
rockin Starter
When 'Pac and Biggie was still cool
before they was martyrs
Life or death, if I'm choosin with every
breath I'm enhancin
Stop, there comes a time when you
can't run

[Mos Def]
What, lyrically handsome, call collect
a king's ransom
Jams I write soon become the ghetto
anthem
Way out like Bruce Wayne's
mansion, move like a phantom
You'll talk about me to your
grandsons
Cats who claimin they hard be mad
fag
so I run through em like, flood water
through sandbags
Competition is mad, what I got, they
can't have
Sinkin they ship, like Moby Dick, did
Ahab
Son I'm way past the minimum, it's a
verb millenium
My rap's hold a gat to your back, like
Palestinians
Ancient Abyssinia, sure to hold the
Gideon
Official b-boy gentlemen, long term,
never the interim
Born inside the winter wind, day after
December 10
These simpletons they mentionin the
synonym for feminine
Sweeter than some cinnamon from
Danish rings by Entenmann's
Rush up on adrenaline, they get they
asses sent to them
(Gentlemen) you got a tenement, well
then assemble it!
Leave your unit tremblin like herds of
movin elephant
Intelligent embellishment, follow for
your element
from Flatbush settlement, skin
posseses melanin
Hotter than tales of crack peddlin,
makin em WOOP
like blue gelatin, swing like Duke
Ellington
Broader than Barrington Levy, believe
me
The hot oppresion rent who burn
down your chief teepee
You see me?

One two three, Mos Def and Talib
Kweli
We came to rock it on to the tip-top
Best alliance in hip-hop, wayohh
I said, one two tree, Black Star shine
eternally
We came to rock it on to the tip-top
Because we rulin hip-hop, yes we is
rulin hip-hop
Talib Kweli is rulin hip-hop
Say we Black Star we rule hip-hop-
ah-ahh-ah-ahh-ahh
Whoahhhh!

[Child #1] ...and then Jackie Chan just started kickin em
like POW! POW! POW!

[Child #2] Whaaaaa??!

[Mos Def] Alright y'all, alright y'all enough of that
it's time to go to bed y'all
Time to go to bed -- I don't wanna hear that
You know what time it is, you know what time it is

[Children] Uncle Mos?
[Mos Def] Yeeesss?
[Children] Would you read us a bedtime story please?
[Mos Def] Okay, okay. Ya'll tucked in?
[Children] Yeessss...
[Mos Def] Heeeere we go...

Once upon a time not long ago
When people wore Adidas and lived life slow
When laws were stern and justice stood
And people was behavin' like hip-hop was good
There lived a little boy who was misled
By a little Sha-tan and this is what he said
"Me and you kid we gonna make some cash,
Jackin' old beats and makin' the dash..."
They jacked the beats, money came wit' ease
But son, he couldn't stop, it's like he had a disease
He jacked another and another, Michael Jackson, Stevie Wonder
Set some R & B over the track for 'Deep Cover' (187!)
The kid got wild startin' actin' erratic
He said "Yo, that presidential I got ta have it..."
With liquor in his belly son, he made up the track
But little did he know that his joints was wack
The shiny A & R said "Great new hit G!"
"Whenever you need a loop, yo come get me..."
The kid got amped and he starts to figure
"I'm-a get dough like all-a these otha niggaz!"
So, he's in the studio workin' 'round the clock
For pop radio, jacked the beat to 'Planet Rock'
Was out in the street when he met this sister
Who couldn't sing for shhhh but the mix wit' her sister
Hooked up the track and in excitation
He decided he'd head for the radio station
But (But!) he was runnin' and he made a left
Was skeezin' at top speed and ran into Mos Def
I slowed the young man down and I started: "Yo money,
Yo, why you sellin' lies to our wives and children?"
He ran upstairs up to the top floor
Opened up the door then guess what he saw? (Who?)
JANE the chickenhead radio host
Who be yappin' 'bout beef between east and west coast
He said "This one's a bullet, you got ta give it run!"
The chicken said "Thanks." and spanked it #1
He went outside, was gettin' props all over
Then he dipped into his ride, the 4-point Rover
Raced up the block doin' 83
Some cats with Hennessey saw him at a R-E-D
He winked his eye like his star status mattered
They rat-a-tat-tatted to make his blood splatter
"You rockin' crazy ice and all you do is cling static
And rollin' down to Brooklyn late night is problematic..."
His eyes was bloody red, he hung on every word they said
They told the kid "Back down, that playa shit is dead."
Deep in his heart, he knew he was gone
But he grabbed his 45 and decide to blaze on
Wit' shades on founded had him astounded an'
Before long, the young man got surrounded
Those grabbed the guns, so goes the glory
And that is the way I got ta end this story
He was out chasin' cream and the American dream
Tryin' to pretend the ends justify the means
This ain't funny so don't you dare laugh
It's just what comes to pass when you sell your ass
Life is more than what your hands can grasp
Good Night!

