[Hook: Crooked I]
All I know, is for sure
Hip-hop ain't dead
Yeah that's what I said
It lives through me

[Verse: Crooked I]
Growing up as a kid, what did hip-hop mean?
Mama bought me a boombox before I was a teen
But unfortunately she had a welfare salary
So they cut off our electric, and I ran out of batteries
Aw naw, no music; I'm ready to brawl
Freestyling in the dark, words bouncing off the wall
I used to hate that shit, growing up poor
But now I realize it made my rhymes hotter than yours
Waiting on the day that my metaphors would open better doors
Battling for cheddar shitting on competitors
Pistol ready for whatever wars
My .22 stayed open just like the legs of eleven whores
The Cali mentality, ruthless in behavior
This is why I'm hot: n***a music is my savior
In the booth, yeah the truth is in my flavor
In the coupe, yeah the roof is in the air
How you gon' tell me that this kid's not crazy?
Made seven songs a day and it did not faze me
Don't make me change the shit to hip-hop daily
Record so much you wondering if 'Pac raised me
I'm just not lazy, am I a genius?
Did Prince rock Paisley? I did my Jay-Z --
Rendition, no pencil, no paper
Never heard a pin drop baby, tip-top shape G
Flow been on morphine; sick since fourteen
Watching rappers belly-flop minus the chlorine
I'm snoring; the game is boring
Like I got a scoring -- title and four rings
Plus a scorching jump shot that torch teams
And I'm forcing myself to play with you poor things
I've foreseen it all before it happened
A lot of n***as go platinum, they 'yes man' start clapping
For they captain, right after them n***as finish rapping
But everything they was rapping was wack that's what's happening
That's why a lot of mainstream n***as stink
Between hip-hop and gangsta rap I'm the missing link
The streets hit me with everything but the kitchen sink
When my enemies was coming to get me I didn't blink
If there's any rapper that should be your favorite, it's me!
I got my own category: Gangsta Emcee!
I manipulate break beats thanks to MPs
And I still break a bitch like my name was Pimp C
Pimp C, Pimp C, like my name was Pimp C
Still break a bitch like my name was Bun B!
[Hook] (2x)