Nas — N.Y. State of Mind Pt. II

[Produced by DJ Premier] [Intro] Uhh.. yo Whattup? Whattup? It's time man (word, it's time?) Straight up (it's time, man) Aight, set that shit off (set it off then, nigga) Set it off (set if off) [Verse 1] Broken glass in the hallway, bloodstained floors Neighbors look at every bag you bring through your doors Lock the top lock, momma should've cuffed me to the radiator Why not? It might've saved me later from my block N.Y. cops, hookers crawlin' off the stroll, coughin' Stitches in they head, stinkin' and I dread thinkin' they be snitchin' But who else, could it be, shook at these, unmarked vans Parked in the dark—NARC's, where's your heart? Hustlers starve—they bust a U-ey, I jog To my building—come out later wearin' camouflage See the sergeant and the captain—strangle men Niggas gaspin' for air 'til they move no more and just stare With dead eyes—tired of riots, shit is quiet Simple-minded fools infiltrate grimy crews Overcrowded cribs, uncles home from bids, sisters pregnant Fathers on drugs, moms is smokin', beds is piss-infested Had 8 partners growin' up, 8 turned to 7 7 turned to 6 niggas, got 2 in heaven 6 of us holdin' it, now it's 5 rollin' thick The 6th one's parole flipped, 5 niggas went to 4 quick When he went O.T., college life Converted into gangbangin', 4 niggas still hangin' Years passin' and slang changin'—3 of us now, 4th nigga ain't around We all thought he was real—he did the snake shit Fake shit—beat his ass down Yo his mouth could've got us all wasted, what a fuckin' clown All I got left in the end is 2 of my best friends And we all goin' out to the death for these ends What? [Chorus (repeats in bridge)] New York, New York (New York state of mind) New York, New York (New York state of mind) [Bridge] You heard about it, you see about it You read about it, it's in your papers It's in your daily news ("Get money!") New York chronicles, every day The crime rate, the murder rate The money rate, the paper chase (aight?) You know what I mean? New York state of mind, baby (oh, yeah) Check it out (yeah) [Verse 2] I'm at the gamblin' spot, my hands on a knot New York Yankee cap cover my eyes, stand in one spot I take a nigga dough, send him home to a shoebox You lost that nigga I put your dollar in the jukebox Hear my favorite song, all these niggas sing along All the cigarette smoke's cloggin' my lungs Hoodrats flashin' they tongue Young thugs blastin' they gun, we got reputations Bitches and niggas both on parole or probation Shit is sick, niggas got gats, army fatigues I got my eyes glued on whoever walk in or leave 'Cause I ain't playin', niggas'll run up in here and shoot up this shit Stick yo' ass up, niggas'll find the loot in your kicks Bunch of triple-cross niggas, just New York niggas Lift you off your feet when they was just talkin' with you Some of these dudes the Feds be on 'em, you knew 'em for years Be the type when you walk in a pub, they offer you beers That ain't gangsta, niggas is up North with tatted tears Your name's on the affadavit, you ratted kid Faggot-ass niggas that be scared to do they bids Fuck you, we run you out of N.Y, you can't live Got your quiet niggas, that relocated down South Comin' back to floss, then you got the jealous loudmouths All of a sudden we got Crips and Bloods, D.T.'s Runnin' round quick to split your mug, it's easy To score but it's hard to get the shit off Niggas fightin' over hundred sales, jump in the car and drive off When the fiend come around the block, happy as hell Niggas mad 'cause they ain't get a piece of that sale Cutthroat connivers, universal, ghetto survivors Go to any hood that's live and make it liver A lot of niggas schemin', some real, some niggas frontin' But I'm a big dreamer, so watch me come up with somethin' [Chorus] New York, New York New York, New York