Royce da 5'9"

Released: February 24, 2004

Songwriter: R. Tewlow Royce da 5'9"

Producer: Rob “Reef” Tewlow

[Verse 1]
Unlock ya locks, and keep ya keys
The Pac in me got me thinkin' deeply
I got to shock MCs wit my philosophies
'Cause I think very deeply
Where I come from where you sweat ya pen up
Young gun rep-resenter from the Ep-icenter
The microphone fienin' for a microphone
Before he knew what a microphone mean
With them four pounds, and they soundin' in off
And them slugs, get them thugs, and the ground, get the chalk
Niggas hearts is dissolvin', involved in
What Farakhan and Jim Brown couldn't solve

[Chorus]
I'mma tell you what I know, what I know

[Verse 2]
'Cause the boys in the hood is always hard
You come talkin' that trash they'll pull ya card
Who would have known that the boy growin' up playin' them cards
Will soon know the music he wrote, it was so true
Who could raise me after I been amazed by Dre
And N.W.A., and you couldn't pay me
To back the staff for free, I will believe
It ain't nothing Shady in the Aftermath
Perhaps when you unwrappin' the plastic
You respect whatever you hear, and the styles is growin'
Them guys is clonin' them pioneers
Rappers wanna be classic like they Clef, Pras, and Lauryn

[Chorus]
I'mma tell you what I know, what I know

[Verse 3]
Elvis was a hero to most
But he never meant shit to me, it's statements
Like that made me gauge, White, Black, hate to make
Me say - I like when they fight back, they
Meaning rap, I vent myself
Leanin' back, not knowin' that I meant myself
A lesson comin' fast, you dudes better catch it
Whenever the future answers your questions from the past
And hold that, I'm spillin' these cold raps
'Cause I am a throwback you feeling a soldier
And keep tryin' to keep up with the kind of guy
That'll play you until they fatally say that the game's over

[Chorus]
I'mma tell you what I know, what I know

[Verse 4]
Oh my God, I destroy cities like the Blob
Goin' from city to city, seein' who I could rob
Goin' from makin' them poems up in my garage
Then goin' on major tours with me and my squad
Goin' from listenin' to Reggie to meeting him
With my palms sweaty to him, telling me I'm deadly
Goin' from likin' to spray the club after a night
That didn't go my way to plug to writin' for Dre
You damn right I was raised the amazin'
Hand-writin' on the same page that you can't type on
So I black out the usual same way
The old fashion rap 'til it's no lights on

[Chorus]
I'mma tell you what I know, what I know

Royce da 5'9", real name Ryan Daniel Montgomery, is undoubtedly one of the underground rap kings of Detroit. The Michigan MC is a long-time collaborator of Eminem’s, meeting him in December 1997, and is noted as one of the greatest lyricists in hip-hop’s history (in 2012, The Source ranked him as the 48th greatest lyricist of all time in their top 50, this questionable ranking unsurprisingly being scrutinized by many as a gross misjudgment).

Although critics have previously cast shade on his ability to create a well-rounded body of work, many, critics included, considered his sophomore effort, Death is Certain (2004), to be a strong album. To learn more in-depth about his solo discography, read this page (the page listed is old, so it is not updated).

Royce is the Bad half of Bad Meets Evil (with Eminem), ¼ of Slaughterhouse (alongside Crooked I KXNG CROOKED, Joe Budden and Joell Ortiz), and ½ of PRhyme (with DJ Premier). Royce currently operates a independent record label, Bad Half Entertainment.

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