The Roots — Cant Stop This

[Intro: Black Thought] Saved message, today at 5:47 PM You know, my man Jay Dee was a true hip hop artist I can't explain the influence that his mind and ear have had on my band, myself, and the careers of so many other artists The most humble, modest, worthy, and gifted beatmaker I've known And definitely the best producer on the mic Never without that signature smile and head bouncin' to the beat Jay Dee had a passion for life and music, and will never be forgotten He's a brother that was loved by me, and I love what he's done for us And although I'm happy he's no longer in the pain that he had been recently feeling, I'm crushed by the pain of his absence The name's Dilla Dog and I can only rep the real and raw My man Dilla, rest in peace [Verse 1: Black Thought] Last of the red hot hip-hop lovin' emcees That came up on grits and government cheese The only thing I ever really loved in my life was a mic, some of my niggas fell in love with MPs Come on, work the bass, nigga, juggle them keys I'm trying to get a piece of this government green And smack 'em in the melon with another LP Come on, help a couple people in the struggle get free We from the block, where people stay prepared to rock And it's hard, 'cause opportunity be scared to knock And more people in the hood found dead from cops Than guns that dropped and sprayed off random shots But what you know good, people say they in the hood for good You ain't a prisoner, the world got more to it Sky's the limit, it don't take but a minute Don't fear for your people, nigga, my hood your hood Yeah We did it [Chorus: Black Thought] I know in these trying times, it feels confusin' That's why I can't tell y'all to dance to the music Unless we face it first and try not to lose it Even if it gets worse, they can't stop this [Verse 2: Black Thought] Yeah, they can't stop this I want my peoples to rock this Bang this music in your speakers and boxes Langston Hughes is 'bout as deep as my thoughts is Sit back and I'ma paint you a portrait Disgust can make you think you were lost, that shit can have you exhausted Just picture the planet and imagine it's yours, kid Don't ever let nobody knock you out of your orbit I've never seen a bridge we couldn't shuffle across it Got a lot of people livin' a life that's pure trivia Real hip-hop, why they trying to get rid of you? Can't have that, because here come the city of Philly Put an end to all the trivia, really Where I'm walkin', everybody ain't pretty or friendly It's work my whole life, they ain't give me a penny Comin' up between a rock and a hard, watchin' for God People hip-hopping with no option at all Yo It's how it's going down [Chorus: Black Thought] I know in these trying times, it feels confusin' That's why I can't tell y'all to dance to the music Unless we face it first and try not to lose it Even if it gets worse, they can't stop this [Verse 3: Black Thought] We rip a heart to pieces, part of rap's a special sound The robe's long enough to be considered a gown Thought's brim is sharp enough to be considered a crown When the plate come, take some, pass it around It's the last of the hip-hop lovin' emcees In front of an audience that never been pleased I'm comin' from all the streets that never been cleaned And speakin' for any face that never been seen This debonair style of my words is high caliber Speakin' my mind for every day that's on the calendar 'Cause I done been quiet 'bout as long as I can handle it Walked a mile in these boots that I'm standin' in Mellow soul brother with his lyrical dean on The stages I'm seen on, mic I fiend on When a song full of soul, that's when it mean more I never hesitate to give a shoulder to lean on, yo Check it out, man [Chorus: Black Thought] I know in these trying times, it feels confusin' That's why I can't tell y'all to dance to the music Unless we face it first and try not to lose it Even if it gets worse, they can't stop this [Outro] Ayy, what up, dog? Yo, this message is for J Dilla Jay Dee Dilla live forever Definitely, man, Dilla changed the game He started a movement, you know what I'm saying? Unsung hero, you know what I'm saying? Y'all gotta give it up, people gotta know about Dilla, 'cause Dilla was like the greatest triple threat of all time Dilla A lot of these cats, they know your music, but they don't know your name The boy was just— Dilla The fiercest, he was, he was the potentest Gave everything the culture deserved He was the rawest Genius (Dilla) sound, and his humbleness is something we'll never forget Jay was a, a genius The man is the king Dilla There'll never be another like him Greatest, at least, you know what I'm saying? Muhammad Ali of beats Very fortunate to have known this man He can take any, he can take any, anything, any noise, any instrument, and not— 'Cause I've seen him take these instruments up and not see him train, not play it, just make something great Some sounds, a song great out of it This man was truly one of the most brilliant minds to, to ever come across my path I love you so much, JD, I love you so much We developed a friendship He's such a humble, good person, you know? He's taught me a lot, there were times I wanted to give up, and I just looked at him, how hard he worked and how diligent, it makes me want to go on I remember being at the house in Detroit and, um, coming down to the basement Jay Dee touched my soul J Dilla Woo This brother's vision and this brother's passion has shaped what we know as hip-hop And the hip-hop that we love, not the corny, commercialized, nonsense shit you be hearing on radio But the real hip-hop music from the soul Jay Dee is the soundscape for that Hip-hop lost a great warrior I'm glad to know that you're in a better place, and you're not suffering anymore He will be extremely, extremely missed It's, it's very easy to say he's in a better place, but I personally just want to be selfish enough to say I wish he was still here You gon' be innovative, always ahead of everybody, you're ahead of us now, you beat us home Dilla live forever