(kids talking)
Knock 'em out the box Mos, knock 'em out Mos
Knock 'em out the box Mos, knock 'em out Mos (3x)

Knock 'em out...

A-nother...Mos Def...Black Star MOVEMENT...
presentation... CRUUUMBS!

[Mos Def]
Be like yo, let me ask you somethin
I wanna know, I wanna know who you are

*Mos Def singing*
[Mos] Brown skin lady, hey hey
[Talib] Yes
[Mos] Where you goin
[Talib] This goes to the brown skin ladies
[Mos] Brown skin lady
[Talib] Yo, indigineous women of the planet Earth
[Mos] What you doin?
[Talib] Givin birth to the brown skin ladies first
[Mos] Brown skin lady
[Talib] For what it's worth, from me to you
[Mos] How do you feel?
[Talib] From me to you, watchin you
I like the, I like the, I like the, I like the
way you walk, yes, I live the way you move
[Mos] I like the way you walk, when you walk on by
I like the way you move, I like the WAY you move
[Talib] I like the, I like the, I like the, I like the
way you walk, please, won't you do that dance
[Mos] I like the way you walk, when you walk on by
I like the way you move, I like you baby

[together]
And everybody on the avenue, I know, when they see us sing
Everybody on the avenue, I know, when they see us sing, there she is

[Talib]
Fresher than Tony Rebel's vestibules at African street festivals
My incredible women is, plentiful
Over the years I met a few, none of them compare to you
Preparin you to make food bearable, somethin terrible, let's see:
you fruitful, beautiful, smart, lovable, huggable
Doable like art, suitable to be part
of my life, Coppertone, oh you copyright infringement
Pay you bidness ten cents, way back in the day
It's like I'm standin there you know appreciatin God's design
and then you showed up, it's like you read my mind
DAMN SHE'S FINE, I think I add the R-E, in front of that
and see if she D, to get, with a cat like me

[Talib] I like the, I like the, I like the, I like the
way you walk, yes, I live the way you move
[Mos] I like the way you walk, when you walk on by
I like the way you move, I like the WAY you move
[Talib] I like the, I like the, I like the, I like the
way you walk, please, won't you do that dance
[Mos] I like the way you walk, when you walk on by
I like the way you move, I like you baby

[together]
And everybody on the avenue, I know, when they see us sing
Everybody on the avenue, I know, when they see us sing, there she is

[Mos Def]
Ooooh! Daring me girl, look at you!
Comin on the block lookin fresh and brand new
Ooooh! Headwrap cover your hairdo
Pretty feet peekin through open-toed shoe
Ooooh! No limit to what I would do
Make love to you like long interview
Whooh! Is she for real, me like you
Good look champion, win the title
True, many man try invite you
Shot down lyric each time they cyph you
Jewel, what man you get all insides you
Feet they walk way and just that sheik posture
Ooooh! Can't be a next one like you
Famous like tapes made by DJ Clue
I tighten up my game as I approach you
Yo check her she the nectar the bee get close to

...

[Talib]
I don't get many compliments, but I am confident
Used to have a complex about, gettin too complex
You got me, willin to try, looked me in the eye
My head is still in the sky, since you walked on by
I'm feelin high, got my imagination flickerin like hot flames
it's how it seems, you make me wanna ride the Coltrane to A Love Supreme
My brown lady, creates environments, for
happy brown babies, I know it sounds crazy
but your skin's the inspiration for cocoa butter
You provoke a brother we should get to know one another
I discover when I bring you through my people say TRUE, all I can say
is all praise due I thank you God for a beauty like you

*Mos Def singing*
[Mos] Brown skin lady
[Talib] Yes
[Mos] Where you goin
[Talib] This goes to the brown skin ladies
[Mos] Brown skin lady
[Talib] On the planet Earth today, yes
[Mos] What you doin?
[Mos] Brown skin lady
[Mos] How do you feel?

