Talib Kweli - Inner Monologue lyrics

Remember, whatever discipline you’re in
Whether you’re a musician or a photographer
A fine artist
Or a cartoonist, a writer, a dancer, a
Singer, a designer whatever you do
You have one thing that’s unique:
You have the ability to
Make art sometimes life
Is hard things go wrong in life and
In love and in business and in friendship and
In health and when things get tough
This is what you should do make good art

This about to be the realest
Shit you ever heard i lynch rappers
Got them hanging on my every word
These bitch rappers be claiming
They slinging heavy word
Really snitch rappers
Niggas singing like every bird
Rich rappers, nah, I don't know them niggas
Niggas don't get rich rapping
They selling clothes or liquor
My flow is sicker cause I flow with vigor
I'm no beginner, peep the whole agenda
Control my center cause I
Gravitate with Gravitas
This my inner monologue
Burning down your party cause
Our cocktails is Molotov
My crime mob make you stop, lock and drop
Don't get wollywop'd
Actually battery in my back like a copper top
Got it popping
Started on the B-side of Body Rock
Direct to fan
I'm running my shop like my mom and pop
Modern day slavery today to be an artist
Watch they treat them like a product and try
To mount like a hot 'n tot
Molly pop, niggas not caring if they body rot
Partying like Mardi Gras
Get the cream like Häagen-Dazs
Golly gosh, this is Utopia, cornucopia
I'm known to start revolts against
The Romans like Zenobia
Hoping to keep coping copious
Amounts of opiates tried to start a union
But they blocked me like a Soviet
I hope they get it
I'm sick of explaining history
I'm rolling with a circle of winners
We claimin' victories it ain't a mystery
The hate'll make it bittersweet
They hate when I engage to debate
'em like Wale's Twitter feed
Who I'm kidding? I'm the great debater
My crew stay winning, we stay innovating
Your circle is rotten as great tomatoes
They get high with you then start
Dry snitching like Jose Canseco
Prosecco, I'm sipping vino with a vivid hue
Haberdasher rocking Borsalinos like
Hasidic Jews pitiful, rappers never stand up
To the ridicule
That's why I had to get at you
Wear it if it fit the shoe, nigga
(Baby, just shine your light
If you've gotta dim yours
So they can shine brighter
Just stay bright, so shine your light)

We're in a transitional world
Right now because
The nature of distribution is changing
The distribution channels that
People have built
Over the last century or so
Are in flux the print, the visual artist
The musicians which on the one
Hand intimidating and on the other, immensely
Liberating the rules, the assumptions
The now-we're-supposed-tos of how you
Get your work seen and what you do then
They're breaking down the
Gatekeepers are leaving
Their gates you can be
As creative as you need to be
To get your work seen the
Old rules are crumbling and nobody knows
What the new rules are
So make up your own rules