Kendrick Lamar – To Pimp A Butterfly (2015)
Lyrics
The Blacker The Berry
[Intro x2]
Everything black, I don't want black
I want everything black, I ain't need black
Some white, some black, I ain't mean black
I want everything black
[Bridge]
Six in the morn', fire in the street
Burn, baby, burn, that's all I wanna see
And sometimes I get off watchin' you die in vain
It's such a shame they may call me crazy
They may say I suffer from schizophrenia or somethin'
But homie, you made me
Black don't crack, my n****
[Verse 1]
I'm the biggest hypocrite of 2015
Once I finish this, witnesses will convey just what I mean
Been feeling this way since I was 16, came to my senses
You never liked us anyway, **** your friendship, I meant it
I'm African-American, I'm African
I'm black as the moon, heritage of a small village
Pardon my residence
Came from the bottom of mankind
My hair is nappy, my **** ** ***, my nose is round and wide
You hate me don't you?
You hate my people, your plan is to terminate my culture
You're ****** evil I want you to recognize that I'm a proud monkey
You vandalize my perception but can't take style from me
And this is more than confession
I mean I might press the button just so you know my discretion
I'm guardin' my feelings, I know that you feel it
You sabotage my community, makin' a killin'
You made me a killer, emancipation of a real n****
[Pre-Hook]
The blacker the berry, the sweeter the juice (x4)
The blacker the berry, the bigger I shoot
[Hook: Assassin]
I said they treat me like a slave, cah' me black
Woi, we feel a whole heap of pain, cah' we black
And man a say they put me in a chain, cah' we black
Imagine now, big gold chain full of rocks
How you no see the whip, left scars pon' me back
But now we have a big whip, parked pon' the block
1
All them say we doomed from the start, cah' we black
Remember this, every race start from the Black, just remember that
[Verse 2]
I'm the biggest hypocrite of 2015
Once I finish this, witnesses will convey just what I mean
I mean, it's evident that I'm irrelevant to society
That's what you're telling me, penitentiary would only hire me
Curse me till I'm dead
Church me with your fake prophesizing that I'mma be just another slave in my head
Institutionalize manipulation and lies
Reciprocation of freedom only live in your eyes
You hate me don't you?
I know you hate me just as much as you hate yourself
Jealous of my wisdom and cards I dealt
Watchin' me as I pull up, fill up my tank, then peel out
Muscle cars like pull ups, show you what these big wheels 'bout, ah
Black and successful, this black man meant to be special
CAT scans on my radar b****, how can I help you?
How can I tell you I'm making a killin'?
You made me a killer, emancipation of a real n****
[Pre-Hook]
[Hook]
[Verse 3]
I'm the biggest hypocrite of 2015
When I finish this if you listenin' then sure you will agree
This plot is bigger than me, it's generational hatred
It's genocism, it's grimy, little justification
I'm African-American, I'm African
I'm black as the heart of a ****** Aryan
I'm black as the name of Tyrone and Darius
Excuse my French but **** you — no, **** y'all
That's as blunt as it gets, I know you hate me, don't you?
You hate my people, I can tell cause it's threats when I see you
I can tell cause your ways deceitful
Know I can tell because you're in love with that Desert Eagle
Thinkin' maliciously, he get a chain then you gone bleed him
It's funny how Zulu and Xhosa might go to war
Two tribal armies that want to build and destroy
Remind me of these Compton Crip gangs that live next door
Beefin' with Pirus, only death settle the score
So don't matter how much I say I like to preach with the Panthers
Or tell Georgia State "Marcus Garvey got all the answers"
Or try to celebrate February like it's my B-Day
Or eat watermelon, chicken, and Kool-Aid on weekdays
Or jump high enough to get Michael Jordan endorsements
Or watch BET cause urban support is important
So why did I weep when Trayvon Martin was in the street?
When gang banging make me kill a n**** blacker than me?
Hypocrite!
2
i
[Skit]
"We got a young brother that stands for something! We got a young brother that
believes in the all of us! Brother Kendrick Lamar! He's not a rapper, he's a writer,
he's an author! And if you read between the lines, we'll learn how to love one
another! But you can't do that — right on! — I said, you can't do that without loving
yourself first."
[Sample]
This is a world premiere!
[Intro]
I done been through a whole lot
Trial, tribulation, but I know God
Satan wanna put me in a bow tie
Pray that the holy water don't go dry
As I look around me
So many ************* wanna down me
But an enemigo never drown me
In front of a dirty double-mirror they found me
[Hook]
And I love myself
(The world is a ghetto with big guns and picket signs)
I love myself
(But it can do what it want whenever it want, I don't mind)
I love myself
(He said I gotta get up, life is more than suicide)
I love myself
(One day at a time, sun gon' shine)
[Verse 1]
Everybody lookin' at you crazy (Crazy)
What you gon' do? (What you gon' do?)
