[Produced by J. Cole & Nate Jones]
[Intro]
Freedom or jail, clips inserted
A baby's bein' born same time my man is murdered
The beginning and end, as far as rap go
It's only natural, I explain my plateau
And also what defines my name
[Refrain]
Yeah, long live the idols, may they never be your rivals
Pac was like Jesus, Nas wrote the Bible
Now what you 'bout to hear is a tale of glory and sin
No I.D. my mentor now let the story begin
[Verse 1]
I used to print out Nas raps and tape 'em up on my wall
My n***as thought they was words, but it was pictures I saw
And since I wanted to draw, I used to read them in awe
Then he dropped Stillmatic, rocked the cleanest velour
Fast forward, who'd a thought that I would meet him on tour?
I'm earnin' stripes now a n***a got Adidas galore
Backstage I shook his hand, let 'em know that he's the man
When he said he was a fan it was too hard to understand
No time to soak up the moment though, cause I was in a jam
Hov askin' where's the record that the radio could play
And I was striking out for months, 9th inning feeling fear
Jeter under pressure, made the biggest hit of my career
But at first, that wasn't clear, n***as had no idea
Dion called me when it dropped, sounded sad but sincere
Told me Nas heard your single and he hate that sh**
Said you the one, yo why you make that sh**
[Hook]
I can't believe I let Nas down
Damn, my heart sunk to my stomach, I can't believe I let Nas down
I got defensive on the phone, resentment was in my tone, f** it
[Refrain]
Long live the idols, may they never be your rivals
Pac was like Jesus, Nas wrote the Bible
Now what you're 'bout to hear's a tale of glory and sin
No I.D. my mentor now let the story begin
[Verse 2]
I couldn't help but think that maybe I had made a mistake
I mean, you made "You Owe Me" dog, I thought that you could relate
But while I shot up the charts
You mean telling me that I was not up to par
When I followed my heart
Granted, my heart was tainted by my mind that kept on saying
"Where's the hits?" You ain't got none
You know Jay a never put your album out without none
And dog, you know how come
Labels are archaic, formulaic with they outcome
They don't know, they just study the charts
Me, I studied the shows, the fans, study they hearts
I had a feelin' I was k**in', and this music we were spillin' out
Would change lives forever, f** the label, put it out
Friday Night Lights blew, that was cla**ic number 2
Now it seemed as if the Nas comparisons was coming true
Still no release date from the label, are they insane
Gucc told me play the game to change the game
[Hook]
But on the way I let Nas down
I got no one to blame
I'm a shame, I let Nas down
But this is God's plan, you can never understand, f** it
[Refrain]
Long live the idols, may they never be your rivals
Pac was like Jesus, Nas wrote the Bible
Now what you're 'bout to hear's a tale of glory and sin
No I.D. my mentor now let the story begin
[Verse 3]
I always believed in the bigger picture
If I could get them n***as to listen outside my core then I can open up doors
Reintroduce them to honesty, show 'em that they need more
The difference between the pretenders and the Kendrick Lamars
And so, I took the fall
Like the son of the Lord on the cross
Dying for that fake sh** you n***as bought
For the past decade
If I should pa** please let this be my last essay
Therefore I write from the heart
Apologies to OG's for sacrificing my art
But I'm here for a greater purpose, I knew right from the start
I'm just a man of the people, not above but equal
And for the greater good I walk amongst the evil
Don't cry mama, this the life I choose myself
Just pray along the way that I don't lose myself
This is for the n***a that said that Hip-Hop was dead
I went to Hell to resurrect it, how could you fail to respect it
[Hook]
Letting Nas down
I got the phone call, quietly I mourned dog
I let Nas down
Yeah, and on this flight may I never lose sight, f** it
[Refrain]
Long live the idols, may they never be your rivals
Pac was like Jesus, Nas wrote the Bible
Now what you're 'bout to hear's a tale of glory and sin
No I.D. my mentor now let the story begin