The Roots

Released: April 28, 2008

Featuring: Peedi Crakk Dice Raw

Songwriter: Chuck Rio Joel Roper Vincent Davis Barney McKenna Charlie Patierno Ritz Reynolds Black Thought Peedi Crakk Dice Raw

Producer: Ritz Reynolds The Roots

[Verse 1: Black Thought]
Look, my squad half-Mandrill, half-Mandela
My band about seventy strong just like Fela
Yeah, part Melle-Mel, part Van Halen
And we represent Illadel, where they still rebellin'
Ayo, sicko show like Mike Moore
My city ain't nothin' like yours, slippin' into darkness like war
Night crawl with the lights off
You see a lot of life lost for the white horse
Regardless, the charges making us all targets
All on the red carpet, guns from the black market
Ay, who got the politician's in they back pocket?
Pimp slap, pump that, give me that profit
When you make contact, give me that gossip
If you break contract, you'll be that hostage
They getting busy and the city is raw
Better deadbolt the door, it ain't safe no more

[Hook: Black Thought]
Southside (Get busy)
Northside (Get busy)
Westside (Get busy)
Worldwide (Get busy)
Get busy, get busy
Get busy, get busy

[Verse 2: Dice Raw]
Approach with caution, be cautious when talking to bosses
I feel I've been through a metamorphosis
I'm mutated by unknown forces
The feeling of course is, somethin' that's hard to describe
I'm half-dead, never felt more alive
Reborn, remove the gold coins from my eyes
I've been down, but now I'm back up
I'm about to act up, boy, you better back up
And when you see me set up shop, know to pack up
Cause I crack up when a rapper get slapped up
Number one reason y'all should give rap up
Dice, it's mines, I got it all wrapped up
I'm kind of like W.E.B. Du Bois
Meets Heavy D and the Boyz, smooth as a Rolls Royce
Built like a tank, smokin' on dank
Walkin' through the Guggenheim, Raw Life, Black Inc

[Hook: Black Thought]
Southside (Get busy)
Northside (Get busy)
Westside (Get busy)
Worldwide (Get busy)
Get busy, get busy
Get busy, get busy

[Verse 3: Peedi Peedi]
Now on your mark, uh-huh, get set
Go cop everything you ever heard by P. Crack
Dice Raw and Black, fuck the Internet
Buy a baseball bat, break a bootlegger leg
All I listen to is vets, you're fresh off the step
I'll come directly at your OG neck
I'm used to the 1-2 check, not the 1-2 step
I'm strapped, I'll leave every cat among you wet
Now let's go, you know I'm politically incorrect
At the show, I start it with a, "Can I get a ho?"
And the hoes go retarded
The po-po tape off the stage for caution
It's bad lands, North Philly get it in, it's Crack man
Used to back spin, now I spend stacks and stacks
And Uncle Sam tryin' to tax all my hard-earned raps
Damn, we making yens, pesos, euros, we representin'

[Hook: Black Thought]
Southside (Get busy)
Northside (Get busy)
Westside (Get busy)
Worldwide (Get busy)
Get busy, get busy
Get busy, get busy

The world’s premiere hip-hop band, The Roots were formed in Philadelphia in 1987 by MC Tariq “Black Thought” Trotter and drummer and bandleader Ahmir “Questlove” Thompson. Since those early days, the band has weathered changes in personnel and record labels while performing hundreds of shows a year and releasing a string of well-regarded (if not always top-selling) albums.

While the musicianship of Thompson and the other band members, as well as their seemingly limitless repertoire, gets most of the attention, real hip-hop fans know that the rapping skills of Black Thought (along with former group member Malik B.) are the group’s hidden weapon. Thought, one of the few MCs brave enough to go toe to toe with Big Pun, handles any groove the band throws at him with aplomb, style, and flash.

Today, The Roots are seen by millions every night as the house band on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon, a move that has given the group the chance to indulge its not-insignificant comic side.

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