[Intro (samples)]
(It's Esoteric)
(Rest in peace)
[Verse 1: Esoteric]
Yo Friday night, feeling right, f**ing with this bad chick
Gats click, now I'm hit, sh**, watch the blood spit
I fall face down, background is H-Town
Needle drag, music stops, people call the cops
For a rap cat, shot dead in the back
Over a dame, for some reason of which I cannot explain
My name was little known at this time
'Less we use the Boston, Ma**. as the measuring line
My crime being waxed, redirects, people's tv's set
Maybe you're seeing the checks, or see 'em as threats
My fam cries at the wake, some guys do steaks
With their eyes on my tape, realizin' my surprisin' fate
Ten-to-five covered, then from five-to-eight
Now the average rap fan starts to gravitate
To the MC Esoteric, to see if they were sleepin'
On a dope MC whose sk**s need peepin'
[Chorus: Esoteric (samples)]
It's tough staying underground when you're six feet deep
And major labels profit up off that, but in the streets
(It's Esoteric)
(Rest in peace)
And now everybody's checking for my posthumous release
(d**h is a final step)
(d**h is a final step)
(You know dead rappers get better promotion)
(d**h is a final step)
Check
[Verse 2: Esoteric]
Now as I look down, it's kinda tough swallowin'
The fact that I'm a dead rapper with a cult followin'
Legions of fans got their hands on my old jams
And new fans, they were saying, "Oh damn!"
At every punchline, and now the rumors break and hit
Cause everybody knew that I was working on some new sh**
Cats askin, "Who's on it? Who produced it?"
Straight up, just ask deceased, let the man (Rest in peace)
All my old friends are now saying that's a spiritual
My mother wants my material
Girlfriend's saying that I'm lyrical, fighting over rights
Sellin R.I.P. T-shirts at open mics
Fans thought the East/West was coming to South
Got the Source van in front of my house
XXL and Elemental runnin' their mouth
Got my dad depressed, he's 'bout to flip, put a gun in his mouth
[Chorus: Esoteric (samples)]
It's tough staying underground when you're six feet deep
And major labels profit up off that, but in the streets
(It's Esoteric)
(Rest in peace)
And now everybody's checking for my posthumous release
(d**h is a final step)
(d**h is a final step)
(You know dead rappers get better promotion)
(d**h is a final step)
[Verse 3: Esoteric]
Now majors having bidding wars, and deals on the table
Labels unstable cause my face is on cable
Even underground critics say that I'm the best that did it
Even though they sh**ted on my last hit-it
I don't get it, Sony pimped me up in a week
And now my acapella's flowing over wack commercial beats
They shot my video, with an Esoteric stunt double
In a Lex bubble, saying it was footage from the night before the trouble
No red tape, just sample clearances and mad guest appearances
(Like who?) A lot of guys whom I never authorized
As my mother looks into the skies to apologize
Although I'm dead, mom, my soul remains undaunted
Now you can actually afford the things you wish you flaunted
And even though every studio will be haunted
I finally got the major label budget that I wanted
[Chorus: Esoteric (samples)]
It's tough staying underground when you're six feet deep
And major labels profit up off that, but in the streets
(It's Esoteric)
(Rest in peace)
And now everybody's checking for my posthumous release
(d**h is a final step)
(d**h is a final step)
(d**h is a final step)
(d**h is a final step)