ISHUES - Read Between the Lines lyrics
[Movie Sample]
Think about it... Think about it, and understand it. Do understand it
[Chorus x2]
Read between the lines, everything seems fine
But our rapid decline is a sign of the times
Most of us is scared of revolution
Thats why we strap up the glock, go on the block and we dont care who we be shooting
[Verse 1]
The world is a ghetto
Politicians pull strings like Geppetto
Cops kill, but still the court case gets settled
Little kids peddle dope on the streets, like its a hobby
Cause Moms lives in the building with fiends all in the lobby
Somebody called the preacher, and asked him for his blessings
It probably cost you some cash, when they passed the plate for collections
Only lessons teachers taught me in school was propaganda
And the picture of Jesus nailed on the cross, of course its slander
This land was built on corruption, murder and lies
Thats why every president had some sort of murderous ties
So I despise what you teach me, despise you completely
You can always see defeat in the eyes of the weakling
Over half the population of blacks today are Christian
And Christianity was the product of constant whipping
Cause they said that we were savages, so our values they took em
The majority of the slaves that they traded here was Muslim
So do they hide the truth from us, or are we just too scared to look
They say the truth is safe from niggaz in books
Because we dont read, so we dont really know our history
Yeah thats the type of shit that gets to me
[Chorus x2]
[Verse 2]
I listen to Immortal Technique, when he speak he make a lot of sense
The record business is just as crooked as any politics
Thats why you hear a lot of rap niggaz talking that nonsense
Its the grand plan to keep our people stuck in bondage
Slaves to the rings, slaves to the chains, slaves to the reins
Most of these rappers is slaves to the game
Getting sodomized, just to wear some platinum and be idolized
When they whole entire life is itemized
The revolution wont be televised
Cause the television's only use is just for telling lies, to keep us confused
Cause confusion's easy to rule, so they use TVs as tools
To warp the minds of the youth so they grow up as fools
Over eighty percent of African Americans dont even know they heritage
And they dont think this knowledge is imperative
Thats why you see more babies and less marriages
No change, because the arrogance has been inherited right from our parents
And its carried over into our seeds, so when they sprout up as trees
They dont know who to believe, its a disease
And its called ignorance, and its highly contagious
And it gets worse over the ages
[Chorus x2]
[Verse 3]
I write the songs that you don't wanna hear
The songs that DJ's dont be playing on the air
The songs that's gonna make my people wanna care
The songs that real heads bang in their Discman's and stereos
The songs that fortify you with nutritious values like Cheerios
The songs thats underground, like seismic prints that make the thunder sound
And shake the ground for miles around and cause buildings to crumble down
That jungle sound, that ruggedness, that niggaz nod their heads to
The type of music that'll make the police try and dead you
Son, I wouldn't kid you, I'm a hip-hop fanatic
I ?? up on music like Edutainment and Illmatic
So that wack shit you can have it, radio-friendly garbage
You caught picking off somebody and callin yourself an artist?
I be starving, for a sellout just to keep up with the ??
Everybody is biting, nobody knows when it started
50 different songs about the same thing on the radio
What happened to the basic concept of being original?
Its pitiful, because hip-hop has influenced our culture
These little kids look at the videos and hang the posters
Our time is getting short, our final days are coming closer
Its time to bring this age of ignorance to a closure
[Chorus x2]
[Ishues interview: beat fades to end]