His music initially gained popularity on New York City's famous mixtape circuit in 2002. Although his biggest mainstream hit to-date is 2003's up-tempo "Pump It Up," Budden is known for his reflective and often insecure lyrics. He is widely considered one of hip-hop's most gifted lyricists, thanks largely in part to his numerous works on mixtapes by such DJ's as DJ Clue, Clinton Sparks, DJ On Point, and DJ Envy.
On one particular mixtape song, called "Crosscountry Connection", Joe started a feud with the G-Unit camp. The Game took offense to a line where Joe claims that gangsta rappers should "be in a G-Unit video with all the gangsta actors", obviously claiming G-Unit are fake gangstas. Unbeknownst to Budden, The Game had just recently signed with the G-Unit camp. The Game and G-Unit fired a few diss songs Budden's way; he replied in kind. The feud was ended when The Game and Budden met in a club in New York City and put the past aside.
During winter and spring of 2005, through Joe Budden mixtapes and hip-hop rumor mills, it was said that he departed from Def Jam to Roc-A-Fella Records with CEO Damon Dash. In reality, Budden was legally obligated to stay with Def Jam. In the beginning of Budden's career, it took him a long time to get public exposure, working more than three years from the first time his demo tapes were heard to the first time he was on the radio. He has appeared on many tracks with other artists including 112, Amerie, Brandy, Cassidy, Fabolous, Fat Joe, Freeway, Janet Jackson, Jay-Z, Jennifer Lopez, Jin, Kelly Rowland, Lil' Kim, LL Cool J, Marques Houston, Usher, and more recently a remix to the hit song "Hollaback Girl" with Gwen Stefani. Some of these were not official remixes, simply mixtape tracks where a Joe Budden verse was added to an existing song.
Though he is thought of as one of rap's most skilled lyricists, Budden's success outside of the mixtape circuit has been marginal purposely. He is known to have invested in real estate in North Jersey and instead of blowing up into the rap scene he decided to make money from other methods instead of getting a record deal. His music is usually more sensitive and thought provoking than that of gangsta rappers, but subsequently, it is also more explicit and unrelenting than most "conscious" or "backpack" rappers.
In late December of 2005, Joe released a mixtape after almost 5 months of being absent from the game. Mood Muzik 2 is considered by most to be a lyrical masterpiece and with so deep tracks such as "Dumb Out" and the emotional "3 Sides to a Story" (in which Joe harrowingly describes a disturbing situation), many wondered had these songs originally been scheduled to appear on The Growth.
In 2007, he was released by Def Jam. In December 2007, he released Mood Muzik 3, which many are calling the best mixtape of the year, with some even saying it's the album of the year since it contains all original material. Some have questioned this since the beat for 'Ventilation' is an edit of 'It's A Shame (Da Butcher's Mix)' by Kool G Rap.
In October 2008, Joe Budden released another highly-rated mixtape, Halfway House; featuring album cuts such as 'Touch & Go' and a snippet of 'Blood On The Wall', a diss to Prodigy of Mobb Deep.
In his career up to his 2nd album, he has worked with artists such as Busta Rhymes and Christina Milian, and has been involved in feuds with rapper The Game and G-Unit. He has since reconciled with The Game.
Since this reconciliation, Joe Budden signed to Amalgam Digital records, and both artists finalized the beef and have collaborated on the single 'The Future' for Joe Budden's now-released 2nd album, Padded Room. The album released February 24th in the U.S. and March 3rd in Canada.
Cut 2nite
Joe Budden Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
We gon' cut tonight, we gon' cut tonight, we gon' [?]
Go head, [?]
All night, we gon' cut tonight
We gon' cut tonight, we gon' cut tonight, we gon' [?]
One's for the money, two's for the show
Three's for my dudes, four's for the (oh!)
Keep ya man in check, ma, control them guys
One's for the money, two's for the show
Three's for my dudes, four's for the (oh!)
My dudes play the wall and grab ya dick
And if she gets outta line the, smack that biatch
Now if he call you a 5, it ain't to say hi
It's to get you on ya back with ya legs high
He call you a ten like it's nothin' real major
He a smart dude, he settin' it up for later
If he spends time, y'all all over town hangin'
The more shit he buy you, the bigger the down payment
And if you get the house number on the spot
Then you finer than every girl he already got
Don't fall for the line, get grown in ya head
It's a lie if he hit you wit "my phone was dead"
Or the old "I was sleep", them lines is so [?]
Y'all always fall for the "I ain't have no signal"
If he don't answer when you block ya number
He probably got a wife and he blocks you from her
Condoms irritate him, and he wanna try raw
Chances are he's used that line before
If he breaks up with you like, right before Christmas
Then you not his main girl or you wasn't on the gift list
Couple of rules, just a couple of jewels
If he got a baby mama, don't ever make him choose (you'll lose)
On the weekends, you hardly with him
All you really wanna do is go and party with him
But it's different reasons why we go to the club
Y'all tryna dance, we tryna fuck
One's for the money, two's for the show
Three's for my dudes, four's for the (oh!)
