Producer: KRS-One

[Hook x2]
First thing we must do is make up our - MIND
Then we must go and really clear our - MIND
Erase the doubt and the fear from our - MIND
Share our - MIND, speak our - MIND

[Verse 1]
Stand up brother, stand up sister
I told y'all before, love is gonna get'cha
Lovin that money, lovin that liquor
Lovin that sex without respect you gets no bigger
I ain't got time to chill, only got time to build
You find that in those with skills
This a real MC, of the highest degree
With no video, my show they dyin to see
Not whether I'm buyin 'em three
When you watch television just keep sayin they lyin to me
Cause they are - how long you gonna stay at the bar?
I'm not desperate for money, maybe you are, but listen

[Hook x2]

[Verse 2: KRS-One]
Don't you think it's time we thought about the future?
Whether our children they gonna be winners or losers?
Don't you think it's time to advance the rhyme we spit?
Whether you know it or not, you deep in politics
All inside of it, in fact YOU the issue
Don't let this government diss you!
They really do not want you to vote
They really do not want you to hope
They really want you sniffin' they coke
You look around yo we missin' the boat
I could've wrote about ANYTHING to get on, but this what I wrote
And what I'm writin', is guaranteed to enlighten
Like Dr. Cornel West, Michael Eric Dyson
This is how we do it today, enough of the crime talk
KRS got somethin' new to say
Rise up, and put aside childish things
This is the message we bring; listen

[Hook x2]

[KRS-One]
Last verse, KRS, blast first
Ignorance is bad, but temptation that's worse
They hide they purse, cause of the way we spit the verse
No one ever told 'em that the style's rehearsed
And even if they did, it wouldn't be new to they mind
Cause all day rappers confess to doin' these crimes
So when the cops see you, they're not thinkin' about me
They thinkin' about takin' you out of society
Keep it right, don't lie to me
You think it's too much preachin' teachin'?
Huh, well fine, we'll see
When you're locked up in J.D.C., or even prison
The truth shall set you free, just listen
You want health, and really that's about prevention
You want love, real love, and not depression
You want awareness, which come from discipline and will
You want wealth, which come from skills
When you really ready to talk, let's build
You ain't gotta be a scholar to know the next 4 years gonna be ill
I believe you already know the drill, don't lie
Don't steal, seek peace and don't kill

[Hook x2]

KRS-One

The legendary MC from the South Bronx, New York, Lawrence “KRS-One” Parker has been steadily rapping since 1985. His name stands for “Knowledge Reigns Supreme Over Nearly Everyone”.

KRS came to rapping only by chance. In the Something from The Art of Rap documentary, he recalls watching an MC cypher when suddenly “a dude” randomly picked him out of the crowd and made fun of him. Feeling compelled to defend himself, KRS performed a little freestyle which impressed the crowd and eventually kicked off his rapping career.

His breakthrough onto the hip hop scene began with “The Bridge Is Over” – an answer record to the popular Queens rapper MC Shan’s song “Queensbridge”. From 1986 to 1992, KRS-One fronted the groundbreaking hip hop group Boogie Down Productions, scoring six top 20 hits on the US Rap Chart. In 1993, he began a solo career spanning three decades, racking up six more top 20 Rap Chart hits with “Sound of da Police”, “MCs Act Like They Don’t Know”, “Step Into A World” and “Men Of Steel” also achieving mainstream pop success on the Hot 100.