Early years
Memphis "One Hit Away" Bleek's first mainstream rap vocals appeared on the Clark Kent produced song "Coming of Age", featured on Jay-Z's classic debut LP Reasonable Doubt. Shortly after, Bleek became the first artist signed to Roc-A-Fella Records.
"Coming of Age", ironiclly, was also the title of Memphis' debut LP, which didn't create massive records sales and chart-topping singles as his labelmate and peers' albums had. The same was the case of his second LP, "The Understanding", and third, "M.A.D.E", though the latter spawned his largest amount of sales yet (900,000).
Get Low label and rivalries
In the time between the releases of his second and third albums, Memphis Bleek started his own label, Get Low, which in turn led to the signing of former Junior MAFIA member Lil' Cease. The name of the label has sparked a hip-hop rivalry, or beef, between Memphis Bleek, JT tha Bigga Figga & The Game, the former of which built an independent record label with the same title.
Memphis Bleek was also caught in the middle of the epic Jay-Z and Nas battle, in which Bleek gained a few enemies, most notably Nas and Mobb Deep. Despite boosting Jay-Z and Nas's careers, the beef did little to help Bleek gain any more popularity than he had already attained.
Later years
Remaining one hit away, on May 17, 2005, Bleek released his fourth album titled "534" , in reference to the building he & mentor Jay-Z grew up in, located in the Marcy housing projects of Brooklyn. However, like many of Bleeks previous releases the album suffered in sales, despite decent exposure of the Swizz Beatz produced single 'Like That'.
In fall 2005, Memphis Bleek told MTV that he was recording an album called "The Process", that he would describe as a make or break album, saying "I want to do an album that's through the roof, I want to do a classic album. I feel that if this album I'm not recording is a classic, I'm not even gonna put it out. I have to do it bigger than anybody has ever done it. I have to make a good record this time, not just talking-junk records."The rapper has worked on the album since 2005 and during that time frame he would release the songs "Hustla", "Get Ya Money Off" and "Let It Off". During this time, he would also leave Roc-A-Fella after Jay-Z told him he could run his own company and had the proper distribution deals to do so. He found a new home in 2009 when he signed to Mass Appeal Entertainment which is where he will release his long anticipated album The Process is yet.
Albums
1999: The Coming of Age [Certified: Gold]
2001: The Understanding [Certified: Gold]
2003: M.A.D.E. [Certified: Gold]
2005: 534 [Certified: Gold]
Understand Me Still
Memphis Bleek Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
And ya don't understand me still
I never enjoyed success, but my family did..
And I'm a write with that
[Verse 1:]
I eat good, smoke good, you see I push the latest whips with the hottest bitch
Take trips to the coast of Bermudas
And I am Proud of myself, cause me true Dog, never acted never lie to myself
I been in Hollywood and back, guess what I'm Still M
Say Number from the blue tops days, I'm still him
You dudes think I'm touring like I'm part of you and out
But is just about the performance, get the money we out
Trying chill, trying to take the wife to eat
But most girl, disrespectful when they try to speak, as if
They don't understand, Let me live, Ma
I'm with my fam, let me live, and I
Try to be nice about being disrespectful
One gets respects, when show one respect too
[Chorus:]
But you don't understand me still
I never enjoyed success, but my family will
And I'm a write with that (I'm a write with that, I'm a write with that)
But you don't understand me still
I never enjoyed success, but my family will
And I'm a write with that (I'm a write with that, I'm a write with that)
[Verse 2:]
Yo
I take it back home every chance I get
Because I've been through every ghetto, but home I can't forget
Wish I could take em all, on this ride with me
But it won't be real, and if you asked it ain't be reality
I only fucked with a few, and If you real you know
Soon you go, but if not, you don't yeah.
