[Produced by DJ Premier]
[Intro: Nas]
Uhh
Yo, yo-yo, y'all
Whattup? Whattup
It's time man (Word, it's time?)
Straight up, it's time man
Aight, set that sh** off
(Set it off then n***a, set it off)
[Verse 1]
Broken gla** in the hallway, bloodstained floors
Neighbors, look at every bag you bring through your doors
Lock the top lock, momma shoulda cuffed me to the radiator
Why not? It might've saved later from my block
N.Y. cops, hookers crawlin off the stroll, coughin
Stitches in they head, stinkin and I dread thinkin they be snitchin
But who else, could it be, shook at these, unmarked vans
Parked in the dark -- NARC's, where's your heart?
Hustlers starve; they bust a U-ey, I jog
To my building -- come out later wearin camouflage
See the sergeant and the captain -- strangle men
n***as gaspin for air; til they move no more and just stare
With dead eyes -- tired of riots, sh** is quiet
Simple-minded fools infiltrate grimy crews
Overcrowded cribs, uncles home from bids, sister's pregnant
Father's on d**, moms is smokin, beds is piss-infested
Had eight partners growin up, eight turned to seven
Seven turned to six n***as, got two in heaven
Six of us, holdin it, now it's five rollin thick
The sixth one's parole flipped; five n***as, went to four quick
When he went O.T., college life, converted into g**nin
Four n***as still hangin, years pa**in and slang changin
Three of us now, fourth n***a ain't around
We all thought he was real -- he did the snake sh**
Fake sh** -- beat his a** down, yo his mouth
Could've got us all wasted, what a f**in clown
All I got left in the end is two of my best friends
And we all goin out, to the d**h for these ends, WHAT?
[Hook (repeats in bridge)]
New York, New York (New York state of mind)
New York, New York (New York state of mind)
[Bridge]
You heard about it, you see about it
You read about it, it's in your papers
It's in your daily news ("Get money!")
New York chronicles, every day
The crime rate, the murder rate
The money rate, the paper chase, youknowhatImean?
New York state of mind baby, check it out
[Verse 2: Nas]
I'm at the, gamblin spot, my hands on a knot
New York Yankee cap cover my eyes, stand in one spot
I take a n***a dough, send him home to a shoebox
You lost that n***a I put your dollar in the jukebox
Hear my favorite song, all these n***as sing along
All the cigarette smoke's cloggin my lungs, hoodrats flashin they tongue
Young thugs blastin they gun, we got reputations
b**hes and n***as both on parole or probation
sh** is sick, n***as got gats, army fatigues
I got my eyes glued on, whoever walk in or leave
Cause I ain't playin, n***as'll run up in here and shoot up this sh**
Stick yo' a** up, n***as'll find the loot in your kicks
Bunch of triple-cross n***as, just New York n***as
Lift you off your feet when they was just talkin with you
Some of these dudes the Feds be on em, you knew em for years
Be the type when you walk in a pub, they offer you beers
That ain't gangsta, n***as is up North with tatted tears
Your name's on the affadavit, you ratted kid
f*ggot-a** n***as that be scared to do they bids
f** you, we run you out of N.Y, you can't live
Got your quiet n***as, that relocated down South
Comin back to floss, then you got the jealous loudmouths
All of a sudden we got Crips and Bloods, D.T.'s
Runnin round quick to split your mug, it's ea-sy to score
But it's hard to get the sh** off
n***as fightin over hundred sales, jump in the car and drive off
When the fiend come around the block, happy as hell
n***as, mad cause they ain't get a piece of that sale
Cutthroat connivers, universal, ghetto survivors
Go to any hood that's live and make it liver
A lot of n***as scheamin, some real, some n***as frontin
But I'm a big dreamer, so watch me come up with somethin
[Hook]
New York, New York
New York, New York