The Proud

[Intro] The proud Stand tall or don't stand at all, come on, uh Yeah Break it down What we do? [Chorus] We survive (Uh), it's more than pride (Word) We stay alive (Word), ready to ride (Ride, one-two, one-two, yo) We survive, it's more than pride (Yeah) We stay alive, ready to ride (Put it down, yo) We survive (June 11, 2001) It's more than pride (Timothy McVeigh is executed) We stay alive (And the country breathes a sigh of relief) Ready to ride (Goodness prevails over evil, it seems) We survive, it's more than pride (Somehow, with him gone) We stay alive (We feel safer) Ready to ride (Little do we know) [Verse 1] Today, the paper say Timothy McVeigh's in hell So everything's okay and all must be well I remember in Oklahoma when they put out the blaze And put Islamic terrorist bombing on the front page It's like saying only gays get AIDS, propaganda Like saying the problem's over when they locked that man up Wrong, it's just the beginning, the first inning Battle for America's soul, the devil's winning The president is Bush, the vice president's a Dick So a whole lot of fucking is what we gon' get They don't wanna raise the babies, so the election is fixed That's why we don't be fucking with politics They bet on that, parents fought and got wet for that Hosed down, bit by dogs, and got Blacks into house arrest for that It's all good except for that, we still poor And money, power, respect is what we kill for, for real [Chorus] It's more than pride We stay alive, ready to ride We survive, it's more than pride (Yeah) We stay alive, ready to ride We survive (August 4, 2001) It's more than pride (A drunken police officer) We stay alive (Mows down an entire family in Brooklyn) Ready to ride (The judge lets him go with no bail) We survive (It reminds us) It's more than pride (Just how worthless our lives are to the justice system) We stay alive (I struggle) Ready to ride (To explain the situation to my son, it's hard) [Verse 2] Niggas with knowledge is more dangerous than niggas with guns They make the guns easy to get and try to keep niggas dumb Target the gangs and graffiti with the Prop 21 I already know the deal, but what the fuck do I tell my son? I want him living right, living good, respect the rules He's five years old and he still thinking cops is cool How do I break the news that when he gets some size He'll be perceived as a threat or see the fear in they eyes? It's in they job description to terminate the threat So forty-one shots to the body is what he can expect The precedent is set, don't matter you he follow the law I know I'll give my son pride and make him swallow it all (Damn) Fuck the pigs, I think the pigs killed Big and Pac too If they didn't they know who did, they got to Who they serve and protect? Nigga, not you Cops shot off of ten G's, but they got Glocks too Let you protect yourself or better yet, respect yourself Straight into the hospital is where you gotta check yourself They be getting tips from snitches and rival crews Doing them favors, so they workin' for the drug dealers too Just business enforcers with hate in they holsters Shoot you in the back, won't face you like a soldier Kurt Loder asked me what I say to a dead cop's wife Cops kill my people every day, that's life [Chorus] We survive, it's more than pride We stay alive, ready to ride (Yeah) We survive, it's more than pride We stay alive, ready to ride We survive (September 11, 2001) It's more than pride (Terrorists attack the Pentagon and the World Trade Center) We stay alive (It kills thousands and permanently scars America's false sense of security) Ready to ride We survive (We see the best examples of humanity in the face of the worst) It's more than pride (As firefighters, police officers) We stay alive (Rescue workers and volunteers of all sorts fight to save lives) Ready to ride (The world will never be the same again) [Verse 3] My heart go out to everybody at Ground Zero Red, Black, yellow, white, and brown heroes It's more complicated than Black and white To give your own life is the greatest sacrifice But it's hard for me to walk down the block Seein' rats and roaches, crack files and forty-ounce posters People broken down from years of oppression Become patriots when they way of life is threatened It's a hard conversation to have We lost kids, moms, and dads, people ready to fight for the flag Damn, when did shit get this bad? America kill the innocent too, the cycle of violence is sad, damn Welcome to the world, we here We've been at war for years, but it's much more clear (Yeah) We got to face what lies ahead Fight for our truth and freedom and ride for the dead [Chorus] We survive (Yeah), it's more than pride (Much more) We stay alive (Uh), ready to ride (Let's go) We survive (That's right), it's more than pride (Much more) We stay alive, ready to ride (Let's go) We survive (Yeah), it's more than pride We stay alive, ready to ride We survive