All tribe posse, all Fu-Schnickens posse big up all dem
Man like Chip-Fu, man like Phife Dawg and Whitey Don inna de area
Chorus:
Articaaaal
Now we are chemist inna dis
Articaaaal
And we ain’t no prentice
Articaaaal
Now we are chemist inna dis
Any bwoy want test, get defeat
Verse 1 (Phife Dawg)
Everytime ya see Malik, he mashin' up dancehall
MC big or small, mi nuh 'fraid none at all
Da boys an' 'em jealous coz a how I rock
A Tribe Called Quest, we represent non-stop
[Now, hear dis!]
Idyat bwoy, idyat bwoy, idyat bwoy, step aside
There ain't enough room to fit ya all in my ride
It's a…
First come, first serve basis
Coolin’ out girl, I take you to the def places
I'm one of a kind, for you people to like
Plus the shorty's name Phife and I’m wreckin’ the mic
One time for your mind, and I’m chillin' with Niles
And when it comes to rhymes, yo, I got mad styles
Six years in the game, ain’t a damn thing changed
'cept them wondering why so many MCs soundin' [??]
Matter' fact, too many MCs are soundin' alike
To the point where you think that they possessed the same mic
Same as in: gun totin', blunt smokin’, ho smackin’
You see they just be yappin'
Ain't sayin' jack when they be rappin'
But you might say: "Yo, who the hell are you to talk?
Punk shorty from New-York, your half-pint ass better walk"
But you know better than to get fresh with those lips
Nuff crew, or no crew, I'll sink your whole fuckin’ battleship
You better haul ass when you see the size 8 Adidas
Watch all them punks ball out "Oh god and Baby Jesus!"
So don’t say the battle word, I'll be on it pronto
And if I lose, I'll leave my nuts in El Segundo
Chorus:
Articaaaal
Now we are chemist inna dis
Articaaaal
And we ain’t no prentice
Articaaaal
Now we are chemist inna dis
Any bwoy want test, get defeat
Verse 2 (Whitey Don)
Hold yuh lighta if yuh ah wonder
Don man a talk tonight
All who doubt di one artical
Dem all a put up a fight
Beg, playa, now get a way
Come Mr. Bad, tell di cops get a way
Sound bwoooooy
???Hear mon, fi hear what mi say???
Cyan dis ?respending? and sound we ah play
When I chat boat, a de Tribe yuh want dis
Go tell that to Phife and yuh get a split lip
Chat bout, yuh try fi dis di Fu-Schnicks
Must ha fi get a kung-fu chop from de Chip (bwoi)
Yuh never know my sound cyan get defeat
We ah fi ?buck it?, and we nuh retreat
So if ya test, yuh sound dead and buried
???Cause we nuh rock fi killaz, or dibby-dibby
We Artical, we dun big and ready
Back up yuh sound, ???set up in it???
With de man Phife Dawg and Chip-Fu de side a me
De all ah we a Jive family
Chorus:
Articaaaal
Now we are chemist inna dis
Articaaaal
And we ain’t no prentice
Articaaaal
Now we are chemist inna dis
Any bwoy want test, get defeat
Verse 3 (Chip-Fu)
Debt ah go come, debt ah go come, debt ah go come
To every sound bwoy
Cause mi seh Chip-Fu, Jah know say yuh are di don
You full up lyrical touch style and nuff pattern
Off out di mike, dis yuh sound
Some people cyan understand
Came listen dis lyrics pon tongue, yes pon mi tong, pon di blank (sooo)
Hey dirty sound bwoy, mind you go astray
Cause mi seh Chip-Fu, yes and Whitey Don, and Phife Dawg on a mission, we no play
We nuh go stop, to we wix it ??? cool
We nuh mix lord, we nuh mingle
Watch out we fist bwoy, cause we nuh simple
(Whitey Don): An we seat up pon de riddim like one roof shingle
(Chip) Yes, a we ah sible
(Whitey) Mean a mix lord
(Chip) What are know, seh?
(Whitey) Mean a mingle
(Chip) Trough di seat down
(Whitey) pon riddim
(Chip) Like fuckin
(Whitey) roof shingle
(Chip) Man a have no
(Whitey) Jheri curls
(Chip) Jah know
(Whitey) we nuh have primped
We nuh skin with dis
(Whitey) So no sight or diple
(Chip) ?Man small a likkle?
???
Any bwoy want come test, Jah know dem dirty magotrickle
Dat’s a likkle
You sound mush up weak, frill and frickle
But mi and Whitey Don and Phife, Jah know so we ah dickle
Chorus:
Articaaaal
Now we are chemist inna dis
Articaaaal
And we ain’t no prentice
Articaaaal
Now we are chemist inna dis
Any bwoy want test, get defeat
