Born in Denver, Colorado, the son of Jamaican immigrants, A-Plus moved to Oakland, California with his family when he was 5 years old. In kindergarten, A-Plus met future Hieroglyphics member, Casual, and in elementary school, met fellow Souls of Mischief member Tajai. Tajai eventually introduced A-Plus to future Souls of Mischief members Phesto and Opio, and the group formed in high school before releasing their debut album, 93 'til Infinity on Jive Records in 1993.
After A-Plus and the Souls of Mischief were dropped by Jive, the group was incorporated into the Hieroglyphics in 1995, at the urging of Del tha Funkee Homosapien.
A-Plus has contributed to all four Souls of Mischief albums, as well as the two Hieroglyphic studio albums. He has also produced or performed on solo projects of various Hieroglyphics' members.
In 2005, A-Plus released a remix album, Pleemix, Vol. 1, through Hieroglyphics Imperium Recordings.
Greed
A-Plus Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
It's A+ and the Hieroglyphics is the crew now
Presently showing you how to make a tune sound
Make the roof pound if you play the levels too loud
Impossible to cool down
Make the ladies say "ooh oow"
Brothers yellin' (hoe)
I still be rockin' the party even though the other one is sellin'
And I could be lyin' but no one is tellin'
I come from heaven and it's nice to meet you
People be trippin' hella faulty is how they like to treat you
You could think I'm slippin' and you saucy but then I defeat you
Faulty images I can see through
You should try to be you instead of that nigga you tryin' to be dude
I could expose every copy carbon (yeah)
But I'm makin' sure life never got me starvin'
I'm move makin' cause the tomb is waitin'
And if you truly through with fakin' you'll awaken
Or you can remain another through the breakin'
There's more to life than what they're all hollerin'
But if you remain tolerant
And when you're dead look where your dollar went
It should all be common sense
But look at what the single word greed got us in
So bad you think you've got to see your views darkenin'
And then you caught again
Now you see there's no defense against the consequences (so)
It's all plain and simple (what?)
I'm takin' the good with the bad things
I can remember when all I wanted was to have things
But now it's not what I can give but what I can bring
To the sad scene
Fat stacks, green for the rap fiends
With no actin'
No unbelievable tale
That you can see that is stale
All the pretendin' is seemin' to fail
I won't laugh when you are leavin' to jail
Cause the way this country is it could be me in the cell
Steady fiendin' for mail
But that's highly unlikely
I'm shinin' with a light so brightly
Blindin' your sight
We keep you rewindin' nightly
Remindin' you politely
Of hip hop formed tightly
Hieroglyphics in the house y'all. For y'all greedy bastards out there.
"Imitators" A+ in the house. Souls of Mischief in the house. My man Del in the house.
Casual, Pep Love, Jay Biz turn it out. Domino good to go. With the flow to
Let you know, Hiero.IN the studio my man God is in the house. Yeah. Mackmilly
In the house uh. Hieroglyphics y'all
In A+’s song “Greed,” he begins by introducing himself as a member of the Hieroglyphics crew and boasts about his ability to make the roof pound with his music. He downplays his criminal history (or lack thereof) and emphasizes that he comes from a place of positivity and wants to expose the “faulty images” that society projects onto individuals. A+ urges listeners not to be copy carbon copies of other people and instead embrace their individuality. He warns against the dangers of greed and emphasizes that there is more to life than the pursuit of wealth. He encourages listeners to take responsibility for their actions, whether good or bad, and to remain vigilant against the consequences of excessive greed.
Line by Line Meaning
One two now
I am starting this song now
It's A+ and the Hieroglyphics is the crew now
I am A+ and I'm performing with the Hieroglyphics
Presently showing you how to make a tune sound
I'm demonstrating how to make a good song
Make the roof pound if you play the levels too loud
This song is so good that it'll make the roof shake if played too loudly
Impossible to cool down
This song is so hot, you can't help but feel the energy
Make the ladies say "ooh oow"
This song is so great that it elicits a positive reaction from women
Brothers yellin' (hoe)
Others are showing their excitement by yelling
I still be rockin' the party even though the other one is sellin'
I'm still a great artist even if others are more popular
Mr. A+ never was a felon
I've never done anything illegal
And I could be lyin' but no one is tellin'
I could be lying, but nobody is accusing me of it
I come from heaven and it's nice to meet you
I'm a great artist and it's nice to perform for you
People be trippin' hella faulty is how they like to treat you
People can be unfair and judge you negatively without reason
You could think I'm slippin' and you saucy but then I defeat you
You may underestimate me, but I'll prove you wrong
Faulty images I can see through
I can see through false impressions of me
You should try to be you instead of that nigga you tryin' to be dude
Be yourself instead of trying to imitate someone else
I could expose every copy carbon (yeah)
I could call out every imitator of my style
But I'm makin' sure life never got me starvin'
I'm focusing on my own success and making sure I'm never hungry
I'm move makin' cause the tomb is waitin'
I'm making moves while I'm alive because I know I won't live forever
And if you truly through with fakin' you'll awaken
If you stop pretending and be yourself, you'll come into your own
Or you can remain another through the breakin'
Otherwise, you'll continue to be average and fade into obscurity
There's more to life than what they're all hollerin'
Life is more than just what people are shouting about
But if you remain tolerant
If you're patient and show restraint
And when you're dead look where your dollar went
At the end of the day, money isn't what matters when you're gone
It should all be common sense
This should all be obvious
But look at what the single word greed got us in
Our obsession with wealth has led to negative consequences
So bad you think you've got to see your views darkenin'
Our situation is so dire that it seems hopeless
And then you caught again
And then you're trapped again
Now you see there's no defense against the consequences (so)
Now it's clear that you can't escape the negative outcomes
It's all plain and simple (what?)
It's straightforward and obvious
I'm takin' the good with the bad things
I'm acknowledging life's ups and downs
I can remember when all I wanted was to have things
I used to be consumed by materialism
But now it's not what I can give but what I can bring
Now I focus on what I can contribute instead of what I can acquire
To the sad scene
To the world that can sometimes be depressing
Fat stacks, green for the rap fiends
Rap fans want money and fame
With no actin'
Without being fake or insincere
No unbelievable tale
No story that's hard to believe
That you can see that is stale
That you can tell is played out
All the pretendin' is seemin' to fail
All the fakery isn't really working
I won't laugh when you are leavin' to jail
I won't find it funny when someone goes to jail
Cause the way this country is it could be me in the cell
Because of systemic issues, I could also end up in jail
Steady fiendin' for mail
Desperately waiting for a letter
But that's highly unlikely
But it's not probable
I'm shinin' with a light so brightly
I'm doing so well that I'm shining brightly
Blindin' your sight
Making you unable to see anything else
We keep you rewindin' nightly
We take the spotlight and you keep replaying our performances
Remindin' you politely
Politely reminding you
Of hip hop formed tightly
Of the tight-knit hip hop community
Hieroglyphics in the house y'all. For y'all greedy bastards out there.
The Hieroglyphics are performing for those who are obsessed with money
"Imitators" A+ in the house. Souls of Mischief in the house. My man Del in the house.
A+ is present with other great artists like Souls of Mischief and Del
Casual, Pep Love, Jay Biz turn it out. Domino good to go. With the flow to
Other artists like Casual, Pep Love, Jay Biz, and Domino are also performing
Let you know, Hiero.
This is the Hieroglyphics crew
IN the studio my man God is in the house. Yeah. Mackmilly
God and Mackmilly are also present in the studio
In the house uh. Hieroglyphics y'all
Again, the Hieroglyphics are performing
Contributed by Emma D. Suggest a correction in the comments below.