Live Again

[Verse 1: Kendrick Lamar]

Lifestyles of a kid that never had shit

Livin' off that bad shit, that shoot shit, that stab shit

Rock a flag and don't give a fuck about U.S. flag shit

George Bush got some nerve, fuck a war, we tryna serve

Motherfuckin' eight balls 'til we live at the pool hall

And knock billiards out of your business, ya bitch

That's my surroundings in Compton, have common sense

Smell death in the air, around here, that's a common scent

You know the gunpowder

You know when your homie barely blink, he just done powder

Only at seventeen

You know the common statistic inspired by hoop dreams

Now hired by street schemes of gettin' blood money

I try my best to stay focused and hope the city love me

Pray it's not lust, 'cause if it is, I'll be dead in a month

Lord forbid, for the good kid

They took his life

She want her baby back like a cooked rib

But that's just life where I'm from

[Chorus: Kendrick Lamar]

If there's a shining star

Hope my city's not too far

So we can live again

See, where I come from is hard

Hope all over, we can start

So we can live again, so we can live again

[Verse 2: CurT@!n$]

I seen this youngin' on the train, I had to pick his brain

He said he on his way uptown to get a brick of 'caine

He said he needed a come-up, 'cause sellin' nicks was lame

He needed a chain, so I gave him fifty cent

He looked at me like I was crazy, I said "Listen, man

I'd rather give you my last to see you live again

Just 'cause you change what you pitchin', don't make the difference

You gotta get off the mound, and put the game down

Petty thoughts could keep your brain down

I leave you with that jewel, go get the chain now

And put it together"

See, comin' up, we ain't have shit to keep our mind focused

I love Mike, but it was a hassle tryna buy Jordans

My nigga hustle all day in front the corner store

To get a pair, niggas killed him right in front the mall, huh

So all that hustlin' for nothin', then

I threw my pair on the light pole because of him

Like fuck it, man

[Chorus: Kendrick Lamar]

If there's a shining star

Hope my city's not too far

So we can live again

See, where I come from is hard

Hope all over, we can start

So we can live again, so we can live again

[Verse 3: ScHoolboy Q]

Tryna move forward, though it never stops

A mother’s son dead, was killed by some kid's pops

Shots, they back and forth

Murder for murder, the beef recycled, it's vital

No idols, bunch of unread Bibles

Allies that turned to rivals, niggas turned street disciples

Smokers get high as Eiffels

Addicted to being fiends

'Cause of the feds as we pledge to let our plague spread

Tiny this and if and that, they bangin' back

'Cause they'll adapt to being black

Straps and gang tats, look

Rats get mouse traps

Can't afford tuition

But hit a lick, I bet I earn crack, I heard that

Lookin' at the sky, just hopin' that a light'll shine

Daylight savin' time all the time on this block of mines

All the time with this Glock of mines

Swear to God, man, it ain't a rhyme, I grind for a piece of mine

Co-sign

[Chorus: Kendrick Lamar]

If there's a shining star

Hope my city's not too far

So we can live again

See, where I come from is hard

Hope all over, we can start

So we can live again, so we can live again

[Outro: Black Ice]

When you look at my brothers, what's your first impression?

Does the sight of us leave you guessin', or do you understand the stressin', the aggression?

The look of no hope on my niggas' faces

Like the Lord overlooked us when He handed down His graces?

See, embraces fall short on the numb tips of street entrepeneur fingers

Stuck in the walls of the project halls where the coke smell still lingers

External blingers is all we can be

'Cause on the inside we been given nothin' to shine on

And the gig is harder to get than coke, so niggas get their grind on

'Cause the TV tells us "Aim high, nigga, make all goals lateral"

But that takes paper that we don't have, so niggas put their souls up as collateral

Now, some niggas reclaim 'em, some blame 'em

Makin' excuses to sell 'em

But when a nigga goes from not doin', to doin'

What can you tell him? Not to be a nigga?

Shit, I gots to be a nigga, that's how I pay the bills

And I'ma do that whether I gotta sling this coke or exploit these rhyme skills

[Chorus: Kendrick Lamar]

If there's a shining star

Hope my city's not too far

So we can live again

See, where I come from is hard

Hope all over, we can start

So we can live again, so we can live again