Tupac Amaru Shakur - My life be like

The two sides of the coin

Tupac Amaru Shakur was born in New York , 16 June 1971 and he died in Las Vegas, 13 September 1996. He was a rapper, activist and actor.
Artist of great success, with over 85 million records sold worldwide, he is considered one of the most influential rappers of all time, despite the short musical career and his disappearance occurred in September 1996 in Las Vegas, when he was hit by four bullets fired from a speeding car. His disappearance was followed by another violent death, Notorious B.I.G’s one. These two disappearances have marked a deep grief in rap history.
Tupac released a large amount of albums (many of them are posthumous) which include “All Eyez on Me” in 1996 and his “Greatest Hits” in 1998, both listed among the best-selling albums of all time in the United States of America. Many of his songs were also focused on the difficult life in the ghetto, on racism and social exclusion, corruption institutions and also clashes with other rappers , alcoholism, drug, prostitution and violence between street gangs.
His attitude, both on and off the music, and his idealism have meant that Tupac was, and remained even after the untimely demise, a benchmark for Black America. The famous magazine Rolling Stone placed Tupac at 86th place in its list of Top 100 artists of all time.

In 1994 Tupac wrote a special song: “My life be like”.

It is a very beautiful song, and above all it is the mirror of a different reality that still exists "on the road" and Tupac is a great artist and a great poet “of the road”. The song is very blunt and blends perfectly on the beat on which he sings in his West Coast style. Listening to him and his entire discography is always an exciting experience, because from his deep and meaningful lyrics you can understand what his crime and on-the-road life was.
Despite all the problems he got - such as racism and marginalization - because of the way he grew up but didn’t choose (he was forced to sell drugs to earn his living), the song talks about how much Tupac liked his life.

Lyrics - “My life be like”

My life be like Ooh Ahh

CHORUS:
It's times like these that make me say,
Lord if you see me please come my way.
Leavin bread crumbs for when I stray
Rely on sacrifice and the price you paid
Feel me like a fingertip
(flow fingertip flow fingertip)
Sometimes I fall I slip
Got a heartfelt desire be more like you
Trying not to quench your fire by the things that i do

I'm on an island by my lonesome stranded
Low key and stayin' candid
Reflectin on the things I try my hand at
Search for the equations to persuasions I'm used to
Findin comfort in the zones of closet bones I get loose to
A mountainous fontaine,
Spinnin and monsoonin
Grinnin its high octane
This worlds out wacky
Rollin down the hills cause lifes a hassle
Encircled by my folly like a moat surround a castle
Stay a float,
Catch a second wind thin is the air I breathe
Teary-eyed nose runnin, wipe the snot on my sleeve
I'm callin on my savior to be all that I need
Please forgive me my behavior had me lost at light speed

CHORUS

The fear of never falling in love
And the tears after losing the feelings
Of what you thought love was
Like the dirt still up under the rug
(My life be like)
Bad characteristics covered in Christ's blood
The joy of new birth and the pain of growing up
The bliss between giving my all and giving up
The highs and lows,
Paths and roads I chose
In the cold I froze
Trying to ease my woes
In this world of sin
Clothes to thin to fend
So to God I send
Words of help to win
In grumblings so deep letters could never express
So the sounds of Ooh Ahh beneath my breath projects

CHORUS

My life be like (Toby Mac)

My life be like ooh aah ooh
Dum dum diddy
Here comes that boy from the capital city
Last up on the Grits new ditty
But eight bars of the truth will do,
uh
I believe there's a pride thats stunning,
And I believe in the kingdom coming
I believe if you seek the truth,
You don't need to look far cuz it's gonna find you
So why, oh why, do I trip and stumble?
And ooh ahh as commitment crumble?
I can't believe that I'm here again?

