[Intro]
Uh
This one's for the Suspects
[Verse]
Professor Braggs asked me what is blackness?
The only thing that comes to mind is magic
I like to think of blackness as a package
That includes the skill to deal with shit that’s hella fucking tragic, like
Amalgamations of nations of different races
Facing major segregation cuz folks think they savage
In many ways and cases, it’s like a talent
Cuz you could only really talk about it if you fucking have it
I might, sound like a genius I might, sound dumb like Patrick
But I’m reaching for the stars and I’ll be damned if I don’t grab them
Cuz I owe it to my parents, them’s my fucking atlas
And all my ancestors done rose to the challenge
Yeah, so for them I lift my chalice
And strive to be successful when odds against me are stacking
And I don’t care for haters, I send those niggas packing too
And while I’m at it, I got something I wanna ask of you...
What do you think of when you hear the word “nigga”?
I don’t mean the n-word, I’m talking “nigga”
The n-word, hard R, would make for a harsh bar
I’d display it but I think you get the picture
I don’t know about you, but I think of swishers
And burgers served in backyard barbecues with elixir
And chicken fried right, often served with white rice
With the beans, collard greens, and some Kool-Aid from a pitcher
When I hear the word “nigga” I think of daps
And taking shoes off at the front door of the trap
And running from the South, with no plans of coming back
Just to get lynched up north. What kind of fuck shit is that?
My “niggas” are the people who I know got my back
My “niggas” got history with me, and that’s a fact
That history has substance, that substance has a function
To spread the knowledge to folks that considers themselves black
Not all niggas can dance, but all niggas got rhythm
And I don’t know a single nigga who’s a fan of the system
Not all niggas can fight, but all niggas fight
For/their right to a life where everything just seems right
Not all niggas can jump, and some niggas can swim
And I often think that people think we’re swimming in sin
But we’re in a tank and we got chains on our fins
And black joy is when we handle all that shit with a grin
And how beautiful is a nigga’s smile!
We only ever get to see that shit once in a while
He’s been grinding, he’s been working, he’s been feeling down
And now he’s on the fucking come up, do you feel me now?
Yung Nigga willing and able
He built himself a chair to have a seat at the table
Just to learn America’s been feeding us fables
And just like that, the black man is disabled
My personal blackness means discovery
Learning what it means when the white man fucks with me
I can fit a description in any hoodie
And I’m just a statistic if I’m ever caught puffing weed
I’ve had some conversations where I was expected
To explain black tendencies in one little summary
And that taught me that I represent my race
And the stereotypes about us can’t make a full recovery
...I don’t literally take pride in my race
...Cuz I never requested to be black
I would rather count my blackness as a blessing
...Cuz I know that I can’t give it back
I don’t like the word “race” it’s fucking stupid
When people ask me for my race, I say human
When people say my race is black I get ruthless, like
“Tell me all the many ways that I’m different from you, bitch
I mean sure, my English is more fluid
To you it’s less lucid, to me it’s more loosened
To me it sound like music... and when a new genre is
Popular, it’s always black people that execute it.”
Nonetheless, culture is not exclusive
...It’s what holds us all together as a unit
And this conclusion, is very deeply rooted:
My Life Matters, and I’m finna go prove it
[Outro]
Finna go prove it...
Life is a film, the director gave me a loose script
So I might as well go out and do this
