Yo
This is to the entire Critical Ma**
My n***a Tashawn, Jah Born, Big Tu
This how we do
Check it out
Yeah
[Mos Def]
Daylight disappears from sight
Sun bleeds on the bricks and brings forth the night
The red serenade give shade to backstreets
Heads adjust the EQ for ba** in they jeeps
Sound like the drums of a neighboring tribe
Absorb the vibe, feels good, close my eyes
And step out [?] by the crisp night air
I gotta stay aware, god, it's demons out here
Adjust the headset 'fore I begin this trek
Insert the ca**ette, press play on the deck
The horns echo, and I slip back in the zone
It's time for the high plains man to roam
Yo, I be dealin with magic, some say mellow dramatic
Lingually acrobatic, stayin fluent in static
I work my way to your town as the day goes down
I got observatory view of the sight and sound
I feel completely out of place in this wack rat race
I'm the type of blackman that need color and space
But heads be dealin with waste, they be movin at haste
Herbs got somethin to prove, wanna stare in your face
Brothers wanna compete when there ain't sh** to win
They playin high-post now, I'm prepared for the end
They wanna profile they style like they got it so sweet
It ain't about what you earn, it's about what you keep
Man pa**es by in a aimless stroll
Barefoot in the street as the night grows cold
In reply to his sorrow he begins to dance
He claps his hands, we share an awkward glance
[CHORUS]
Sun is falling
Moon is rising
(Yes yes y'all
Ah freak freak y'all
Freak freak y'all
And you don't stop)
[Mos Def]
I keep mainly to myself, I ain't got too many friends
While they be lookin for rocks I be searchin for gems
I got nothin to lose, I might as well be a winner
Try to radiate the light as the world gets dimmer
Poppa, haven't you heard, there is power in words
I contemplate to elevate the average man on the curb
Who be slingin his rock, catchin hell from the cops
Got the world on his back, bein male, bein black
And it's crazy mad stress, the city don't rest
Can't maintain your poise for the goddamn noise
So I'm watchin my clock because the day drifts off
At night I reason with myself and how I can get sh** off
Might be readin a book or might be drinkin a stout
I might be thinkin it over, might just need to be out
I might be tryina get money, might be dealin with honeys
Might be geekin off these devils cause they so f**in funny
Smokin a stoge on the D train chillin
Checkin the skyline of the Watchtower buildin
Images of black in the hills and the valleys
From the tight businessmen to the gods from the rallies
A basehead with the Moe Dee shades
A little girl with pretty eyes and her hair in braids
A mother rest on her seat, rubs her feet
Falls back into sleep, thousand fathoms deep
[Ces]
As the nighttime falls I creep through the dark
I check out the scenes in Fort Greene Park
Lost souls in empty memory lanes
No life to live and no goals to gain
This negatory provision is all around us
It's systematic and frantic, the devil hounds us
Set to prevail I take back the night
Wake up my soul and take back my life
I sit back and wait for the right time
But I'm already here, it's in the nighttime
[CHORUS]
[Mos Def]
Moonlight starts to fade away
Sun creeps up the bricks and brings forth the day
Sun is high and it's AM again
It's time for the k**ers to slay men again
[?] business day
I want this sh** to be over, got no time to play
So if you wanna help, then do me this favor
Cut the nonsense and let me handle this paper
Time is money and money is time
Ain't a damn thing free, so I must get mine
It's ten to closing, yo son got to jettin
Headed back to the Brak to watch the sunset
[CHORUS]