Gang Starr

Released: March 8, 1994

Featuring: Melachi the Nutcracker

Songwriter: DJ Premier Guru

Producer: Guru DJ Premier

MCs be fakin' so now they get taken

[Chorus]
Fake MC's, they always act hard
But won't walk the street without they bodyguard
I hate fake MC's, they always act hard
But won't walk the street without they bodyguard

[Verse One]
MC's are laid out like stiffs in the morgue
Praise the Lord you're in awe when I'm grippin' my mic cord
Rhymes I rip with swift execution
One verse could coerce your girl to prostitution
The Guru is now the brother that you're fearin'
Beware when I'm making hits with Premier n'
Rolling to a spot near you, lyrics tear through
Chrome to your dome, you better watch your rearview
Niggas been held back too long, we're coming up
In the streets we roam alone so watch me running up
I'm summing up a mad posse of warriors
Night crusaders able to break down barriers
And bringing faces of death, putting MC's to rest
Until there's no fake chumps left
Run, step, yeah, bounce, nigga, bounce
My rhyme's a cargo when yours is just a quarter ounce

[Chorus]
Fake MC's, they always act hard
But won't walk the street without they bodyguard
I hate fake MC's, they always act hard
But won't walk the street without they bodyguard
Fake MC's, they always act hard
But won't walk the street without they bodyguard
I hate fake MC's, they always act hard
But won't walk the street without they bodyguard

[Verse Two]
Gang Starr, boy, and that's beyond your comprehension
Mad brothers in every city, you can feel the tension
To stop the killing, wack MC's must die
Who am I? I'm the substance that'll make your third eye cry
Too potent, too high in intelligence quotient
When I unleash my speech I'll have you punk rappers open
I won't expose your names and your identities
You know you're phony, get the fuck from in front of me
Hardcore fans are fed up from your folklore
Lines strip you raw and infect you like cold sores
And I hope you're not the one that I'm after
Since the days of Adidas, I've been a true master

[Chorus]
Fake MC's, they always act hard
But won't walk the street without they bodyguard
I hate fake MC's, they always act hard
But won't walk the street without they bodyguard
Fake MC's, they always act hard
But won't walk the street without they bodyguard
I hate fake MC's, they always act hard
But won't walk the street without they bodyguard

[Verse Three]
I've been around, punk, but yo, I still feel young
A few of my crew members like to pack guns
I'm high strung, but don't mistake me when I smile
I murder an entire rap chart with my freestyle
After the killing, just like Casper, I'm ghost
Fakes thought I was friendly, at their wakes I was host
Toast without a gun you'd be done
Throw up your hands, bitch, and now you know you stand to lose one
Choose one metaphor and then choose another
Wax that ass like a bully, have you calling your big brother
Although I'm five foot eight they call me sergeant
Got more hoes on my dick than you can fit in the garden
At Madison Square, I shot a fair one
So many niggas knew me that the kid wouldn't dare run
MC's pay cash to ensure their safety
They know they can't take me; the G-A-N-G, you crazy?
I be on them like a message from God
Knowledge of self while fake MCs play hard

[Chorus]
Fake MC's, they always act hard
But won't walk the street without they bodyguard
Fake MC's, they always act hard
But won't walk the street without they bodyguard
I hate fake MC's, they always act hard
But won't walk the street without they bodyguard
Fake MC's, they always act hard
But won't walk the street without they bodyguard

[Outro]
I hate fake MC's they always act hard
("I'm not a sucker so I don't need a bodyguard")
Fake MC's they always act hard
("I'm not a sucker so I don't need a bodyguard")
I hate fake MC's they always act hard
("I'm not a sucker so I don't need a bodyguard")
Fake MC's they always act hard
("I'm not a sucker so I don't need a bodyguard")

Gang Starr is the formidable hip-hop duo of MC Guru and producer DJ Premier.

The group was originally founded by two childhood friends, Big Shug and Guru, in Atlanta; coming up with the logo design and name of the group. Big Shug and Guru got separated when Shug got imprisoned and Guru moved to New York where he met Dj Premier.

While DJ Premier is from Texas and the monotone Guru is from Boston, they came together in Brooklyn, New York, and helped define the sound of East Coast hip-hop in the 1990s with their jazzy production on singles such as “Words I Manifest” and “Jazz Thing,” as well as their harder boom bap singles like “Just to Get a Rep” and “Take it Personal.”

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