Concrete Rosary

We was born in a grave, raised by slaves
Taught me misbehave to prove that we are brave
Livin in a prison where you can't see the cage
And you can't see the walls but you movin' through a maze
Goin' round in a circle, dizzy in a daze
Eyes fuzzy from the gunsmoke, mirrors and the haze
So you take another blunt toke, set your mind ablaze
Tryna burn away the pain but the hurt still stays
And it's never gonna fade, it's far from a phase
We're victims of the ways of the times and the age
How we gonna turn fate? We not on the same page
We ain't got enough faith in ourselves to make a chance
We be waitin' on celebrities with fortune and fame
To do somethin' for the hood and that ain't even they aim
It's a real damn shame, we caught up in the game
But I'm tired of playin, I'm gonna agitate the frame

When I look in the sky, it don't be lookin' clear for us
And it ain't never seem like anybody care for us
And in the end, we the only ones there for us
Who gonna listen if somebody say a prayer for us?
Pac made it plain, and I want for you to know
Just cuz you in the ghetto doesn't mean you can't grow
Just cuz you in the ghetto doesn't mean you can't grow
Just cuz you in the ghetto doesn't mean you can't grow

We was birthed in the dirt, 5 centuries of work
Still livin' at the bottom not seeing our true worth
As the cream of the crop and the salt of the earth
Meanwhile, children of the slave traders' seein' perks
And we keep'em all paid, we get played like jerks
Who you think made the cotton material in ya shirt?
How you think they got rich? Where they get the cotton first?
I'm feelin' like buyin stock in it before I feel worse
Thoughts rushin' through my mind, my head about to burst
Gotta fight off the idea that people were born cursed
There's devils all around, I can feel'em in the church
So I turn to myself to quench my soul's thirst
Holy water of my tears wash where my fears lurk
Replacin the sad times of the years with a smirk
Take the lessons that I learnt like a lotus through the murk
Like a phoenix through the flames, I'ma rise through the hurt

When I look in the sky, it don't be lookin' clear for us
And it ain't never seem like anybody care for us
And in the end, we the only ones there for us
Who gonna listen if somebody say a prayer for us?
Pac made it plain, and I want for you to know
Just cuz you in the ghetto doesn't mean you can't grow
Just cuz you in the ghetto doesn't mean you can't grow
Just cuz you in the ghetto doesn't mean you can't grow

I had dreams of Gil Scott still runnin' from the vulture
But we the only ones still fighting for the culture, true
But our face ain't on top of the poster
It's too much food for thought, and they was givin ulcers
I'm in a drought, cloud blocked by the boulders
I'm doin' a raindance for concrete roses
Rise allow bloom in your petals to reach
I'm Godlike, and God never settles for least
I'm on top even if the ground is weak
I won't sink even if there's water beneath
I take sail, some of my thoughts was like jail
But I gained knowledge of self and post bail
I won't fail, I build heaven inside of my hell
I'll always prevail through the maze
I'm too on key to be caged
They all hate but have no choice but be amazed

When I look in the sky, it don't be lookin' clear for us
And it ain't never seem like anybody care for us
And in the end, we the only ones there for us
Who gonna listen if somebody say a prayer for us?
Pac made it plain, and I want for you to know
Just cuz you in the ghetto doesn't mean you can't grow
Just cuz you in the ghetto doesn't mean you can't grow
Just cuz you in the ghetto doesn't mean you can't grow