Envelope please... And the winners are:

**The Message - Grandmaster Flash & The Furious Five

**La-Di-Da-Di - Doug E. Fresh and Slick Rick

Truer poets there have never been. Congrats to Flash, Melle Mell, Cowboy

and the gang and also to Doug E. and MC Ricky D.

And now that the vote counting software here at MP HQ has been updated to

handle double issues, look forward to more in the future.

MP #14 will be along shortly.

--Sean

-----------------------------------------------------------------------

The first MPulitzer prize this week is settled and will be announced soon.

The second MPulitzer prize is a three-way tie. The honorable editors of

Modern Poetry will have to tally the votes manually this week. The vote

counting software used at MP was not set up to handle 3-way ties.

Thanks to everyone who submitted 'Crazy' stuff. Look for your submissions

soon.

RIP PE's 'She Watch Channel Zero' I thought that was a really good one

about the wasteland of TV. I especially liked,

  Yo baby, can't you that's nonsense you watchin'?

  Look, don't nobody look like that,

  Nobody even live that, you know what I'm sayin'? 

  You watchin' garbage, not'in' but garbage.

  Straight up garbage.

  Yo, why don't you just back up from the TV, read a book or som'in.

  Read about yourself, learn your culture, you know what I'm sayin'?

Please submit your preference for one of the following. Notable lines are

listed with. Prizes awarded on Sunday.

--Sean

Sucker M.C.'s - Run-D.M.C.

  You don't even know your english, your verbs or nouns

  You're just a sucker MC, you sad face clown

  So D.M.C. and if you're ready

  The people rockin steady

  You drive a big car and get your gas from Getty

Basketball - Kurtis Blow

  Wilt, Big O, and Jerry West,

  play Basketball at it's very best,

  Basketball has always been my thing,

  I like Magic, Bird, and Bernard King,

La-Di-Da-Di - Doug E. Fresh and Slick Rick

  Clean, dry was my body and hair

  I threw on my brand new Gucci underwear

  For all the girls I might take home

  I got the Johnson's Baby Powder and the Polo cologne

  Fresh dressed like a million bucks

  Threw on the bally shoes and the fly green socks

# 13 #

[7/23/04]

Sucker M.C.'s - Run-D.M.C.

Roxanne, Roxanne - UTFO

She Watch Channel Zero?! - Public Enemy

Dear Yvette - LL Cool J

Basketball - Kurtis Blow

**The Message - Grandmaster Flash & The Furious Five

**La-Di-Da-Di - Doug E. Fresh and Slick Rick

Life is Too $hort - Too $hort

You Gots To Chill - EPMD

Mind Playing Tricks On Me - Geto Boys

**Winner of MPulitzer

This week's edition brought to you by: OHHLA

Yo, check the old-school, embryonic hip hop in this week's

collection of Modern Poetry. Read it, embrace it, meditate on it.

This stuff is like Shakespeare -- stories you've heard a million

times, but yet these stories are timeless.

Stories rarely come from Rock 'n Roll poetry, but they appear often

in hip hop (see La Di Da Di) and Folk music poetry.  This double issue 

is great for summer -- read the extra long edition by the pool or on 

the couch.

And Vote! 

Vote for two since this is a double issue.

Hey, don't miss Jerry West -- he's in one of the songs!

Two MPulitzers will be awarded.

Enjoy the weekend.

--Sean

Sucker M.C.'s - Run-D.M.C.

==================================================

[Run]

Two years ago, a friend of mine

Asked me to say some MC rhymes

So I said this rhyme I'm about to say

The rhyme was Def a-then it went this way

Took a test to become an MC

And Orange Krush became amazed at me

So Larry put me inside, his Cad-illac

The chaffeur drove off and we never came back

Dave cut the record down to the bone

And now they got me rockin on the microphone

And then we talkin autographs, and cheers and laughs

Champagne caviar, and bubble bath

But see ahh, ah that's the life, ah that I lead

And you sucker MC's is who I please

So take that and move back catch a heart attack

Because there's nothin in the world, that Run'll ever lack

I cold chill at a party in a b-boy stance

And rock on the mic and make the girls wanna dance

Fly like a Dove, that come from up above

I'm rockin on the mic and you can call me Run-Love

I got a big long Caddy not like a Seville

And written right on the side it reads 'Dressed to Kill'

