[Nas]
Uhh
Yo, yo-yo, y'all
Whattup? Whattup
It's time man
(Word, it's time?)
Straight up, it's time man
Aight, set that shit
off
(Set it off then nigga, set it off)
Broken glass in the hallway,
bloodstained floors
Neighbors, look at every bag you bring through your
doors
Lock the top lock, momma shoulda cuffed me to the radiator
Why not?
It might've saved later from my block
N.Y. cops, hookers crawlin off the
stroll, coughin
stitches in they head, stinkin and I dread thinkin they be
snitchin
But who else, could it be, shook at these, unmarked vans
Parked
in the dark -- NARC's, where's your heart?
Hustlers starve; they bust a U-e I
jog
to my building -- come out later wearin camouflage
See the sergeant
and the captain -- strangle men
Niggaz gaspin for air; til they move no more
and just stare
with dead eyes -- tired of riots, shit is
quiet
Simple-minded fools infiltrate grimy crews
Overcrowded cribs, uncles
home from bids, sister's pregnant
father's on drugs, moms is smokin, beds is
piss-infested
Had eight partners growin up, eight turned to seven
Seven
turned to six niggaz, got two in heaven
Six of us, holdin it, now it's five
rollin thick
The sixth one's parole flipped; five niggaz, went to fo'
quick
when he went O.T., college life, converted into gangbangin
Four
niggaz still hangin, years passed and slang changin
Three of us now, fourth
nigga ain't around
We all thought he was real -- he did the snake
shit
Fake shit -- beat his ass down, yo his mouth
could've got us all
wasted, what a fuckin clown
All I got left in the end is two of my best
friends
And we all goin out, to the death for these ends, WHAT?
New
York, New York ("New York state of mind" -> [Rakim])
New York, New
York ("New York state of mind" -> [Rakim])
[repeat while Nas is
talking]
You heard about it, you see about it
You read about it,
it's in your papers
It's in your daily news ("Get money!")
New York
chronicles, every day
The crime rate, the murder rate
The money rate, the
paper chase, youknowhatImean?
New York state of mind baby, check it
out
[Nas]
I'm at the, gamblin spot, my hands on a knot
New
York Yankee cap cover my eyes, stand in one spot
I take a nigga dough, send
him home, to a shoebox
You lost that nigga I put your dollar in the
jukebox
Hear my favorite song, all these niggaz sing along
All the
ciggarette smoke's cloggin my lungs, hoodrats flashin they tongue
Young thugs
blastin they gun, we got reputations
Bitches and niggaz both on parole or
probation
Shit is sick, niggaz got gats, army fatigues
I got my eyes glued
on, whoever walk in the lead
Cause I ain't playin, niggaz'll run up in here
and shoot up this shit
Stick yo' ass up, niggaz'll find the loot in your
kicks
Bunch of triple-cross niggaz, just New York niggaz
Lift you off your
feet when they was just talkin with you
Some of these dudes the Feds be on
em, you knew em for years
Be the type when you walk in a pub, they offer you
beers
That ain't gangsta, niggaz is up North with tatted tears
Your name's
on the affadavit, you ratted kid
Faggot-ass niggaz that be scared to do they
bids
Fuck you, we run you out of N.Y, you can't live
Got your quiet
niggaz, that relocated down South
comin back to floss, then you got the
jealous loudmouths
All of a sudden we got Crips and Bloods, D.T.'s
runnin
round quick to split your mug, it's ea-sy to score
but it's hard to get the
shit off
Niggaz fightin over hundred sales, jump in the car and drive
off
When the fiend come around the block, happy as hell
Niggaz, mad cause
they ain't get a piece of that sale
Cutthroat connivers, universal, ghetto
survivors
Go to any hood that's live and make it liver
A lot of niggaz
scheamin, some real, some niggaz frontin
But I'm a big dreamer, so watch me
come up with somethin
New York, New York
New York, New York