Common, Malik Yusef - My City lyrics

This the city of Chicago
The state of confusion
The style I'm using is free
Or probably, it would be if my mind was
Peep, I'm behind 'cause
I didn't handle my functions
While in high school although I was cool
The hood I live in ain't that proper
'Cause a cop'll stop ya
And have you at a hundred and eleventh
Before you can say not guilty
I'm not filthy nor am I rich
Ain't that a bitch
Like life is, not your wife is
See that your better half do your math
And peep that two halves make a whole
And all I have to hold is my self pride
So these streets I strive
Like a Black Panther asking can the
Situation get much worst
All I do is try to appeal to the masses
As the phrase "keep it real" passes
The teeth of too many phoney individuals
Snakes, that smooth like criminals
They create chemicals that the Earth hate
Doing they damndest to decrease my birth rate
I'd settle for lesser knowing
That I'm worth wait
Or at least my weight in precious gems
So I'm steadily steadly steadly
Trying to lose my religion, like REM
Created in His own image so am I him?
And in the middle of this crisis
Shid (Shit) I wonder where Christ is
Well, he damn sure not in K
Town or the wild hundreds
Where they broadcast GD till
The world blow-up and Stone run it
Hunted by police for display
In state vile cages
Come out to make receive minimum wages
Plus, with disease that are contagious
It is fucking outrages
The amounts of Black and Brown they lock up
But the Most High encourages me
To put the Glock up
And stock up on do for self knowledge
A brother couldn't afford to go to collage
So I went to learn form
The school of hard knocks
On the hard blocks of the Chi
Even I think about moving out to River Oaks
As my liver soaks in mad Hennesy
Cause I got a bad tendency
To do a lot of drinking
But now I do a lot of thinking
Blinking, was your third eye
When you heard I was one of the chosen
Industry doors keep closing
Watch the closing doors
Niggas want a record deal
But can they deal with a record?
Cause once they get rich
They tend to switch like a sissy
Please miss me with all
That bullshit you popping
This science I'm gonna keep on dropping
And me, I won't be stopping
Even if you had one of them red octagon
Motherfuckers say, "Malik
How you make your living?"
I say by breathing oxygen