[Verse 1: Kool G Rap] From the street blocks, to C-blocks, sleep in a box Creep with an ox, got beef from the shop, catch heat from the cops That sharp blade: you keep in the crotch Prison guards deep on the watch Fifth tier is steep on the drop If your knees knock, they're peeping it Pop Though they not speaking a lot They plot, eavesdrop, greasin' the co*k Come to shove meat in your chops Flee the spot, sheets in a knot Get tied from your feet to the top Get caught in the hall: make your blood skeet with a mop If you do a shift in the kitchen, blood'll leak in the pot It's just a long game of sheep and the fox Phone time, beef for your slot This sh**'ll make you weep in your cot Mess halls get messy y'all n***a get shanked up in the chest: he fall, pressed against the wall, got the best of y'all Stitched from neck to balls, skin cut, flesh and all Stretched out unless you brawl: nothing s**y at all The life destiny wall, hope the Lord bless when he call Stand like a man or be a Debbie in core(?) Heavier they come, more heavier for n***as to who*e Could be a predator, or dead in the morgue Spread em some more [Hook: Talib Kweli] (x2) In the prison, industrial complex You got taxes, politics, jobs, d**h Growth stunted, cold-blooded, dark and heartless From the pyramids down to the projects [Verse 2: Lord Jamar] What do it take? Vandal tryin' to escape I got a homemade shank – wrapped the handle with tape Better move, quick fast, got a trick for your a** n***as in my clique stick dick to your a** And we don't give a f**, trying to make time pa** Here, eat it up, feed a n***a fine gla** Got jailhouse wine in the stash Every time the caf' serves swine, yo I tell ‘em “I pa**” Do like Beecher did to Shillinger and sh** on your a** You the feature when I'm k**ing ya: a hit on your a** Supreme Allah said “We got time to k**” So when it's time to k**, we got time to k** In the yard with the guards when it's time to build And this time is hard, got to use my will See sh** has changed ever since they k**ed Adebisi You never know – n***as might try to grease me [Hook: Talib Kweli] (x2) Welcome to the prison, industrial complex You got taxes, politics, jobs, d**h Growth stunted, cold-blooded, dark and heartless From the pyramids down to the projects [Verse 3: Talib Kweli] The image that we project is still God Time to reflect, but the reflection is hard Like sticking mirrors out between the bars, seeing the guards Seem like everybody innocent, regardless of the charge You face d**h, rape threats, and place bets on who getting laced next Forever faceless, never waste breathe Blowing out the candles that the wind already snuffed out They locked up your body – your mind could bust out Police don't sweep to get the dust out They want your name in the system My need to mention the d**h penalty is legal lynchin' People listen: they got teenagers up in the line-up To fill the new facility they built, they need the crime up Please, the War on Drugs is really war on the youth War on the people, war on the truth The violent crimes rise The silence dies as sirens cry through the night People fight for what's left, and not what's right [Hook: Talib Kweli] (x2) In the prison, industrial complex You got taxes, politics, jobs, d**h Growth stunted, cold-blooded, dark and heartless From the pyramids down to the projects [Talib Kweli] Word is bond [Outro: Augustus Hill on “Oz”] Darkness For three days straight Only darkness – think of it Sittin' in your house for three days: No lights, no TVs, not even the flashlight you keep for a blackout