All Falls Down (Original)

[Intro: Lauryn Hill & Kanye West]

Oh, when it all (Uh), all falls down, yeah (What you say? Uh)

I'm telling you all, it all falls down (I hear you, I hear you L-Boogie)

Oh, when it all, all falls down, yeah (Remember they used to call you that?)

I'm telling you all, it all falls down (Merce' Lauryn? Streets say I'ma tell her)

Oh, when it all

[Verse 1: Kanye West & Lauryn Hill]

Man I promise, she's so self conscious

She has no idea what she doing in college (Telling you all)

That major that she majored in don't make no money

But she won't drop out, her parents'll look at her funny

Now, tell me that ain't insecurr

The concept of school seems so securr

Sophomore, three yurrs, ain't picked a carurr

She like, "Fuck it, I'll just stay down hurr and do hair" (Oh, when it all)

Cause that's enough money to buy her a few pairs of new Airs (All falls down, yeah)

Cause her baby daddy don't really care (Telling you all)

She's so precious with the peer pressure

Couldn't afford a car so she named her daughter Alexis

She had hair so long that it looked like weave (Oh, when it all)

Then she cut it all off now she look like Eve

And she be dealing with some issues that you can't believe

Single black female addicted to retail, and, well

[Chorus: Lauryn Hill & Kanye West]

Oh, when it all, it all falls down, yeah

Uh, and when it falls down who you gon' call now? (Y'all mean)

Telling you all, it all falls down

Yeah, uh

[Verse 2: Kanye West & Lauryn Hill]

Man I promise, I'm so self-conscious (Oh, when it all)

That's why you always see me with at least one of my watches (Telling you all)

Rollies and Pashas done drove me crazy

I can't even pronounce nothing, pass that Ver-say-cee (Oh, when it all)

Then I spent four-hunnid bucks on this

Just to be like, "Nigga, you ain't up on this"

And I can't even go to the grocery store

Without some 1s that's clean and a shirt with a team (Oh, when it all)

It seems we living the American Dream (All falls down, yeah)

But the people highest up got the lowest self-esteem (Telling you all)

The prettiest people do the ugliest things

For the road to riches and diamond rings

We shine because they hate us, floss 'cause they degrade us (Oh, when it all)

We trying to buy back our forty acres

And for that paper, look how low we'll stoop

Even if you in a Benz, you still a nigga in a coupe

[Chorus: Lauryn Hill & Kanye West]

Oh, when it all, all falls down, yeah

And when it falls down who you gon' call now?

Telling you all, it all falls down

Yeah, yeah, word

[Verse 3: Kanye West & Lauryn Hill]

I say fuck the police, that's how I treat 'em (Oh, when it all)

We buy our way out of jail, but we can't buy freedom

We'll buy a lot of clothes but we don't really need 'em

Things we buy to cover up what's inside

'Cause they make us hate ourself and love they wealth

That's why shorties hollering, "Where the ballers at?"

Drug dealer buy Jordan, crackhead buy crack

And the white man get paid off of all of that

But I ain't even gonna act holier than thou (Oh, when it all, all falls down, yeah)

'Cause fuck it, I went to Jacob with twenty-five thou' (Telling you all)

Before I had a house and I'd do it again

'Cause I wanna be on 106 & Park pushing a Benz

I wanna act ballerific like it's all terrific (Oh, when it all)

I got a couple past-due bills, won't get specific

I got a problem with spending before I get it

We all self-conscious, I'm just the first to admit it

[Chorus: Lauryn Hill & Kanye West]

Oh, when it all, it all falls down, yeah (Don't stop that shit, keep that shit)

Telling you all, it all falls down (Keep that part where I ran out of breath, we ain't doing no punch-ins, man, that's that fake shit)

Oh, when it all, all falls down, yeah (If I was on stage, how I got to spit it? It's from the heart anyway)

Telling you all, it all falls down (Might cause shortness of breath, you know?)

Oh, when it all, all falls down, yeah (Couldn't have got nobody better for the job)

Telling you all, it all falls down (Thank you for very much, this a beautiful, beautiful, young lady that's inspired me, definitely)

Oh, when it all, all falls down, yeah

I'm telling you all, it all falls down

[Audience Applause]