Released: February 13, 1996

Featuring: Nanci Fletcher

Songwriter: 2Pac Bobcat

Producer: Bobcat

[Refrain: Nancy Fletcher]
Niggas out there jealous 'cause we be bailin' with Death Row
They try to playa hate, but they can't fade us though
We be mobbin' through the neighborhood, yeah
With that funky sound (so funky)
We be throwin' down

[Intro: 2Pac]
This goes out to you, playa
You know, you know who you are

[Chorus: 2Pac]
Gotta be careful, can't let the evil of the money trap me
So when ya see me, nigga, you better holla at me
Gotta be careful, can't let the evil of the money trap me
So when ya see me, nigga, you better holla at me
Gotta be careful, can't let the evil of the money trap me
So when ya see me, nigga, you better holla at me

[Verse 1: 2Pac]
Are you confused?
You wonder how it feels to walk a mile inside the shoes
Of a nigga who don't have a thing to lose?
When me and you was homies
No one informed me it was all a scheme
You infiltrated my team and sold a nigga's dreams
How could you do me like that? I took ya family in
I put some cash in ya pocket, made you a man again
And now you let the fear put your ass in a place
Complicated to escape, it's a fool's fate
Without your word, you're a shell of a man
I lost respect for you, nigga, we can never be friends
I know I'm runnin' through your head now
What could you do? If it was up to you, I'd be dead now
I let the world know, nigga, you a coward
You could never be live until you die
See the motherfuckin' bitch in your eye
Type of nigga, that let the evil of the money trap me
When ya see me, nigga, you better holla at me (holla at me)

[Chorus: 2Pac & Nancy Fletcher]
Gotta be ready, can’t let the evil of the money trap me
So when ya see me, nigga, you better holla at me
You better beware where you lay
We better not find where you stay
So I gotta be careful, can't let the evil of the money trap me
So when ya see me, nigga, you better holla at me
You better beware where you lay
We better not find where you stay

[Verse 2: 2Pac]
Curious, spittin' lyrics on the verge of furious
I'm addicted to currency, nigga, that's why we doin' this
I got shot up, I surprised the niggas the way I got up
And then I hit the studio, it's time to blow the block up
No hesitation, this information got you contemplatin'
Heartbreakin' and eliminatin' with this conversation
Break him and let him see the face of a mental patient
It's a celebration of my criminal elevation, more participation
I want members across the fifty states
We keep the nation anticipatin' until we break
Will I be great, is it my fate to live the life of luxury?
Some niggas bought my tapes, so much jealousy it scares me
So be prepared, 'cause only the strong survive, life isn't fair (fair)
Probably never knew the way it feels to die
So you see, come fuck with me, I give that ass a try
Nigga, holla at me

[Chorus: 2Pac & Nancy Fletcher]
Gotta be careful, can’t let the evil of the money trap me
So when ya see me, nigga, you better holla at me
You better beware where you lay
We better not find where you stay
And now I gotta be careful, can't let the evil of the money trap me
So when ya see me, nigga, you better holla at me
You better beware where you lay
We better not find where you stay

[Verse 3: 2Pac]
I should've saw the signs, I was blinded
Criminal minds of a young black brotha doin' time
So many brothas framed in this dirty game
It's a shame, so much pressure on my brain
Why she blame me?
Secrets in the dark, only her and I know
Now I'm sittin' in the state pen', doin' time slow
Guess she made a bad decision that got me livin'
Just like an animal, I'm caged up in state prison
My niggas dissin' 'cause hell hath no fury like a woman scorned
A cemetery full of motherfuckers not knowin'
Picture my prophecy, I got some attacking me, on top of me
I'm runnin' from the coppers, but never let 'em stop me
'Cause I'm a soldier, hell, ever since I was a little nigga
Havin' fantasies of one day getting older
Niggas is paranoid, trust; a no-no
Love is a mystery, fuck the po-po
Holla at me

[Chorus: 2Pac & Nancy Fletcher]
So when you see me, nigga, you better holla at me
You better beware where you lay
We better not find where you stay
Gotta be careful, can't let the evil of the money trap me
So when ya see me, nigga, you better holla at me
You better beware where you lay
We better not find where you stay
A nigga gotta be careful, can't let the evil of the money trap me
So when ya see me, nigga, you better holla at me
You better beware where you lay
We better not find where you stay

[Refrain: Nanci Fletcher]
Niggas out there jealous cause we be bailin' with Death Row
They try to playa hate, but they can't fade us tho'
We be mobbin' through the neighborhood, yeah
With that funky sound (so funky)
We be throwin' down

[Chorus: 2Pac & Nancy Fletcher]
Gotta be careful, can't let the evil of the money trap me
So when ya see me, nigga, you better holla at me
You better beware where you lay
We better not find where you stay
Gotta be careful, can't let the evil of the money trap me
So when ya see me, nigga, you better holla at me
You better beware where you lay
We better not find where you stay

2Pac

Tupac Amaru Shakur (June 16, 1971 – September 13, 1996), known by his stage names 2Pac and Makaveli, was an actor and a highly influential rapper who is considered by many to be the greatest of all-time due to the revolutionary spirit and thug passion he mixed into his music. During his music career, he made appearances in movies such as his acclaimed debut in Juice (1992), Poetic Justice (1993), and Above the Rim (1994).

Born in Harlem, New York City to Black Panther Party members Billy Garland and Afeni Shakur, Tupac would later move to Baltimore before settling in the Bay Area cities of Oakland and Marin City in the late 1980s. There, he joined his first rap group Strictly Dope with Ray Luv before connecting with Shock G and Digital Underground. He was a roadie and backup dancer for the group before his breakthrough performance on their 1991 song “Same Song.”

2Pac released his debut album 2Pacalypse Now in 1991, which featured intense storytelling on singles such as “Trapped” and “Brenda’s Got a Baby.” His sophomore album Strictly 4 My N.I.G.G.A.Z featured one of his signature songs, the Digital Underground-assisted “I Get Around.” After working on the Thug Life group album in 1994, 2Pac released Me Against the World the following year, which is considered by many to be his best album, peaking at #1 on the Billboard 200 and receiving a Grammy nomination—all while he sat in prison.