Released: September 29, 2018
Songwriter: Kendrick Lamar
Producer: Doctor P
[Verse 1]
When I jumped off the porch
I was forced into last resorts of a temper gone short
And, of course, when that took its course
I was hoarse from yelling out
Demons that fought inside of me taught society how to rejoice
The killers on sight of me, privacy obviously was lost
And the fraud piracy of the streets in my odyssey
Caught a bullet that probably destroyed
A good kid in a mad city, slightly annoyed
I walked down the street with no heat
And run into beef when I'm just a vegan
Reekin’ the scent of a saint, sinner smell it then start squeezing
Pellets that's tumblin' straight at my melon, apparent reason
Probably was because of my cousin cuzzin’ a blood
That was bloodin' in public
And Kendrick seen with him last weekend, cousin
But you ain't no kin to me, 'stead of Kendrick, I'm Kennedy
Assassinate my character, sure that's your remedy
Fair enough, I got enemies but I don't bang
But that's the repercussions like
When your cousin is cuzzin’ a blood
Then you’re by yourself at the Compton parade, he said:
[Pre-Chorus]
Aye, look, homie, I gang-bang (Pump, pump)
A gang member, I'm active, I do my thing (Pump)
I do my stuff (Pump)
I’m really from the sect, tho (Pump, pump)
And if you is or ain't, I still need to know
[Chorus]
Where you from, where you stay or where your grandma stay
Where you from, where you stay or where your grandma stay
Where you from, where you stay or where your grandma stay
[Verse 2]
I seen 'em from afar then I seen a piece of my jaw
Like on the ground, you know the sound
When you hear the people in awe
Sympathetic 'cause they like seeing you
Tryna fight back at a pack of piranhas
I promised three of ’em, beat the black off my back
And pajamas was almost needed
I should've went to sleep and seen some sheep
When I greeted the pavement
Got up and seen the shock on their faces
Like "damn it, he made it"
My luck in the palm of a cherry bomb
And they waitin' to blow up on me
My homies are not alarmed
Then I heard someone's firearm
Make a sound like it waved around my direction
I'm guessing this is the part where my heart
Expected to drop in a second, look at the faults
I've made in the shortest amount of time
And in back of my mind I'm like "this the loss I'ma take"
My fate was distraught
A cape and some superpowers can't save me
I'm probably pushing up daisies
Before I can make my way to the car
Cross cancel and right before I seen
The black glove raisin' the handle, he said:
[Pre-Chorus]
Aye, look, homie, I gang-bang (Pump, pump)
A gang member, I'm active, I do my thing (Pump)
I do my stuff (Pump)
I'm really from the sect, tho (Pump, pump)
And if you is or ain't, I still need to know
[Chorus]
Where you from, where you stay or where your grandma stay
Where you from, where you stay or where your grandma stay
Where you from, where you stay or where your grandma stay
[Verse 3]
Bitch, I'm bustin' back, I'ma borrow my uncle's strap in a minute
Jump in a Civic then wear that bitch on my lap
I was timid but now I'm tempted
And tenants alert me on where you at
I'm a menace when I'm offended, relentless, I will react
Then somebody said the dispatch
Of an officer, got his mind made on off'n ya
That's a fact when you're black and undeveloped
You're profiled as a felon
I'm bellin' down Boulevards with my basketball and a backpack
Gym shoes and my nap sack
Hair nappy, my ball cap backwards
And then I look back, strobe lights on my tail pipe
Turned left then I turned right
Turned deaf 'cause the sirens is loud
As the colors of pink and yellow on Wesley Snipes
Pray to God I don't get sniped
Pray to God that the sunlight stay shining for 30 more minutes
Hope that a witness around when I'm 'bout to cut off the engine
Vengeance of hatred is what I'm facin'
Even though being a criminal ain't my memo
But this is what he said when I dropped the window:
[Pre-Chorus]
Aye, look, homie, I gang-bang
By the time you hear the next shot, you'll learn that L.A.P.D. is the biggest gang (Pump)
I do my stuff (Pump)
I'm really from the sect, tho (Pump, pump)
And if you is or ain't, I still need to know
[Chorus]
Where you from, where you stay or where your grandma stay
Where you from, where you stay or where your grandma stay
Where you from, where you stay or where your grandma stay
When I jumped off the porch
I was forced into last resorts of a temper gone short
And, of course, when that took its course
I was hoarse from yelling out
Demons that fought inside of me taught society how to rejoice
The killers on sight of me, privacy obviously was lost
And the fraud piracy of the streets in my odyssey
Caught a bullet that probably destroyed
A good kid in a mad city, slightly annoyed
I walked down the street with no heat
And run into beef when I'm just a vegan
