the villest with erykah badu

J. Cole

I got something I wanna tell you
I got something I wanna tell you
Yeah

Dust off the old notebook
Where a younger Jermaine Lamarr wrote hooks
To get a glimpse at what his hopes
Looked like back in his younger years
And found a page stained
With what seems to be a hundred tears
As the smeared words spoke of his blunted fears
Tellin him Persevere through it all
Go hard, like Medusa in front of mirrors
To reach the top , so unaware that the trouble s there
We re nothing more than a worser version of troubles where
He sat when he wrote, he s performin hocus pocus
With empty pocket
Focus over some dope lil beat he made his self
All the pain in his cadence felt
And though his heart was made of felt, his exterior hardened
To present a demeanor in which this period taught him
Was the best for survival
To deflect the most aggressive of rivals
A testament to the lessons I follow
Seen the death of bravado
The second weapons hit his chest with a hollow
Pride is a bitter pill indeed, but it s best if you swallow
If not, your homies gon pay respect with a bottle
Poured that out on the flesh of this Mother Earth
While liquor slithers like a serpent across the mud
And dirt to go rest in a pothole
Money coming soon, back then, was obsessed with the motto
Me and my dawgs was like the Musketeers
Through the years, we stayed connected
To this day we still steppin legato
Subconsciously protecting these niggas
Think I m lesser for my complexion
Before I m done, they all gon respect the mulatto
Yeah
Said they all gon respect the mulatto

(Oh, I) I got something I wanna tell you
Dreams can come true, you ll get yours too
But it won t save (Yeah)
I got something I wanna tell you
(I got something I wanna tell you)
Dreams can come true (Oh-ohh) , you ll get yours too
But it won t save
Me and you
Your momma and your cousin, too
Rolling through the Ville on Vogues
Coming up, slamming Cadillac doors
Me and you
Your momma and your cousin, too
Rolling through the Ville on Vogues
Coming up, slamming Cadillac doors (Coming up, coming up)

My darkest truths be hard to say to friends
Fuck it, pass the bottle
We re swallowing hopes that can wash away the sins
Grew up amongst the lost and wasn t taught a way to win
On days I think of James, my hardened heart breaks again
He caught the fade but pussy niggas caught him later, then
Medics performed a CPR and hauled away his limbs
It always haunted me inside my thoughts and made em grim
His father knew my father way back when
Army buddies that used to party hard
Overseas but through the alcohol
The weed and plus the hardy-har s, they made him kin
Who knew their future kids would have to find a way to swim
In the wild, with crocodile and alligator skins?
They took a good nigga
Smart kid who could hoop, who could fight
Instead, I wish the Lord had taken them
If Darwinism states only the stronger make it, then
Why am I here when I don t feel that I m as great as him?
If Pac is Jesus, then I ride around and play the hymns
Life goes on, even in this modern day of
Algorithm-moderated, streaming-service-automated blends
I play the classics often, and I ve gotta say there s gems
This life is like it s all set up for God to play The Sims
Yeah, I got rich, but think I need a smarter way to cleanse
If money gives happiness
Then please explain the rich bastards with no peace
How come they never bought their way to zen?
Hmm, how come they never bought their way to zen?
If it s?if it s that simple, yeah

(Oh, I) I got something I wanna tell you
Dreams can come true, you ll get yours too
But it won t save (Yeah)
I got something I wanna tell you
(I got something I wanna tell you)
Dreams can come true (Oh-ohh) , you ll get yours too
But it won t save
Me and you
Your momma and your cousin, too
Rolling through the Ville on Vogues
Coming up, slamming Cadillac doors
Me and you
Your momma and your cousin, too
Rolling through the Ville on Vogues
Coming up, slamming Cadillac doors