So if you see me cruisin girls just a-move or step aside

There ain't enough room to fit you all in my ride

it's on a, ah first come, first serve basis

Coolin out girl, take you to the def places

One of a kind and for your people's delight

And for you sucker MC, you just ain't right

Because you're bitin all your life, you're cheatin on your wife

You're walkin round town like a hoodlum with a knife

You're hangin on the ave, chillin with the crew

And everybody know what you've been through

Ah with the one two three, three to two one

My man Larry Larr, my name DJ Run

We do it in the place with the highs and the bass

I'm rockin to the rhythm won't you watch it on my face

Go Uptown and come down to the ground

You sucker MC's, you sad face clown

You five dollar boy and I'm a million dollar man

Youse a sucker MC, and you're my fan

You try to bite lines, but rhymes are mine

Youse a sucker MC in a pair of Calvin Klein

Comin from the wackest, part of town

Tryin to rap up but you can't get down

You don't even know your english, your verbs or nouns

You're just a sucker MC you sad face clown

So D.M.C. and if you're ready

The people rockin steady

You're drivin big cars get your gas from Getty

[D.M.C.]

I'm D.M.C. in the place to be

I go to St. John's University

And since kinde-garten I acquired the knowledge

And after 12th grade I went straight to college

I'm light skinned, I live in Queens

And I love eatin chicken and collard greens

I dress to kill, I love the style

I'm an MC you know who's versatile

Say I got good credit in your regards

Got my name not numbers on my credit cards

I go Uptown, I come back home

with who me myself and my microphone

All my rhymes are sweet delight

So here's another one for y'all to bite

When I rhyme, I never quit

And if I got a new rhyme I'll just say it

Cause it takes a lot, to entertain

And sucker MC's can be a pain

You can't rock a party with the hip in hop

You gotta let em know you'll never stop

The rhymes have to make (a lot of sense)

You got to know where to start (when the beats commence..)

Roxanne, Roxanne - UTFO

=============================================================

[Kangol] Yo EMD

[EMD] Yeah, what's up man?

[Kangol] There goes that girl they call Roxanne. She's all stuck up

[EMD] Why you say that?

[Kangol]

Cause she wouldn't give a guy like me no rap

She was walking down the street so I said "Hello

I'm Kangol from UTFO." And she said "So?"

And I said "So?!? Baby don't you know?

I can sing, rap, and dance in just one show

Cause I'm Kangol, Mr. Sophisticata

As far as I'm concerned ain't nobody greater

From beginning to end and, to beginning

I never lose because I'm all about winning

But if I were to lose, I wouldn't be upset

Cause I'm not a gambler, I don't bet

I don't be in no casino, and baby while you knizzow

The izzi is the grizzeat Kizzangizzo."

I thought she'd be impress by my devious rap

I thought I had her caught cause I'm a sinister trap

I thought it'd be a piece of cake but it was nothing like that

I guess that's what I get for thinking, ain't that right, black?

Then crizzi to gizzone and seen number izzone

Crizzin ricking tizza of mizzac mic dizza

With the bang bang, brother I feel bad

But I ain't comitting suicide for no crab

But calling her a crab is just a figure of speech

Cause she's an apple, a pear, a plum, and a peach

I thought I had it in the palm of my hand

But man oh man, if I was grand I'd bang Roxanne

Roxanne, Roxanne, can't you understand?

Roxanne, Roxanne, I wanna be your man

[EMD]

You Kango, I don't think that you're dense

Buy you went about the matter with no experience

You should know, she doesn't need a guy like you

She needs a guy like me, with a high IQ

And she'll take to my rap, cause my rap's the best

The educated rapper MD will never fess

So when I met her, I wasted no time

But stuck up Roxanne paid me no mind

She thought my name was Barry, I told her it was Gary

She said she didn't like it so she chose to call me Barry

She said she'd love to marry, my baby she would carry

And if she had a baby, she'd name the baby Harry

Her mother's name is Baby, which is really quite contrary

Her face is really hairy, and you can say it's scary

So isn't not every, her father's a fairy

His job is secondary, in some military

He throws them to an ?electric camp? that wasn't voluntary

His daughter's name is Sherry, his sons are Tom and Jerry

Jerry had the flu but it was only temporary

Back in January, or was it February?

