(Rev. Martin Luther King, Jr. from ‘I Have a Dream' speech: *scratches* …will be able to join hands and sing in the words of the old Negro spiritual, "Free at last! free at last! thank God Almighty, we are free at last!")
[Chorus]
It feels so good to be free, it feels so good to be free at last (x4)
[Verse 1]
Free at last were the words that were used by Martin
I didn't understand it then but now that I'm startin'
To really get the message and the meaning behind that
Put two and two together now I see just where I'm at
A young black brotha in a world that's vickin'
They hypnotizin', tamin' and trickin'
Really and truly, I don't understand it
But it's runnin' so smooth, I guess somebody planned it
I'll admit, I've done it all, I've sold and stolen
Hung with brothas high-post rollin'
Made it with ladies, visiting clinics
There's nothing really left, homeboy, I'm finished
Now every hustler's dream is just a smooth way out
Another chance to see what life is really about
See, the cash is cool, a place to spend there's sure to be
But what you really want in life is soul security
I'm saying that to say this, I looked at my past
And man, I'm gettin' juiced, because I'm free at last
[Chorus] (x4)
[Verse 2]
Man, I had to leave the city but I love the Town
You see, the brothas in the O, they don't mess around
We've got a demon called jealousy that's oh so cold
Brothas comin' up dead at 19-years-old
The police brutality's gotten way out of hand
I know the streets are full of dope but I'm not the man
I'm just a brotha wit' a dream to straight rock mics
Hit platinum charts with lyrics way too tight
See, more and more families startin' to fall apart
Young girls havin' babies don't know where to start
And my brothas all locked in the game of dope
Would rather k** each other up instead of climbin' the rope
To success, and things far greater than that
A life not threatened with knives and gats
Peek it out, homeboy, I'm cool on livin' fast
The ultimate alternative: be free at last
[Chorus] (x4)
[Verse 3]
You see, my mom used to worry, and so did my aunts
And in my very own way, I guess I used to haunt them
But I wasn't trippin', cash was the virtue
And over and over, they say ‘someone's gonna hurt you.'
Some years went by, but nothin' had changed
And moms would always mumble, ‘boy, you're wasting your brain.'
I need a ticket up out, no more saggin' and slangin'
Late night posted, dice game's bangin'
Stoplight frenzy, endless cappin'
One ticket out: straight up rappin'
A smooth rhyme soldier, mom's straight smilin'
Son on the mic, cold freestylin'
Good nights of sleep for friends and relatives
No more cop hara**ment now that a fella gives
All respect to the Lord who made it possible
‘Cause now I'm on track, I'm rhymin', I'm unstoppable
To be a young brotha rhymin' ain't much to ask
Peace world, because I'm free at last
[Chorus] (x7)
(Rev. Martin Luther King, Jr.: Let freedom ring…*scratched*…from every hill and molehill of Mississippi. From every mountainside, let freedom ring. And when this happens, when we let it ring from every village and every hamlet, from every state and every city, we will be able to speed up that day when all of God's children, black men and white men, Jews and Gentiles, Protestants and Catholics, will be able to join hands and sing in the words of the old Negro spiritual, "Free at last! free at last! thank God Almighty, we are free at last!" *applause*)