Yasiin Bey - Make it All Better lyrics

[Intro: Q-Tip] Yo why we typecast into all of this madness? Humanity, ain't you tired? Ghetto child, ain't you tired? Universe, ain't you tired? Let's speak, let's speak on it Yo, why we typecast into all this madness? Humanity, ain't you tired? [Verse 1: Talib Kweli] Yo, I keep a smile on my face, even when it's looking very grim I think about them babies innocent like cherubim I'm livin' in an era when There is more black people owning things than it's ever been In America. From small banks to big labels Properties, and businesses even stations on cable Still we're not able To control the money (There's) Swine still on the table And ghettos across the country Our babies stay hungry, but we got black senators in congress That's the illusion of pro-gress Getting hyped when you see blacks on TV is plain dumb When them cats do not understand where they came from Let's get everybody's head nodding to the same drum Then have conversations that cross generations It's then and only then you will see That these kids imitate images from the seventies That's the decade we were born into Conforming to The code of the pimp and the playa, what you wanna do? Call that man "Ghouli-ani" Said, "We've got no clue", pro'bly Forget about the Q-Tip's, Mos Def's, Talib Kweli's The mindstate of those before us seems pathetic Got the nerve to say my generation apathetic But I don't sweat it I just choose to a**ist Boo-hoo all you want, just continue to exist [Chorus: Talib Kweli] Refuse any fact that's not actual Resist anything that's not natural Refuse to let the current situation worsen Resist anybody that's disrespecting your person Refuse to be afraid, it's only God you should fear Resist the temptation to act like you don't care It's a struggle out there And we all feel the pressure You say it's all good, I wanna make it all better [Verse 2: Mos Def] They say that illegal business control America The law man long arm is just a long barrell There ain't a black bu*terfly Black birds and sparrows, anything trying to fly Their response to more black is more blue and more ammo Check the local news channel The commissioner, defendant is kin Another long-winded lie again Black folks gonna die again When they say "we" they really mean us and them The politics of division Creating fresh revenue for prison It's money, it's religion They been running the same type of game Since the slave holders settled the plane It's very little remains The capital gains Control the domain Closing the vein So life can't circulate Perpetrate the murder rate Para military k**in' Mary That's the seed they sow They gotta bleed to grow But what they need to know That what you reap Is what you keep Payback is better fruit to eat It uproot the teeth Enough to make the laughing tyrants stop smiling They took him to the grave, but Lazarus was unsilent (3x) [Verse 3: Q-Tip] Yo, yo, it's the doughnuts and coffee That makes you too bossy I really don't think you need to be walking the beat And targeting civilians cause we're walking in the streets Refrain from prejudice and refrain from eating sweets Constitution's not made For multi-raced slaves There's more than Amadu who found a way to early grave Gonna keep on happenin' and Police is packin' and Giuliani's yappin' and You know the process Cops is drinkin' beer on the streets, relieve stress Looking for the lucky Latino with blackface Keeping us inside a place But it's not about race Let 'em tell it. And a lot of y'all police is punks Smackin' hustlers up and confiscating all their junk Sellin' it back, scaring the cats into submission Bustin' at the brothas cause we fit the description Of the young and intelligent Often wild talented Ghetto child. Our dreams are snatched up with violence, kid Gonna make you feel the pain if I can It's the ordinary thing just a day for the man (3x) [Chorus: Talib Kweli] Refuse any fact that's not actual Resist anything that's not natural Refuse to let the current situation worsen Resist anybody that's disrespecting your person Refuse to be afraid, it's only God you should fear Resist the temptation to act like you don't care It's a struggle out there And we all feel the pressure You say it's all good, I wanna make it all better