We still family right, that's what you leave me to believe
But ya don't understand my life
I took Dre down to South Beach, just to show him what A few ones to do
When you amongst your crew, we living
I never picture I could ever loose him
But I found myself with the thoughts that I'ma loose him
I put the stash up, I'm just trying to save his life
Just moved moms, had to moved her twice... down to Miami
I thank God everyday of my life, that I could provide for my family
[Chorus]
But you don't understand me still
I never enjoyed success, but my family will
And I'm a write with that (I'm a write with that, I'm a write with that)
But you don't understand me still
I never enjoyed success, but my family will
And I'm a write with that (I'm a write with that, I'm a write with that)
[Verse 3:]
Yo
My brother survive, now everybody's doing fine
I kept my moms away, to let her enjoy life
I wish I could do the same, but I can't theirs work to do
Rent due, there's more work to do
I copped bikes let my niggas ride them
I copped coupes, let my niggas drive them
I'm proud to see my niggas wilding, cause I remember them days
They still vivid of me, huggin' the block, young soul committed
When I wrote rhymes daily
To get my flow up pray one day They whole world could hear me
I love it when the crowd recited every word of it
When they bounce, Let me know that they all a part of it
That two things make me proud of my life
I thought I had it all, but the best give was life
The third ?? I'm a brand new father
Of a Healthy baby boy and its making me work harder
[Chorus]
But you don't understand me still
I never enjoyed success, but my family will
And I'm a write with that (I'm a write with that, I'm a write with that)
But you don't understand me still
I never enjoyed success, but my family will
And I'm a write with that (I'm a write with that, I'm a write with that)
Ya'll don't know, ya'll don't know
And I'm a write with that
All this cold nights risking my life
But it's all good but misunderstood, ya don't know
In "Understand Me Still," Memphis Bleek and Rell reflect on their journey to success and how it has affected their personal lives. The song's chorus repeats the line, "you don't understand me still," emphasizing the isolation and loneliness the artists feel even after achieving fame and fortune. Bleek raps about coming from a rough neighborhood, where he had to carry a gun to protect himself, whereas now he drives the hottest cars and travels to exotic locations. However, despite his success, he often feels disrespected by those around him. Bleek also mentions his family throughout the song, emphasizing that their happiness is more important than his own success. Rell sings the chorus, highlighting the central theme of the song, that even after achieving fame, people can still feel misunderstood and isolated.
Line by Line Meaning
Yeah you know, just vibe with me, just understand my life
Come vibe with me and try to see things from my perspective so you can understand my life
And ya don't understand me still
Even after all my explanations, you still don't understand me
I never enjoyed success, but my family did..
Although I haven't enjoyed success yet, I'm happy that my family has
And I'm a write with that
And I'll continue to write about my life and experiences
I eat good, smoke good, you see I push the latest whips with the hottest bitch
I have a good life and enjoy luxuries like good food, good weed, driving the latest cars with attractive women
Take trips to the coast of Bermudas
I go on extravagant vacations to beautiful places like Bermuda
But dog I'm from Flush Ave. where I pop toast for Aruba
But I grew up in a rough neighborhood where I had to carry guns and fight to survive
And I am Proud of myself, cause me true Dog, never acted never lie to myself
I'm proud of myself for always being true to who I am and never pretending to be someone else
I been in Hollywood and back, guess what I'm Still M
I've traveled to Hollywood and back, but I'm still the same person
Say Number from the blue tops days, I'm still him
Even though I used to sell drugs on the streets, I'm still the same person
You dudes think I'm touring like I'm part of you and out
You think I'm touring with you and on your level, but I'm not
But is just about the performance, get the money we out
I'm only here for the performance and to make money, then I'm gone
Trying chill, trying to take the wife to eat
I'm trying to relax and take my wife out to eat
But most girl, disrespectful when they try to speak, as if
But many women are disrespectful when they talk to me, as if they don't understand my situation
They don't understand, Let me live, Ma
They don't understand my life, so they should let me live my way
I'm with my fam, let me live, and I
I'm with my family, so let me live my life and be happy
Try to be nice about being disrespectful
I try to stay calm and be polite, even when people are being disrespectful to me
One gets respects, when show one respect too
If you show me respect, then you'll get my respect in return
Yo
Hey
I take it back home every chance I get
I go back to my hometown whenever I have the chance
Because I've been through every ghetto, but home I can't forget
Even though I've seen many ghettos, I can't forget where I came from
Wish I could take em all, on this ride with me
I wish I could bring everyone from my hometown on this journey with me
But it won't be real, and if you asked it ain't be reality
But that wouldn't be real, and it wouldn't be reality
I only fucked with a few, and If you real you know
I only have a few real friends, and if you're one of them, you know it
Soon you go, but if not, you don't yeah.
