Released: November 2, 1999

Featuring: Common

Songwriter: Black Thought Common ?uestlove James Poyser Kamal Gray Leonard “Hub” Hubbard

Producer: The Roots Richard Nichols Grand Wizzards

[Intro: Black Thought]
Uh...this what I'm talkin' 'bout
This what I'm talkin' 'bout
Y'all feeling that shit right there?
If y'all feel that shit right about now, come on, y'all
Make some noise if you're with me
Come on, y'all, make some noise if you're with me
Make some noise if you're with me
Make some noise if you're with me

[Chorus: Black Thought]
It's like that, y'all, and it sounds so nice
Hip-hop, you the love of my life
We 'bout to go to the top, y'all, hip-hop love
To the top, what, hip-hop, check it out
It's like that, y'all, and it sounds so nice
Hip-hop, you the love of my life
We 'bout to go to the, to the, to the, to the
To the, to the, to the, to the, to the
Check it out, yo

[Verse 1: Black Thought]
The anticipation arose as time froze
I stared off the stage with my eyes closed
And dove into the deep cosmos
The impact pushed back 25 rows
But before the raw live shows
Common, I's a little snot-nosed
Rockin' Gazelle goggles and Izod clothes
Learnin' the ropes of ghetto survival
Peepin' out the situation I had to slide through
Had to watch my back, my front, plus my sides, too
When it came to gettin' mine I ain't tryin' to argue
Sometimes I wouldn'ta made it if it wasn't for you
Hip-hop, you the love of my life and that's true
When I was handlin' the shit I had to do
It was all for you, from the door for you
Speak through you, gettin' paper on tour for you
From the start, Thought was down by law for you
I used to hit up every corner store wall for you
Yo, I ripped shit, and kept it hardcore for you
Yo, I remember late nights, fiendin' for the mic
Hip-hop, you the love of my life

Tell the people like that y'all (That y'all)
And it sounds so nice
Hip-hop, you the love of my life
We 'bout to take it to the top, love, hip-hop love
To the top, love, hip-hop love
Check it out, it's like that, y'all, and it sounds so tight
Hip-hop, you the love of my life
We 'bout to take it to the, to the, to the, to the
To the, to the, to the, to the, to the...

[Verse 2: Common]
Check it out, yo, I was speakin', to my guy 'Riq and
How she was desperately seekin' to Organize in a Konfusion
Usin', no protection, told H.E.R. on Resurrection
Caught in the Hype Williams, and lost H.E.R. direction
Gettin' ate in sections where I wouldn't eat H.E.R
An under the counter love, so silently I treat H.E.R
Her Daddy'll beat H.E.R., eyes all Puff-ed
In the mix on tape, niggas had her in the buff
When we touch, it was more than just a fuck
The Police, in her I found peace
Like Malcolm in the East
Seen H.E.R. on the streets of New York, trickin' off
Tried to make a hit with H.E.R. my dick went soft
Movin' weight, losin' weight, not picky with who she choose to date
To confuse the hate, with her struggle I relate
Close to thirty, most of the niggas she know is dirty
Havin' more babies than Lauryn, she started showin' early
As of late, realized, this is H.E.R. fate
Or destiny that brings the best of me
It's like God is testin' me
In retrospect, I see she brought life and death to me
Peace to us collectively, live and direct when we perform
It's just coffee shop chicks and white dudes
Over H.E.R. I got into it with that nigga Ice Cube
Now the fight moved to in life, makin' the right moves
Besides God and family, you my life's jewel

[Chorus: Black Thought & Common]
It's like that, y'all, and it sounds nice
Hip-hop, you the love of my life
We 'bout to take it to the top, love, hip-hop love
To the top, love, hip-hop love
Check it out, what what what, and it sounds so tight
Hip-hop, you the love of my life
We 'bout to take it to the, to the, to the
To the, to the, to the, to the, to the top, y'all

The Roots

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.