Ladies suck ya teeth and roll ya eyes
Keep ya man in check, ma, control them guys
One's for the money, two's for the show
Three's for my dudes, four's for the (oh!)
My dudes play the wall and grab ya dick
And if she gets outta line the, smack that biatch
Now if she call you all day, always leavin' a message
Then you pipe her better than whoever she mess with
If she's tight with e'rybody you know
Then she's prolly a hoe and e'rybody know
Up and coming model, and she goin' so hard
It's just a nice way of sayin' she got no job
If every time you call she turn off the ringer
Then you probably turned her off and she rather use her finger
She makin' excuses lately, nigga
No kids, but she gotta find a babysitter
These are lines made up from girly
She don't really wanna see you if she say she gotta wake up early
(Nah) Don't fall for the BS she try to feed ya
Cause she'll try to beat ya, she'll try to G ya
Have you heated, come back scorchin'
But you know a girl period don't come that often
Get back in the game
If she give you head, she expects that in exchange
And if she got a seed, nah, don't even bother
'Cause if y'all ever beef, she'll threaten you with the father
And shes a good trick, she won't let you hit
She knows pussy's power, wanna see what she can get
And if you think that nuttin' I'm sayin is right
Then at least know to never make a hoe a housewife, nah
One's for the money, two's for the show
Three's for my dudes, four's for the (oh!)
Ladies suck ya teeth and roll ya eyes
Keep ya man in check, ma, control them guys
One's for the money, two's for the show
Three's for my dudes, four's for the (oh!)
My dudes play the wall and grab ya dick
And if she gets outta line the, smack that biatch
One's for the money, two's for the show
Three's for my dudes, four's for the (oh!)
Ladies suck ya teeth and roll ya eyes
Keep ya man in check, ma, control them guys
One's for the money, two's for the show
Three's for my dudes, four's for the (oh!)
My dudes play the wall and grab ya dick
And if she gets outta line the, smack that biatch
The song “Cut 2nite” by Joe Budden is a rap song with a strong emphasis on relationships and sexual encounters. In the first verse, the lyrics allude to the idea that the night is reserved for sexual encounters as “we gon’ cut tonight.” The chorus repeats this phrase, with a call to action to the ladies to “suck ya [their] teeth and roll ya eyes” to gain control over the men. The second verse goes on to give advice to men about how to decipher a woman's intentions and behaviors, such as if she's trying to be a gold digger or if she's being honest. The third verse is addressed to women, and it gives tips, like how to know if a man is married or if he's lying.
Throughout the song, Budden provides insight into the complex world of dating, outlining both male and female perspectives. Budden uses an upbeat tempo, and sharp rhyming lyrics to keep the listener engaged. The chorus is repeated multiple times throughout the song, stressing the importance of a sexual encounter in the present moment.
Line by Line Meaning
All night, we gon' cut tonight
We are planning to have sex all night long.
We gon' cut tonight, we gon' cut tonight, we gon' [?]
We are going to have sex tonight, repeatedly.
Go head, [?]
Continue with your behavior of sexually pleasing me.
One's for the money, two's for the show
The first phase of the night is simply about getting women interested.
Three's for my dudes, four's for the (oh!)
The last phase of the night is about hooking up with women.
Ladies suck ya teeth and roll ya eyes
Women should act uninterested in order to make men work harder for their attention.
Keep ya man in check, ma, control them guys
Women should know how to keep their men in check and control their behavior.
My dudes play the wall and grab ya dick
Men should stand back and observe women's behavior before intervening.
And if she gets outta line the, smack that biatch
If a woman misbehaves, she should be reprimanded.
Now if he call you a 5, it ain't to say hi
If a man rates a woman as a 5, it is an indication that he only wants to have sex with her.
He call you a ten like it's nothin' real major
If a man rates a woman as a 10, it is an indication that he is setting her up to have sex with her later.
He a smart dude, he settin' it up for later
If a man flatters a woman, it is likely that he wants to have sex with her later.
If he spends time, y'all all over town hangin'
If a man takes a woman out and buys her a lot of things, he is likely setting her up to have sex with her later on.
The more shit he buy you, the bigger the down payment
The more a man spends on a woman, the more likely it is that he will expect sex from her.
And if you get the house number on the spot
If a man gives a woman his phone number right away, it is an indication that he wants to have sex with her.
Then you finer than every girl he already got
It is an indication that a man thinks a woman is particularly attractive if he gives her his phone number right away.
Don't fall for the line, get grown in ya head
Women should be smart about men's advances and not fall for their games.
It's a lie if he hit you wit "my phone was dead"
If a man uses the excuse that his phone was dead, it is likely that he is lying.
Or the old "I was sleep", them lines is so [?]
If a man uses the excuse that he was sleeping, it is likely that he is lying.
