[Intro: Ab-Soul] Give me a little, little, little more volume on the vocals Mic check, mic check one two This is it right here Wave, this is it Thank you for tuning in, hope y'all enjoyed yourself Long Term [Verse 1: Ab-Soul] Motherf**er this is Long Term, let me explain to you n***as I'm here for the long haul I'm fly as Curtis Pilot, you ever saw part of my Carson Joggin' if y'all lost, but I been dedicated since back then Started out with the double-time rhyme scheme I got from Twista I couldn't quite convince the public, I was the one that'll put us up on the map Throwin' away raps in a trash can Fillin' my notebook up with my quotes, but the doors didn't open up So I slowed it up Found my niche, got my bars up Black Planet freestyle chattin', get your guards up Boys in Black had me hip to punchlines and all that Came back with some hard stuff What I was like, sixteen I think? k**in' 'em, [?] box sealin' 'em, like the rooftop Not quite a god emcee, more like Jay Reed, give me the oowop I don't care who drop Still found room for development Before MySpace views were so relevant Hey Soul, you ever think of sellin' it? What? Your soul! Heavens no Unless it cost that at Heaven's door I pave my own way, no steppin' stones My first break was playin' songs for Tory Crow The judge looked out, we even shot a video Shout-out my man June, can't forget my n***a Bones with the bangers It's all love over here player Before MP3 players could play us I had a five-star tablet full of cla**ics At a time where every rapper was a gangsta or somethin' Sort of became cliche some thought From the suburbs where we do dirt and hope we never get caught Hittin' a lie, why would I lie? [Hook: Lori Writes] I've been watching you, to whomever this may concern I can see your grind, what you got is well deserved You gotta get up, get out, and get it, you can't always wait your turn And it may not happen tomorrow, you gotta think long term [Verse 2: Ab-Soul] I told myself like back in '05 I give this rap sh** two years But I'm still here I've fallen in love with this hip-hop thing Our relationship is real rare The problem with a lot of newcomers is sad, but understood I'm tryin' to make a great song, they tryin' to make it out the hood I'm tryin' to be honored with the Pacs and Biggies And they tryin' to see face on TV like, "Momma, see me?" But it's a whole lot easier now The Internet'll let the world play your media now Your girlfriend cousin got a mixtape comin' out And he got a beat you leased, but the producer is out of reach This kid asked me how to make a name for himself I told him I'm still tryin' to find a lane for myself I could've lied to him and sold him a bunch of BS But this is where the letter ends, before I go, P.S [Outro] What is long term? Long term is everlasting, long term is the thought of a future reference Long term is everlasting, long term is the thought of a future reference What is long term? Long term is everlasting, long term is the thought of a future reference Long term is everlasting