Lift up your head and keep moving (Keep moving)
Or let the paranoia haunt you? (Haunt you)
Peace to fashion police, I wear my heart
On my sleeve, let the runway start
You know the miserable do love company
What do you want from me and my scars?
Everybody lack confidence, everybody lack confidence
How many times my potential was anonymous?
How many times the city making me promises?
So I promise this
[Hook]
3
[Verse 2]
They wanna say it's a war outside and a bomb in the street
And a gun in the hood and a mob of police
And a rock on the corner and a line for the fiend
And a bottle full of lean and a model on the scene yup
These days of frustration keep y'all on tuck and rotation
I duck these cold faces, post up fi-fie-fo-fum basis
Dreams of reality's peace
Blow steam in the face of the beast
The sky could fall down, the wind could cry now
The strong in me, I still smile
[Hook]
[Bridge]
Walk my bare feet (Walk my bare feet)
Down, down valley deep (Down, down valley deep)
Fi-fie-fo-fum (Fi-fie-fo-fum)
My heart undone (My heart undone)
[Hook]
[Verse 3]
I went to war last night
With an automatic weapon, don't nobody call a medic
I'ma do it till I get it right
I went to war last night
I've been dealing with depression ever since an adolescent
Duckin' every other blessin', I can never see the message
I could never take the lead, I could never bob and weave
From a negative and letting them annihilate me
And it's evident I'm moving at a meteor speed
Finna run into a building, lay my body in the street
Keep my money in the ceiling, let my mama know I'm free
Give my story to the children and a lesson they can read
And the glory to the feeling of the holy unseen
Seen enough, make a ************ scream, "I love myself!"
[Outro]
I lost my head
I must misread what the good book said
Oh woes be me, it's a jungle inside
Give myself again till the well runs dry (i)
4
King Kunta
[Intro]
I got a bone to pick
I don't want you monkey mouth ******** sittin' in my throne again
(Aye aye n**** whats happenin' n****, K Dot back in the hood n****)
I'm mad (He mad), but I ain't stressin'
True friends, one question
[Hook]
B**** where you when I was walkin'?
Now I run the game got the whole world talkin', King Kunta
Everybody wanna cut the legs off him, Kunta
Black man taking no losses
B**** where you when I was walkin'?
Now I run the game, got the whole world talkin', King Kunta
Everybody wanna cut the legs off him
[Verse 1]
When you got the yams (What's the yams?)
The yam is the power that be
You can smell it when I'm walking down the street
(Oh yes we can, oh yes we can)
I can dig rapping, but a rapper with a ghost writer?
What the **** happened?
(Oh no) I swore I wouldn't tell
But most of y'all sharing bars like you got the bottom bunk in a two man cell
(A two man cell?)
Something's in the water (Something's in the water)
And if I got a brown nose for some gold then I'd rather be a bum than a ******** baller
[Hook]
[Verse 2]
When you got the yams (What's the yams?)
The yam brought it out of Richard Pryor
Manipulated Bill Clinton with desires
24/7, 365 days times two
I was contemplatin' gettin' on stage just to go back to the hood, see my enemy and say...
[Hook]
[Verse 3]
(You goat mouth mammy ******)
I was gonna kill a couple rappers but they did it to themselves
Everybody's suicidal they don't even need my help
This **** is elementary, I'll probably go to jail
If I shoot at your identity and bounce to the left
Stuck a flag in my city, everybody's screamin' "Compton"
I should probably run for Mayor when I'm done, to be honest
And I put that on my Mama and my baby boo too
Twenty million walkin' out the court buildin', woo woo!
5
Ah yeah, **** the judge
I made it past 25 and there I was
A little nappy headed n**** with the world behind him
Life ain't **** but a fat *****
Screamin' "Annie are you ok? Annie are you ok?"
Limo tinted with the gold plates
Straight from the bottom, this the belly of the beast
From a peasant to a prince to a ********* king
[Hook 2]
B**** where was you when I was*POP*
(By the time you hear the next pop, the funk shall be within you)
*POP*
Now I run the game got the whole world talkin', King Kunta
Everybody wanna cut the legs off him, (King) Kunta
Black man taking no losses
B**** where was you when I was walkin'
Now I run the game, got the whole world talkin', King Kunta
Everybody wanna cut the legs off him
[Outro]
(Funk, funk, funk, funk, funk, funk)
We want the funk
We want the funk
(Now if I give you the funk, you gon' take it)
We want the funk
(Now if I give you the funk, you gon' take it)
We want the funk
(Now if I give you the funk, you gon' take it)
We want the funk
(Do you want the funk?)