But everytime I say this rhyme it makes me kinda weary

It's only customary to give this commentary

Some say it's bad, some say it's legendary

You can search all you want, try your local library

You'll never find a rhyme like this in any dictionary

But do you know, after all that

All I received was a pat on the back

That's what you get, it happened to me

Ain't that right Mixmaster I-C-E

Roxanne, Roxanne, can't you understand?

Roxanne, Roxanne, I wanna be your man

[Kangol]

You thought you had a rose, you thought you was Cupid

But EMD, your rap was plain stupid

I know you're educated, but when will you learn?

Not all girls want to be involved with bookworms

You gotta be strong in a way she can't resist

So educated rapper, huh, bust this...

Since she's a new girl on the block

I had to let her know that I'm the debonair Doc

I said "I'd like to speak to you if I can

And if I'm correct your name is Roxanne."

She said "How'd you know my name?" I said "It's getting around.

Right now baby you're the talk of the town

Please let me walk you to the corner, my rap will be brief."

She said "I've seen you before, you look like a thief."

I said "Me? The Doc? A hood, a rock?

Running around the street robbing people on the block?

Nah, that's not my style, that crime I'm not related

As far as I'm concerned I'm too sophisticated."

Then it seemed I got busy cause she cracked a smile

That let me know my rap was worth her while

She said "You call yourself a doctor?" I said "This is true."

She said "Explain to me really what doctors must do."

I said "This is very rare because I don't say this every day

There's a million medical skills a doctor displays

Dermatology is treatment of the skin

Infected and you'll see me and you'll know you're again

There's anesthesiology, ophthalmology

Internal medicine and plastic surgery

Orthopedic surgery and pathology

A disease involves a change of the body."

She said "Ooooh, that's very unique."

Gave me her number and kissed me on the cheek

She said she had to go but be back by 8

So to call her at 9 to arrange a date

[EMD] Did you take her to the beach?

[Kangol] That's what we planned

But she stood me up, Roxanne, Roxanne

Roxanne, Roxanne, can't you understand?

Roxanne, Roxanne, I wanna be your man

[Kangol] And here's our gameplan

[EMD] The beat is here, so we will reveal it

[Kangol & EMD] And if you think it's soft, then Roxanne feel it!

[beat boxing and scratching]

She Watch Channel Zero?! - Public Enemy

===============================================================

[Flavor Flav:] You're blind, baby.  

You're blind from the facts on who you are, 'cause you're watchin' that garbage.

The woman makes the men all pause

And if you got a woman

She might make you forget yours

There's a 5 letter word

To describe her character

But her brains being washed by an actor

And every real man that tries to approach

Come the closer he comes

He gets dissed like a roach

I don't think I can handle

She goes channel to channel

Cold lookin' for that hero

She watch channel zero

[Flavor Flav:] Yo baby, you got to cut that garbage off. Yo! I wanna watch

the game. What're you doin'?  Hey yo, lemme tell you a little som'in: I'm

'a take all your soaps, an' then I'm gonna hang 'em on a rope. You know what

I'm sayin'? 'Cause that garbage your watchin' don't make no sense. Hey yo,

lemme tell you a little som'in baby: I'm 'a take your set an' I'm 'a throw it

out the window. G's.

2, 7, 5, 4, 8 she watched she said

All added up to zero

And nothing in her head

She turns and turns

And she hopes the soaps

Are for real - she learns

That it ain't true, nope

But she won't survive

And rather die in a lie

Falls a fool - for some dude - on a tube

I don't think I can handle

She goes channel to channel

Cold lookin' for that hero

She watch channel zero

[Flavor Flav:] Yo baby, you think I'm jokin'? Do it look like I'm jokin'?

I ain't jokin', word up, baby. Yo, cut that garbage off now. Yo, I got the

Tyson fight on, you know what I'm sayin'? Yo, so you can't be comin' in

here stackin' {aid} like that, you know what I'm sayin'? Yo, we gettin' ready to

watch the Super Bowl, we got a black quarterback, so step back.

Trouble vision for a sister

'Cause I know she don't know, I quote

Her brains retrained

By a 24 inch remote

Revolution a solution

For all of our children

But her children

Don't mean as much as the show, I mean

Watch her worship the screen, and fiend

For a TV ad

And it just makes me mad

I don't think I can handle

She goes channel to channel

Cold lookin' for that hero

She watch channel zero

[Flavor Flav:] Yo baby, can't you that's nonsense you watchin'? Look, don't

nobody look like that, nobody even live that, you know what I'm sayin'? You

watchin' garbage, not'in' but garbage. Straight up garbage. Yo, why don't

you just back up from the TV, read a book or som'in. Read about yourself,

learn your culture, you know what I'm sayin'?

