[Produced by Tonedeff] [Hook] I, can't, breathe And, I, can't, see And, I, can't, move, cause I'm sick and tired of these politics [Verse 1] Oh mercy, mercy me At this point of my career I should already be on my third CD But every turn of the way has been met with adversity But I'm cursed, it seems, and I been disserviced purposely And it's herbs like these, that've got my blood boilin' to the third degree And I'm nervously avoidin' this urge to just burst and scream Feeling the thirst for revenge! I can no longer pretend That mentally I won't be plummeting off the deep end I'm desperately seeking these trendy motherf**ers Just so I can teach them never to speak on any of us There's somethin' you wanna say? (say?) Get that other rapper's co*k out your throat! No wonder he's been comin' out your face Son, never doubt The Plague, cause we infect against even the best Medicines and vaccines, sedatives and bactrine I'm fed up with the rap scene As I'm dealin' with an amount of politics that would even give the president bad dreams [Hook] [Verse 2] Every thing you see and hear was paid for So, don't try to discredit me, cause my sh** isn't played more Just imagine having to wait, bored, at the stage door Cause nothing aches worse than a name on the marquis when it ain't yours And you're trying desperately to make noise, but all you get's hate From biased record pools that'll chart anythin' for their next crate Or elitist DJs that only spin vinyl. (go get pressed!) But give 'em a Nas exclusive MP3 and they'll play the sh** dead These vicious double-standards can be seen in many arenas in the game From radio burn to video screens, the sh**'s the same From magazines to mix DJs - You give 'em the green, they give the OK Cause n***as are greedy leadin' the way, they sell you a dream and spit in your face
And it isn't easy to look away, when you're focused on your budding career Pumped up with potential, but you can't fire nothing from here Need anything done? Then you gotta do it yourself with no help When you make on your own? Then everyone shows to share the whole wealth But, oh well - another day in a cold hell When everyone ridin' your coattails are the same cats that'll pray your record don't sell I won't settle for no remarks about room for improvement When you boo at QN5 and refuse to review the music b**h, you're fronting on the future, stop watchin' your back and face forward Reviewers best to listen to this like they paid for it Cause, what the f**!? Do I need to get shot to get props? Do you need talent? I guess not but with drug money and a guest spot You can spend lots on a track from the producer of the month And that'll induce you with the buzz, that'll get you news-scoops and the pub But Buddy, I'm flat broke. So on that note, I'll say goodbye to articles Bookings for college shows, distribution pushin' us hard for dough Then you wondering why you're seeing the same n***as over and over The more original the flow, then, the colder the shoulder The same reason you can't stand that verse you heard is The same reason you know it word for word - dog, it's politics [Hook] [Verse 3] My patience is driftin' Cause I'm in no political position or famous enough to state my opinion Of this game and it's minions, I'm stayin' silent and numb Cause you can't put your foot in your mouth or swallow your words when you're bitin' your tongue So with nice-guy reluctance, I'm fighting my grudges And it's hard to be polite with others when you'd rather take a knife to f**ers Here's my final shot at diplomacy - believe this; Swing for your third strike, I'm callin' you out on the remix