Black Zombie

Yo, you believe when they say we ain't shit, we can't grow?

All we are is dope dealers, and gangstas and hoes?

And you believe when they be tellin you lie, all on the media?

They make the world look crazy to keep you inside?

Why you listen when the teachers at school

know you a young single parent out strugglin, they think you a fool

Give your kids bad grades and put 'em in dumber classes

Killin shorty future, I wonder how do we last it

Underground in they casket? Ancestors turnin

I'm learnin somethin every day, there is no Lazareth

Words like God is Greek or Latin

So if you study Egypt, you'll see the truth written by the masters

My niggaz is chillin, gettin high, relaxin

Envisionin, ownin shit, yo it can happen

What do we own? Not enough land, not enough homes

Not enough banks, to give a brother a loan

What do we own? The skin on our backs, we run and we ask

for reperations, then they hit us with tax

And insurance if we live to be old, what about now?

So stop bein controlled, we black zombies

[Chorus: (sung)]

Walkin talkin dead, though we think we're livin (black zombies)

We just copy-cat, followin the system (black zombies)

Walkin talkin dead, though we think we're livin (black zombies)

We just copy-cat, followin the system (black zombies)

[Nas]

Aiyyo we trapped in our own brain, fuck behind bars

We've already gone insane

They've already gave up, cut our own heads offs

Stab our own backs and dream too much

without fulfillin reality; too greedy and

can't have one or two chains, we need three of dem

Can't have one or two guns without squeezin 'em

on our own people and, fuck black leaders

cause whites ain't got none leadin them, the rhythm is cosmic

Nas is divinity, the deity's prophetless

All get down and get up

Victims walkin 'round with Down's Syndrome, all stuck

Faintin, shoutin, catchin Holy Ghost in church

Scared to do it for ourselves 'less we see somebody doin it first

We begged, we prayed, petitioned and demostrated

Just to make another generation - black zombies

[Chorus]

[Nas]

You scared to be yourself, cause you in a trance

Feel free, hear the music and dance

If you cared what they think, why wear what they wear, just for you

Dumb niggaz with long beards like they Arabs or Jews

or from Israel, (?)bish'meal Allah, el-rachman, el-Rahim (?)

Islam's a beautiful thing

And Christian and Rastafari, helps us to bring

peace against the darkness, which is unGodly

So what's the black man's true religion, who should we follow?

Use your own intuition, you are tommorrow

[roaring] .. that's the sound of the beast

I'm a Columbia record slave, so get paid

Control your own destiny, you are a genius

Don't let it happen to you like it did to me, I was a black zombie

[Chorus]

[Nas]

Wake up! Black zombies in a spell for more than fo'-hundred years

Ghetto niggaz won't have it no mo', can I get a witness?

Why listen to somebody else tell you how to do it

when you can do it yourself; it's all in you, do it, do it

Do it niggaz..