Two Dudes

[Intro: Brother Ali]

Two dudes, right?

[Chorus: Brother Ali]

We're ships passing in the night

Tryna navigate right

Distracted by the city lights

Crash in the midlife

We're ships passing in the night

Tryna navigate right

Distracted by the city lights

This'll be one take, by the way

[Verse 1: Brother Ali]

Oh my God, I'm on stage having a moment

A hole in the wall in Jackson Hole, Wyoming

Rocking luxury homeowners and broke snowboarders

Before Kanye came and built a studio on it

First rap shindig in this cowboy bar

There's a damn stuffed pig starin' at me at the door

Never been here beforе, it's a party for a magazine

Bunch of models and actors on the scеne

My one and only job is to bring this disjointed mob

All together on one common vibe

Manicured nails in the sky

Right beside the guy with calluses from tiling her personal spa

Waving all side to side, it's not pride or a lie

But all five hundred had the time of their lives

I got lights in my eyes and I'm already blind

And no security, I'm tryna watch my behind

Then this whole other beat starts bleeding through the system

I'm squinting at my DJ, tryna see what he's mixin'

But the needle ain't dropping, it's a skinny white guy

Hat down over his eyes, caught himself beatboxing

Hell to the nizzo, no to the wizzay

I snatched the mic from him, escorted him off the stizzage

Ask the DJ, "Why you let him have his way?"

That was none other than the great Justin Timberlake

[Chorus: Brother Ali]

We're ships passing in the night (Big mistake)

Tryna navigate right

Distracted by the city lights

Crash in the midlife

We're ships passing in the night

Tryna navigate right

Distracted by the city lights

Crash in the midlife

[Interlude: Brother Ali]

Yo, my man, I mean, obviously, I'm a fan

Part of being albino is I can't see, I mean, you understand

I wasn't expecting to see you here, especially not in all that plaid

I'm so honored, please come back on this stage and rock this jam

[Verse 2: Brother Ali]

I'm on tour, Rock the Bells

De La Soul and Nas and Tribe as well

The godfathers of my style, I'm live as hell

Gotta track KRS-One down, I might as well

I got a photo on my phone from when I was thirteen

And saw him give a lecture like Martin Luther King

But I also had a dream, so my hand was raised

I asked him a question and he brought me on stage

And my whole life changed, zero exaggeration

I rap and give lectures and my name's no longer Jason

It's been two decades since that fateful occasion

I waited by his trailer just to kiss the ring and thank him

I said, "Blastmaster, pardon me

I just have to tell you, I'm Brother Ali"

And he looked at me and said, "Yes, you are"

Um, okay

"You brought me on stage the first time we met"

His eyebrows high, he said, "And you never left

You're still rockin'"

Am I being punked or something?

I showed him the image on my phone

And he walked away with it and he wouldn't let it go

So once I finally struggled it away

I spent the rest of the day bumpin' Brother J

[Chorus: Brother Ali]

We're ships passing in the night (I love you anyway)

Tryna navigate right

Distracted by the city lights

Crash in the midlife

We're ships passing in the night

Tryna navigate right

Distracted by the city lights

Crash in the midlife

[Outro: Brother Ali]

I don't really see the purpose of you talkin' to me like this

You're supposed to be the teacher, you're actin' more like a bully

I'ma tell Chuck D on you because this is totally unnecessary