Get Down
15. Nas Lyrics

New York streets where killers'll walk like Pistol Pete
New York City streets are filled with killers and dangerous individuals who walk with an intimidating presence like Pistol Pete.

And Pappy Mason, gave the young boys admiration
Pappy Mason, a renowned street legend in New York City, was somebody who young boys, adolescents, and teenagers look up to for guidance.

Prince from Queens and Fritz from Harlem
Two more legendary figures in New York City streets who gained a reputation for their exploits were Prince from Queens and Fritz from Harlem.

Street legends, the drugs kept the hood from starving
These street legends became famous because they were the ones who supplied drugs to the community, in an effort to keep people from going hungry.

Pushing cars, Nicky Barnes was the 70's
Nicky Barnes was a legendary drug kingpin from 70's New York City who made his living pushing cars and selling drugs.

But there's a long list of high-profile celebrities
There are numerous other high-profile individuals who became famous for their exploits in the streets of New York City.

Worldwide on the thorough side of things
These street legends achieved worldwide notoriety and recognition for their illegal exploits in New York City.

Livest kings, some died, one guy, one time
These street legends were known to be some of the most exciting and charismatic individuals in the game, but many of them died young. One particularly famous figure died in a single instance.

One day grabs me, as I'm about to blast heat
One day, as the artist was carrying a weapon about to use it, he was confronted by a stranger.

40-side of Vernon, I turned well he asked me
The encounter took place in the 40-side of Vernon, and the stranger approached the artist.

"What you up to, the cops gon' bust you"
The stranger questioned the singer's intentions and warned him about the police presence in the area.

I was a teen drunk off brew, stumbled I wondered
The artist was a teenager who had been drinking and was unsure of what to do.

If God sent him, cause two squad cars entered the block
The singer questioned whether the stranger was sent by God, as two police cars entered the area right after their encounter.

And looked at us, I ain't flinch when they watched
The police observed the singer and the stranger, but the singer kept his composure.

I took it upstairs, the bathroom mirror, brushed my hair
Once he returned home, the singer went straight to the bathroom and looked in the mirror, fixing his hair.

Staring at a young disciple, I almost gave my life to what the dice do
In the bathroom, the artist reflected on his life choices and realized that he could have easily ended up like many others in the street who lost everything because of gambling addiction.

Yeah man, throwing them bones
The artist acknowledges that he too has been gambling.

Hoping my ace get his case thrown
The singer is hopeful that one of his friends will be able to avoid criminal punishment.

His girl ain't wait for him, she in the world straight hoeing
The singer's friend's girlfriend had already moved on and was cheating on him while he was in jail.

While he looking at centerfolds of pretty girls
His friend found solace in looking at pictures of attractive women.

Showing they little cooch, gangstas don't die he's living proof
Even though he underwent a lot of hardships, the artist's friend did not die and is still alive as living proof that gangsters can overcome their struggles.

The D.A. who tried him was lying
The District Attorney who prosecuted the artist's friend was lying during the trial.

A white dude, killed his mother during the case
The murderer of the singer's friend's mother was a white man.

Hung jury, now the D.A. is being replaced
The trial ended in a hung jury and the current District Attorney is being replaced.

Pre-trial hearing is over, it's real for the soldier
The singer's friend's pre-trial hearing has concluded and things are becoming real for him.

Walks in the courtroom, the look in his eyes is wild
During his court appearance, the singer's friend has a wild look in his eyes.

Triple-homicide, I sit in the back aisle
The trial that the singer is attending is for a triple-homicide case, and he is sitting in the back aisle of the court.

I want to crack a smile when I see him
The artist feels a mix of emotions when he sees his friend in court.

Throw up a fist for black power, cause all we want is his freedom
The artist throws up his fist in support of his friend and the black community's struggle for freedom.

He grabbed a court officer's gun and started squeezing
In a fit of rage, the singer's friend grabs a court officer's gun and begins to shoot.

Then he grabbed the judge, screams out, nobody leaving everybody
The singer's friend goes on to take the judge hostage, making sure that nobody can leave the courtroom.

Some niggas fuck they enemies in they ass when they catch 'em
Some people like to humiliate their enemies when they catch them, including to use sexual violence to assert dominance.

Weird-ass niggas are dangerous, so don't test 'em
Individuals who engage in harmful or extreme behavior, such as the one previously mentioned, pose a threat and should not be provoked.

