[Verse 1]
I'ma take you back to day one, livin in this New York slum
It's deaf to the dumb, only break bread with some
Moms left at 15, had no American dreams
To this day, I'm sellin to my cousin who's a fiend
No one would got me but my older brother
Little did we know the dirt we did fell back on my mother
But didn't care back then, that's why she left like that
Now my parents became the street, and it's best like that

[Verse 2]
Some nights I pray to God and ask him to pull my cord
Cuz times is hard like the opposite street'll leave you scarred
Street wise with no respect for authority and shit
A chronic hustler of crack, a typical bitch
Raised by madu who strung out on a glass dick
But every now and then I blessed her with a hit
So she don't have to trick
It's prevalent amongst kids today
Hustle krills, stack dough, and everything's okay

HOOK
It's the emancipation proclamation under the self devised guidelines
of self preservation and starvation (I gotta live)
It's the emancipation proclamation under the self devised guidelines
of self preservation and starvation (and I gotta live)

[Verse 3]
My life in this world wasn't about diamonds and pearls
It was rough growin up around the boys and girls
After daddy left, shit was a mess, momma stressed
But I give her an award, cuz damn she tried her best
Holdin down the household, barely had money to fold
Christmas time, cherished our little shit like gold
I can't front, daddy was still there for me, cared for me
But him and mommy breakin up was like a nightmare to me

[Verse 4]
Yo this is for the younger fathers and mothers, sisters and brothers
Success is nothin if it aint if it was with the others
We gotta make the best out of this terrible situation
If not for us, for the younger generation
We gotta break the chain, and deal with the pain
For all our people that was slayed in vain (revenge)
For all our peoples that was falsely framed (revenge)
For all our peoples that's livin the name

HOOK

[Verse 5]
Let me show, I gotta love L.O.D., they put me under the wing
And then I teamed up with the most beautiful thing
In the world, cuz L.O.D. we all we got
I'm a fans and my mans keep it like it or not
I know it hurts, havin to do everyday dirt
Police all over my back, feel like bustin them jerks
When I'm my road to the riches, I stay away from snitches
And them bitches, and keep my mind on business

[Verse 6]
Life was tough so I became aggressive like a pit
The only time I felt relaxed was when the blunt was lit
Thinkin me and my team can be tight like the gambino
Muscle in the hustle scene respected like Leno
It gets deeper than the words of Proverbs
New thoughts emerge, as I cop the squat on the curb
Thinkin the herb strengthen my brain like spinach
And heavy shine, flooded with ice might reduce my self spirts

[Verse 7]
Stick em, my life is so real it hurts
Like when I saw my pops bein driven off in a hearse
Like when I saw my mother bein driven off in a hearse
Like you school when the roach crawl out my shirt
Like on Thanksgiving when we got free food from the church
Back then it was DJ Red Alert and Kool Herc
Rockin been stripe knees and latigra shirts
Back then L.O.D. was puttin in work

From the cradle to the grave
We all in the struggle, we gon struggle, we gon strive to stay alive
All my real people know what I'm talkin about
Watch each other backs