I had to travel light speed to dodge that black cloud
Rainin’ on my parade.
Sun shinin’ but there ain’t enough shade.
Blu, “Seasons,” Video, 2010
RapQuote.com
Daily rap quotes about life, love and wisdom.
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It’s not about a salary, it’s all about reality.
KRS-One, “My Philosophy,” from Boogie Down Productions’ By All Means Necessary, 1988 -
Damn it feels good to see people up on it.
Biz Markie, “The Vapors,” Goin’ Off, 1988 -
(Peace!) Piece of what?
You can’t mean P-E-A-C-E
Cause I’ve seen people on the streets
Shoot the next man and turn around and say ‘peace.’
But that’s leaving people in pieces
It’s not what the meaning of peace is.Large Professor, “Peace Is Not the Word to Play,” Main Source’s Breaking Atoms, 1994 -
You can’t take the heat, get ya ass out the kitchen
Matter fact, take ya ass back in there and wash the dishesRoyce Da 5’9", “Deadly Melody,” from Black Milk’s Album of the Year, 2010 -
I have a strong point of view on the way things run:
Just shut up, and listen, and learn, my son.Erick Sermon, “You’re a Customer,” from EPMD’s Strictly Business, 1988
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I rolls two spliffs, so now I guess I’m double jointed
Das EFX, “Undaground Rappa,” Straight Up Sewaside, 1993 -
I smoke the holy herb, get high as hell and meditate.
Swear to God, shit’s so good…fat boy’ll levitate.
God’s gift to man, how the fuck they try to legislate?
Mom’s, she recovering, tell me I overmedicate.
I tell her, “Holy fuck, Jesus Christ, give me a fucking break!”
She said, “Don’t curse your mama, goddammit,” and threw a dinner plate.Killer Mike, “Oh Mama,” from Run the Jewel’s RTJ3, 2016
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Too much weak talk, and not enough real hip-hop.
Guru, “Watch What You Say,” Jazzmatazz Volume 2: The New Reality, 1995
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Allah Be a Born, Cee Divine, Equality,
Father, then after that, there’s the G-O-D.
He or Her, I Islam, then Justice,
King of Kingdom, Love, Hell or Right, we still exist.
Master, Now in Cypher, Power’s the Queen,
Rule of Rulers, Self of Save, the Truth of the square, the same.
Universe, Victory, Wisdom, Unknown,
Why, Zig Zag Zig…and now we’re back home.GZA, “Alphabets,” Pro Tools, 2008
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Back in ’86, Rakim hit “The Melody.”
Ever since then, shit jumped off steadily.Prime Minister Pete Nice, “The Rhapsody,” from Prime Minister Pete Nice & Daddy Rich’s Dust to Dust, 1993
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Some type of grief you must experience
In order to appreciate happiness.
‘Cause if you are always satisfied,
Life will just pass by; you would’ve never tried.MC Lyte, “Search 4 The Lyte,” Act Like You Know, 1991
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Now, harmony is a total love of things
For those who are inclined or better yet like to sing.
But piece of mind it is my right for the spark will ignite
Till I can catch a cab at the town at midnight,
Till I can be myself and not be thought as worse,
Till I can buy a slice from Howard Beach to the ‘Hurst.
Till I can get the pill without fear of eject,
And occupations which I seek I can have if I select.
Now, if I so select and reach out to make touch
How can you say that I ask for too much?Dres, “Black with N.V.,” from Black Sheep’s A Wolf in Sheep’s Clothing, 1991
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It’s time to invent the future, cause there ain’t nobody else
Who can make it happen right, so make it happen for yourself.Mr. Man, “Gravity,” from Da Bush Babees’ Gravity, 1996
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When I look at a human, you can say I’m color blind,
Cause I see them with my eyes but I judge them with my mind.Tony D, “Stop Racism,” Droppin’ Funky Verses, 1991
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People round town talkin’ this and that,
Of how we sound like The R, and our music was wack.
Dropped the album Strictly Business, and you thought we was bold.
Thirty days later…the LP went gold.
So what you sayin?Parrish Smith aka PMD, “So Wat Cha Sayin?,” from EPMD’s Unfinished Business, 1989
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As the jewels jingle from the hot young and single little stunt,
A forty and a blunt…that’s all she really wants.
