He was given the name Papoose by his grandmother because of his childhood resemblance to an American Indian child. Inspired by rap legends Rakim, Kool G Rap and Big Daddy Kane, he has been well respected on the underground hip-hop circuit for a long period of time now.
In early 2006, his StreetSweepers crew linked up with Busta Rhymes' Flipmode Inkprint to co-executive produce Papoose's first official album. On August 24, 2006, his official website officially announced that he signed with Jive Records, a deal which, according to his management's official website was worth $1.5 million.
Papoose has recently become known for engaging in charity work, visiting sick children and donated to causes including the Make-A-Wish Foundation and to various Hurricane Katrina charities.
On September 19, 2007 DJ Kay Slay announced that Papoose and himself have parted ways from Jive records. "We have officially gotten our release from Jive fuckin records. It was like a fuckin year of hell... Unfortunately, we almost became victims of A&R hell." On the radio show slay was asked what was next for Papoose, and he said "You know we can't talk about that man." The future of the Papoose's debut album, The Nacirema Dream, is unknown at this time; however, Papoose and Kay Slay are rumored to own the records that were created under Jive.
Papoose is no longer affiliated with Flipmode Squad.
Ghetto Soldier
Papoose Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Papoose:
You wanna go to war let's get it in
If war bring peace I'm with it then
I don't start beef I finish it
Ghetto soldiers we militant
Bridge
I don't like to fuss or fight, just tryin to live life right
Don't take my kindness for weakness cause I will take your life
First I will walk away, unless you push me to play
That's somethin I know you'll regret so please don't forget
Chorus
Akon:
I'm a ghetto soldier, desperado!!!!
I'm a ghetto soldier, gunman sing oh!!!!!!!
I'm a ghetto soldier, cowboy sing oh!!!
I'm a ghetto soldier, bad man sing oh!!!!!! (HEY!!!)
Verse 1
Papoose:
The soldiers get trained by the lieutenant
The lieutenant get all his orders from the Captain
General, when I was young I got drafted
Sent me to the army of Brooklyn those bastards
Fallen soldiers my homies lay in caskets
They couldn't survive the Heat just like the Mavericks
And I don't buy Wolf tickets from niggas
But niggas be wolfin so I walk around with my Clippers
Some of my people was alive for my struggle
But didn't live to see my success
They wanted to see me make it but got stripped naked
And laid in the morgue cause of death
So yo now that I'm successful how could I celebrate it
They died early so in their eyes I never made it
I ain't gonna give you my life you gotta take it
Soldier, I'm goin out blazin
Chorus
Akon:
I'm a ghetto soldier, desperado!!!!
I'm a ghetto soldier, gunman sing oh!!!!!!!
I'm a ghetto soldier, cowboy sing oh!!!
I'm a ghetto soldier, bad man sing oh!!!!!! (HEY!!!)
Verse 2
Papoose (Akon):
We said the same thing at the same time I ain't knock on wood
Black cat crossed my path my luck's still good
Broke a mirror I ain't get seven years of bad luck
Nothin bad ain't even happened my left eye jumped
Put my hat on the bed when I walked in the room
Swept my feet and I didn't even spit on the broom
What I'm tryin to say is I'm not superstitious
Akon what am I? (I'm a Ghetto soldier)
My right hand itchin been had money kid
I even opened the umbrella in the crib
Bought my girl some shoes she didn't walk out of my life
No bad luck I skipped the Po twice
No superstition just wise intuition
On the battlefield, get killed to do the killin
By the way my good luck charm is a biscuit
Ghetto soldier till the endin
Bridge
Akon:
I don't like to fuss or fight, just tryin to live life right
Don't take my kindness for weakness cause I will take your life
First I will walk away, unless you push me to play
That's somethin I know you'll regret so please don't forget
Chorus
Akon:
I'm a ghetto soldier, desperado!!!!
I'm a ghetto soldier, gunman sing oh!!!!!!!
I'm a ghetto soldier, cowboy sing oh!!!
I'm a ghetto soldier, bad man sing oh!!!!!! (HEY!!!)
