What I Had To do
Read What I Had To do lyrics by N.O.R.E. on LyroVerse, with linked artist context and related song paths.
The page facts to cite before the commentary
Use this page for the lyric text, linked artist context, and any LyroVerse editor's note attached to the song. Listener comments remain user-generated and should not be treated as the primary source.
What I Had To do
The lyric stays readable and compact here; the note and related paths sit nearby so you do not lose the song while looking for context.
Yea, I grew up like the rag of the dark, so what?
Soldier, proud about it, that's just what I gotta do
Yea, I grew up like the rag of the dark, so what?
Soldier, proud about it, that's just what I gotta do
Yea, I grew up like the rag of the dark, so what?
Soldier, proud about it, that's just what I gotta do
Yea, I grew up like the rag of the dark, so what?
Soldier, proud about it, that's just what I gotta do
Peace to my street niggas
My hand in hand dudes
That follow man rules
And give out samples
Yea, see I was you 10 years ago
But bloodshed, time served many years ago
Brown skin but I could mix with a spanish group (why?)
I'm half of that, so half of that you can't recoup
You can't find nothing to live for
You should find something to die for, therefore
You should never hang around thieves
'Cause you are who you hang with
Like trees to the leaves
I used to sell dope to the dope fiends
And crack to the crack heads by all means
Hustling, getting money was a part of me
Right through my blood, like some veins and the arteries
Apparently, the streets for the love wanna marry me
Down the alley, carry me
Yea, I grew up like the rag of the dark, so what?
Soldier, proud about it, that's just what I gotta do
Yea, I grew up like the rag of the dark, so what?
Soldier, proud about it, that's just what I gotta do
Yea, I grew up like the rag of the dark, so what?
Soldier, proud about it, that's just what I gotta do
Yea, I grew up like the rag of the dark, so what?
Soldier, proud about it, that's just what I gotta do
Yea, I got the dope man blues
Still out here playin dope man dudes
So come and take a walk off in my dope man shoes
So I can show you motherfuckers how the dope man do
Got niggas I've been down with deep
What I say that they down, don't sleep
Ask you got bloodstained hands, for my homeboys I lost to this fucked up plan
Goddamn, I think if I had one last wish
I want rance up out this shit
And resurrect the ones run down, in the streets gunned down,
Put the slick one round now
Imagine your cocaine sold out
You get reckless and get your brains blown out
Street life's so deep and we might not eat
A dead man won't speak and revenge is so sweet
Yea, I grew up like the rag of the dark, so what?
Soldier, proud about it, that's just what I gotta do
Yea, I grew up like the rag of the dark, so what?
Soldier, proud about it, that's just what I gotta do
Yea, I grew up like the rag of the dark, so what?
Soldier, proud about it, that's just what I gotta do
Yea, I grew up like the rag of the dark, so what?
Soldier, proud about it, that's just what I gotta do
What this page can answer fast
Who performs "What I Had To do"?
N.O.R.E. performs "What I Had To do", and this lyric page sits inside the N.O.R.E. catalog on LyroVerse.
Are there related songs to explore after "What I Had To do"?
Yes. The related section below points to Don't Know What To Do and Dreaming with a short reason for opening each page next.
Where can I find more songs by N.O.R.E.?
Use the artist link near the top of the page or the related paths section below to keep moving through N.O.R.E.'s lyric pages.
Interpretations, questions, and corrections for this song
Interpretations, questions, memories, and correction notes live together here. The room stays noindex while the best insights are reviewed.
What people are saying
No listener comments on What I Had To do yet.
A strong comment here is specific: the phrase you keep hearing, the mood you come back for, or the reason this song stays in rotation.
Sign in to post the first listener note. Reporting stays open to everyone.