But she’ll spend your papes, and she’ll use up all your plastic.
And if you swing an ep, you’d better wear a prophylactic
Cause things are getting drastic…
Slide up in the wrong one, you’ll end up in a casket.Grand Puba, “Slow Down,” from Brand Nubian’s One For All, 1990
1990, aids, Brand Nubian, east coast, girls, grand puba, jewelry, money, new york, one for all, safe sex, sex -
There’s divinity within because we come from the divine,
A force that’s not seen, but you feel it every time:
When the wind blows, and the world turns,
And the rain drops, and the baby cries,
And the bird flies, and the ground quake,
And the stars gleam.Q-Tip, “The Remedy,” from Get on the Bus Soundtrack, 1996
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How you gonna win when you ain’t right within?
Lauryn Hill, “Doo Wop (That Thing),” The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill, 1998
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Now he from the BX, but he really soft,
And he from BK, but his guns don’t go off.
He from cop-killer Queens, but he still getting robbed,
And he from money-makin, but he ain’t on his job.
Now he from LA, but he’s scared to bang,
And he from Texas, but he will do the damn thing.
He’d stay in VA, but he is scared of the streets,
And he’s from Chi, but he’s sweet as a peach.Keith Murray, “They Tell Me,” from EPMD’s We Mean Business, 2008
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Was crazy poor, now I’m tryna get mad rich;
With a good girl…you couldn’t tell, cause she’s a bad bitch.Ka, “Chamber,” Grief Pedigree, 2012
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Thanks to Reaganomics, prisons turned to profits,
Cause free labor is the cornerstone of US economics.
Slavery was abolished, unless you are in prison,
You think I am bullshitting? Then read the 13th Amendment.
Involuntary servitude and slavery it prohibits,
That’s why they giving drug offenders time in double digits.Killer Mike, “Reagan,” R.A.P. Music, 2012
13th amendment, 2012, ATL, atlanta, drugs, el-p, killer mike, prison, R.A.P. Music, ronald reagan, slavery, South, truth, usa -
Reality’s really the individual’s mentality;
Some seek eternal life, while others seek fatality.Juju, “Peace Akki,” from Al’ Tariq’s God Connections, 1996
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To increase your life line, strengthen your heart.
Eat fish…that brain food will get you smart.
Yoga…deep meditational tactics,
You no good? Then just practice, cause practice makes perfect.
Stop burying your lies, and bring the truth to the surface.Ghostface Killah, “Food,” from BADBADNOTGOOD & Ghostface Killah’s Sour Soul, 2015
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Christmas is over and this is my resolution:
To stop the confusion.
Let the fresh get fresh, and the stale get staler
And throw em in a pail of
Trash…with the other trash, and smash down the lid,
For all the weak shit they did.Special Ed, “Ready 2 Attack,” Legal, 1990
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Well I’m a sire, I set the microphone on fire,
Rap styles vary…and carry like Mariah.Inspectah Deck, “Da Mystery of Chessboxin’,” from Wu-Tang Clan’s Enter the Wu-Tang (36 Chambers), 1993
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You say I’m rehabilitated but I still can’t vote
You say I paid my debt but I still can’t vote
Gotta pay taxes but I still can’t vote
Come on dawg, y’all stay trying to keep a nigga broke.DMX, “Innocent Man,” from Mark Morrison’s Innocent Man, 2006
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It was the night before New Year’s
And all through the fuckin’ projects
Not a handgun was silent, not even a Tec.GZA, “Cold World,” Liquid Swords, 1995
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My nationality’s reality.
And, yo: a prejudiced man is of a devil mentality.Kool G. Rap, “Erase Racism,” from Kool G. Rap & DJ Polo’s Wanted: Dead Or Alive, 1990
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Now what’s the problem?
You ain’t nothin’ like you said on your album.
I thought you was wildin’,
Bustin’ your guns and runnin’ the Island.
You wasn’t violent, you was silent tryin’ to get college credits.
How pathetic…did it to get out of calisthenics.Big Pun, “Drop It Heavy,” from Show & A.G.’s Full Scale EP, 1998
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It’s deep-rooted, the music of being young and dumb,
It’s never muted, in fact, it’s much louder where I’m from.Kendrick Lamar, “Sherane a.k.a. Master Splinter’s Daughter,” good kid, m.A.A.d city, 2012
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…That’s when you start to stare at who’s in the mirror,
And see yourself as a kid again, and you get embarrassed.
