Funkmasterflex
Kendrick Lamar Lyrics

Heard a conversation with my father talking to his favorite partner
The artist Kendall Lamar overhears his father talking to his friend, who is his father's favorite.

At the domino table, Tony had told him that he saw a
Tony, a friend of the father, tells him about seeing a young man who was displaying violent behavior.

Young nigga hopping out busting like four charters
The young man whom Tony saw seemed to have come out of somewhere with guns and was firing multiple shots.

Popping pills, mix a gallon of sherm and some holy water
The young man used drugs like pills and mixed them with sherm and holy water.

Mix a gallon of sherm and some holy water
This is a repetition of the previous line for emphasis.

Sell it to a priest he probably can get it off by tomorrow
Tony suggests that the concoction can be sold easily to a priest who would buy it for his own use or sell it further.

It's wicked when my favorite uncle kick it
The artist thinks that it is bad when his favorite uncle dies.

Fiends trying to kick the addiction of sucking glass dicks
There are drug addicts (fiends) who are trying to quit using drugs (sucking glass dicks).

Vivid images go against any fantasy you can fathom
The real world has experiences and images that are contradictory to any fantasy that humans can imagine.

Phantoms ain't the only thing that suicidal
Suicidal people not only see phantoms/scary things, but their mind can be occupied with other negative things.

Open the doorway to his soul
A reference to self-realization.

Hit the hallway then hit the closet you see a rifle
There is a gun (rifle) hidden in the closet.

Aim it at your arteries pardon me, parts of me is pyscho
The person holding the gun might aim it at someone's arteries; this is a reflection of the artist's madness.

In retrospect my respect was a power ranger high note
The artist acknowledges that his previous respect for things like Power Rangers was not really important.

Tumbling backwards into a karate kicking high note
This is a continuation of the previous line with more emphasis on his earlier respect/fascination with martial arts.

My innocence would eventually see a hindrance
Innocence becomes an obstacle to progress in life.

Surrenduring Ninja Turtles, pizza and Sega Genesis
The artist overcame his childhood fascination with Ninja Turtles, pizza, and Sega Genesis.

Heard it over my bunk bed ear hustling
The artist heard the conversation while he was lying on the bunk bed and eavesdropping.

Something my papa said that caught my attention
The father said something that made the artist curious.

His eyes red he's smoking on marijuana mixing the two eleven
The father is smoking marijuana and drinking 211 beer.

He said I'm seven going on sixty-seven
The father feels like the artist is growing up too fast and wants to give him advice beyond his years.

The day I turned seventeen is the day that a lesson inside my lifetime
The artist learned a lesson on his seventeenth birthday that he remembers for the rest of his life.

Come across a clothes line, every stick is a co-sign
Seeing a clothesline with clothes hanging to dry suggests that people are given signs of what is likely to come.

Everything in the streets got the power to make me go blind
The street environment has toxic power that can block one's clear vision of life.

Even if he sat me down in the sunshine and gave me those eyes
Even if someone tries to explain things calmly and honestly, the street environment can make it difficult to understand.

Comprehend it well and I could smell the soberness evaporating by itself
The artist realizes that if he understands things, the influence of drugs and alcohol will dissipate on its own.

He said, "Tony my biggest fear is to hear Kendrick disappeared in the fire out here and I didn't help
The father's biggest nightmare is to hear that the artist disappeared or died because he wasn't properly guided or helped.

So if I can give him the game to hydroplane his decisions in life so he can go
The father wants to give the artist guidance, so he can smoothly navigate life and make the right decisions.

Further than the streets and remain to be on the honor roll"
The father wants the artist to achieve goals greater than what the streets can offer and stay successful.

Sacrifice my life even if that shit, my mama though
The artist is willing to risk his life and go against his mother's wishes to achieve success.

Til the day he carried by the big six, domino
A reference to the game dominoes, where the artist wants to keep winning and dominate.

Backpack raps with gats in it
The artist raps with backpacks that have guns in them.

Don't get your cap peeled by the black menace
Warning to people, not to be killed by black men carrying weapons.

K Dot Thoroughbred
Kendrick Lamar's alter ego, as a fast hip-hop artist.

Move like a militant soldier
Moves carefully, tactfully and is alert like a soldier in battle.

On point like a pyramid, force to be reckoned with
Reference to being pyramidal, strong and immovable, a force to be reckoned with.

With the best shit
Kendrick thinks he has the best lyrics/talent.

Like the strongest manure, I'm ready when you are
The artist is comparing his talent to manure that breeds strong growth, and is always ready to perform.

This is it
He is at the top of his game, this is the pinnacle of his success.

I'm in the lab cooking up all day, eff em up all day
Spends hours in the studio creating hits that destroy the competition.

Like a nympho, I been dope since s curl waves
The artist has been talented since an early age, much like someone with an addiction, being dope/nympho.

Trying to convince hoes I got good hair
Trying to prove that contrary to stereotypes and taboos, he has good hair.

Knowing damn well there's chemicals there
The artist admits that there might be harmful chemicals he has to deal with to style his hair.

I'm in the hood with the 17 year olds that's on hood patrol
He visits neighborhoods where 17-year-olds are on patrol, resolving disputes and asserting control over the streets.

And they want stripes so they shoot off bikes and you know
They want to earn credibility (stripes) by showing their might, so they shoot at bikes and other things.

Any moment you can lose your life so kiss your kids or hug your wife or whatnot yo
Life can be unpredictable and dangerous, so one should value and cherish their loved ones.

I'm sparring with a dragon
He is fighting a formidable, impossible enemy.

He tried to throw his flame but I ducked and I stabbed him
The dragon (enemy) tried to hurt him, but he managed to avoid it and stabbed it instead.

Came out the battle laughing
Managed to win and overcome the challenge, which is a reason to laugh and celebrate.

That's a metaphor for any rapper who want it
The earlier battle with the dragon was a representation of any challenge that any rapper might have to face.

I smack em 'til their nose is running
Extraordinary talent that can embarrass anyone and make them cry.

You know the hoes is coming if I'm there
If he is there then women will come to him for sexual encounters.

And the hoes is cumming once we hit that hotel
Once they reach a hotel, sex is sure to happen.

That's no assumption, cool out before I move out
This is not a guess, but the reality. It's better to calm down before his actions make him leave.

Hop on the 105 and do about 105 before your ass get threw out
Drive fast (at 105 mph) on I-105 before getting ejected (from the inner circle/group).

There's a dead guy on the freeway, oh it's not Dot
There is a dead body on the road, but it's not Kendrick Lamar.

Tell the medics it's okay, a beast when the beat break
He will survive anything even as an untamed beast with excellent musicality and rhythm.

You probably think I'm dope like the it's the realest shit I wrote
Some people think he is amazing due to his music, but he feels it is just another casual composition.

But to me it's a throw away
For him, this song is not his best work and is just leftover material.

I stare at them four walls and rap like I'm mad at God
The artist raps furiously about the struggles and injustices in life, even challenging God.

Nice enough, I throw a spear at Nas, a jab at Jay
He subtly insults renowned rappers Nas and Jay-Z in his own lyrics.

Matter fact, no, I take that back
He takes back what he just said in the previous line.

See I don't play with real legends of rap like you do
He does not intend to compete with established and accomplished rappers like Nas and Jay-Z.

And I'm crucial concealed by real Crips and Soowoos
The artist is surrounded and protected by real Crips and Bloods (Soowoos)

And they shoot, they photography students when beef get to brewing
The Crips and Bloods intervene and resolve disputes even if it means shooting some people involved. They have a photographic memory of such events.