Dear Yvette - LL Cool J

==========================================================

Yo Yvette, there's a lot of rumours goin' around

They're so bad, baby you might have to skip town

See something's smellin' fishy and they say it's you

All I know is that you made it with the whole damn crew

They say you're a man-eater during the full moon

Mascot of the senior boys' locker room

They said Yvette walked in, there wasn't too much rap

Her reputation got bigger, and so did her gap

Cuz girl your momma shoulda taught you better

I'mma sit down and write you a long letter.

Dear Yvette x4

I'm glad you ain't my sister, then again if you was

I'd have to treat you like you was my distant cuz

I'm not a news reporter, I don't mean to assume

What should I think? I seen ya comin' out the men's bathroom

You wasn't in there alone, wasn't usin' the phone

The door was locked for twenty minutes, all I heard was moans.

Dear Yvette x4

I don't really know if the story is so

I can either ask Curly, or Larry or Moe

or Earl, Shabazz, Lou, Mookie or Joe

Like Santa Claus said, you're a ho-ho-ho

In every disco you say hello

Like you're a little angel, but we all know

Since you was eleven you been actin' this way

You always got in bed when you wanted to play

You're a freak, you think you're Lady Godiva

Some freaks are live, but Yvette you're liver.

Dear Yvette x4

You're a back-seat queen, a elevator pro

A high-powered body makes your Levis grow

See the stories I've heard, they could amaze

I heard she did it on a motorcycle back in the days

So calm down freak, get a G.E.D.

That's a General Education on Decency

One day you'll see, and agree with me

unless you're gonna be a freak until you're 93

For you there's no fee, everything is free

This is from me to you, not you to me

Every night is your night, your leather pants are tight

You try to shake your butt with all your might

I don't really wanna dis nobody

You might think I had a little too much Bacardi

But that's not the problem, the problem's Yvette

How bad can a girl's reputation get?

See she's the kinda girl all the homeboys met

If you're desparate ask Yvette, cuz she'll say "Bet".

Dear Yvette x4

B-Boys are hard on the boulevard

The Reverend at the church said you was barred

Homeboys on the block love you a lot

You're a real famous freak whether you like it or not

So before you start walking and your beak starts squawkin'

let me explain to you who is talkin'

I'm L.L. Cool J from around the way

You boogie down to my records almost every day

Go a hundred miles an hour when you're standin' still

You're faster than my Caddy when it's goin' downhill

Won't forget that day in the Y.M.C.A.

The guy at the desk said it was OK

for you to come inside cuz he knew you'd stay

Greg G. and Garfield yelled "Hooray"

Dear Yvette x2

Basketball - Kurtis Blow

=========================================================================

They're playing Basketball,

We love that Basketball,

They're playing Basketball,

We love that Basketball

(Now rapping Basketball, Number 1, Kurtis Blow)

Basketball is my favorite sport,

I like the way they dribble up and down the court,

Just like I'm the King on the microphone, so is Dr. J and Moses Malone,

I like Slam-dunks, take me to the hoop,

My favorite play is the alley-oop,

I like the pick-and-roll, I like the give-and-go,

Cause it's Basketball, uh, Mister Kurtis Blow,

They're playing Basketball,

We love that Basketball,

They're playing Basketball,

We love that Basketball

I used to go to dinner, and then take the girl,

To see Tiny play against Earl The Pearl,

And Wilt, Big O, and Jerry West,

To play Basketball at it's very best,

Basketball has always been my thing,

I like Magic, Bird, and Bernard King,

And number 33, my man Kareem,

Is the center on my starting team,

(To the hoop, ya'll, Watch out, Watch out

In yo' face, now here comes the rest)

