don't shoot

i asked my cousin why they pulled him over

he gave me a look as if he didn't know

i had my basketball and my now and laters

ain't get along with my neighbors

i was a rough kid

hearing sirens through my window

them blue and red lights kept me up at night

i couldn't get enough of life

i seen this kid get arrested in the park

he was screaming he ain't do it

they ain't even let him talk

i ain't understand i'm like 10 blowing in the wind

tryna find a park to go play

i don't know the drama

i ask my mama what do police do?

she told me stay up out they way

go to school and get good grades

one day i'm walking in my building and they stopped me

told me i looked just like this kid that did a robbery

and i ain't never stole nothing in my life

maybe candy out the store or a bag of chips

imagine this

years go by

i got a little older

my best friends in group homes

i got a little colder

i'm tryna make the varsity team

chill with stacy and

shop at the mall

only ralph lauren they'll lace me in

i had the montclair

remember begging moms for it

walking home from school

i almost got robbed for it

i took off

i can't go home without my jacket on

blue and whites harassing me but i don't know what happened to 'em

left and right i'm seeing homies get interrogated

we ain't safe where we live

this america ain't it?

high school they teaching me this the land of the free

but everything got a price

they don't answer to me

they don't answer to us

we getting tattoos

they think we criminals cause we believe that cash rules

attitude a little different when you from the gutter

i seen a cop talk crazy to my mother

my father familiar

he told me all about 'em

told me never go around and avoid 'em

that's if you can

black intelligent man they worst nightmare

they'd rather have you in prison forever

they don't fight fair

starting to think about college

i got some scholarships

i just graduated

two cops pulled me over

tried to show my diploma

they ain't acknowledge it

three young black males riding in the jeep

bout to go to college

they thinking we in the street

they hate got a little bit deeper

i'm getting frustrated

a bunch of slick comments

i'm still a nigga

even if you got millions

they still'll get ya

i played ball

i was the man on campus

little weed up in my dorm

i got ran off campus

then i got locked up

minor bid

it was short

staring at my mother crying up in court

came home

i started rapping

had to trap first

phone ringing all night

was tryna take a nap first

gang squad hopping out

narcotics watching

we had the weed and the pills then we got it rocking

cameras in the projects helped us move smarter

niggas turned butch building into the new carter

pooch did a bid and came home the same nigga

bully did a bid and came home the same nigga

my moms working all night

i had late dinners

went broke tryna cope a coat

that made me hate winter

focused up

got a deal

now this shit is real

every time i leave the club

they hope i got the steel

we just got some weed

we just tryna chill

we just tryna eat

we just tryna build

they follow every car i try to ride in

i'm just praying this ain't the car that i die in

i guess with this hoodie on i'm a murderer

i'm just tryna buy my mother some new furniture

this attitude is programmed

imagine getting harassed for you whole life

all day and the whole night

they say prison is the new slave ship

they don't understand we hustling so we can pay rent

soon as they come around it feel like your luck gone

they gotta show you they power

that's why they put the cuffs on

ain't no more weed in the car sir

the blunt gone

i got my hands ups

officer what's the problem?

please don't shoot me sir

i just had a daughter

look here go a blaow""