2Pac

Released: November 25, 1997

Featuring: Big Syke

Songwriter: 2Pac Big Syke Johnny J Gil Scott-Heron

Producer: Johnny J

[Intro]
(Rule number one... niggas die, daily, hahahaha)
Hear me! Boo-yaow!
(Ready for whatever, hell yeah
What type nigga be a Thug Life nigga?
Them Thug Life niggas be the craziest -- run up nigga!)

[Verse 1: 2Pac]
There's no way to survive in the city it's a shame
Niggas die from my hollow-point bullet to the brain
Will I survive or will I die is what I wonder
Puffin on blunts and gettin' drunk to keep from goin' under
Gettin' lost in the madness, blunted gettin' tipsy
Got my pistol out the window screamin', "Lord come and get me"
Am I sick, or am I just another victim?
Unloadin' my clip, I'm watchin' every bullet spit when I kick 'em
Niggas die from automatic gunfire
Your time to expire, nobody cry every man gotta die
When they bury me, they bury me a G
Rest in peace, to all the homies got to heaven before me
Pour some liquor on the curb for the niggas that's caught
Had a motherfuckin' warrant but he didn't go to court
God damn, and one day we'll all be together
Until then I'm ready for whatever, c'mon

[Interlude]
(Yeah, niggas movin' somethin' in the nine-trey
It's all about makin' money, gettin' yours
And knockin' coppers off the motherfuckin' planet
Word to the motherfuckin' nine nigga
We gonna make this motherfucker ours
If they don't feel me, they gon' kill me
So Syke, get skanless nigga)

[Verse 2: Big Syke]
Am I going to Hell or will I reach Heaven?
After all this shit I did with my MAC-11
Did I sell my soul? Mama would have saved me
That's the way that daddy raised me
Oh God, help me I'm losing it
So fuck it! Take me I'm doing it!
I need to change and look for a better way
I got a hundred round clip to my AK
Committing sins I might die in vain
So fuck it! We'll live off the street fame
God didn't send me in the right direction
I'm getting hit by a diesel in the intersection
I know you're out there help a young brother
Til then I'ma smoke motherfuckers
Things wouldn't be so bad
If we got the things that we never had, I'm ready for whatever

[Interlude]
(Hahahahaha, that's my motherfuckin' nigga there
Big ballin'-ass Syke
Yeah nigga, you schooled them young bustas
On how it is to be a real motherfuckin' G
In the nine-trey motherfuckers is dyin' daily so you best be packin'
If you ain't, boo-yaow motherfucker!)

[Verse 3: 2Pac]
Dear mama I know you worry cause I'm hardly at home
Every other night in jail, got you patient by the phone
Wanna shake it cause I can't take it got me livin' in Hell
Like I'm walkin' with a secret that'll kill me if I tell
I live the Thug Life and can't nobody, change me
Not to the brain, going insane, just a part of the game
So much pain in the fast lane, finally a dry eye
When I die, bury me with my fo'-five
And let the devil feel the wrath of a nigga
Goin' to Hell with my finger on the trigger
Now everybody's starin'
Got a nigga losin' hair and they wonder if I'm all there
Well don't blame me, blame the flame that flickers
When niggas gettin' richer (mo' money)
Now tell me if you wanna live forever
Niggas dyin' so be ready for whatever

[Outro]
(Yeah, ready for whatever
Ready for whatever
Thug Life niggas and we be ready for whatever
Let me go like this, ready for whatever
Huh, Big Syke he be ready for whatever
My nigga Kato, ready for whatever
Pain, he's ready for whatever
And my nigga Bam Bam, he ready for whatever
My nigga Banks just be ready for whatever
Modu, he's ready for whatever
Big Serg, we ready for whatever
Charlie Tango, ready for whatever
My nigga 'Pac, be ready for whatever
Yeah, ready for whatever
Ready for whatever
My big-ballin' ass nigga Boom, ready for whatever fo' sho'
Yeah, you know!
This how the player's do it
I know you standin' there confused
You wonderin' -- what type of nigga is a Thug Life nigga?
Yeahehehehe nigga, we be the ballin' player-ass nigga
About gettin' riches, bitches, and plenty loc
Ya hear me?)

Ready for whatever

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.

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