Clyde, Rick Barry, and Pistol Pete,

Now these players, could never be beat,

Isiah, and Iceman too,

Just give 'em the ball, and then you chalk up two,

Dantley and Wilkins are on the scene,

And Ralph Sampson is really mean,

Bill Russell didn't take no junk,

and Darryl Dawkins got a monster dunk,

Tell me, were you in the joint?,

The night Wilt scored 100 points,

Or when Celtics won titles back-to-back,

And didn't give nobody, no kind of slack,

Or when Dr. J shook the whole damn team,

With moves that came right out of a dream,

Or when, Willis Reed stood so tall,

Playing D with desire, it's Basketball,

They're playing Basketball,

We love that Basketball,

They're playing Basketball,

We love that Basketball

The Message - Grandmaster Flash & The Furious Five

===================================================

Broken glass everywhere

People pissing on the stairs, you know they just Don’t care

I can’t take the smell, I can’t take the noise

Got no money to move out, I guess I got no choice

Rats in the front room, roaches in the back

Junkie’s in the alley with a baseball bat

I tried to get away, but I couldn’t get far

Cause the man with the tow-truck repossessed my car

Don’t push me, cause I’m close to the edge

I’m trying not to loose my head

It’s like a jungle sometimes, it makes me wonder

How I keep from going under

Standing on the front stoop, hangin’ out the window

Crazy lady, livin’ in a bag

Eating out of garbage piles, used to be a fag-hag

Search and test a tango, skips the life and then go

To search a prince to see the last of senses

Down at the peepshow, watching all the creeps

So she can tell the stories to the girls back home

She went to the city and got so so so ditty

She had to get a pimp, she couldn’t make it on her own

It’s like a jungle sometimes, it makes me wonder

How I keep from goin’ under

My brother’s doing fast on my mother’s t.v.

Says she watches to much, is just not healthy

All my children in the daytime, dallas at night

Can’t even see the game or the sugar ray fight

Bill collectors they ring my phone

And scare my wife when I’m not home

Got a bum education, double-digit inflation

Can’t take the train to the job, 

there’s a strike at the station

Me own king kong standin’ on my back

Can’t stop to turn around, broke my sacrodiliac

Midrange, migraine, cancered membrane

Sometimes I think I’m going insane, I swear I might

Hijack a plane!

Don’t push me, cause I’m close to the edge

I’m trying not to loose my head

It’s like a jungle sometimes, it makes me wonder

How I keep from going under

My son said daddy I don’t wanna go to school

Cause the teacher’s a jerk, he must think I’m a Fool

And all the kids smoke reefer, I think it’d be Cheaper

If I just got a job, learned to be a street sweeper

I dance to the beat, shuffle my feet

Wear a shirt and tie and run with the creeps

Cause it’s all about money, ain’t a damn thing Funny

You got to have a con in this land of milk and Honey

They push that girl in front of a train

Took her to a doctor, sewed her arm on again

Stabbed that man, right in his heart

Gave him a transplant before a brand new start

I can’t walk through the park, cause it’s crazy After the dark

Keep my hand on the gun, cause they got me on the Run

I feel like an outlaw, broke my last fast jaw

Hear them say you want some more, livin’ on a Seesaw

Don’t push me, cause I’m close to the edge

I’m trying not to loose my head

It’s like a jungle sometimes, it makes me wonder

How I keep from going under

A child was born, with no state of mind

Blind to the ways of mankind

God is smiling on you but he’s frowning too

Cause only God knows what you'll go through

You grow in the ghetto, living second rate

And your eyes will sing a song of deep hate

The places you play and where you stay

Looks like one great big alley way

You’ll admire all the number book takers

Thugs, pimps, pushers and the big money makers

Driving big cars, spending twenties and tens

And you wanna grow up to be just like them

Smugglers, scrambles, burglars, gamblers

Pickpockets, peddlers and even pan-handlers

You say I’m cool, I’m no fool

But then you wind up dropping out of high school

Now you’re unemployed, all null ’n’ void

Walking around like you’re pretty boy floyd

Turned stickup kid, look what you done did

Got send up for a eight year bid

Now your man is took and you’re a may tag

Spend the next two years as an undercover fag

Being used and abused, and served like hell

Till one day you was find hung dead in a cell

It was plain to see that your life was lost

You was cold and your body swung back and forth

But now your eyes sing the sad sad song

Of how you lived so fast and died so young

La-Di-Da-Di - Doug E. Fresh and Slick Rick

=======================================================================

[Slick Rick]