And I got nothin’ to do but make you look stupid as parents,
You fuckin’ do-gooders; too bad you couldn’t do good at marriage!Eminem, “Renegade,” from Jay-Z’s The Blueprint, 2001
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Rhymes are dynamic, voice is titanic,
Gigantic…suckers get frantic, and then panic.
A smooth talker, ‘cause I’m a Queens New Yorker,
My rhymes bring more Good Times than Jimmie Walker.Kool G. Rap, “Bad to the Bone,” from Kool G. Rap & DJ Polo’s Wanted: Dead or Alive, 1990
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ABCDEFGHIJKLMNOPQRSTUVWXYZ
Your whole alphabet in four seconds.
Now rewind it, play it again, and check it:
It’s correct. Well, what do you expect?
My mental capabilities are too high-tech!King Sun, “It’s a Heat Up,” XL, 1989
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It’s only human to express the way you really feel,
But that same humanity is my Achilles’ heel.
A leopard can’t change his spots and never will;
So I’m forever ill…now I can never chill.– Black Thought, “I Remember,” from The Roots’ undun, 2011
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I start to think, and then I sink
Into the paper…like I was ink.
When I’m writing I’m trapped in between the lines,
I escape when I finish the rhyme…
I got soul.Rakim, “I Know I Got Soul”, Paid in Full, 1987
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He’s fallin’ apart, but we deny it,
Justifying that half-ass shit he dropped, we always buy it.
When he tell us he a genius, but it’s clearer lately
It’s been hard for him to look into the mirror lately.
There was a time when this nigga was my hero, maybe,
That’s the reason why his fall from grace is hard to take.
‘Cause I believed him when he said his shit was purer and he
The type of nigga swear he real, but all around him’s fake:
The women, the dickriders, you know, the yes men,
Nobody with the balls to say somethin’ to contest him.
So he grows out of control,
Into the person that he truly was all along, it’s startin’ to show.
Damn, wonder what happened?
Maybe it’s my fault for idolizing niggas
Based off the words they be rappin’.J. Cole, “False Prophets,” Dreamville, 2016
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I’m expressin’ with my full capabilities,
And now I’m livin in correctional facilities.
Cause some don’t agree with how I do this,
I get straight and meditate like a Buddhist.Dr. Dre, “Express Yourself,” from N.W.A.’s Straight Outta Compton, 1988
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We love it where we from, but we kick it where we at.
Ladybug Mecca, “It’s Good to Be Here,” from Digable Planets’ Reachin’ (A New Refutation of Time and Space), 1993
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Flawless victory, you niggas can’t do shit to me:
Physically, lyrically, hypothetically, realistically.– Big Pun, “Beware,” Capital Punishment, 1998
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Save the temptation, money, keep the limos;
Cause that’s not hip-hop, that’s a fashion show.– PMD, “Shadē Business,” Shadē Business, 1994
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Got a freaky, freaky, freaky-freaky flow,
Control the mic like Fidel Castro.– Jeru Tha Damaja, “Come Clean,” The Sun Rises in the East, 1994
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It seems we living the American Dream,
But the people highest up got the lowest self-esteem.
The prettiest people do the ugliest things
For the road to riches and diamond rings. -
Let me break it down for you again,
You know I only say it because I’m truly genuine:
Don’t be a hard rock when you really are a gem.Lauryn Hill, “Doo Wop (That Thing),” The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill, 1998
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I’d rather stimulate your mind than emulate your purpose.
– Aceyalone, “The Guidelines,” A Book of Human Language, 1998
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Penny for your thoughts, a nickel for your dreams
A dime for your goals and a quarter in your jeans
Trying to make a dollar outta forty-one cents
Caught up in the barbed wire, shorty on the fence– Masta Ace, “Young Black Intelligent (Y.B.I.),” The Falling Season, 2016
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Rap is an art, you can’t own no loops.
It’s how you hook ‘em up and the rhyme style, troop.