[Talib] I like the, I like the, I like the, I like the
way you walk, yes, I live the way you move
[Mos] I like the way you walk, when you walk on by
I like the way you move, I like the WAY you move
[Talib] I like the, I like the, I like the, I like the
way you walk, yes, please do that dance
[Mos] I like the way you walk, when you walk on by
I like the way you move, I like you baby

[together]
And everybody on the avenue, I know, when they see us sing
Everybody on the avenue, I know, when they see us sing, there she is

[Mos] There she is, she's a brown skinned lady
Such a brown skinned lady
She's a brown skinned lady
She's a brown skinned lady
She's a brown skinned lady
She's a brown skinned lady

[Talib]
You know what some people put themselves through
to look just like you?
Dark stocking, high heels, lipstick, alla that
You know what?
Without makeup you're beautiful
Whatcha you need to paint the next face for
We're not dealin with the European standard of beauty tonight
Turn off the TV and put the magazine away
In the mirror tell me what you see
See the evidence of divine presence
Women of the, Carribean, they got the, golden sun
I know women on the continent got it
Nigeria, and Ghana, you know they got it
Tanzania, Namibia and Mozambique
and Bothswana, to let it speak
about latinas, columbianas
...
Tallenas, of course the Brooklyn women walk that walk
And the Bronx women walk that walk
Honies from Queens walk that walk, NYC, ATL, LA
Cincinatti, the Bay Area...

[Mos Def]
Yo yo, yo, whassup, yo yo
Yo yo, we gonna, we gonna slow it
down
so we can speed it up y'all
Right now I want everybody come to
the front
That's right, move forward
I want all the poppers and the
breakers, to form this circle
I want all the poppers and the
breakers
The writers and the exciters, to get in
this circle
and make it real live yo
Cause I'm seein too many stars up in
here tonight yo
I'm seein the Rock Steady Crew
I'm seein Ken Swift, I'm seein Mr.
Wiggles
I'm seein Modesho, I'm seein Crazy
Legs
Man I'm seein the Zulu Nation up in
here
I'm seein the Rawkus family,
Shabaam Shadeeq, Company Flow
Menelik, I'm seein G-ology, Shawn J.
Period
Man this the Black Star movement
Mos Def, Talib Kweli we gon' keep it
live
for the b boys and b girls universally
Rock Steady Japan, Rock Steady
Europe
Rock Steady New York, yo we just
gonna keep it live
all over the world -- get live

[Talib Kweli]
Party people, in the place to be
My name is Talib Kweli
Yo, I got my man on the side of me
Mos Def-initely, and we, are

(Fresh) Black Star
(Fresh) G Young
(Fresh) Hi-Tek
(Fresh) Native Tongue
(Fresh) Shawn J.
(Fresh) Eighty-eight
(Fresh) Ninety-eight
we bout to motivate, come on y'all

[M] Here's a little story that must be
told
[T] About two young brothers who
was put on hold
[M] They tried to stop the goal
[T] We on a spiritual plane
[M] Tried to kill the pride
[T] And destroy the name
[M] We just two bad brothers
[T] Who will never quit
[M] I'm Mos Def
[T] Kweli (WE THE ULTIMATE)
[M] Make sure that you tell
[T] Everybody you know
[M] To get on line
[T] Take a ride
[M] To the Black Star show!
[T] Black Star
[M] Shinin
[T] Shinin, we in the house
[M] Shinin
[T] Shinin, we in the house y'all
[T] Black Star
[M] Shinin
[T] Shinin, we in the house
[M] Shinin
[T] Shinin, we in the house y'all
[T] Black Star
[M] Shinin
[T] Shinin, we in the house
[M] Shinin
[T]Shinin, we in the house y'all
[T] Black Star
[M] Shinin
[T] Shinin, we in the house
[M] Shinin
[T] Shinin, we in the house y'all

[Talib Kweli]
So many emcees focusin on black
people extermination
We keep it balanced with that
knowledge of self, determination
It's hot, we be blowin the spots, with
conversations
C'mon let's smooth it out like Soul
Sensation

We in the house like Japanese in
Japan, or Koreans in Korea
Head to Philly and free Mumia with
the Kujichagulia TRUE
Singin is swingin and writin is fightin,
but what
they writin got us clashin like titans it's
not excitin
No question, bein a black man is
demandin
The fire's in my eyes and the flames
need fannin (3X)

With that what? (Knowledge Of Self)
Determination
(4x)

[Singer]
Things I say and do, may not come
quite through
My words may not convey just what
I'm feelin

[Talib Kweli]
Yes yes come on, yes yes
Knowledge Of Self is like life after
death
With that you never worry about your
last breath
Death comes, that's how I'm livin, it's
the next days
The flesh goes underground, the
book of life, flip the page
Yo they askin me how old, we livin
the same age
I feel the rage of a million niggaz
locked inside a cage
At exactly which point do you start to
realize
That life without knowledge is, death
in disguise?
That's why, Knowledge Of Self is like
life after death
Apply it, to your life, let destiny
manifest
Different day, same confusion, we're
gonna take this
hip-hop shit and keep it movin, shed
a little light
Now y'all bloomin like a flower with
the power of the evident
Voices and drums original instruments
In the flesh presently presentin my
representation

