Lift Your Fist

[Guru] Yeah.. Guru, huh, The Roots Yeah... c'mon, y'all, uh, lift your fist Uhh, yeah, lift your fist, c'mon (Uhh) [Chorus: Black Thought] To all my people, just lift your fist Seem like it ain't no peace, no justice How you want it, the bullet or the microchip? Either way, you got to lift your fist – we get it down like this To all my people, ball up your first Seem like it ain't no peace, no justice How you want it, the bullet or the microchip? Either way, you got to lift your fist [Verse 1: Black Thought] Yo, c'mon We livin' life close to the edge, don't push But this ain't '83 and it's not the Cold Crush It's kids on the street strapped, huffin' that kush They eyein' the next cat, livin' all plush I guess frustration make a brother do what he must What's the combination that can make a human erupt? Team leaders gettin mutinied up, who couldn't read The signs, thinkin' the day and times is Tawheed [Verse 2: Guru] Indeed, we blast, refuse to kiss ass Quick fast, ready to mash, 'cause of a bugged out past Swallow the pain, follow the mental terrain It takes a hell of a man, nowadays to maintain Garments bloodstained, face bruised and battered Our eyes reflect the agony of dreams that were shattered And they love it, when we wild out and kill our own But the greater responsibility, yes, is still our own [Chorus: Black Thought] To all my people, just lift your fist Seem like it ain't no peace, no justice How you want it, the bullet or the microchip? Either way, you got to lift your fist – we get it down like this To all my people, ball up your first Seem like it ain't no peace, no justice How you want it, the bullet or the microchip? Either way, you got to lift your fist [Verse 3: Guru] Uhh, worldwide famine, ghetto people demandin' That somebody do somethin' soon, and let's examine The facts, behind the violent attacks Behind the daily gunplay, the cocaine, and the crack Thug season – what's the reason for the treason? Everybody's gotta eat, some gotta resort to thievin' Take money, money, make money, money, money! [Chorus: Black Thought] To all my people, just lift your fist Seem like it ain't no peace, no justice How you want it, the bullet or the microchip? Either way, you got to lift your fist – we get it down like this To all my people, ball up your first Seem like it ain't no peace, no justice How you want it, the bullet or the microchip? Either way, you got to lift your fist [Verse 4: Black Thought] Yo – from the time they eyes open til the clock strikes death Brothers is stressed, walkin' 'round holdin' they chest They got the government surveyin' they steps and can't breathe They dynamitin' them projects to smithereens Money coming, but them days too few and far between You tryin' to taste just what the world's offering, ya'mean? I seen enough to make a grown man scream Brothers thirsty and hungry to get that thing [Verse 5: Guru] Too many tears of pain, too many years of struggle Too many drops of blood, too many problems to juggle Too few jobs available, too few schools equipped Too few role models – just gangsters and pimps Will you succumb, will your heart grow numb? Or will you save the world, and use your mind like a gun? I'm the one – I turn a stick-up kid to a soldier Me and The Roots, word up, we takin' over [Chorus: Black Thought] To all my people, just lift your fist Seem like it ain't no peace, no justice How you want it, from the bullet or the microchip? Either way, you got to lift your fist – we get it down like this To all my people, ball up your first Word up, it ain't no peace, no justice How you want it, the bullet or the microchip? Uh-uh-uh-uhh... To all my peoples, just lift your fist How you want it? It's no peace, no justice From the bullet, or even from the microchip Either way, you got to lift your fist – we get it down like this For real, for real, lift your first, c'mon All my peoples, yo – it ain't no justice