(Talib Kweli) And what the people say? We live it up And what the people want? Please us And what the need? Hey... I got that,
Kweli] I call these rappers baby seals, cause they club you to I could call 'em Navy SEALs, they government feds What become of the vets? They drugged up, they fucked up, they in ain't no love and no respect, it's like a gang it's like a club or a set the new WWF What do you rap or do you wrestle? love to forget We got til it's gone, you you on, you still hustlin backwards Your topical norm a tropical storm, it's a disaster Back to the we on, it all started at Rawkus They couldn't find the to describe me so they resort to the shortcuts Is he a Is he a mad rapper? An or the author of the last chapter We in these times of love and cholera Synonymous the apocalypse, look up the clouds is ominous We got maybe ten left say meteorologists, shit We still for the Congress to acknowledge this~!
[Chorus: Talib Kweli & singers in the What the people want? Please us We wanna live it up, please us Th-th-this is the, is the, this is the hostile gospel I'm reaching through the - please deliver us I'm preaching to the choir - deliver us Just keep it real with us, you to spill your blood Your words rung hollow, we someone to follow
Kweli] You ain't promised tomorrow, so get paper up You can't always just and asks for favors bruh Stand on your own two, never covet thy neighbor's Karma's a bitch so watch your mouth and what you sayin I a conversation based on general observation is not a nation, take it to population Niggaz got a lot to say when inside the belly of Satan Awaitin trial debatin how the hell I got in this system Am I a victim or a product of indoctrination? exploit it and use me like a movie with product placement You hear the congregation; is the hostile gospel The is hard to swallow it'll leave you scarred tomorrow Keep it honest our motto, niggaz keep it bottled I'm the writer who reach the fighters like by Cus D'Amato DJs stickin to vinyl "Fuck Serato" who ride around the block, in the custom models Ballin like the struck the lotto you know who the is A nigga keep it reeich with the stitch and greedy I'm not a hipster, but I flip it like a sneaker Expose the game, treat it a bitch Smack fire out these hoes, they snitch and tap wires while I plead the fifth You trust a soul in the biz, so be careful who you eatin with and sleepin and also who you chiefin with You never they might've added in secret ingredients
[Talib Freedom's a road seldom traveled, watch hell unravel Right before the eyes of the soldier who in battle The mother who raised her daughter to bear the sacred water And not take the hand of every man who a offer To black kids wishin they white kids, when they close they Like, "I bet neighborhood ain't like this" White kids wishin they black kids, and wanna like rappers It's all backwards it's crisis The industry inside us is vipers with fangs trying to us Drug suppliers is the health care We cakin, makin narcotics outta products We workin out 'til we exorcise the demons that's inside us Plus they seem to just us with enough rope to hang ourselves Enough to slang ourselves, enough toast to bang ourselves It's officially nigga season, niggaz is bleedin why I'm spittin freedom we had enough of trigger squeezin
[Outro: In tryin days and times All I need is to be I do it on my own Lord can you me? There are trials to come salvation that I need So I'm to the sky Lord can you me? us... Deliver us, Deliver us, Oh, us us Ohhhhh us yes us, deliver us, deliver us Yeah yeah yeah, ohhhhhhhhhh... [ad to fade]