With that what? (Knowledge Of Self)
Determination
(6x)
(these parts overlap)
Things I say and do, may not come
quite through
My words may not convey just what
I'm feelin
(2x)

[Talib Kweli]
The most important time in history is,
NOW, the present
So count your blessings cause time
can't define the essence
But you stressin over time and you
follow the Roman calendar
These people enter Cona like
Gattaca, you can bet
they tryin to lock you down like Attica,
the African diaspora
represents strength in numbers, a
giant can't slumber forever
I know you gotta get that cheddar
whatever
Aiyyo I heard you twice the first time
money, get it together
You must be History, you repeatin
yourself out of the pages
You keepin yourself depleatin your
spiritual wealth
That quick cash'll get your ass quick
fast in houses of detention
Inner-city concentration camps where
no one pays attention
or mentions the ascension of death, til
nothing's left
The young, gifted and Black are
sprung addicted to crack
All my people where y'all at cause,
y'all ain't here
And your hero's using your mind as a
canvas to paint fear
With, broad brush strokes and tales
of incarceration
You get out of jail with that
Knowledge of Self determination
Stand in ovation, cause you put the
Hue in Human
Cause and effect, effect everything
you do
and that's why I got love in the face
of hate
Hands steady so the lines in the
mental illustration is straight
The thought you had don't even
contemplate
Infinite like figure eight there's no
escape..

From that what? (Knowledge Of Self)
Determination
(4x)

Things I say and do, may not come
quite through
My words may not convey just what
I'm feelin
(2x)

..

Things I say and do, may not come
quite through
My words may not convey just what
I'm feelin
(2x)

What I'm feelin, what I'm feelin,
ooooh, what I'm feelin...

[Talib Kweli]
Yes..
Every day somebody ask me where
all the real MC's is at?
They underground
There's mad talented cats
underground with that raw shit
Yaknowwhat'msayin? Bringin them
raw skills
YaknowwhatI'm sayin?
Really, to me..

It's a Small Wonder, like Vicki, why
I'm picky
These niggas suck like hickies
and still get the shit they slip in like
Mickies
I'm sick of the hater-players, bring on
the regulators
With the flavors like a farm team
fucking with the majors
Like a river how I run through it, I do it
so cold
Freezin up your bodily fluids, your
style is old
You runnin your mouth, but don't
really know what you be talkin about
You should retire, get that
complimentary watch, be out!
Yo, with the quickness, so swift you
miss this lyrical fitness
Now get this, these emcees wanna
test me like litmus, bear witness
I'm like shot clocks, interstate cops,
and blood clots
My point is, your flow can stop!
By all means, you need more
practice, take that ass home
Everybody lookin at you, fish tank
syndrome
In full effect, I stay catchin lyrical rep
And keep it blacker than the back of
your neck
What you expect, that shit's hollerin
Cause we developin the followin
Gettin played like stone love tapes
and dollar vans
Order reverse your universe so your
demise is first
Before your rise it gets worse
You need a night nurse like Gregory
Beggin me - stop it hurts! - is what you
say to me
Like that's supposed to mean
somethin?
You the one I seen frontin in the club
Your act I don't buy it, I got the dub
Come on everybody, come on just
show your love
Come on everybody, come on just
show your love
Come on everybody, come on just
show your love
Come on everybody, come on just
show your love
Come on everybody, come on just
show your love

Chorus: *chanted in background*

Wo-oh-oh-oh-oh, oh-uh-oh *repeated
4X*

[Mos Def]
Visions occupy my synaptic space
Command and shake, to illustrate my
mind's landscape
The tall grass, the low plains, the
mountanous ridges
Thickets among the forests, rivers
beneath the bridges
Presence of hilltops, lit up with tree
tops
Eavesdrop; and hear the incline of
sunshine, nine
Stones in orbit, refuse to forfeit
They all form a cipher, and they came
to observe it
I follow suit, and face it, embrace it
Shinin bright, but still I'm careful not to
waste it
Destined to rise, because I'm
basement adjacent
Spirit is still so just chill and be patient
Some heads approach like I'm the
one to base with
Clowns about to scream and shout
but don't say shh..
I ain't your student so I ain't to be
tested
I'm majestic, I represent my strength
without effort
My, method is unorthodox, but of
course it rocks
My serious synopsis will drop kick, my
topics
run the gauntlets and galvanize the
audience
I must represent, I don't come off with
no corniness
It's all luminary, despite commentary
Some people say, Mos how you get
so?
My sign will make you jump around
like calypso
And, murmur to yourself like a schizo
There ain't no bottom on the ???

