Verse 1: Dear Universe, since we last spoke I been trying to work the angles ‘cuz the label's flat broke Did my last quote-unquote "smash" get the cash? Nope Now I'm comin' back hard like Everlast on That's Coke I been runnin' rap hard, never had a track coach But as far as dope beats and bars, I had both You need better punchlines like a bad joke? Well Grip could ghostwrite ‘em They scared like ghost sightings Frightened, and lookin' for holes to go hide in I'm lookin' for a booth my flows can go live in There's no rhymin' you could beat me with Terminal illness, Grip is completely sick Don't ask me if I like your show -- yo, I hate it I only think a song is “Ohhh!!” if I made it Even after I faded away they still say I spit so many times my flow's dehydrated They like it when I'm speakin' on life like wise men They like it when I be on the mic like Rakim They like it just enough to get played But not enough to get paid Or get my record to break the Top Ten The DJ make it blend like Ron G In the studio, trying to produce like Paul C You don't know the blood, sweat, and the tears it cost me Man, I'm tired of y'all thinkin' our styles are all free ...Nah, I'm just playin' But I'm not against makin' the dough, I'm just sayin' You know my frustration So that's why I act like I will crack a rapper in half like crustaceans Dirty like the bathroom at the bus station Or clean like a bottle of bleach I breathe fire when I speak I spit sharp like I filed my teeth I sleep on a mountain of bones and a pile of beats I eat break-loops for breakfast, lyrics for lunch I k** a track after hearin' it once I don't care if you front I'm in the cut like a razor blade, tearin' it up Gave it away like spare change in a cup Me and Sha give the people more bang for they buck A volcano, can't wait to erupt My flow hot as a stove A superpower ‘bout to conquer the globe Walk in the door & split a rapper like a fork in the road Other writers wanna cipher like I'm talkin' in code They get weak and collapse, I'm just speakin' the facts I'm still swingin' like a lumberjack choppin' down trees with a axe Except I'm choppin' MCs with my raps Now I'm back on this Grip-plus-Shalem collab Stay in the lab and make a song every day-and-a-half It's so easy, your man got a plan and a fortified DJ That jam like the 405 freeway