Exile - Maintain lyrics

[Verse 1: Blu] I'm trying to find a way up out of this; living at home Trying to find out who my father is, sitting alone Bumpin' Common Sense blown Not off the chronic, but off the knowledge in his dome Still astonished - But I gotta move on See my mother thinks my problem is I really ain't accomplish sh** 21 without a car, scarred, without a scholarship And some days I don't eat, all I got is pocket lint I walk around with cold feet and I'm thinner than my wallet is But she don't realize, her son is five times dominant Than most n***as she's honoring, but she don't see the prominence Probably f** around and change the world like Bob Marley did My talent's apparent, but its fatherless of how she don't acknowledge it I hate running away from my problems without solving it proper I don't wanna be a doctor I just wanna be the father that my father never bothered to be My son ain't never have to follow the streets His role model is me [Hook: Jontel] Life can get you down some time We keep movin' on Just keep your head up high All things change with time You-- You gon' be alright Never give up your dream Maintain your fight [Verse 2: Donel Smokes] Up early in the morning, still yawnin' Mama wakin' me up If not church it was school, which I didn't give a f** about neither A non-believer you can call me whatever Doin' dumb sh** like ditchin' cla** I knew nothin' better Instead of treatin' myself I was cheatin' myself Trying to be different when I should have tried being myself It would have helped if Gramps Sr. was around Left Mama trying to tell me that the gunshots was thunder I was hearin' trying to sleep over Little Bo Peep A strong woman kept seein' tears fallin' from her cheeks On my sheets - Was he strong was he weak? I don't know... But it takes something great to leave a family of four Sometimes it makes no sense at all Even though we made it over where you fumbled Mama picked up the ball and scored Lord help the man wherever he is And give me the strength so I won't do the same to my kids That's real [Hook] [Verse 3: Co$$] I gotta get up outta here I'm a prisoner of pain I'm a captain to a mind like it's driven insane It's like I'm livin' for the minute let this livin's explained I gotta know - If after living will our spirit remain? Why we hugged up on the block and raise our kids in a gang? And why once, we live once, we never livin' again? Why my pops shot up ..... and what it did to his veins? Was them needles from a victim that was inflicted with A.I.D.S? Is this the reason that he got it? You know why I suppose, I don't know - Did I know it's like a knife in my soul It's real talk, I ain't sure about the life that's beyond And I ain't understand why people we fightin' them wars Ourselves - God help us we ain't right in the head And I be dreamin' 'bout my problems every night in the bed I be thinkin' 'bout my past and sh** a n***a feelin' pa**ionate The same time raised by the past - I can't get past this sh** And lookin' back on it - There ain't nothin' to say I'm too wrapped up in the pain I feel this numbin' embrace I get a flash of them streets and what they done to my face And when he beat me to my knees he had a gun at his waist But the beatin' that I took it wasn't nothin' to take Trust me, he had have k**ed me if he done it today I ain't never been no coward, so f** that runnin' away You only catch a n***a runnin' if there's something to chase It's young Co$$ [Hook] x2