Chorus

[Talib Kweli]
Come on, come on, come on, come
on
Here we go. Blackstar, hop on the
Blackstar line
We bout to take y'all home.
YaknowwhatImean? Here we go...

We got all markets on lock
From meat to stock
Blackstar, what? throwin like head
rock in bars
Men flock to where we are, cause its
the place to be
Grab my paint, jump on stage and
deface emcees
We sell our souls like Spawn and
come for the drone I sit upon
Freestyle or written songs so we can
get it on!
Going back and forth, fallin back, all
across the track
Passin the mic's like quarterbacks
of course its phat, get off of that!
Reverse psychology got em scared to
say when shit is whack
out of fear of being called a hater,
imagine that!
We ain't havin that reachin past the
star status that you grabbin at
My battle raps blast your ass back to
your natural habitat
So floss, cause what it costs ain't
worth it to me
Cause I'm the one these Spice Girl
emcees Wannabe
But they can't, ain't no points forever,
so why bother?
Cause your girl calls my name out like
Clarence Carter
Clarence Carter, Clarence Carter!
(I be strokin, that's what I be doin)
Aiyyo, as we rock harder
And always drop the bonified head
nodders
Aiyyo, later for the hater-players
Yo-yo, yo-yo, later for these hater-
players

Chorus

Blackstar keeps shining

Chorus

Blackstar keeps shining

(Instrumental)

"What'd you do last night?"
"We did umm, two whole
cars
It was me, Dez, and Main
Three right?
And on the first car in small
letters it said
'All you see is..' and then
you know
big, big, you know some
block silver letters
that said '..crime in the
city' right?"
"It just took up the whole car?"
"Yeah yeah, it was a whole
car and shit..."

[spanish speaking woman]
Escuchela.. la ciudad respirando
(translation of spanish: Listen to it..
the city breathing)
(3x)

[spanish speaking woman]
Escuchela..

[Mos Def]
The new moon rode high in the
crown of the metropolis
Shinin, like who on top of this?
People was tusslin, arguin and bustlin
Gangstaz of Gotham hardcore hustlin
I'm wrestlin with words and ideas
My ears is picky, seekin what will
transmit
the scribes can apply to transcript, yo
This ain't no time where the usual is
suitable
Tonight alive, let's describe the
inscrutable
The indisputable, we New York the
narcotic
Strength in metal and fiber optics
where mercenaries is paid to trade
hot stock tips
for profits, thirsty criminals take
pockets
Hard knuckles on the second hands
of workin class watches
Skyscrapers is collosus, the cost of
living
is preposterous, stay alive, you play or
die, no options
No Batman and Robin, can't tell
between
the cops and the robbers, they both
partners, they all heartless
With no conscience, back streets
stay darkened
Where unbeliever hearts stay
hardened
My eagle talons STAY sharpened,
like city lights stay throbbin
You either make a way or stay
sobbin, the Shiny Apple
is bruised but sweet and if you
choose to eat
You could lose your teeth, many
crews retreat
Nightly news repeat, who got shot
down and locked down
Spotlight to savages, NASDAQ
averages
My narrative, rose to explain this
existance
Amidst the harbor lights which remain
in the distance

So much on my mind that I can't
recline
Blastin holes in the night til she bled
sunshine
Breathe in, inhale vapors from bright
stars that shine
Breathe out, weed smoke retrace the
skyline
Heard the bass ride out like an
ancient mating call
I can't take it y'all, I can feel the city
breathin
Chest heavin, against the flesh of the
evening
Sigh before we die like the last train
leaving

[Talib Kweli]
Breathin in deep city breaths, sittin on
shitty steps
we stoop to new lows, hell froze the
night the city slept
The beast crept through concrete
jungles
communicatin with one another
And ghetto birds where waters fall
from the hydrants to the gutters
The beast walk the beats, but the
beats we be makin
You on the wrong side of the track,
lookin visibly shaken
Taken them plungers, plungin to
death that's painted by the numbers
with Krylon applied pressure, cats is
playin God
but havin children by a lesser baby
mother but fuck it
we played against each other like
puppets, swearin you got pull
when the only pull you got is the wool
over your eyes
Gettin knowledge in jail like a blessing
in disguise
Look in the skies for God, what you
see besides the smog
is broken dreams flying away on the
wings of the obscene
Thoughts that people put in the air
Places where you could get murdered
over a glare
But everything is fair
It's a paradox we call reality
So keepin it real will make you
casualty of abnormal normality
Killers Born Naturally like, Mickey and
Mallory
Not knowing the ways'll get you
capped like an NBA salary
Some cats be emceeing to illustrate
what we be seeing
Hard to be a spiritual being when shit
is shakin what you believe in
For trees to grow in Brooklyn, seeds
need to be planted
I'm asking if y'all feel me AND THE
CROWD LEFT ME STRANDED
My blood pressure boiled and rose,
cause New York niggaz
actin spoiled at shows, to the winners
the spoils go
I take the L, transfer to the 2, head to
the gates
New York life type trife the Roman
Empire state