So don’t even think you could say someone bit
Off your weak beat, come on, you need to quit.Guru, “Take it Personal,” from Gang Starr’s Daily Operation, 1992
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Rip every stage with grace, look right dead in they face,
Live the Tribe principle of havin’ impeccable taste.
Enjoy that breath like that one was your last one left,
If you don’t believe me, there’s truly life after death.– Q-Tip, “Black Spasmodic,” from A Tribe Called Quest’s We Got It from Here…Thank You 4 Your Service, 2016
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Funny what seven days can change…
It was all good just a week ago.Jay-Z, “A Week Ago,” Vol. 2…Hard Knock Life, 1998
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You need to smile a lil’ bit, frown a lil’ less.
Read a couple of books, and then smoke a lil’ sess.
Get your mind right, but don’t OD,
Cause overdoin’ it ain’t doin’ it with quality.– Posdnuous of De La Soul, “Smile a Lil Bit,” from Oh No’s Exodus Into Unheard Rhythms, 2006
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And we started off as kids, stomachs’ touching our ribs,
In them streets all night like we ain’t have nowhere to live.– Meek Mill, “Cold Hearted,” Dreams Worth More Than Money, 2015
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I lost my innocence at birth but I make no excuses
For the trivial things and the pain life induces.– B-Real, “Bitter,” from Cypress Hill’s Stoned Raiders, 2001
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Life is love, heartache and strain,
Yet the strength to overcome it all keeps me sane.OC, “Gotta Luv It,” from Ray West and OC’s Ray’s Café, 2014
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I rap about the Presidential Election and the scandal
that followed;
And we all watched the nation, as it swallowed
And chalked it up…basically, America, you got fucked.
The media shucked and jived, now we stuck.– Big Boi, “War,” from OutKast’s Speakerboxxx, 2003
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I’m not the one to kiss ass for the top position,
I take mine off the top like a politician.
Where I’m from, doin dirt is a part of livin…
I got mouths to feed, I gots to get it.– Dead Prez, “Hell Yeah (Pimp the System),” RBG: Revolutionary But Gangsta, 2004
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You can’t raise a man if you ain’t one yourself,
Getting all your cred from the gun on your belt.– Troy Ave, “Drug Game,” Roland Collins, 2016
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We staring in the face of hate again…
The same hate they say will “Make America Great Again.”
No consolation prize for the dehumanized,
For America to rise, it’s a matter of Black Lives.– Common, “Letter to the Free,” Black America Again, 2016
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I bomb atomically, Socrates’ philosophies and hypotheses
Can’t define how I be dropping these mockeries.
Lyrically perform armed robbery,
Flee with the lottery, possibly they spotted me…– Inspectah Deck, “Triumph,” from Wu-Tang Clan’s Wu-Tang Forever, 1997
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Survive the droughts? I wish you well.
How sick am I? I wish you health.
I wish you wheels, I wish you wealth,
I wish you insight so you could see for yourself.– Jay-Z, “American Dreamin,” American Gangster, 2007
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God, money, war…
If heaven free, what we kill for money for?
They say, “When it rains it pours,” but it rain on the poor;
So you ain’t really rich if what’s rich ain’t in your core.– King Los, “God Money War,” God, Money, War, 2015
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Not to sound cynical, but all you ever learn in prison is how to be a better criminal.
– Ras Kass, “Shine,” 12″, 2005
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I’m like a major threat:
Cause I remind you of the things you were made to forget.– 2Pac, “Holler If Ya Hear Me,” Strictly 4 My N.I.G.G.A.Z., 1993
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Sippin’ on that brown stuff
Got you feeling like you found love,
Or maybe it was just luck.
But honestly…it’s probably none of the above.– Slug, “Arthur’s Song” from Atmosphere’s Southsiders, 2014.
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Truth brings light, light refracts off the mirror,
Visions of yourself and error could never be clearer.
The truth is that you ugly…
Not on the outside, but in the inside.
On the outside, you frontin’ you lovely.– Pharoahe Monch, “The Truth,” Internal Affairs, 1999
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They say I’m so low key, I’m socially awkward,
Only those that really know me are the ones that I talk with.
They smile in the light, hate in the dark,
You call it beef, to me it’s just a fuckin’ walk in the park.– Nas, “I Do It for Hip-Hop,” from Ludacris’ Theater of the Mind, 2008
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Come on, let’s be real:
You only think you can deal.
