For Love
Joe Lyrics

Just gotta get these thoughts off real quick
I need to express my thoughts quickly

See I'm a thinker, it's like thinking shit
I'm a reflective person, constantly thinking about things

It's when you got
It's a state of mind when you have

You sittin' there reflectin', thinkin' shit
You're sitting there, deep in thought

I peep it though
I can see it though

Look, you liked me better before you knew my history
You preferred me when you didn't know about my past

Before you knew who I was
Before you had an understanding of my identity

That's when reachin' our potential felt likely
That's when achieving our full potential seemed possible

Nobody like me
No one is quite like me

Besides see if I stop bein' who I am
Except if I stop being true to myself

I'm straight to it, who I might be
Then I'll quickly become someone else

But you gotta look inside each song
But you have to delve into every song

That's where I proved it was really in sight all along
That's where I showed that the answer was always within reach

Bear it all so the privacy gone
Reveal everything, so there is no more privacy

Grab the pen, sit down and write these wrongs
Take hold of a pen, sit down, and correct my mistakes

Just how I right these wrongs, but look
That's exactly how I correct these mistakes, but listen

You liked me better when I spoke usin' censorship
You preferred me when I used more restraint in my speech

Before you knew I was really insensitive
Before you discovered how insensitive I can be

That was back when it was you and me
That was in the past when it was just the two of us

Then curiosity killed you, you had to Google me
Then your curiosity got the better of you, and you had to search me on the internet

Now I won't call the headlines a liar
Now I won't deny that some headlines are true

Some are true and some are false, that's for y'all to decipher
Some are accurate and some are not, it's up to you to figure it out

But look, on rare occasions some of what they say'll bother me
But occasionally, what they say does affect me

I liked it better when the 'Net was still a novelty
I preferred it when the internet was still new and exciting

Cause now people who ain't found themselves
Because now people who haven't discovered themselves

Get an outlet, yet don't know how they sound themselves
Have a platform, but don't know how to express their true selves

They like me better when I'm silent and don't have an opinion
They prefer me when I don't speak up or have a viewpoint

Pretendin' to blend in like I'm a minion
Pretending to blend in like I'm insignificant

Say if Joe keep talkin' that shit, he'll get him shot
Claiming that if I continue speaking freely, I'll be harmed

But if rappers can't tie my shoes, how can I not? (Shit)
But if other rappers can't even measure up to me, how could I be silenced?

Thought I had my city's support, I couldn't believe
I thought I had the support of my city, I was in disbelief

Jersey City liked me better when I couldn't leave
In Jersey City, they preferred me when I was stuck there

I take it back, that ain't set in stone
I take that back, it's not a permanent situation

They moreso had weapons drawn cause I left alone
They had more hostility towards me because I left on my own

I liked it better when I had nothin' to lose
I preferred it when I had nothing to risk

The days when I felt like I had somethin' to prove
When I had a strong desire to prove myself

Shit, even for me that's unusual
Even for someone like me, that's out of character

If you don't give a fuck then who you gotta prove it to?
If you don't care about others' opinions, who do you need to prove yourself to?

Just the world that I was born in
Just the world I was born into

You gotta learn to form wins against the storm wind
You need to learn how to overcome obstacles

They like me better when I fuckin' never call again
They prefer me when I don't reach out or contact them anymore

Without it, they don't know what type of box I belong up in
Without that contact, they don't know how to categorize me

They like me better without reality television
They prefer me when I'm not involved in reality TV

Guess they didn't need to witness the hell I was livin'
I suppose they didn't need to see the struggles I was going through

In my shoes, you too would seal a fate
If you were in my shoes, you would also determine your own destiny

Poppin' twenty pills a day, somebody gon' feel a way, look
Taking twenty pills a day, someone is bound to have concerns

And so these hoes just to pass time
And so I entertain these women just to pass the time

After the past time, they don't even pass my mind
After a while, they don't even cross my thoughts

You liked me better way before you got lied to
You preferred me before you were deceived

But that don't really matter when you want me inside you
But that doesn't really matter when you desire me sexually

Your friends sayin' leave, they don't know that you tried to
Your friends are telling you to leave, but they don't know that you've tried to

You can't speak to them, I'm the nigga you cry to
You can't confide in your friends, I'm the one you cry to

I liked it better when nobody ever heard of me
I preferred it when nobody knew who I was