Verse 3
Papoose:
No pain no gain all the trauma is killin me
Pain can't swim that's why I drown in the Hennesey
Tied to the enemy run in your crib slump you in your fireplace
And have smoke comin out of your chimney
I can see straight through your plot and your trickery
It don't mean shit to me
I'm tryin to get to the bottom of it
But I lost a whole lot of my energy
Tryin to get to the bottom of a bottomless industry
Nowadays all I got is my pride and my dignity
You ridin with sympathy they say misery needs company
Why keep them company you kiddin me?
When I can grab a weapon and put him out of his misery
Send shots at you to tell you I'm not playin
When you fire back you let me know what you sayin
This gun bustin it's like an unspoken language
We communicate with our gun this shit is dangerous
Chorus
Akon:
I'm a ghetto soldier, desperado!!!!
I'm a ghetto soldier, gunman sing oh!!!!!!!
I'm a ghetto soldier, cowboy sing oh!!!
I'm a ghetto soldier, bad man sing oh!!!!!! (HEY!!!)
The song Ghetto Soldier by Papoose feat. Akon is a gritty and hard-hitting hip hop track that highlights the daily struggles of living as a ghetto soldier. The lyrics of the song focus on the rigors of street life and how one must be prepared to defend oneself at all costs. The song starts with Papoose declaring that he finishes beef and doesn't start it, and that he's ready for war if that brings peace. He paints a somber picture of life where soldiers get trained and take orders from superiors, and many of his comrades die in the line of duty.
The chorus sees Akon express his grit and determination, declaring himself a desperate, bad man, cowboy, and gunman. Despite his desire to live life right, he is willing to fight for his life and take someone else's if necessary. In verse two, the rappers talk about their superstitions, with Papoose revealing that he's not superstitious and that his good luck charm is a biscuit. Finally, in verse three, Papoose talks about the pain, trauma, and energy that he's lost in the industry's dog-eat-dog world. He asserts that he's not playing, and when he fires back, he knows exactly what someone is saying.
Overall, Ghetto Soldier is a powerful and iconic song that showcases the harsh reality of living in tough neighborhoods. It tells the story of a soldier's life, where survival instincts are essential, and one must always be ready to face the worst.
Line by Line Meaning
You wanna go to war let's get it in
I'm ready to fight if that's what you want
If war bring peace I'm with it then
If fighting leads to a resolution, I'm okay with it
I don't start beef I finish it
I don't look for trouble but I will finish it if necessary
Ghetto soldiers we militant
We are tough and ready to fight
I don't like to fuss or fight, just tryin to live life right
I prefer to live peacefully and not get into conflicts
Don't take my kindness for weakness cause I will take your life
Just because I'm kind doesn't mean I won't defend myself if I have to
First I will walk away, unless you push me to play
I'll try to avoid confrontation unless necessary
That's somethin I know you'll regret so please don't forget
If you force me to fight, you'll regret it so don't push me
I'm a ghetto soldier, desperado!!!!
I'm a tough, street-wise person
I'm a ghetto soldier, gunman sing oh!!!!!!!
I'm a tough, gun-carrying person
I'm a ghetto soldier, cowboy sing oh!!!
I'm like a cowboy, ready to fight
I'm a ghetto soldier, bad man sing oh!!!!!! (HEY!!!)