That’s why i’m holdin’ the steel,
I rock shit to make you feel
Like, damn that looks easy! Maybe I can do it.
So you take a fat beat and put your wack rhymes to it.
And God only knows what can make you pursue it,
For those who can’t dance and clap your hands to it.– Everlast, “No Doubt,” from House of Pain’s Truth Crushed to Earth Will Rise Again, 1996
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Huey, Malcolm and Martin, those are my peers,
They been doin’ niggas like this for over hundreds of years.
Poppin’ us, fear, now it’s time for us to clap back,
But this time we gon’ bust…step the fuck back.– Snoop Dogg, “Revolution,” COOLAID, 2016
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I rob Charlie Brown, Peppermint Patty, Linus and Lucy,
Put coke in the doobie, roll woolies to smoke with Snoopy.
I still remain that dick grabbin’ slacker that spit a loogie,
Cause the toter of the toolie’ll murder you friggin’ Moolie.– Killer Mike, “Nobody Speak,” from DJ Shadow’s The Mountain Will Fall, 2016
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You say Trump don’t kiss ass like a puppet?
‘Cause he runs his campaign with his own cash for the fundin’?
And that’s what you wanted:
A fuckin’ loose cannon who’s blunt with his hand on the button
Who doesn’t have to answer to no one? Great idea!– Eminem, “Campaign Speech,” 2016
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I am a nightmare walking, psychopath talking,
King of my jungle, just a gangster stalking.– Ice-T, “Colors,” from Colors Soundtrack, 1988
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Enunciate well, so that you can tell:
I am not illiterate, no, not even a little bit.– The D.O.C., “It’s Funky Enough,” No One Can Do It Better, 1989
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Microphone checka, swingin’ sword lecture,
Closin’ down the sector, supreme neck protector.– Method Man, “Da Rockwilder,” from Meth and Red’s Blackout, 1999
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They never understood, many people were so slow.
My funky type of rhyme, and my style is pyscho.– Kool Keith, “Raise It Up,” from Ultramagnetic MC’s The Four Horsemen, 1993
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I got bitches in the livin’ room gettin’ it on,
And they ain’t leavin’ till six in the mornin’.– Snoop Dogg, “Gin and Juice,” Doggystyle, 1993
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You need to quit bangin under false pretense,
Cause if it don’t make dollars, it don’t make sense– DJ Quik, “Dollaz + Sense,” Safe + Sound, 1995
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To try and to fail:
The two things I hate.
Succeed, and this rap game:
The two things that’s great.– Jay-Z, “Izzo (H.O.V.A.),” The Blueprint, 2001.
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See my life is like a song, I just don’t know the words,
So as I try to hum along people say that I’m disturbed.
Stare and call me a loon, say I’m singin’ out of tune,
But my musics’ got direction so I know what I’m doin’.
Don’t know where I’m goin’ but I got to keep movin’,
Even if my next step is obscured by the present…
Gotta find the next rung on the stairway to heaven.– MURS, “18 w/a Bullet,” …The End of the Beginning, 2002.
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There’s a certain mystique when I speak that you notice,
‘Cause that’s sort of unique…’cause you know it’s me.
My poetry’s deep, and I’m Stillmatic the way I flow to this beat.
You can’t sit still; it’s like trying to smoke crack and go to sleep.– Eminem, “Love Me,” from 8 Mile Soundtrack, 2002
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Life’s a bitch, who are we to judge each other?
I know I got faults, I ain’t the only muthafucka.– Guru, “No Shame in my Game,” from Gang Starr’s Daily Operation, 1992
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To everyone out there who’s a little different:
I say, “Damn a magazine, these is God’s fingerprints.”
You can call me ugly, but can’t take nothing from me;
I am what I am, doctor, you ain’t gotta love me.
Brother Ali, “Forest Whitaker,” Shadows on the Sun, 2003. -
I will show you all you need to know.
You must hold on to anyone that wants you,
And I will love you through simple and the struggle.
But girl…you got to understand: the modern man must hustle.
Slug, “Modern Man’s Hustle,” from Atmosphere’s God Loves Ugly, 2002. More from Atmosphere… -
I just want to innovate and stimulate minds,
Travel the world and penetrate the times,
Escape through rhythms,
In search of peace and wisdom.
