[Charlie Wilson] I´m a man, I gotta take care of my family Fighting these pressures in my life I know my mind should be on shinin´ and gettin´ Grammy´s
But these streets won´t say goodbye
[Charlie Wilson] (Snoop Dogg) I can´t say goodbye (To the blocks) Goodbye (To the hood) Goodbye (To the streets) I can´t say goodbye (To the hood) Goodbye (To the blocks) Goodbye (To the streets) I can´t say goodbye (To the blocks) Goodbye (To the streets) Goodbye (To the hood) I can´t say goodbye (To the hood) Goodbye (To the blocks) Goodbye (To the homies)
I guess it´s true, you can´t take the hood out the homeboy
Plus my hood just lost another homeboy Another one got locked, and we don´t know If he comin´ home boy The industry tell me, just leave it alone boy Let them do them, take care of your own boy But I sit back, think about, before I was grown boy Then had dreams of bein´ a doe boy Yeah I was runnin´ from the po-po, bangin´ for the turf Late night huntin´, puttin´ in work Hood day comin´, airbrushed shirt Payday at the spot, got my haircut first Made mom sick when I wouldn´t go to church See I live in the ´burbs but I think 21st I know since I´ve left that it´s gotten much worse But I´d still be there if I couldn´t write a verse
To the blocks that raised me The enemies and the homies that made me Tough enough to hang on the corners that would mold me Critics wonder if I´m tryin´ to be the old me But if they think the old me ever left Then they don´t really know me And gon´ know we don´t change, we just become O.G You always addicted to the life, you just don´t O.D But shit, I owe the streets before they owe me Took me in when my mama didn´t want me Too wild to be her child, and pops not around Now all I got now is the homies To teach me, how to be a man and what not How to break ounces into grams and what not The reason I´m so nice with my hands and what not
Shit, you think I forgot? Nah
Thank God every day that the boy could spit And all around the world they enjoyin´ my shit I know I got plenty more awards to get I got a beautiful wife and some gorgeous kids But it wouldn´t be right if I ignored the shit That made me who I am, the music and the man Told me that I can before the world gave a damn If it wasn´t for my niggas sayin´ stick to the plan Probably be a gun instead of a pen in my hand Probably be doin´ a dub in the pen with my man They say leave the streets but they don´t really understand All I had was the block when I didn´t have fans Rapped on the corners when I couldn´t get spins All I had was the homies when I didn´t have kids
If it all came down, my career was to end I´m sure my name would live, in these streets