OK, party people in the house

You're about to witness something you've never witnessed before

Yes, it's the original human beat box, Doug E. Fresh

And his partner, the grand wizard, MC Ricky D, D

And that's me in the place to be

And we gonna show you how we do it for '85, kickin' live, alright

Because, um, I've got a funny feeling, um

you're all sick of all these crap rappers

Bitin' their rhymes because um they're back-stabbers

But when it comes to me and my friend Doug Fresh here

There is no competition 'cause we are the best, yeah

But let's impress which we prove

And ya all will realize that we are the move

So listen close so you all don't miss

As we go a little somethin' like this

Hit it

Ah yeah

You know what

La-Di-Da-Di

La-Di-Da-Di

La-Di

La-Di

You know what, yo peep this

La-Di-Da-Di, we likes to party

We don't cause trouble, we don't bother nobody, we're

Just some men that's on the mic

And when we rock up on the mic we rock the mic right

For all of y'all keepin y'all in health

Just to see ya smile and enjoy yourself

'Cause it's cool when ya cause a cozy condition

That we create, 'cause that's our mission

So listen to what we say

Because this type of shit, it happens everyday

I woke up around ten o' clock in the mornin'

I gave myself a stretch up, a mornin' yawnin'

Went to the bathroom to wash up

Had some soap on my face and my hand up on a cup

I said, um, mirror mirror on the wall

Who is the top choice of them all

There was a rubble dubble, five minutes it lasted

The mirror said you are you conceited bastard

Well that's true, thats why we never have no beef

So then I washed off the soap and brushed the gold teeth

Used Oil Of Olay 'cause my skin gets pale

And then I got the files for my fingernails

Chewed through the night and on my behalf

I put the bubbles in the tub so I could have a bubble bath

Clean, dry was my body and hair

I threw on my brand new Gucci underwear

For all the girls I might take home

I got the Johnson's Baby Powder and the Polo cologne

Fresh dressed like a million bucks

Threw on the bally shoes and the fly green socks

Stepped out my house stopped short, oh no

I went back in, I forgot my kangol

And then I dilly (dallied)

I ran though a (alley)

I bumped into my homegirl (Sally)

From the (valley)

This is the girl plays hard to get so I said

Whats wrong 'cause she looked upset, she said

It's all because of you I'm feelin' sad and blue

You went away and now my life is filled with rainy days

I love you so, how much you'll never know

'Cause you took your love away from me

Now what was I to do, she's cryin' over me

And she was feelin' blue

I said, um, don't cry, dry your eye

Here comes your mother with those two little guys

Her mean mother stepped up, said to me hi

Looked Sally in the face and decked her in the eye

Punched her in the belly and stepped on her feet

Slammed the child on the hard concrete

The bitch was strong, the kids was gone

Something was wrong, I said what is goin' on

I tried to break it up, I said stop it, leave her

She said, if I can't have you, she can't either

She grabbed me closely by my socks

So I broke the hell out like I had the chicken pox, but

She gave chase; she caught up quick

She put a finger in the face of MC Rick

She said why don't you give me a play

So we can go cruisin' in my oj

And if you give me that OK

I'll give you all my love today

Ricky, Ricky, Ricky, can't you see

Somehow your words just hypnotize me

And I just love your jazzy ways, oh

MC Rick my love is here to stay

And on and on and on she kept on

The bitch been around before my mother's born

I said cheer up, I gave her a kiss

I said you can't have me, I'm too young for you miss

She says no you're not, then she starts cryin'

I says I'm nineteen, she said stop lyin'

I says I am, go ask my mother

And with your wrinkled pussy, I can't be your lover

To the tick tock ya don't stop

To the tick tick ya don't quit, hit it

Life is Too $hort - Too $hort

=====================================================

I remember how it all began

I used to sing dirty raps to my East Side fans

Back then I knew ya couldn't stop this rap

No M.C. could rock like that

Then the new style came, the bass got deeper

Ya gave up the mike and bought you a beeper

Do ya wanna rap or sell coke?

Brothers like you ain't never been broke

People wanna say it's just my time

Brothers like me had to work for mine

Eight years on the mike and I'm not jokin'

Sir Too Short comin' straight from Oakland

California, home of the rock

Eight woofers in the trunk, beatin' down the block

Short dog, I'm that rappin' man

I said it before and I 'll say it again

Life is too short

Too short

Life is too short

Life is to some people unbearable

Committin' suicide and that's terrible

Was it much too much or nothing' big?

