Joy
Mos Def; Talib Kweli Lyrics

Wooaahh! yeah
Expressing excitement and enthusiasm

On top of the world
Feeling on top of the world

Yeah, that's how my seeds got me feeling' right now
My children have made me feel like I'm on top of the world

Yeah, you ever felt like you could do anything, (Yeah)
Have you ever felt like you can do anything?

I'ma hold y'all down for real, (Gotcha!)
I'll support you no matter what

It was 1996, fourth of July, looking off in the sky
Recalling events from 1996, Fourth of July, gazing at the sky

Dealing with thoughts inside, when something caught my eye
Trying to process inner thoughts when something grabs my attention

It was a silhouette of a beautiful woman, bright with life
Saw a beautiful pregnant woman with a bright energy

Carrying my first seed, looking like she gone bear fruit tonight
The woman he saw was carrying his first child and looked like she was going to give birth that night

We at the African street festival, and she walking around
The couple was at the African street festival and the woman was walking around

Talking about the midwife said, that bring the baby down
The woman mentions the midwife's advice on how to bring the baby down

I'm about to be a father, the sights and sounds,
He's becoming a father soon and taking in the sights and sounds

Seem brighter around me
Everything around him seems brighter

And for starters, I know I'ma work harder, word
He knows he'll need to work harder than ever before now that he's becoming a father

We got home at three in the morning, I was beat
They arrived home at 3am and he was exhausted

Them contractions started coming as soon as I fell asleep
His partner's contractions began as soon as he fell asleep

Three oh five, like every five minutes, then the water broke
Her contractions were coming every 5 minutes and her water broke at 3:05am

We on the go, yelling at the cabbie, cause he's sort of slow
They're rushing to get to the hospital and getting frustrated with the slow cab driver

You know them hospitals all trying to get paid, no questions
Hospitals are only interested in getting paid, with no regard for patients' well-being

Hear come the doctor's with they drugs, trying to do see-sections
Doctors arrive with drugs and suggest a C-section

But my baby stay's strong, in labor for yay long
His baby stays strong even though labor lasts a long time

Eight-pound baby boy, to carry my name on, joy!
His eight-pound baby boy was born, bringing him joy and continuing the family's legacy

Huh, yeah
Expressing acknowledgement and agreement

I know how you feel, Kweli I know how you feel
He understands how Talib Kweli feels

(That's the sound of joy)
It's the sound of joy being expressed

See my brother, I know how you feel, Kweli, I know how you feel
Reiterating that he understands how Talib Kweli feels

So when you, have a seed, come in the world, say dog that shit's real
When you have a child, recognize that it's a real, life-changing experience

(That's the sound of joy, y'all)
Joy being expressed again

Huh, Kweli, yo I know how you feel, Kweli, yo I know how you feel
Restating that he understands how Talib Kweli feels

My baby girl
Talking about his daughter

June 10th, 1999, I been on the grind
Recalling June 10th, 1999, and his hard work leading up to it

Since the birth of my son, it's been about, way more then rhymes
Since his son was born, his focus has been on more than just music

Baby on the way, my lady glowing today, at least
His partner is pregnant again and looking radiant

That's what the midwife said, on the phone
The midwife shared the news of the pregnancy over the phone

Anyway, the music got me going away
Despite the news, music is still a source of inspiration and happiness

Like everyday, but it's a blessing, so I gotta have patience
Music is a blessing but he also needs patience

And she got pregnant on a Jamaican vacation
His partner got pregnant while they were on vacation in Jamaica

So it's all good, this time well have the baby in a house
They're planning to have a homebirth this time

I went the hospital route, I know what they all about (Never again)
They went to the hospital for his son's birth but won't do it again

So I'm out on tour, in Baltimore
He's on tour in Baltimore when his partner goes into labor

Get the call around four, when the water hit the floor (Damn!)
He gets a call at 4am that his partner's water broke

I gotta rock my show, but I gotta go
He still has to perform but needs to leave to be with his partner

Got second thoughts about her not going, to the hospital
He's having second thoughts about having a homebirth and not going to the hospital

I left the show early, Mos held me down, good looking (No doubt)
He leaves the show early and Mos Def supports him

Call the car service, like, take me straight to Brooklyn (Uh huh)
He orders a car to take him straight home to Brooklyn

Got the news in the car, stayed sorta calm
He hears the news on the way but stays relatively calm

But I cried tears of joy,
He cries tears of joy when he sees his daughter

When they put my daughter in my arms, how precious!
He holds his precious daughter in his arms

I do it for the seeds y'all,
He does everything he does for his children

In they formative years when they need y'all
He focuses on helping his children during their formative years

We gotta believe, in what we conceive y'all, it's deep y'all
We need to believe in what we create, it's a deep experience

I give them the truth,
He's honest with his children

So they approach the situation, with ammunition
He gives them the tools they need to handle situations

I keep nothing away,
He's transparent with his children

They hear everything, cause they know how to listen
His children are good listeners and absorb everything

Teach them the game, so they know they position, so they can grow
Teach them how the world works so they know where they fit in and can develop

And make decisions, that change the world, and break old tradition
Encourage them to make decisions that can break old traditions and change the world

They put kids in jail, for a life they ain't even get to start
Kids are put in jail before they even have a chance to start their lives

That's murder too, and it's breaking my heart,
This is a form of murder, and it's heartbreaking

It's breaking our nation apart
The issue is tearing our nation apart

We gave the youth all the anger, it's just
We've given the youth anger without showing them how to handle it

We ain't taught them, how to express it, and so it's dangerous
We haven't taught them how to express that anger, which makes it dangerous

You can't talk to them
It's difficult to talk to them

Unless your language is relating to what they going through
You have to speak to their experiences to connect with them

So busy ignoring them, you can't see what they showing you
We're too busy ignoring them to see what they're trying to show us

And you wonder, why we called baby-daddy's and baby-momma's
And then we wonder why we're called baby-daddies and baby-mommas

When we grow up, we can't act like adult mothers and fathers, yo
We need to act like adult mothers and fathers when we have children ourselves

I'm so blessed to have a boy and a girl,
He's grateful to have a son and daughter

Everyday they bring joy to my world
His children bring joy to his life every day

I do it for the seeds y'all
Reiterating that everything he does is for his children