Glossary

Hip-Hop: the popular subculture of big-city teenagers, which includes rap music, break dancing, and graffiti art
to Grumble: to murmur or mutter in discontent
Kingdom: a state or government having a king or queen as its head
Path: a way or small passage on the ground beaten by human or animal feet: a path through the woods
to Catch: to seize or capture, esp. after chasing: The police tried for weeks to catch the thief
Ghetto: a section of a city, esp. a thickly populated slum area, in which mostly members of a minority group live
Benchmark: a mark made on a measuring device at a known height from which other heights may be calculated
Gang: a group or band
to Disappear: to cease to exist or be known; pass away
Worldwide: throughout the world
Untimely Demise: a death for decease occurred before the expected, normal or proper time
Blunt: having a thick or dull edge or point

NWA - A history of racism and violence

 The speakers

NWA is a rap band. They performed many songs in a gangsta rap style. The band was composed of five famous rappers such as Ice Cube, Dr Dre, Dj Yella, MC Ren and the leader Eazy-E, affectionately called "The Godfather of Gangsta Rap”. All of them were from Compton (California) and operated from 1986 to 1992 when the band broke up because of Eazy-E’s death due AIDS. “Fuck The Police” is a very famous song from the album “Straight Outta Compton”, the only album released by the band. Composed in 1988 it talks about the racist behavior the cops had (and still have) towards black people, the testimonies in rhyme express anger against racism and violence by cops . Because of this song NWA were watched by the police and in Detroit when they performed “Fuck The Police” during a gig the cops stopped the concert and arrested NWA. We have chosen this song because it says in a loud voice what most people think about the police but are afraid to report because of the violence and the repression they could be affected by.

Excerpts from Lyrics - "Fuck The Police"

[Ice Cube]

Fuck the police coming straight from the underground

A young nigga got it bad cause I'm brown

And not the other color so police think

they have the authority to kill a minority

Fuck that shit, cause I ain't the one

for a punk motherfucker with a badge and a gun

to be beating on, and thrown in jail

We can go toe to toe in the middle of a cell

Fucking with me cause I'm a teenager

with a little bit of gold and a pager

Searching my car, looking for the product

Thinking every nigga is selling narcotics

You'd rather see, me in the pen

than me and Lorenzo rolling in a Benz-o

Beat a police out of shape

and when I'm finished, bring the yellow tape

To tape off the scene of the slaughter

Still getting swoll off bread and water

I don't know if they fags or what

Search a nigga down, and grabbing his nuts

And on the other hand, without a gun they can't get none

But don't let it be a black and a white one

Cause they'll slam ya down to the street top

Black police showing out for the white cop

Ice Cube will swarm

on ANY motherfucker in a blue uniform

Just cause I'm from, the CPT

Punk police are afraid of me!

HUH, a young nigga on the warpath

And when I'm finished, it's gonna be a bloodbath

of cops, dying in L.A.

Yo Dre, I got something to say

[cut and scratched 4x] "Fuck the police"

[Dr. Dre]

MC Ren, will you please give your testimony

to the jury about this fucked up incident?

[MC Ren]

Fuck the police and Ren said it with authority

because the niggas on the street is a majority

A gang, is with whoever I'm stepping

and the motherfucking weapon is kept in

a stash box, for the so-called law

Wishing Ren was a nigga that they never saw

Lights start flashing behind me

But they're scared of a nigga so they mace me to blind me

But that shit don't work, I just laugh

because it gives em a hint, not to step in my path

For police, I'm saying, "Fuck you punk!"

Reading my rights and shit, it's all junk

Pulling out a silly club, so you stand

with a fake-assed badge and a gun in your hand

But take off the gun so you can see what's up

And we'll go at it punk, and I'ma fuck you up!

Make you think I'ma kick your ass

but drop your gat, and Ren's gonna blast

I'm sneaky as fuck when it comes to crime

But I'ma smoke 'em now and not next time

Smoke any motherfucker that sweats me

or any asshole, that threatens me

I'm a sniper with a hell of a scope

Taking out a cop or two, they can't cope with me

The motherfucking villain that's mad

With potential, to get bad as fuck

So I'ma turn it around

Put in my clip, yo, and this is the sound

[BOOM, BOOM] Yeah, something like that

but it all depends on the size of the gat

Taking out a police, would make my day

But a nigga like Ren don't give a fuck to say

[cut and scratched 4x] "Fuck the police"

[Dr. Dre]

Eazy-E, won't you step up to the stand

and tell the jury how you feel about this bullshit?

