[Verse 1]

[Paradox]

Cheap sneaks on my feet, I proceed to the street

Creep with cold shoulders to compete with the heat

Keep a low-pro, but know to heed what I see

So I'll show a sneak peek of the peeps that I meet

[Sentence]

Front stoop. Another morning I been ripped out of bed

Can’t flip for a babysitter and the kids are a mess

No rest, except for this five minutes I got

To handle a couple camels before my trip to the job

[Paradox]

Sidewalk. Jive talk and I'm practicing hand styles

Aviator Raybans, straight playing the man child

Stay shaking spray cans to stand atop the ant pile

Black book of rap hooks and spots where I ran wild

[Swell]

Barstool. Pretty little chicken's reppin’ art school

Sitting, drinking, living like a cartoon

Heart spoon-fueled by the jukebox courage

Jack and a half-a-pack. Alright, it's perfect

[Hook]

We all dying to live life, trying to slip by

A village of millions, striving to get it right

Sit tight, this is a glimpse of the struggle

Lost sheep, we the odd pieces of the puzzle

Dying to live life, trying to slip by

A village of millions, striving to get it right

Sit tight, this is a glimpse of the struggle

Lost sheep, we the odd pieces of the puzzle

[Verse 2]

[Paradox]

Corner store. The world's at war, I reminisce on Vietnam

No more women and kids should pay when they release the bombs

We embrace the terror for America “keeping it calm,”

And I'm a veteran who left a limb for the weak and the strong

[Sentence]

Street corner. Got my eye out for a mark I can hit

Somebody walking like a target with a pocket to pick

A scam I can run, son, I got a dollar to make

And I can spot ‘em from a block away, it's all in the face

[Paradox]

Train station. Brain racing, cuz we married at a young age

The very thread we shared was dead and buried by Sunday

Never complained, faced waves when he was unpaid

Now every conversation's just another jaded gunplay

[Swell]

Your mom's house. Talking ish, mad disrespectful

Drinking all your soda, eating all your pretzels

Acting like, “yo, when you gonna get cable?”

With my hand down my pants and my sneakers on the table

[Hook]

We all dying to live life, trying to slip by

A village of millions, striving to get it right

Sit tight, this is a glimpse of the struggle

Lost sheep, we the odd pieces of the puzzle

Dying to live life, trying to slip by

A village of millions, striving to get it right

Sit tight, this is a glimpse of the struggle

Lost sheep, we the odd pieces of the puzzle

[Verse 3]

[Paradox]

Seventh ave. heaven's path isn’t just a straight road

Some stray crooked, now they looking for a scapegoat

Roman collar, holy water, pray daily to save souls

But most folks see the robe, snap judgment, case closed

[Sentence]

F-train. It ain’t the same as what I remember it's been

Being a cop got more hostile ‘cause the threat level’s red

And I pledged to protect, whether sheik, shaman, or atheist

When a nation's in danger salvation's saved for the patriot

[Paradox]

Park bench. Bartend for all the ritzy high class

Self-made, well-paid sipping from the wine glass

Casting mattress actresses, every villain typecast

With no fail, coke nails, fidgeting for nightcaps

[Sentence]

Right here. Made it, taking it in, on pavement

While the city paints mosaics across its occupants' faces

[Paradox & Sentence]

To document the banquet of comedy and tragedy

Playing while we’re fast asleep, to capture each as masterpiece

[Hook]

We all dying to live life, trying to slip by

A village of millions, striving to get it right

Sit tight, this is a glimpse of the struggle

Lost sheep, we the odd pieces of the puzzle

Dying to live life, trying to slip by

A village of millions, striving to get it right

Sit tight, this is a glimpse of the struggle

Lost sheep, we the odd pieces of the puzzle