I'm a tough guy, don't mess with me
The soldiers get trained by the lieutenant
The soldiers receive training from their superior officer
The lieutenant get all his orders from the Captain
The lieutenant receives instructions from the captain
General, when I was young I got drafted
When I was young, I was conscripted into the military
Sent me to the army of Brooklyn those bastards
I was sent to the military in Brooklyn
Fallen soldiers my homies lay in caskets
My friends who died serving in the military are now in coffins
They couldn't survive the Heat just like the Mavericks
They couldn't handle the heat of battle
And I don't buy Wolf tickets from niggas
I don't believe fake stories from people
But niggas be wolfin so I walk around with my Clippers
People lie, so I carry my guns for protection
Some of my people was alive for my struggle
Some of my friends witnessed my hardships
But didn't live to see my success
They died before I achieved success
They wanted to see me make it but got stripped naked
They wanted to see me succeed, but they suffered
And laid in the morgue cause of death
And they died and ended up in the morgue
So yo now that I'm successful how could I celebrate it
Now that I'm successful, it's difficult to celebrate without my friends
They died early so in their eyes I never made it
My friends died before I could achieve success in their eyes
I ain't gonna give you my life you gotta take it
I won't willingly give up my life, but I'll fight if I have to
We said the same thing at the same time I ain't knock on wood
We both said something similar at the same time without any superstition
Black cat crossed my path my luck's still good
A black cat crossed my path, but I'm not superstitious
Broke a mirror I ain't get seven years of bad luck
I broke a mirror, but I don't believe in the superstition of getting bad luck
Nothin bad ain't even happened my left eye jumped
Nothing bad happened, but my left eye twitched which some people believe brings bad luck
Put my hat on the bed when I walked in the room
I put my hat on the bed which is considered bad luck by some
Swept my feet and I didn't even spit on the broom
I swept my feet, but I didn't spit which is another superstition
What I'm tryin to say is I'm not superstitious
I don't believe in superstitions
Akon what am I? (I'm a Ghetto soldier)
I am a tough person who grew up in the ghetto
My right hand itchin been had money kid
My right hand is itchy, which some believe means money will come soon
I even opened the umbrella in the crib
I opened an umbrella indoors which some believe is bad luck
Bought my girl some shoes she didn't walk out of my life
I bought shoes for my girl, and she didn't leave me
No bad luck I skipped the Po twice
I avoided getting caught twice which is considered lucky
No superstition just wise intuition
I'm not superstitious, but I have good instincts
On the battlefield, get killed to do the killin
In battle, you must be willing to fight and potentially die
By the way my good luck charm is a biscuit
My good luck charm is something simple like a biscuit
No pain no gain all the trauma is killin me
In order to succeed, you must endure pain and hardship
Pain can't swim that's why I drown in the Hennesey
Alcohol helps me cope with my pain and suffering
Tied to the enemy run in your crib slump you in your fireplace
If I'm at war with someone, I'll get into their home and kill them
And have smoke comin out of your chimney
Their dead body will be burned and smoke will come out of their chimney
I can see straight through your plot and your trickery
I can see through your lies and deceit
It don't mean shit to me
It doesn't matter to me
You ridin with sympathy they say misery needs company
If you surround yourself with people who are miserable, you'll be miserable too
Why keep them company you kiddin me?
Why hang out with miserable people when you can avoid them?
When I can grab a weapon and put him out of his misery
If someone is causing me grief, I can use a weapon to take them out
Send shots at you to tell you I'm not playin
I'll use a gun to send you a message that I'm serious
When you fire back you let me know what you sayin
If you shoot back, you're telling me that you're willing to fight
This gun bustin it's like an unspoken language
Using guns to communicate with each other
We communicate with our gun this shit is dangerous
Using guns to communicate is dangerous
Lyrics © O/B/O APRA AMCOS
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
@dannyjamison2462
"Now that I'm successful, how can I celebrate it? They died early, so in their eyes I never made it" - That's a gem of a line.
@meyerbros187
FACTS!
@toreytownsend4705
Yes and in indeed!!
@blitzfwshly27
That’s the reason Why I came here today , I just lost my dad and five days later I got my dream job ,mixed feelings 😕
@BlacckChrome
@@blitzfwshly27 he’s still watching bro I know that he’s proud and that’s facts, best thing you can do is hold your head & honor his legacy don’t be like me and drown in the Hennessy mess your whole life up cause of the pain, hope you’re doing great man sorry for your loss 🙏
@blitzfwshly27
@@BlacckChrome thanks fam , I’m hanging in there , I hope you find peace and forgive yourself, we all get second chances, hold your head high King , it’s just a temporary set back
@RkoSerbia
"pain can't swim, that's what i drown in a henessy" papoose is one of the most underrated rappers, this song is great
@slinkybeans2442
plz respond comment from 10 years ago
@bundleofhumble3119
That's why i drown in the henessy.
@krispybeats6615
anything akon touched was preety much fire :D