Wake Up
Rage Against the Machine Lyrics

Come on, although ya try to discredit
Even though you try to undermine me

Ya still never edit
You still haven't altered the truth

The needle, I'll thread it
I'll precisely articulate my message

Radically poetic
Rebelliously artistic and expressive

Standin' with the fury that they had in '66
Fighting with the same rage and passion as the civil rights movement did in 1966

And like E-Double I'm mad
Just as Eric B. and Rakim were, I'm furious

Still knee-deep in the system's shit
Still trapped in the injustices of the system

Hoover, he was a body remover
Referring to J.Edgar Hoover and his efforts to destroy political activists

I'll give ya a dose
I'll deliver a powerful message

But it'll never come close
But it still won't reach the intensity of what's inside me.

To the rage built up inside of me
To the immense anger that I feel

Fist in the air, in the land of hypocrisy
With a raised fist, in a country riddled with contradictions

Movements come and movements go
Social movements arise and then decline

Leaders speak, movements cease
The voices of leaders can silence movements

When their heads are flown
When their leaders are killed or imprisoned

Cause all these punks
Referring to corrupt figures in positions of power

Got bullets in their heads
Referring to those who have been assassinated

Departments of police, the judges, the feds
Referring to various arms of the government that perpetuate the injustices of the system

Networks at work, keepin' people calm
Media outlets are used to pacify the public

You know they went after King
Referring to the efforts to silence Martin Luther King Jr.

When he spoke out on Vietnam
When he criticized the U.S. involvement in the Vietnam War

He turned the power to the have-nots
He gave a voice to the underprivileged

And then came the shot
And then he was assassinated

Yeah!
Expressing fervor and intensity

Yeah, back in this
Back again with more to say

Wit' poetry, my mind I flex
Through poetry, I express my thoughts and feelings

Flip like Wilson, vocals never lackin' dat finesse
Versatile in my style, always polished and well-crafted

Whadda I got to, whadda I got to do to wake ya up
What must I do to shake people out of their complacency

To shake ya up, to break the structure up
To disrupt the unjust system

Cause blood still flows in the gutter
Violence and crime still occur in the most impoverished areas

I'm like takin' photos
Capturing moments of injustice with my words

Mad boy kicks open the shutter
Bursting open the door to expose harsh truths

Set the groove
Establish a rhythm or atmosphere

Then stick and move like I was Cassius
Referring to Muhammad Ali's boxing tactics, which emphasizes swift movements and dodges

Rep the stutter step
Performing a stutter step, tactical movement on the basketball court

Then bomb a left upon the fascists
Metaphorically punching oppressors with words

Yea, the several federal men
Referring to government agents who seek to delegitimize dissenting voices

Who pulled schemes on the dream
Who plotted against Martin Luther King Jr.'s nonviolent approach to social change

And put it to an end
And ultimately assassinated him

Ya better beware
You should be cautious

Of retribution with mind war
Revenge taken through psychological tactics

20/20 visions and murals with metaphors
A clear understanding of the situation with figurative language

Ya know they murdered X
Referring to the assassination of Malcolm X

And tried to blame it on Islam
Imputing false culpability on a religious group

What was the price on his head?
What was the monetary value placed on his life?

I think I heard a shot
Suggesting the inevitability of violence and death due to oppression

He may be a real contender for this position should he
Referring to a hypothetical individual

Abandon his supposed obedience to white liberal doctrine
Rejecting the belief that social change can occur solely through non-violence

Of non-violence and embrace black nationalism'
Adopting a philosophy that prioritizes black self-determination

Through counter-intelligence it should be possible to
Through surveillance and other tactics, it's possible to

Pinpoint potential trouble-makers and neutralize them,
Identify individuals who challenge the status quo and eliminate them

Neutralize them, neutralize them'
Deprive them of their power or eliminate them

Wake up! Wake up! Wake up! Wake up!
Urging listeners to awaken from their complacency

How long? Not long, cause what you reap is what you sow
Implying that the system is going to collapse due to its own failings