See, gangsters sell crack, kids get held back Wages fell flat, now if you felt that Say when (when, when, when) Say when (when, when, when) See, gangsters sell crack, kids get held back Wages fell flat, now if you felt that Say when (when, when, when) Say when (when, when, when) Ayo, the sun still shinin', earth still spinnin' Poor still grindin', rich still winnin' Imagine that, another day, another merger One step further towards takin' this rat race But, while we make false starts and don't finish it They built more Walmarts and small business get swept aside Like dirt off the floor, headquarters offshore Young kids off to war, that's if you're poor Big biz like Juice Crew, honest work doesn't pay like it used to Man, so we do what we can, shop for bargains They outsource and expand profit margins And mark down what they already marked up And leave town when the heat gets sparked up So good jobs make the exodus to poor countries where they make even less than us n***a, if you was the richest cat, bona fide aristocrat, kicked it with diplomats You smile and tip your hat, lyin' an' tit for tat, if you could buy this and that You wouldn't switch it back, now would you? See, gangsters sell crack, kids get held back Wages fell flat, now if you felt that Say when (when, when, when) Say when (when, when, when) See, gangsters sell crack, kids get held back Wages fell flat, now if you felt that Say when (when, when, when) Say when (when, when, when) Ayo, the rope still swingin', the door still shuttin' The bell still ringin', kids still cuttin', go figure Everyday the gap grows bigger and you wonder why they pullin' those triggers man What you expect? It must be a hell of a lot Some kids surrounded by d**, whether they sell ‘em or not But they ain't got brand-new laptop computers and they ain't got the money for a tutor So they learn geometry by studying angles on every corner An' chemistry cla** is makin' that pot warmer So if pop warner doesn't lead to a scholly They prolly ain't goin' to college (no) And now the system really only about preppin' for tests And they invest more in the schools reppin' the best Of course poor schools get less with time And they callin' that No Child Left Behind But see, schools are still really segregated And poor people still miseducated So if one half of black kids live below the poverty line Fact is they probably lyin' But they ain't losin' no sleep, no toss and turnin' And keep raisin' that cost of learnin' I guess it's still crosses burnin' Watch how they fan them flames, understand them thangs It's why: See, gangsters sell crack, kids get held back Wages fell flat, now if you felt that Say when (when, when, when) Say when (when, when, when) See, gangsters sell crack, kids get held back Wages fell flat, now if you felt that Say when (when, when, when) Say when (when, when, when) Ayo, the bombs still droppin', Snoop still crippin' Guns still poppin', scales still tippin' You don't say? See these kids don't play, but they all justified in they own way Cause if jobs don't pay and schools don't teach Ain't a whole lot within reach You either catch a case, catch wreck, catch alley-oops Catch a ride to the spot where they rally troops Or you go an' get your own recruits, if you catch my drift Givin' them fiends that extra lift So hustlers cook rocks, accountants cook books I figure the bigger the crime, the bigger the crook Look, this song ain't about crack per se It used to be about moonshine back in the day Now kids smoke M E T H O D, man So really it's an OG plan See, gangsters sell crack, kids get held back Wages fell flat, now if you felt that Say when (when, when, when) Say when (when, when, when) See, gangsters sell crack, kids get held back Wages fell flat, now if you felt that Say when (when, when, when) Say when (when, when, when)