We want the funk
(Do you want the funk?)
We want the funk
(Now if I give you the funk, you gon' take it)
We want the funk
I remember you was conflicted, misusing your influence
6
Institutionalized
[Intro: Kendrick Lamar]
What money got to do with it
When I don't know the full definition of a rap image?
I'm trapped inside the ghetto and I ain't proud to admit it
Institutionalized, I keep runnin' back for a visit
Hol' up, get it back
I said I'm trapped inside the ghetto and I ain't proud to admit it
Institutionalized, I could still kill me a n****, so what?
[Interlude: Anna Wise and Bilal]
If I was the president
I'd pay my mama's rent
Free my homies and them
Bulletproof my Chevy doors
Lay in the White House and get ****, Lord
Who ever thought?
Master take the chains off me!
Zoom Zoom Zoom Zoom Zoom
Zoom, Zoom, Zoom
Zoom Zoom Zoom Zoom Zoom
Zoom, Zoom, Zoom
****
[Verse 1: Kendrick Lamar]
Life can be like a box of chocolate
Quid pro quo, somethin' for somethin', that's the obvious
Oh ****, flow's so sick, don't you swallow it
Bitin' my style, you're salmonella poison positive
I can just, alleviate the rap industry politics
Milk the game up, never lactose intolerant
The last remainder of real ****, you know the obvious
Me, scholarship? No, streets put me through colleges
Be all you can be, true, but the problem is
Dream only a dream if work don't follow it
Remind me of the homies that used to know me, now follow this
I'll tell you my hypothesis, I'm probably just way too loyal
K Dizzle will do it for you, my n**** think I'm a god
Truthfully all of 'em spoiled, usually you're never charged
But somethin' came over you once I took you to the ****** BET Awards
You lookin' at artists like the harvests
So many Rollies around you and you want all of them
Somebody told me you thinkin' 'bout snatchin' jewelry
I should've listened when my grandmama said to me
[Hook: Bilal]
**** don't change until you get up and wash yo' ass, n****
**** don't change until you get up and wash yo' ass, boy
**** don't change until you get up and wash yo' ass, n****
Oh now, slow down
7
[Bridge: Snoop Dogg]
And once upon a time, in a city so divine
Called West Side Compton, there stood a little n****
He was 5 foot something, God bless the kid
Took his homie to the show and this is what they said
[Verse 2: Kendrick Lamar]
**** am I 'posed to do when I'm lookin' at walkin' licks?
The constant big money talk 'bout the mansion and foreign whips
The private jets and passport, presidential glass floor
Gold bottles, gold models, sniffin' up the ass for
Instagram flicks, **** * ****, ***** is this?
One more **** away from wavin' flashy wrist
My defense, mechanism tell me to get him, quickly because he got it
It's a recession, then why the **** he a King of Diamonds?
No more livin' poor, meet my four-four
When I see 'em, put the per diem on the floor
Now Kendrick, know they're your co-workers
But it's gon' take a lot for this pistol to go cold turkey
Now I can watch his watch on the TV and be okay
But see I'm on the clock once that watch landin' in LA
Remember steal from the rich and givin' it back to the poor?
Well that's me at these awards
I guess my grandmama was warnin' a boy
She said...
[Hook]
[Outro: Snoop Dogg]
And once upon a time, in a city so divine
Called West Side Compton, there stood a little n****
He was 5 foot something, dazed and confused
Talented but still under the neighborhood ruse
You can take your boy out the hood but you can't take the hood out the homie
Took his show money, stashed it in the mozey wozey
Hollywood's nervous
**** you, goodnight, thank you much for your service
8
u
[Screams]
[Hook x10]
Loving you is complicated
[Verse 1]
I place blame on you still
Place shame on you still
Feel like you ain't ****
Feel like you don't feel
Confidence in yourself, breakin' on marble floors
Watchin' anonymous strangers tellin' me that I'm yours
But you ain't **** I'm convinced your tolerance nothin' special
What can I blame you for, n**** I can name several
Situation had stopped with your little sister bakin'
A baby inside, just a teenager, where your patience?
Where was your antennas, where was the influence you speak of?
You preached in front of 100,000 but never reached her
I ****** tell you, you ****** failure—you ain't no leader!
I never liked you, forever despise you—I don't need you!
The world don't need you, don't let them deceive you
Numbers lie too, **** your pride too, that's for dedication
Thought money would change you, made you more complacent
I ****** hate you, I hope you embrace it
I swear
[Hook]
[Bridge]
Lovin' you, lovin' you, not lovin' you, one hundred proof
I can feel you vibin', recognize that you're ashamed of me
Yes I hate you too
[Skit]
House keeping
*knocks*
House keeping
¡Abre la puerta! ¡Abre la puerta tengo que limpiar el cuarto!