Common, “The 6th Sense,” Like Water for Chocolate, 2000. More from Comm… -
When worse comes to worst, my peoples come first.
Try to react, and get them motherfucking feelings hurt.
Havoc, “Survival of the Fittest,” from Mobb Deep’s The Infamous, 1995. More from the QB duo… -
My crew’s all about loot.
Fuck looking cute,
I’m strictly Timb boots and Army-certified suits.
Puffin L’s, laid back, enjoying the smell,
In the Bridge, getting down…it ain’t hard to tell.
Havoc, “Survival of the Fittest,” from Mobb Deep’s The Infamous, 1995. -
From the bottom of my heart, that’s where the love starts:
The love for breakdancing, my love for the art.
And with this love, I do hip-hop from the soul,
A real MC, who never sweats how many copies are sold.
Yeah, I want to go gold, platinum, et ceteras,
But why put out some wackness when no one will respect ya?
I’m staying true, nuff respect to those that paved the way,
From Bambaata down to Shah (that be my DJ).
Without my peeps, I dont know how the hell I’d make it, word…
Sometimes I feel that my career is headed for the curb.
One love for the lendin’ hand and givin’ all your help,
Believing in me when I didn’t believe in my own self.
The Abstract, with whom I’m always making rugged tunes,
Kid Hood, restin’ in heaven, I hope to see you soon.
Phife Dawg, “Peace, Prosperity, and Paper,” from the High School High soundtrack, 1996. More from the Five Foot Assassin. Rest in power to Malik Taylor, better known as Phife from A Tribe Called Quest. 1970-2016. -
Question: Why is that MC’s be wack
And major labels wanna sign that crap?
A-yo…funk that!Phife Dawg, “One Two Shit,” A Tribe Called Quest’s The Love Movement, 1998. More from Phife. Rest in forever peace, Malik Taylor, the rapper known as Phife Dawg, who died Wednesday at the age of 45. 1970-2016. -
Your whole appearance is a lie and it could never be true.
And if you really loved yourself, then you would try and be you.Phife, “Butter,” from A Tribe Called Quest’s The Low End Theory, 1991. More from Phife. Rest in forever peace, Malik Taylor, the rapper known as Phife Dawg, who died Wednesday at the age of 45. 1970-2016. -
I like ‘em brown, yellow, Puerto Rican or Haitian.
Name is Phife Dawg from the Zulu Nation.Phife, “Electric Relaxation,” from A Tribe Called Quest’s Midnight Marauders, 1993. More from Phife. Rest in forever peace, Malik Taylor, the rapper known as Phife Dawg, who died Wednesday at the age of 45. 1970-2016. -
Used to have a crush on Dawn from En Vogue.
It’s not like honey dip would wanna get with me,
But just in case I own more condoms than TLC.Phife Dawg, “Oh My God,” from A Tribe Called Quest’s Midnight Maruaders, 1993. Rest in forever peace, Malik Taylor, the rapper known as Phife Dawg, who died Wednesday at the age of 45. 1970-2016. -
Shorty thought she subtle but she really was blatant…
When she shook her thing and violated,
Now these wolf-like thoughts are formulated.Q-Tip, “Vivrant Thing,” Amplified, 2000. More from Tip… -
Peace to every single rapper on this whole earth;
Sellouts got no worth…
I think they better go soul search.A.G., “Next Level,” from Show & A.G.’s Goodfellas, 1995 -
Battle physically, conquer mentally.
CL Smooth, “Take You There,” from Pete Rock & CL Smooth’s The Main Ingredient, 1994 -
I’m so def, I need a hearing aid with an equalizer.
Big L, “Yes You May (Remix),” 1992 -
They say, ‘Sorry son, accept it,’ same old song of the subjectors.
Sorry, sirs, but we don’t sing along to anthems or your pledges.
In your garbage rose the rulers of the restless: do not test us.El-P, “Rubble Kings Theme (Dynamite),” from Rubble Kings soundtrack, 2016. More from Run the Jewels… -
We live to love, and we love to rock mics.
We speak in ghetto tongue, cause ghetto’s the life.Doodlebug, “Where I’m From,” from Digable Planets’ Reachin’ (A New Refutation of Time and Space), 1993. More from Digable Planets…