If ya live my life, you'd be fightin' to live

Life is to me my main asset

I be doin' all right and keep it just like that

Chill out at the house and pump that bass

I'm tryin' to get rich as I rock the place

Everybody's got that same old dream

To have big money and fancy things

Drive a brand new Benz, keep your banck right here

Never hear me stutter once because I talk real clear

It's on you, homeboy, watcha gonna do?

You can take my advice and start workin', fool

Or you can close your ears and run your mouth

And one day, homeboy, ya soon find out

Life is too short

Too short

Life is too short

Life is too short, would you agree?

While I'm livin' my life, don't mess with me

It's been a long time, baby, since I first got down

But I still keep makin' these funky sounds

Cause I don't stop rappin', that's my theme

I make a lot of money, do you know what I mean?

Like this, complicated ya must stay up

Ya asked a simple question boy, don't say "What?"

Ya only live once and ya callin' it hell

Policeman tryin' to take ya to jail

You could give a man time but you don't know

I a matter of time, I'll be runnin' the show

Now another young buck wants to be on top

Makin' big money, slangin' hop

The task force tryin' ta peel your cap

Turn around, homeboy, ya better watch your back

Life is too short

Too short

Life is too short

You can take back all the things you give

But ya can't take back the days you live

Life is to some peole who've been on earth

Livin' every single day for what it's worth

I live my life just how I please

Satisfy one person I know, that's me

Work hard for the things I achieve in life

And never rap fake when I'm on the mike

Cause if a dream is all you got, homeboy

Ya gotta turn that dream into the real McCoy

Not time to waste, just get on that case

Ya can't be down 'cause ya need to taste

A good life livin' like a king on a throne

Gettin' everything ya want and tryin' to have all your own

So life

Don't be stupid though

Cause when ya waste it, you'll know

Life Is

Life Is

All right, that's it

You Gots To Chill - EPMD

==========================================

[Parrish Smith]

You gots to chill.. TO CHILL.. *echoes*

* DJ K La Boss cuts "Jungle boogie!" *

[Erick Sermon]

Relax your mind, let your conscience be free

and get down to the sounds of EPMD

Well you should keep quiet while the MC rap

but if you tired -- then go take a nap!!

Or stay awake and watch the show I take

because right now -- I'm bout to shake'n'bake

The E-R-I-C-K is my name, I spell

Thanks to the clientele, yo I rock well

I'm not an MC who talkin all that junk

About who can beat who, soundin like a punk

I just get down and I go for mine

Say 'check one-two', and run down the line

[Parrish Smith]

To the average MC I'm known as The Terminator

Funky beat maker, new jack exterminator

Destroy an employ', when your rhymes are not void

Never sweatin your girl (Why P?) Cause she's a skeezoid

When I'm on the scene I always rock the spot

I grab the steel with the crown on top

In the beginnin -- I like to let my rhymes flow

and at twelve I press cruise control

Sit back and relax, let my rhymes tax

Maintain MC's while the Double E macks

Always calm under pressure, no need to act ill

Listen when I tell you boy, you gots to chill.. *echoes*

* DJ K La Boss cuts "Jungle boogie!" *

[Erick Sermon]

I be the personal computer information on rap

Like the B-I-Z Markie says, I'll make your toes tap

I format the rhymes, step by step

Make em sound def to maintain my rep

Prepared to come off, in case of a diss

Not worried about a thing, cause we can do this

I can turn the party out just by standin still

Make the ladies scream and shout while the brothers act ill

Take total control, of your body and soul

Pack a nine in my pants for when it's time to roll

[Parrish Smith]

I'm the P, double-E, M-D-E-E

And one thing I hate, is a bitin MC

When I enter the party suckers always form a line

then they ease their way up, and try to bite my lines

I did thousands of shows, dissed many faces

and deal with new jacks, on a one-to-one basis

But every now and then a sucker MC gets courageous

and like an epidemic it becomes contagious

But never the least they all R.I.P

for all those unaware it means Rest In Peace

Cause M.D. -- stands for Microphone Doctor

And the capital P (capital P) capital M (capital M)

capital D-E-E's no doubt the chief rocker

Don't like to get ill, but if I have to I kill

So believe me boy, you gots to chill.. *echoes*

* DJ K La Boss cuts "Jungle boogie!" *

[Erick Sermon]

Catch every word I'm sayin, no there's no delayin

Don't hestitate to motivate the crowd I'm not playin

Seeing is believin, you catch my drift?

