[talking/scratching]
Quiet down, quiet down..
Now listen, now listen..
[Verse 1]
Hip Hop!
?? to the bop perputratin' Left Eye
and the .22's, .45's, uzis, techs and 9's
but can you rhyme though?
Cuz niggaz went overboard with straps and just subtract that
most of 'em can barely rap worth jack shiiiit!
We all lick shots wit' unregistered burners
and at one time or another played Ike Turner
Ain't shit to be braggin' for ass backwards actors pack gats for show and tell
So they can sell and certify gold, chart billboard claimin' they killed more niggaz
Underground hardcore. But far more mainstream than Hammer
poppin' trunks, stuffin' pumps
and smokin' blunts sells more records than "Pumps & a Bump"
Violence is a new platinum gimmick
Call it the double cross crossover
A rose by any other name is "Seal"
you claimin' that you "represent the real niggaz life"
but only represent it for a price
Cuz if next week the new fad was hiphop fags
you'd find a lot of hardcore niggaz in DRAG
Shit is bad and we acknowledge this but at a certain point you only perpetuate it
So NEXT TIME you rhyme about physically buckin' somebody
[POW!] instead of "nigga" say "whiteboy"
and see how quick the devil PROTEST it
wanna see yo' ass ARRESTED, your label wouldn't SUGGEST it
They say it's BEST if you stick to killin' niggaz
o some 10-year old can claim he pimps ho's
find his daddy's glock 9 and give his sister a 2 inch hole
between the eyes -- the influence is obvious
Music ain't supposed to be raisin' your kids but in 1995 it is
I know it is -- ?? goes from ghetto to gettin' mo' dough
but silly ass niggaz need to know [need to know]
That before it makes dollars it must make sense
I kick my shit for the core audience
[Chorus]
For the core audience I kick the artform shit [x6]
(Cut of speaker talking)
"We ARE the music industry and we have to take control
You strip the BLOOD of the Black community
and you feel we have now right now to say something about it?!"
[Verse 2]
Now niggaz always reminisce about the old school days in the park
you have to realize hiphop was fucked from the start
When Sugar Hill got major distribution threatned existence
we didn't control our shit once rap became a music business
Music: the art of expression, combinations of tones
Business: the explotation for profit of an artform
Conflict of interest, two seperate entities
Niggaz pretend to be real but still sleeping with the enemy
and not to diss Rick Rubin but who let the jews in?
Our only solution create our own institution
Manufacturing, marketing, production and distribution cuz Blacks are 99% consumers
[For example]
Now "rapper X" got skills his band "producer of the year"
got a distribution deal with "Real Records"
"Real Records" is a subsidiary of "Ruben Tony Inc."
"Ruben Tony" is owned by "Poly/Sony"
"Poly/Sony" distributes to the record store
the record store receives the product from the manufacturer
[but wait there's more]
Now the manufacturer fucks the record store
who was fuckin' "Poly/Sony" who was fuckin' "Ruben Tony"
"Ruben's" robbin' "Real" who's fuckin' "producer of the year"
and "rapper X" is still broke, so who got fucked the most?
The artist creates the market but receives the least profits
it started in the streets but got FUCKED by the office
So that's why I remain anonymous
symbolic of cuttin' out the middle man and keepin' mine autonomous
I'd rather be major on a minor than minor on a major label
I'm willin' and able to put your label on my choppin' table
recycle Black dollars but not go pop and if I flop
at least I stayed true to hip-hop
[Chorus]
Ras Kass, real name John Austin VI, is an American rapper and actor born in Los Angeles, California. Active since 1994, he is known for his energetic performances and complex lyrics that tackle social, political, and personal themes with a strong intellectual component. Considered one of the pioneers of underground rap, he has collaborated with artists such as DJ Premier, Snoop Dogg, and Ice Cube. Some of his most important albums include "Soul on Ice" (1996) and "Van Serk" (2000). Among his most representative tracks are "The World Is Yours", "Bumpy Ride", and "Nature of the Threat".
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