Halftime (Live)

[Intro: Nas]

Nasty Nas in your area

About to cause mass hysteria

[Verse 1]

Before a blunt, I take out my fronts

Then I start to front; matter of fact, I be on a manhunt

You couldn't catch me in the streets without a ton of reefer

That's like Malcolm X catching the Jungle Fever

King poetic; too much flavor, I'm major

Atlanta ain't Brave-r, I'll pull a number, like a pager

‘Cause I'm an ace when I face the bass

40-side is the place that is giving me grace

Now wait, another dose and you might be dead

And I'm a Nike-head, I wear chains that excite the Feds

And ain't a damn thing gonna change

I'm a performer, strange

So the mic warmer was born to gain

Nas, why did you do it? You know

You got the mad-phat fluid when you rhyme; it's halftime

[Chorus: Nas]

Halftime

Halftime

Halftime

Yeah, yeah

[Verse 2]

It's like that, you know it's like that

I got it hemmed, now you never get the mic back

When I attack, there ain't an army that could strike back

So I react never calmly on a hype track

I set it off with my own rhyme

‘Cause I'm as ill as a convict who kills for phone time

I'm max like, I flex like sex

In your stereo sets, Nas'll catch wreck

I used to hustle; now all I do is relax and strive

When I was young I was a fan of the Jackson 5

I drop jewels, wear jewels, hope to never run it

With more kicks than a baby in a mother's stomach

Nasty Nas has to rise, ‘cause I'm wise

This is exercise 'til the microphone dies

Back in '83 I was an MC sparkin'

But I was too scared to grab the mics in the parks, and

Kick my little raps ‘cause I thought niggas wouldn't understand

And now in every jam I'm the fuckin' man

I rap in front of more niggas than in the slave ships

I used to watch "CHiPs", now I load Glock clips

I got to have it, I miss Mr. Magic

Rest in peace Mr. Magic, tragic

I'm an intellectual

And that's no question, yo

These are the lyrics of the man

You can't near it, understand?

‘Cause in the streets I'm well-known, like the number man

Am I in place with the bass and all that?

Explore rap and tell me, "Nas ain't all that."

And next time I rhyme, I be foul

Whenever I freestyle I see trial, niggas say I'm wild

I hate a rhyme-biter's rhyme

Stay tuned, I assume; the real rap comes at halftime

[Chorus: Nas]

Check check, it's halftime

Looking at my Rollie, it's that time, oh

Yeah, that's [?] over there

But some of y'all know

[Verse 3]

I got it going on, even flip a morning song

Every afternoon, I kick half the tune

And in the darkness, I'm heartless, like when the NARC's hit

Word to Marcus Garvey; I hardly sparked it

‘Cause when I blast the herb, that's my word

I be slayin' them fast, doing this that and the third

But chill, pass the Andre, and let's slay

I bag ladies up at, and hit a matinee

Putting hits on 5-0

‘Cause when it's my time to go, I wait for God with the .44

And biters can't come near

And yo, go to hell to the foul cop who shot Garcia

I won't plant seeds

Don't need an extra mouth I can't feed

That's extra Phillie change, more cash for damp weed

This goes out to Manhattan, the island of Staten

Brooklyn and Queens is living fat, and

The Boogie Down, enough props, enough clout

Ill Will, rest in peace! We was out

[Chorus: Nas]

Halftime

Whole up, looking at my Rollie, it's that time, oh

Half—half—it's halftime

Yeah, check, hey yo, it's halftime

Not even half of this show though

Not even half, yeah

Halftime, yeah

Halftime, yeah

Halftime

[Spoken: Nas]

Y'all alright over here? Over here? Over here? Up there?