They make you, disappear, this a year that I won't forget
People can make their enemies disappear, and the artist remembers a particular year well because of events stemming from that fact.

Sold CD's double platinum, met mo' execs
The singer is now more prosperous and has sold double platinum copies of his CDs, and has met even more music industry executives.

Southern niggas, independent label, real killers
The artist has met some Southern individuals who own an independent label and have a reputation for being dangerous.

Know the business, ran Tennessee for years, now they chilling
These Southern individuals know the ins and outs of the business and have been running it in Tennessee for years, now they are taking it easy.

They had the coke game something crazy
These Southern individuals had been very successful in the cocaine business.

Sold music out the trunk of they car, that shit amazed me
The singer is impressed by the fact that these individuals started by selling their CDs directly out of the trunk of their car.

Put me onto heron blunts, sherm or something
The individuals the artist met introduced him to smoking herb and hallucinogenics.

Took a puff, what the fuck, I turned to punch them
The artist tried smoking the substance and didn't like how it made him feel, so he reacted with frustration and anger.

Southern niggas ain't slow, nigga tried to play me
The Southern individuals are quick-witted and intelligent, and somebody tried to trick or deceive the singer.

I left from around them dudes, they cool but they crazy
The singer chooses to leave the Southern guys behind, because even though they seem cool, they may otherwise be considered a bit reckless.

Now I'm back around the old school that raised me
The artist returns to his hometown and the people who made an impact on his upbringing.

New York gangstas, we lounging, out in L.A. see
The artist is back in New York City with his gangster friends, and they take a trip out to L.A.

A dude wrote my dawg from Pelican Bay
One of the artist's friends received a letter from somebody he met while in Pelican Bay prison.

The letter say, "Nas I got your back, the fools don't play"
The letter shows support for the singer and his friend, who are being threatened by others.

I rolled with some Crips down to a Crenshaw funeral
The artist goes along with some Crips to a funeral in Crenshaw.

Never saw so many men slaughtered and I knew the ho responsible
At the funeral, the singer sees a large group of men who were killed, and he knows who is responsible for their deaths.

The nigga still alive in a hospital
The perpetrator is still alive and is admitted to a hospital.

Midnight they crept in his room and shot the doctor too
Midnight, somebody sneaks into the room of the perpetrator and shoots the doctor who is attending him.

See my cousin's in the game, thugging and things
The artist has a cousin who is also involved in the gangster lifestyle.

He plugged me with a dame who was half-Mexicano
The cousin introduced the artist to a woman of Mexican descent.

Gave the ass up, I'ma mack daddy Soprano
The woman willingly provided sexual favors to the singer, who sees himself as a powerful and irresistible presence like the fictional character Tony Soprano.

She passed me the indigo, but the imbecile
The woman encourages and offers the singer some marijuana, but the singer sees her as foolish.

Should of never tippy-toed, thought my eyes were closed
She should not have underestimated the artist or assumed he wouldn't notice.

Opening the hotel room do', to let her goons in
The woman opens the door for her henchmen.

But I moved in a manner, on some Jet Li shit
The artist adopts a swift and skillful manner similar to martial arts actor Jet Li.

I let the hammers blow, wet three kids
The singer and his entourage proceed to shoot and wound three people of unspecified age.

See honey thought I had something to do, with all the drama
The woman may have thought that the artist was involved in the tensions and conflict surrounding her.

Cause I was with a crew, that had her people killed
She may have thought that the singer was part of or associated with the group responsible for killing somebody close to her.

Called up my cousin, told him I ain't fucking with you
The singer angrily calls his cousin and tells him that he wants nothing to do with him or his associates anymore.

He responded cool, but told me out here this how motherfuckers
The cousin remains calm and collected, but explains to the singer that this is just how things are in their world.

All I really gotta say is that
The artist is about to make a meaningful statement.

If that's how our people gon' get down, how we ever gon' get up?
The artist questions the path that his community has taken and worries about how they can move forward if they continue to live this way.

How we ever gon' get up if that's how we get down?
If things continue as they currently are, there may be no hope for the future of his community.

A shame when you ain't look at it
It is a tragedy that nobody has recognized this issue before.

My folk is yo' folk, but we all kinfolk
The artist recognizes that everybody in his community is related in some way, and therefore must work together.

Somebody gotta make a change
Somebody has to step up and initiate positive change.