Y'all always fall for the "I ain't have no signal"
Women are often fooled by men who say they didn't have a signal or service on their phone.
If he don't answer when you block ya number
If a man doesn't answer when a woman calls from a blocked number, it means he doesn't want to talk to her or is hiding something from her.
He probably got a wife and he blocks you from her
If a man blocks a woman's calls, it may indicate that he is married and doesn't want his wife to find out he is cheating.
Condoms irritate him, and he wanna try raw
If a man doesn't like using condoms, it is likely that he wants to have unprotected sex.
Chances are he's used that line before
It is likely that if a man doesn't like using condoms, he has used that excuse before.
If he breaks up with you like, right before Christmas
If a man breaks up with a woman right before Christmas, it is an indication that she was not his main girl or that he didn't like her enough to buy her a gift.
Then you not his main girl or you wasn't on the gift list
If a man breaks up with a woman right before Christmas, she was not his main girl or he didn't like her enough to buy her a gift.
Couple of rules, just a couple of jewels
These are some guiding principles for dealing with men that women should keep in mind.
If he got a baby mama, don't ever make him choose (you'll lose)
If a man has a child with another woman, it is likely that she will always come first, and women should not try to make him choose between them.
On the weekends, you hardly with him
If a man is not spending time with a woman on weekends, it may indicate that he is using those days to spend time with other women.
All you really wanna do is go and party with him
If a woman only wants to party with a man, it may indicate that she is not interested in the serious aspects of their relationship.
But it's different reasons why we go to the club
Men go to clubs for different reasons than women, usually with the goal of finding a sexual partner.
Y'all tryna dance, we tryna fuck
While women go to clubs to dance and socialize, men go to clubs in order to find sexual partners.
Now if she call you all day, always leavin' a message
If a woman is calling a man constantly and leaving a lot of messages, it may indicate that she is particularly interested in having sex with him.
Then you pipe her better than whoever she mess with
If a man is getting a lot of calls from a woman, it is likely that he is satisfying her sexually more than other men have.
If she's tight with e'rybody you know
If a woman is close with a lot of men in a social group, it may indicate that she is sexually promiscuous.
Then she's prolly a hoe and e'rybody know
If a woman is close with a lot of men in a social group, it is likely that she has had sex with many of them and is considered promiscuous.
Up and coming model, and she goin' so hard
If a woman is working hard to become a model, she may be putting in a lot of effort because she is unemployed.
It's just a nice way of sayin' she got no job
Saying that a woman is an up and coming model is often just a polite way of saying that she is unemployed.
If every time you call she turn off the ringer
If a woman is always turning her phone off when a man calls, it may indicate that she is trying to avoid speaking to him.
Then you probably turned her off and she rather use her finger
If a woman is always turning her phone off when a man calls, it is likely that he has done something to turn her off or upset her.
She makin' excuses lately, nigga
If a woman is making excuses not to see a man, it may indicate that she is trying to avoid him or doesn't want to be with him.
No kids, but she gotta find a babysitter
If a woman claims to not have children, but says she needs a babysitter, it is likely that she is lying and does have children.
These are lines made up from girly
These are some of the tricks and excuses that women may use to get out of seeing or being with a man.
She don't really wanna see you if she say she gotta wake up early
If a woman says she has to wake up early to avoid seeing a man, it may indicate that she doesn't want to be with him.
(Nah) Don't fall for the BS she try to feed ya
Women often use lies and tactics to avoid being with men, and men should not fall for these tricks.
Cause she'll try to beat ya, she'll try to G ya
If a woman is lying and trying to avoid being with a man, she may get upset or angry if she is caught.
Have you heated, come back scorchin'
Getting into a heated argument with a woman may have negative consequences, and it is best to avoid it.
But you know a girl period don't come that often
Women have periods, which can impact their moods and behavior, and men should be aware of this when dealing with them.
Get back in the game
If a man has been hurt before, he should work to get over it and get back into the dating game.
If she give you head, she expects that in exchange
If a woman performs oral sex on a man, she likely expects him to reciprocate or provide something in return.
And if she got a seed, nah, don't even bother
If a woman has a child, it is likely that she will prioritize her child over any relationship or sexual encounters.
'Cause if y'all ever beef, she'll threaten you with the father
If a man gets into an argument with a woman who has a child, she may threaten him with her child's father or use the child as leverage.
And shes a good trick, she won't let you hit
If a woman is clever or crafty, she may be able to avoid having sex with a man if she doesn't want to.
She knows pussy's power, wanna see what she can get
Women often know that their sexuality can be used to get what they want, and they may use this power to their advantage.
And if you think that nuttin' I'm sayin is right
If a man disagrees with the advice and guidance given in the song, he should not listen to it or follow it.
Then at least know to never make a hoe a housewife, nah
Even if a man doesn't agree with all of the advice given in the song, he should at least know to never try to turn a promiscuous woman into a faithful wife.
Contributed by Liam K. Suggest a correction in the comments below.