[Mos Def & Crew]
So much on my mind I just can't
recline
Blastin holes in the night til she bled
sunshine
Breathe in, inhale vapors from bright
stars that shine
Breathe out, weed smoke retrace the
skyline
Yo don't the bass ride out like an
ancient mating call
I can't take it y'all, I can feel the city
breathin
Chest heavin, against the flesh of the
evening
Sigh before we die like the last train
leaving

[spanish speaking woman]
Escuchela.. respirando ??

[Common]
Yo...on The Amen, Corner I stood
lookin at my former hood
Felt the spirit in the wind, knew my
friend was gone for good
Threw dirt on the casket, the hurt, I
couldn't mask it
Mixin down emotions, struggle I
hadn't mastered
I coreograph seven steps to heaven
And hell, waiting to exhale and make
the bread leavened
Veteran of a cold war It's Chica-I-go
for
What I know or, what's known
So some days I take the bus home,
just to touch home
From the crib I spend months gone
Sat by the window with a clutched
dome listenin to shorties cuss long
Young girls with weak minds, but they
butt strong
Tried to call, or at least beep the
Lord, but didn't have a touch-tone
It's a dog-eat-dog world, you gotta
mush on
Some of this land I must own
Outta the city, they want us gone
Tearin down the 'jects creatin plush
homes
My circumstance is between Cabrini
and Love Jones
Surrounded by hate, yet I love home
Ask my God how he thought travellin
the world sound
Found it hard to imagine he hadn't
been past downtown
It's deep, I heard the city breathe in
its sleep
Of reality I touch, but for me it's hard
to keep
Deep, I heard my man breathe in his
sleep
Of reality I touch, but for me it's hard
to keep

[Mos Def & Crew]
So much on my mind I just can't
recline
Blastin holes in the night til she bled
sunshine
Breathe in, inhale vapors from bright
stars that shine
Breathe out, weed smoke retrace the
skyline
Yo how the bass ride out like an
ancient mating call
I can't take it y'all, I can feel the city
breathing
Chest heavin, against the flesh of the
evening
Kiss the Ide's goodbye, I'm on the last
train leaving

[Talib Kweli]
Yo Dee (What?)
Come on (Yeah..)
What? What? Come on
(Yeah)

"Give me the fortune, keep the fame," said my man Louis
I agreed, know what he mean because we live the truest lie
I asked him why we follow the law of the bluest eye
He looked at me, he thought about it
Was like, "I'm clueless, why?"
The question was rhetorical, the answer is horrible
Our morals are out of place and got our lives full of sorrow
And so tomorrow comin later than usual
Waitin' on someone to pity us
While we findin beauty in the hideous
They say money's the root of all evil but I can't tell
YouknowhatImean, pesos, francs, yens, cowrie shells, dollar bills
Or is it the mindstate that's ill?
Creating crime rates to fill the new prisons they build
Over money and religion there's more blood to spill
The wounds of slaves in cotton fields that never heal
What's the deal?
A lot of cats who buy records are straight broke
But my language universal they be recitin my quotes
While R&B singers hit bad notes, we rock the boat
of thought, that my man Louis' statements just provoked
Caught up, in conversations of our personal worth
Brought up, through endangered species status on the planet Earth
Survival tactics means, bustin gats to prove you hard
Your firearms are too short to box with God
Without faith, all of that is illusionary
Raise my son, no vindication of manhood necessary

[M.D.] Not strong
[T.K.] Only aggressive
[M.D.] Not free
[T.K.] We only licensed
[M.D.] Not compassioniate, only polite
[T.K.] Now who the nicest?
[M.D.] Not good but well behaved
[T.K.] Chasin after death
so we can call ourselves brave?
[M.D.] Still livin like mental slaves
[both] Hidin like thieves in the night from life
Illusions of oasis makin you look twice
[both] Hidin like thieves in the night from life
Illusions of oasis makin you look twice

