As I walk through the valley
of the shadow of death
I take a look at my life
and realize there's none left
'Cause I've been brassin'1
and laughin' so long that
even my momma thinks
that my mind is gone
But I ain't never crossed a man
that didn't deserve it
Me be treated like a punk,
you know that's unheard of
You better watch how you talkin',
and where you walkin'
or you and your homies
might be lined in chalk
I really hate to trip
but I gotta lope2
As they croak I see myself
in the pistol smoke, fool
I'm the kinda G that
little homies want to be like
On my knees in the night,
saying prayers in the street light
[Chorus:]
They been spending most their lives
living in the gangsta's paradise
They been spending most their lives
living in the gangsta's paradise
We keep spending most our lives
living in the gangsta's paradise
We keep spending most our lives
living in the gangsta's paradise
Look at the situation,
they got me facing
I can't live a normal life,
I was raised by the strip3
So I gotta be down
with the hood team
Too much television watchin'
got me chasing dreams
I'm a educated fool
with money on my mind
Got my ten in my hand
and a gleam in my eye
I'm a loc'd out gangsta,
set trippin' banger
And my homies is down
so don't arouse my anger, fool
Death ain't nothing
but a heart beat away
I'm living life do or die,
what can I say
I'm twenty-three now, but
will I live to see twenty-four?
The way things is going I don't know
Tell me why are we
so blind to see
That the ones we hurt
are you and me.
[Chorus]
Power and the money,
money and the power
Minute after minute,
hour after hour
Everybody's runnin',
but half of them ain't lookin'
what's going on in the kitchen,
but I don't know what's cookin'
They say I've got to learn
but nobody's here to teach me
If they can't understand it,
how can they reach me
I guess they can't
I guess they won't
I guess they front
That's why I know my life is out of luck, fool
[Chorus]
Tell me why are we
so blind to see
That the ones we hurt
are you and me
Tell me why are we
so blind to see
That the ones we hurt
are you and me
1. slang for laughing, according to this source: http://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=brassin%272. to keep a low profile, source: http://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=lope3. I believe the idea is that "I was raised by the street."