If you're not one of them, then you don't know
We still family right, that's what you leave me to believe
We're still family, at least that's what I believe
But ya don't understand my life
But you don't understand my life and where I come from
I took Dre down to South Beach, just to show him what A few ones to do
I took my friend Dre to South Beach to show him how to enjoy the luxuries of life
When you amongst your crew, we living
When you're with your friends, that's when you're really living life
I never picture I could ever loose him
I never thought I could lose him
But I found myself with the thoughts that I'ma loose him
But I've been thinking about the possibility of losing him
I put the stash up, I'm just trying to save his life
I've hidden our drugs so I can try to save his life
Just moved moms, had to moved her twice... down to Miami
I recently moved my mom to Miami and had to move her again for safety reasons
I thank God everyday of my life, that I could provide for my family
I'm thankful to God every day that I can provide for my family
My brother survive, now everybody's doing fine
My brother survived something and now everyone is doing well
I kept my moms away, to let her enjoy life
I'm keeping my mom away from danger so that she can enjoy her life
I wish I could do the same, but I can't theirs work to do
I wish I could do the same for myself, but there's still work to be done
Rent due, there's more work to do
I still have bills to pay and more work to do
I copped bikes let my niggas ride them
I bought some bikes and let my friends ride them
I copped coupes, let my niggas drive them
I bought some nice cars and let my friends drive them
I'm proud to see my niggas wilding, cause I remember them days
I'm proud to see my friends living their best lives because I remember the struggles we went through
They still vivid of me, huggin' the block, young soul committed
Those memories are still clear to me of us hanging out on the streets with a strong sense of commitment
When I wrote rhymes daily
I used to write rhymes every day
To get my flow up pray one day They whole world could hear me
I wrote rhymes to improve my skills and prayed that one day the whole world would hear me
I love it when the crowd recited every word of it
I feel great when the crowd sings along to my songs and knows every word
When they bounce, Let me know that they all a part of it
When they move with the music, it feels like we're all part of the same thing
That two things make me proud of my life
Two things that make me happy and proud of my life are my family and my music
I thought I had it all, but the best give was life
I used to think I had everything, but the greatest gift is life
The third ?? I'm a brand new father
The third thing that makes me proud is that I'm a new father
Of a Healthy baby boy and its making me work harder
My healthy baby boy is motivating me to work even harder
All this cold nights risking my life
I've been through many cold, dangerous nights risking my life
But it's all good but misunderstood, ya don't know
But it's all worth it, even though you don't understand my life
Lyrics © Warner Chappell Music, Inc.
Written by: E. JOHNSON, EDWIN DELAHOZ, ERIC LA MONTE JOHNSON, MALIK COX, MALIK DESHAWN COX
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
supahgood1
one of the best songs on this album
Cindy Vang
Great song!!!!!!!! A oldie that I can put on repeat.
Aye 2 Zee
hey Lil lady ,what other music do you get into cindy vang...?
johndough813
man this is one of my fav songs right here
MrFlyGuy314
THIS IS MY SHIT, I BE BUMPIN THIS IN THE WHIP!!
Diva Flemons
Love this song it speaks a lot of volume
Mia Heidelburg
im 9 and this was 8 years ago this is the stuff
Joe
BRING BLEEK BACK! SHOW SUPPORT FOR A REAL PIONEER SOME1 WHO BUILT THE ROC
David Maddox
Im Alright wit that!💯✔🔃 in my playlist! Vibin
462 BBG
Listening in 2020 #classic