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Get ByTalib Kweli

Released: March 11, 2003

Songwriter: Nina Simone Talib Kweli Kanye West

Producer: Kanye West

[Produced by Kanye West]

[Verse 1]
We sell crack to our own out the back of our homes
We smell the musk of the dusk in the crack of the dawn
We go through episodes too, like Attack of the Clones
Work 'til we break our back and you hear the crack of the bone
Just to get by, just to get by, just to get by, just to get by
We commute to computers
Spirits stay mute while you egos spread rumors
We're survivalists turned to consumers
Just to get by, just to get by, just to get by, just to get by
Ask Him why some people got to live in a trailer, cuss like a sailor
I paint a picture with the pen like Norman Mailer
Mi abuela raised three daughters all by herself with no help
I think about her struggle and I find the strength in myself
These words melt in my mouth, they hot like a jail cell in the South
Before my nigga Cor' bailed me out
To get by, just to get by, just to get by, just to get by
We do or die like Bed-Stuy
Through the red sky with the window of the red eye
Let the lead fly, some G. Rap shit, Living to Let Die

[Hook]
This morning, I woke up
Feelin' brand new, I jumped up
Feelin' my highs and my lows
In my soul and my goals
Just to stop smokin' and stop drinkin'
I've been thinkin' I've got my reasons
Just to get by, just to get by
Just to get by, just to get by
By, by-by-by-by, by-by-by-by
By-by-by-by, by-by-by-by
Just to get by, just to get by
Just to get by, just to get by
By, by-by-by-by, by-by-by-by
By-by-by-by, by-by-by-by
Just to get by, just to get by
Just to get by, hey, hey

[Verse 2]
We keepin' it gangster, say "fo' shizzle", "fo' sheezy", and stayin' crunk
It's easy to pull a breezy, smoke trees, and we stayin' drunk
Yo, our activism, attackin' the system, the Blacks and Latins in prison
Numbers have risen, they're victims lackin' the vision
Shit, and all they got is rappin' to listen to
I let them know we missin' you, the love is unconditional
Even when the condition is critical, when the livin' is miserable
Your position is pivotal, I ain't bullshittin' you
Now, why would I lie? Just to get by?
Just to get by, we get fly, the TV got us reachin' for stars
Not the ones between Venus and Mars, the ones that be readin' for parts
Some people get breast enhancements and penis enlargers
Saturday sinners, Sunday morning at the feet of the Father
They need somethin' to rely on, we get high on
All types of drug, when all you really need is love
To get by, just to get by, just to get by, just to get by
Our parents sing like John Lennon: imagine all the people watch
We rock like Paul McCartney from now until the last Beatle drop

[Hook]
This morning, I woke up
Feelin' brand new, I jumped up
Feelin' my highs and my lows
In my soul and my goals
Just to stop smokin' and stop drinkin'
And I've been thinkin' I've got my reasons
Just to get by, just to get by
Just to get by, just to get by

[Outro]
Yo-yo-yo, yo, yo
Some people cry, and some people try
Just to get by, for a piece of the pie
You love to eat and get high
We deceive when we lie, and we keepin' it fly
When the people decide to keep a disguise
Can't see they eyes, see the evil inside
But there's people you find
Strong or feeble in mind, I stay readin' the signs
Y-y-y-yo, yo, yo
Some people cry, and some people try
Just to get by, for a piece of the pie
You love to eat and get high
We deceive when we lie, and we keepin' it fly
When the people decide to keep a disguise
Can't see they eyes, see the evil inside
But there's people you find
Strong or feeble in mind, I stay readin' the signs
Y-y-y-yo, yo
(Someone's feelin' it that's what's up.)

Talib Kweli

If skills sold, Talib Kweli would have been one of the most commercially successful rappers of his time. As it was, however, the earnest MC became one of the most critically successful rappers of his time, which dawned in the late ‘90s when he rapped alongside Yasiin Bey (then known as Mos Def) and DJ Hi-Tek as part of the group Black Star.

Talib is known for his numerous collaborations with other artists like Kanye West, Common, Madlib, Bilal, The Roots, Dead Prez, Q-Tip, John Legend, the list is endless. He has also embraced a whole new generation like Blu, Kendrick Lamar, Curren$y, and Ab-Soul.

Kweli has recently spearheaded a direct-to-fan means of distributing his music via his new site #KweliClub. Check it out to get his latest music including many free downloads.

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