[Mos Def]
Yo, I'm sure that everbody out listenin agree
That everything you see ain't really how it be
A lot of jokers out runnin in place, chasin the style
Be a lot goin on beneath the empty smile
Most cats in my area be lovin the hysteria
Synthesized surface conceals the interior
America, land of opportunity, mirages and camoflauges
More than usually -- speakin loudly, sayin nothin
You confusin me, you losin me
Your game is twisted, want me enlisted -- in your usary
Foolishly, most men join the ranks cluelessly
Buffoonishly accept the deception, believe the perception
Reflection rarely seen across the surface of the lookin glass
Walkin the street, wonderin who they be lookin past
Lookin gassed with them imported designer shades on
Stars shine bright, but the light -- rarely stays on
Same song, just remixed, different arrangement
Put you on a yacht but they won't call it a slaveship
Strangeness, you don't control this, you barely hold this
Screamin brand new, when they just sanitized the old shit
Suppose it's, just another clever Jedi mind trick
That they been runnin across stars through all the time with
I find it's distressin, there's never no in-between
We either niggaz or Kings
We either bitches or Queens
The deadly ritual seems immersed, in the perverse
Full of short attention spans, short tempers, and short skirts
Long barrel automatics released in short bursts
The length of black life is treated with short worth
Get yours first, them other niggaz secondary
That type of illin that be fillin up the cemetary
This life is temporary but the soul is eternal
Separate the real from the lie, let me learn you
Not strong, only aggressive, cause the power ain't directed
That's why, we are subjected to the will of the oppressive
Not free, we only licensed
Not live, we just excitin
Cause the captors.. own the masters.. to what we writin
Not compassionate, only polite, we well trained
Our sincerity's rehearsed in stage, it's just a game
Not good, but well behaved cause the ca-me-ra survey
most of the things that we think, do, or say
We chasin after death just to call ourselves brave
But everyday, next man meet with the grave
I give a damn if any fan recall my legacy
I'm tryin to live life in the sight of God's memory
Like that y'all

[Mos Def]
A lot of people don't understand the true criteria of things
Can't just accept the appearance
Have to get the true essence

[Talib Kweli]
They ain't lookin around

[M.D.] Not strong
[T.K.] Only aggressive
[M.D.] Not free
[T.K.] We only licensed
[M.D.] Not compassioniate, only polite
[T.K.] Now who the nicest?
[M.D.] Not good but well behaved
[T.K.] Chasin after death
so we can call ourselves brave?
[M.D.] Still livin like mental slaves
[both] Hidin like thieves in the night from life
Illusions of oasis makin you look twice
[both] Hidin like thieves in the night from life
Illusions of oasis makin you look twice
[both] Hidin like thieves in the night from life
Illusions of oasis makin you look twice
[both] Hidin like thieves in the night from life
Illusions of oasis makin you look twice

[Mos Def (singing)]
Stop hidin, stop hidin, stop hidin yo' face
Stop hidin, stop hidin, cause ain't no hidin place
* repeat 2X*

(Ad libs to fade)

[Talib Kweli]
Yo, we been through this before right? (Word, word...) So we
figurin', if we gonna do it, we gotta freak it, y'know what I'm sayin?
(True, true, true...) Cuz everything gotta go up from here, right?
So Hi-Tek, turn it up a notch...


[Jane Doe]
Hail Mary, 'matta fact hail Jane
Niggaz take my name in vain/vein like I was cocaine
My affirmations kill emcees like assasination
Bringin' you pain until you wish you had a vaccination
Or vaccine, I shine like Vaseline
Gas plays like petroleum, walk over them like linoleum
My vocab expand like a rubber band
Walkin' nekkid through the motherland, give the finger to my brotherman
Niggaz just don't understand my reasons, I transcend like season
And scar these rappers like legion
It's treason, my suspension attract attention
I'm ventin', givin' these chickenheads detention
Did I mention my name, yo, go by the Jane Doe
Drenched in Polo, chill downtown in Soho
You don't know, this is just half my potential
Check my credentials, come harder than sequential
It's essential, you listen, I drive, you a pedestrian
They bless me on the track cuz I attack wit' the estrogen
Rhyme against the best a men, Jane burn it up
When you hear it in the whip, tell your man to turn it up!