Reekin’ the scent of a saint, sinner smell it then start squeezing
Pellets that's tumblin' straight at my melon, apparent reason
Probably was because of my cousin cuzzin’ a blood
That was bloodin' in public
And Kendrick seen with him last weekend, cousin
But you ain't no kin to me, 'stead of Kendrick, I'm Kennedy
Assassinate my character, sure that's your remedy
Fair enough, I got enemies but I don't bang
But that's the repercussions like
When your cousin is cuzzin’ a blood
Then you’re by yourself at the Compton parade, he said:
[Pre-Chorus]
Aye, look, homie, I gang-bang (Pump, pump)
A gang member, I'm active, I do my thing (Pump)
I do my stuff (Pump)
I’m really from the sect, tho (Pump, pump)
And if you is or ain't, I still need to know
[Chorus]
Where you from, where you stay or where your grandma stay
Where you from, where you stay or where your grandma stay
Where you from, where you stay or where your grandma stay
[Verse 2]
I seen 'em from afar then I seen a piece of my jaw
Like on the ground, you know the sound
When you hear the people in awe
Sympathetic 'cause they like seeing you
Tryna fight back at a pack of piranhas
I promised three of ’em, beat the black off my back
And pajamas was almost needed
I should've went to sleep and seen some sheep
When I greeted the pavement
Got up and seen the shock on their faces
Like "damn it, he made it"
My luck in the palm of a cherry bomb
And they waitin' to blow up on me
My homies are not alarmed
Then I heard someone's firearm
Make a sound like it waved around my direction
I'm guessing this is the part where my heart
Expected to drop in a second, look at the faults
I've made in the shortest amount of time
And in back of my mind I'm like "this the loss I'ma take"
My fate was distraught
A cape and some superpowers can't save me
I'm probably pushing up daisies
Before I can make my way to the car
Cross cancel and right before I seen
The black glove raisin' the handle, he said:
[Pre-Chorus]
Aye, look, homie, I gang-bang (Pump, pump)
A gang member, I'm active, I do my thing (Pump)
I do my stuff (Pump)
I'm really from the sect, tho (Pump, pump)
And if you is or ain't, I still need to know
[Chorus]
Where you from, where you stay or where your grandma stay
Where you from, where you stay or where your grandma stay
Where you from, where you stay or where your grandma stay
[Verse 3]
Bitch, I'm bustin' back, I'ma borrow my uncle's strap in a minute
Jump in a Civic then wear that bitch on my lap
I was timid but now I'm tempted
And tenants alert me on where you at
I'm a menace when I'm offended, relentless, I will react
Then somebody said the dispatch
Of an officer, got his mind made on off'n ya
That's a fact when you're black and undeveloped
You're profiled as a felon
I'm bellin' down Boulevards with my basketball and a backpack
Gym shoes and my nap sack
Hair nappy, my ball cap backwards
And then I look back, strobe lights on my tail pipe
Turned left then I turned right
Turned deaf 'cause the sirens is loud
As the colors of pink and yellow on Wesley Snipes
Pray to God I don't get sniped
Pray to God that the sunlight stay shining for 30 more minutes
Hope that a witness around when I'm 'bout to cut off the engine
Vengeance of hatred is what I'm facin'
Even though being a criminal ain't my memo
But this is what he said when I dropped the window:
[Pre-Chorus]
Aye, look, homie, I gang-bang
By the time you hear the next shot, you'll learn that L.A.P.D. is the biggest gang (Pump)
I do my stuff (Pump)
I'm really from the sect, tho (Pump, pump)
And if you is or ain't, I still need to know
[Chorus]
Where you from, where you stay or where your grandma stay
Where you from, where you stay or where your grandma stay
Where you from, where you stay or where your grandma stay
more tracks from the album
Unreleased Songs
- Temptation
- Bloody Hands
- Butterfly
- For Sale? (OG Version)
- Bloody Hands (Demo)
- Waitin
- Come Up Freestyle*
- Vent
- King of My City
- Jump 2
- Prayer
- Gotta Love Me
- Somebody
- Guilty Conscience
- Look Over Your Shoulder (Demo)
- Vent (Original)
- All the Stars (Demo)
- Money Trees (OG)
- Shock the World
- For the Girlfriends
- Kurupted
- Pyrex (It’s Alive)
- Eyes Above (Remix)
- Fuckin’ Problems (Lost Verse)
- Daydreaming
- Vegas
- 2Nite
- Swimming Pools (Demo)
- Lack of Better Words*
- Don’t Jump (Demo)
- Gang Member
- Want in Life
- Swimming Pools (Initial Demo)
- Ignorance
From the album
Kendrick Lamar popular songs
- HUMBLE.
- m.A.A.d city
- Swimming Pools (Drank)
- DNA.
- Money Trees
- XXX.
- Bitch, Don’t Kill My Vibe
- Poetic Justice
- King Kunta
- LOVE.
- Backseat Freestyle
- Alright
- The Blacker the Berry
- Sing About Me, I’m Dying of Thirst
- ELEMENT.
- LOYALTY.
- i (Album Version)
- A.D.H.D.
- FEAR.
- Mortal Man
- Wesley’s Theory
- u
- The Heart Part 4
- PRIDE.