'Fore pop had to get that knee surgery
Before my father had to undergo knee surgery

Guess that affected his bladder
I suppose that affected his bladder

So when Jackie called me nothin' else really mattered
So when Jackie called me, nothing else really mattered

Was scared, sounded frantic, I ain't want no parts of that
He sounded scared and panicked, and I didn't want to be involved

Said the ambulance came, might be a heart attack
He said the ambulance came, and it might be a heart attack

Was leavin' work nearly cryin' on the phone
I was leaving work and nearly crying on the phone

I'm in rush hour traffic, just seen you dyin' alone, look
I was stuck in rush hour traffic and just witnessed you dying alone

I just pictured all the places that we never went
I imagined all the places we never visited

All the texts that were never sent
All the messages we never exchanged

All the words we never spoke
All the things we never said to each other

Time we never shared, rewind so we can repair
Time we never spent together, let's go back and fix it

Such an inspiration, all the holes that you dug through
You're such an inspiration, overcoming all the challenges

Then you got released, God was watchin' above you
Then you were set free, God was watching over you

I'm thinkin' you healin', I don't wanna disrupt you
I believe you're healing, and I don't want to disturb that process

So I'm right back to never tellin' you that I love you
So I'm back to never expressing my love for you

And I don't wanna act that way
And I don't want to behave in that manner

If I take somethin' for granted, I don't wanna give it back that way
If I start taking something for granted, I don't want to return it in the same manner

Forreal, that's how shit get lost, let me chill
Seriously, that's how things get lost, let me calm down

I like it better when I'm not talkin' over my thoughts, now listen
I prefer it when I don't interrupt my own thoughts, now listen

I done been down, been down, it's all for you
I have experienced hardships, all for you

Said it's all for you
I'm saying it's all for you

And I don't wanna get in your way
And I don't want to obstruct your path

This love is all for you
This love is entirely for you

Look, now the singers wanna rap, the rappers wanna sing
Now the singers want to rap, and the rappers want to sing

Personally I liked it better back when rappin' was a thing
Personally, I preferred it when rapping was more popular

'Cause now if you wanna get the high notes
Because now, if you want to reach the high notes

When that hook come, you gotta hit the high notes
When the chorus comes, you have to hit the high notes

The label wanna sell singles
The record label wants to sell individual songs

I'm sellin' a story and that'll just taint the message
I'm selling a narrative, and that would just cheapen the message

Bad marriage, we ain't got the same objective
It's a flawed partnership, we don't have the same goals

Still I'm here 'cause real niggas in the game respect it, look
But I'm still here because genuine people in the industry respect it, listen

They like me better when I let 'em live rent free
They prefer it when I don't bother them or hold them accountable

I never knew that once it stopped we'd be enemies
I never knew that once I stopped accommodating them, we would become enemies

And though I come off as heartless, nigga
And although I may seem heartless

In spite of yourself, got love for you regardless, nigga
Despite yourself, I still care about you

Now listen, I liked you better when you wasn't in the spotlight
Now listen, I preferred you when you weren't in the public eye

Was too addicted to it, said some shit was not right
You were too consumed by it, and I knew something was wrong

So when you work so much I couldn't complain
So when you were so focused on your work, I couldn't voice my concerns

'Til I learnt she was gateway escapin' from the pain
Until I found out that she used work as an escape from her pain

The strippers talk to me like I'm their therapist
The strippers confide in me as if I'm their therapist

That scares the good girls away, don't know the hell I get
That scares away the good, innocent women who don't understand the struggles I face

Whatever thoughts you contrive, I can't help you with
I can't assist you with whatever thoughts you come up with

But you've been tossin' it for a year and I derail the shit
But you've been struggling with it for a year, and I distract you from it

I'm self made, I don't do what I'm told
I have achieved success on my own, I don't follow orders

The type that needs free reign, to be out of control for real
I'm the type of person who needs freedom to truly be myself

'Cause when that's gone I'm lost, let me chill
Because when I no longer have that freedom, I feel lost, let me calm down

I like it better when I'm not talkin' over my thoughts, word
I prefer it when I'm not interrupting my own thoughts, you know

I've done been down, been down, it's all for you
I have experienced hardships, all for you

Said it's all for you
I'm saying it's all for you

And I don't wanna get in your way
And I don't want to obstruct your path

This love is all for you
This love is entirely for you

Said this love is all for you ooh
I'm saying this love is all for you