[Wordsworth]
Yo...get it...yo
Yo, we fortified live, supportin' allies
The wack is tryin' to shorten our lives, it sorta waters my eyes
But here is some'n the cryin' talk about
The verse on that cassette you and cousin fought about
That led to God and Satan's fallin' out
Encourage the liquor for those who ain't here that you pourin' out
On 3-way, your parents, preacher and spouse called my house
Revive or ruin, my theories of mics
Sony or Aiwa, black or white, I fit in all stereotypes
Search for a cast to plot, I make you a laughin' stock
So shook, I could walk a half a block and feel the aftershocks
Rain of acid drops, seek some help
Now don't rewind, get it the first time,
Shouldn't have to repeat myself
Eternally verbally, I have numbers, succumb to time outs
In rhyme bouts you'll dial 9, just to get a line out
Known fact or factors and non-rappers fractured
Results in more cast appearances than a hundred actors
Emcees I'm testin' like diseases injected in gerbils
Wordsworth, Kweli, Hi-Tek, Reflection Eternal..what...

[Talib Kweli]
My style high life like Fonz when I burn heads like a conk
Cuz niggaz front, when their chances get slim like Pharoahe Monch
Thinkin' they shits is heavy when they light like ilumination
Intellectual masturbation with premature ejaculation
I'm comin' cleaner than vaccinations
My fascination with character assassination,
Got these niggaz burnin' like sensation
We keep it hot like matches and on lock like latches
Wack emcees get they microphones snatched like Lee patches
So YOU GO! To every wack muthafucka that you know (Scram...)
My lyrics they get up in your genes/jeans like Parasucos
So there's no mystery about the father, niggaz is hot and bothered
Like the bitches that they are, takin' pictures with stars
And got 'em open, but after they little hopes and dreams get broken
Me and Hi-Tek, we live long and prosper like Vulcans
Think I'm jokin'? We both got sons, we make cream and break dreams
See through the fake schemes, wipin' your slate clean
Like a squeegee, we be lightin' shit up like phosphorus
Turnin' flamboyant niggaz anonymous, depressin' to optimus
You stoppin' us is preposterous, like an androgenous masohganist
You pickin' the wrong time, steppin' to me when I'm in my prime like Optimus
Transformin', from rookie of the year to veteran
Hip-hop is big business like Con Edison or medicine
But fuck it, they gonna let us in, or else we rush the door
I got to many reasons, save your 'whys' and 'what fors'

CHORUS:
[Kweli] This is twice inna lifetime so I'm lettin' you know (let 'em know,
yo!)
Blackstar, Wordsorth, Punchline and Jane Doe (yo!)
[Mos] Lyrical com-pete and WE emcee
We got the fortified five, exhibit level degree

[Punchline]
Check it...
I keep dough in my pocket while you follow the false prophet
Get deep like Islamics wrapped in a white garment
I touch topics that try to open up your optics
Vacate in the Tropics, you dodgin' bullets in the projects
Cut the nonsense, I'm hotter than alot a men
Start honorin', got more wifeys than Solomon
Fuck the squad you in, a-yo we be the biddomb
Regardless what I spit on, you worse with the tracks I shit on
Once you get on, it's fair you can't trust (Yes!)
Words & Punch, make rappers march like the third month
I build with friends, lyrically spit gems
Call me diamond, cuz I'm your girl's best friend
Emcees are born losers, alcoholic abusers
I'll go on the radio and start a gay rumor
And then I'll talk about how the crowd tried to boo ya
Label shoot ya, stressed out with brain tumors
My gat claps, 50% of the wack
Take it back to real rap, Krylons wit' the fat cap
Get robbed for your ASCAP, leave you inside
Fortified live, reppin' NY 'til I die!

[Mos Def]
Black body radiation situation that we workin' wit'
My verb exists enlisted by the bogeys campin' services
The purpose is, make you go and purchase this, no nervousness
We are, hot like black tar, Black Star with emergerence
Superlative, you fabricated like the word absurditive
I'm rockin this from here to where the purges live
To Brooklyn where the merchants live
Next door to the murderers
And bourbon is a elder man's medicinal alternative
My memory is furnished with, back streets to back seats to fat Jeeps
Legendary athletes who play by the trash heap
My crew wasn't that deep, but beef we didn't act sweet
Treadin' on these stompin grounds you better catch some black feet
Flashy, it was between DeKalb and Pulasky
Off the meter like an out of borough taxi
They run your pockets fastly, black and nasty, nappy and crafty
And SWAT are either sittin' in Clinton or Kaksaki
Man Rudolph can screw off! You too soft to stop us
You and your coppers should see some foot doctors
Got your burnt chest popped up, but keep your guns cocked up
Cuz all them cats that you knocked up and always gon' be locked up
Hide yaself like Donna Summer, another number one
And comin' from the underground, this is how it's comin' down
Baby let me run it down,
Mos Def, Talib Kweli, Jane Doe, Punch, Wor.. umm..E!
Excuse me! Just ate another emcee!
Sometimes that's just how it be
Partner wash you down with green tea and some lime
We like the five on the fist, fortified organized like DIS!