Don't try to a-dapt because I'm just too swift

(How swift?) I'm so swift and that's an actual fact

I'm like Zorro, I mark a E on your back

I don't swing on no ropes or no iron cords

The only weapon is my rappin sword

[Parrish Smith]

Intimidate MC's with the tone of my vocal drone

when I'm pushin on the microphone

Cause I'm the funky rhyme maker, MC undertaker

The one who likes to max and relax..

and when it's time, issue diggum-smack

I keep their hands clappin, fingers snappin, feet tappin

When it's time to roll Uzi patrol was packin

The PMD, the mic's my only friend

And through the course of the party, I kill again and again

So if you're thinkin bout battlin you better come prepared

Come witcha shield and your armor geared

You gots to chill.. *echoes*

* DJ K La Boss cuts "Jungle boogie!" *

[E] DJ La Boss...

[P] ...takes no shorts

Mind Playing Tricks On Me - Geto Boys

===========================================================

Intro: Scarface

I sit alone in my four-cornered room staring at candles

Oh that shit is on? Heh

Let me drop some shit like this here, real smooth

Verse One: Scarface

At night I can't sleep, I toss and turn

Candle sticks in the dark, visions of bodies bein burned

Four walls just starin at a nigga

I'm paranoid, sleepin with my finger on the trigger

My mother's always stressin I ain't livin right

But I ain't going out without a fight

See, everytime my eyes close

I start sweatin, and blood starts comin out my nose

It's somebody watchin the Ak'

But I don't know who it is, so I'm watchin my back

I can see him when I'm deep in the covers

When I awake I don't see the motherfucker

He owns a black hat like I own

A black suit and a cane like my own

Some might say, "Take a chill, B"

But fuck that shit! There's a nigga trying to kill me

I'm poppin in the clip when the wind blows

Every twenty seconds got me peepin out my window

Investigatin the joint for traps

Checkin my telephone for taps

I'm starin at the woman on the corner

It's fucked up when your mind is playin tricks on ya

Verse Two: Willie D

I make big money, I drive big cars

Everybody know me, it's like I'm a movie star

But late at night, somethin ain't right

I feel I'm being tailed by the same sucker's head lights

Is it that fool that I ran off the block?

Or is it that nigga last week that I shot?

Or is it the one I beat for five thousand dollars

Thought he had 'caine but it was Gold Medal Flour

Reach under my seat, grabbed my popper for the suckers

Ain't no use to me lyin, I was scareder than a motherfucker

Hooked a left into Popeye's and bailed out quick

If it's goin down let's get this shit over with

Here they come, just like I figured

I got my hand on the motherfuckin trigger

What I saw'll make your ass start gigglin

Three black, crippled and crazy senior citizens

I live by the sword

I take my boys everywhere I go, because I'm paranoid

I keep lookin over my shoulder and peepin around corners

My mind is playin tricks on me

Verse Three: Scarface

Day by day it's more impossible to cope

I feel like I'm the one that's doing dope

Can't keep a steady hand because I'm nervous

Every Sunday mornin I'm in service

Prayin for forgiveness

And tryin to find an exit out the business

I know the Lord is lookin at me

But yet and still it's hard for me to feel happy

I often drift while I drive

Havin fatal thoughts of suicide

BANG and get it over with

And then I'm worry-free, but that's bullshit

I got a little boy to look after

And if I died then my child would be a bastard

I had a woman down with me

But to me it seemed like she was down to get me

She helped me out in this shit

But to me she was just another bitch

Now she's back with her mother

Now I'm realizing that I love her

Now I'm feelin lonely

My mind is playin tricks on me

Verse Four: Bushwick Bill

This year Halloween fell on a weekend

Me and Geto Boys are trick-or-treatin

Robbin little kids for bags

Till an old man got behind our ass

So we speeded up the pace

Took a look back, and he was right before our face

He'd be in for a squabble no doubt

So I swung and hit the nigga in his mouth

He was goin down, we figured

But this was no ordinary nigga

He stood about six or seven feet

Now, that's the nigga I'd be seein in my sleep

So we triple-teamed on him

Droppin them motherfuckin B's on him

The more I swung the more blood flew

Then he disappeared and my boys disappeared, too

Then I felt just like a fiend

It wasn't even close to Halloween

It was dark as fuck on the streets

My hands were all bloody, from punchin on the concrete

God damn, homie

My mind is playin tricks on me