[Verse 1: Inspectah Deck]
Check out the avenue, New York, New York the Rotten Apple
We grapple in the street to stack loot and slip the shackles
I'm currently servin' twenty-nine-to-life
Duckin' the searchlight, no sleep for like the third night
The big life is trife, got the young kids hyped
Cops shoot on sight, heat pipes be blowin' through the night
The land where you ain't fam, there's no pity
Similar to Chocolate City, ten times gritty
Hittin' hard, liquor's God, niggas plottin' on the come off
And come off quicker than the clothes on a stripper
And slide like she doin' up and down the railing
Bitch tailin' in the Range with Golden Arms, smooth sailin'
The clock's tickin', somebody's on the block snitchin'
The plot thickens, phones are tapped, cops listen
Too hot for prison, plus too cold to hold my girl
'Cause I married this life, and she's my whole world
[Chorus: Vinia Mojica]
It's just a sign of the times
Calmly listen, to these lines
I'm goin' out of my mind
Livin' the street life
[Verse 2: Inspectah Deck]
A-yo, a-yo, make me wanna holla way they do my life
My life is like a carousel — one endless night
Where most die for pies, some holdin' their chrome
A large percent die for causes not even their own
When the Inspectah Deck be long dead and gone
Long live the INS clone they workin' on
'Til then, I hold a section, I stand alone, no co-defendant
Showin' the weapon, this saga had no story endin'
It's ghetto heaven, and at the same time Hell
Shots propel, the one that missed me got Chanel
In the future ruled by computer, I self tutor
The music is the simulator, facin' the user
I do it for those who walk the same road
And no regrets do I hold for the path I chose
No sleep since the intro, patrol the windows
I reminisce with the chalice and my eyes half closed
If I could do it again, I'd probably do it the same
Thought I was through with the game, I'm goin' through it again
The hood life — I'm in it to the limit
Couldn't quit it for a digit, die for it 'cause I live it
[Chorus: Vinia Mojica]
It's just a sign of the times
Calmly listen, to these lines
I'm goin' out of my mind
Livin' the street life
[Verse 3: Inspectah Deck]
Yo, been around the world, but just can't seem to leave
The state of mind that causes tangled web I weave
Made my home in the heart of it
Move like Seagal, "Hard Target"
Most want no part of it, it's logic
Cutthroat party in the Shark Pit
Cold blooded souls carry bulldogs and oxes
Knowledge this — maintain and remain sane
In the cold world where the rules ain't changed
Still Rebel to society, government be eyein' me
They probably watchin' me right now as I'm speakin'
But all I'm guilty of is teachin' you the truth
They got proof, so you know I'll be home before the weekend
The hood life — I'm in it to the limit
In it from the scrimmage, livin' it, lovin' every minute
And every hour, 'til the powers that be
Eventually stress me to the death
[Break]
"Y'all know the science, right?"
"Death with the intellect"
"Aight.. aight.."
"Represent, I make it hot"
"13th.. chamber.. specialist.. from the Bricks"
[Chorus: Vinia Mojica]
It's just a sign of the times
Calmly listen, to these lines
I'm goin' out of my mind
Livin' the street life
[Outro x7 'til fade: Vinia Mojica]
Street life.. so trife..
Street life.. for life..
Feels like.. feels like..
My paradiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiise..
"Yeah, y'all.. uh-huh.."