[Eazy-E]

I'm tired of the motherfucking jacking

Sweating my gang, while I'm chilling in the shack, and

shining the light in my face, and for what?

Maybe it's because I kick so much butt

I kick ass - or maybe cause I blast

on a stupid-assed nigga when I'm playing with the trigger

of any Uzi or an AK

Cause the police always got something stupid to say

They put out my picture with silence

Cause my identity by itself causes violence

The E with the criminal behavior

Yeah, I'm a gangsta, but still I got flavor

Without a gun and a badge, what do ya got?

A sucker in a uniform waiting to get shot

by me, or another nigga

And with a gat it don't matter if he's smaller or bigger

([MC Ren:] Size ain't shit, he's from the old school fool)

And as you all know, E's here to rule

Whenever I'm rolling, keep looking in the mirror

And ears on cue, yo, so I can hear a

dumb motherfucker with a gun

And if I'm rolling off the 8, he'll be the one

that I take out, and then get away

While I'm driving off laughing this is what I'll say

[cut and scratched 4x] "Fuck the police"

 

Fuck the police! [3x]

Glossary
To watch: to keep someone or something under close observation
Cruelty: behavior or action that causes pain to others
Warpath: the path or course taken by American Indians on a warlike expedition
Slaughter: a brutal or violent killing (murder)
Gang: a group of persons associated for some criminal purpose (terrorist gangs)
Sneaky: a person who should not be trusted
Gun: a weapon consisting of a metal tube from which bullets are shot by the force of an explosive
Dumb: lacking intelligence or good judgment; stupid
Hint: an indirect, partly hidden, or helpful suggestion
Cop: a police officer

BURY ME A G

FSP Crew

Tupac Shakur wrote "Hit 'Em Up" with collaboration of the Outlawz. This song talks about the rivalry with the enemy Notorious B.I.G. In this song Tupac insults Notorious with bad words.
B.I.G. and Tupac were friends, but when in 1994 at the Quad Recording Studios Tupac suffered an aggression with many shots of firegun, the rapper thought that his friend Notorious was responsible of his aggression, and this is the reason why Tupac wrote this song against Notorious B.I.G.
Hit em’ up is a single, this song was written in 1996 and it is known as one of the most famous dissing of hip-hop.
We think this song is very aggressive, very gangsta, that is what we like about this song.

Lyrics - Hit 'Em Up

First off, fuck your bitch

And the clique you claim

West side when we ride

Come equipped with game

You claim to be a player

But I fucked your wife

We bust on Bad Boys

niggas fuck for Life

Plus Puffy tryin' to see me weak

Hearts I rip

Biggie Smalls and Junior Mafia

Some mark ass bitches

We keep on coming

While we running for your jewels

Steady gunning

Keep on busting at them fools

You know the rules

Little Ceasar go ask you homie

How I'll leave you

Cut your young ass up

See you in pieces

Now be deceased

Little Kim,

Don't fuck around with real G's

Quick to snatch your ugly ass, off the streets

So fuck peace

I'll let them niggas know

It's on for Life

Don't let the west side

Ride the night (ha ha)

Bad Boys murdered on Wax and kill

fuck with me

And get your caps peeled

You know, see

Grab your glocks when you see 2pac

Call the cops when you see 2pac, uh

Who shot me,

But your punks didn't finish

Now you 'bout to feel the wrath of a menace

nigga, I hit 'em up

Glossary

Westside: Tupac is from Harlem, he says the West Coast is where he learned the “game”.
Quad Recording Studios: Tupac was there when he was shot.
Outlawz: a gangsta rap group.
Bad Boys: the record label of Notorious B.I.G.
Dissing: a song with the aim of insulting other rappers or groups.
1996: in this year Tupac Shakur was killed.
Gangsta: gangsta rap is a musical genre born in Compton, a city in southern Los Angeles County, California, United States.