Hold Ya Head

[Intro/Collision: Sampled & 2Pac]

"Yo, Jackson!" "A 231549"

"Yeah, close four! Comin' down!

My homeboys in Clinton and Rikers Island

All Crichlow! A 5991301

The penitentiaries, Mumia, Mutulu, Geronimo, Sekou

All Close five! Comin' down!"

The political prisoners, San Quentin

“Look at Satan” “I see him”

All the jailhouses, I'm witchu

[Pre-Verse:  2Pac & Tyrone Wrice]

Yeah, one thug, one thug

How do we keep the music playin'?

You're listenin' to the sounds of one thug

One thug, one thug, How do we get ahead?

You're listenin' to the sounds of…

[Verse 1: 2Pac]

I wake up early in the mornin', mind state so military

Suckers fantasizin' pictures of a young brother buried

Was it me, the weed or this life I lead?

If daytime is for suckers then tonight we breathe

Out for all that, knowin' that this world bring drawbacks

Look how they shiver once I deliver these raw raps

Meet me at the cemetery, dressed in black

Tonight we honor the dead, those who won't be back

So, if I die, do the same for me, shed no tears

An outlaw thug livin' in this game for years

Why worry? Hope to God, get me high when I'm buried

Knowin' deep inside only a few love me

Don't rush me to the gates of Heaven

Let me picture for a while, how I lived for my days as a child

I wonder now, how do we outlast?

Always get cash, stay strong if we all mash; hold ya head!

[Chorus: Tyrone Wrice & 2Pac]

How do we keep the music playin'?

Yes, you got to hold ya head!

How do we get ahead? Hold ya head!

Too many young black brothers are dyin'

Yes, you got to hold ya head!

Livin' fast, too fast

[Verse 2: 2Pac]

These felonies be like prophecies

Beggin' me to stop ‘cause these

Lawyers gettin' money every time they knock us

Snatchin' pockets lyrically, suckers flee when they notice

Switched my name to Makaveli, half the rap game ghost

Exposed foes with my hocus-pocus flows, they froze

Now suckers idolize my chosen blows

And mo' money mean litigatin', mo' playa hatin'

Got a cell at the pen' for me waitin'—is this my fate?

Miss me with that misdemeanor thinkin', me fall back?

Never that, too much Tequila drinkin', we all that

Make them understand me? Hell nah, this ain't my posse

Everyone with me is family, ‘cause everybody's got me

Watch me paint a perfect vision, this life we livin'

Got us all meetin' up in prison

Last week I got a letter from my road dog, written in blood

Sayin', "Please show a playa love"—hold ya head! (Hold it!)

[Chorus: Tyrone Wrice & 2Pac]

How do we keep the music playin'?

You got to hold ya head!

How do we get ahead? Come on, hold ya head!

Too many young black brothers are dyin'

Yes, hold ya head!

Livin' fast, too fast

The weed got me tweakin' in my mind, I'm thinkin'…

[Verse 3: 2Pac]

God bless the child that can hold his own

Indeed, enemies bleed when I hold my chrome

Let these words be the last to my unborn seeds

Hope to raise my young nation in this world of greed

Currency means nothin' if you still ain't free

Money breeds jealousy, take the game from me

I hope for better days, trouble comes naturally

Runnin' from authorities 'til they capture me

And my aim is to spread mo' smiles than tears

Utilize lessons learned from my childhood years

Maybe Mama had it all right, rest yo' head

Tradin' conversations all night, bless the dead

To the homies that I used to have that no longer roll

Catch a brother at the crossroads

Plus nobody knows my soul, watchin' time pass

Through the glass of my drop-top Rolls; hold ya head!

[Chorus: Tyrone Wrice & 2Pac]

How do we keep the music playin'?

You got to hold ya head!

How do we get ahead? C'mon, hold ya head!

Too many young black brothers are dyin'

Yes, hold ya head!

Livin' fast, too fast

You got to hold ya head!

How do we keep the music playin'?

Yes, you got to hold ya head!

How do we get ahead?

[Collision: 2Pac]

No matter how hard it get, feel me? (Come on)

Get the weed, drink a drink, read a book

Watch the stars, get some pussy—whatever!