¡Es que no hay mucho tiempo tengo que limpiar el cuarto¡
!Disculpe!
[Verse 2]
You the reason why mama and them leavin'
No you ain't ****, you say you love them, I know you don't mean it
I know you're irresponsible, selfish, in denial, can't help it
Your trials and tribulations a burden, everyone felt it
Everyone heard it, multiple shots, corners cryin' out
You was deserted, where was your antennas again?
Where was your presence, where was your support that you pretend?
You ain’t no brother, you ain’t no disciple, you ain’t no friend
9
A friend never leave Compton for profit or leave his best friend
Little brother, you promised you’d watch him before they shot him
Where was your antennas, on the road, bottles and ******
You faced time the one time, that's unforgiven
You even Facetimed instead of a hospital visit
***** you thought he would recover well
Third surgery couldn't stop the bleeding for real
Then he died, God himself will say "you ****** failed"
You ain't try
[Verse 3]
I know your secrets n****
Mood swings is frequent n****
I know depression is restin' on your heart for two reasons n****
I know you and a couple block boys ain't been speakin' n****
Y'all damn near beefin', I seen it and you're the reason n****
And if this bottle could talk *gulp* I cry myself to sleep
Bitch everything is your fault
Faults breakin' to pieces, earthquakes on every weekend
Because you shook as soon as you knew confinement was needed
I know your secrets
Don't let me tell them to the world about that **** you thinkin'
And that time you *gulp* I'm bout to hurl
I'm ****** up, but I ain't as ****** up as you
You just can't get right, I think your heart made of bullet proof
Shoulda killed yo ass a long time ago
You shoulda feeled that black revolver blast a long time ago
And if those mirrors could talk it would say "you gotta go"
And if I told your secrets
The world'll know money can't stop a suicidal weakness
10
Complexion (A Zulu Love)
[Hook: (Pete Rock)]
Complexion (two-step)
Complexion don't mean a thing (it's a Zulu love)
Complexion (two-step)
It all feels the same (it's a Zulu love)
[Verse 1: Kendrick Lamar]
Dark as the midnight hour or bright as the mornin' sun
Give a **** about your complexion, I know what the Germans done
Sneak (dissin’)
Sneak me through the back window, I’m a good field n****
I made a flower for you outta cotton just to chill with you
You know I'd go the distance, you know I'm ten toes down
Even if master listenin', cover your ears, he 'bout to mention
[Hook]
[Verse 2: Kendrick Lamar]
Dark as the midnight hour, I'm bright as the mornin' sun
Brown skinned, but your blue eyes tell me your mama can't run
Sneak (dissin')
Sneak me through the back window, I’m a good field n****
I made a flower for you outta cotton just to chill with you
You know I'd go the distance, you know I'm ten toes down
Even if master's listenin', I got the world's attention
So I'mma say somethin' that's vital and critical for survival
Of mankind, if he lyin', color should never rival
Beauty is what you make it, I used to be so mistaken
By different shades of faces
Then Whit told me, "A woman is woman, love the creation"
It all came from God then you was my confirmation
I came to where you reside
And looked around to see more sights for sore eyes
Let the Willie Lynch theory reverse a million times with...
[Hook]
[Interlude]
You like it, I love it (x8)
(Where the homegirl Rapsody at?
I need you to speak your mind real quick loved one!)
[Verse 3: Rapsody]
Let me talk my Stu Scott, ‘scuse me on my 2Pac
Keep your head up, when did you stop loving thy
Color of your skin, color of your eyes
That’s the real blues, baby, like you met Jay’s baby
11
You blew me away, you think more beauty in blue, green and grey
All my solemn men up north, 12 years a slave
12 years of age, thinkin’ my shade too dark
I love myself, I no longer need Cupid
Enforcin’ my dark side like a young George Lucas
Light don’t mean you smart, bein’ dark don’t make you stupid
And frame of mind for them bustas, ain’t talkin’ “Woohah!”
Need a paradox for the pair of daughters they tutored
Like two ties, L-L, you lose two times
If you don’t see you beautiful in your complexion
It ain’t complex to put it in context
Find the air beneath the kite, that’s the context
Yeah, baby, I’m conscious, ain’t no contest
If you like it, I love it, all your earth tones been blessed
Ain’t no stress, jigga boos wanna be
I ain’t talkin’ Jay, I ain’t talkin’ B
I’m talkin’ days we got school watchin’ movie screens
And spike your self esteem
The new James Bond gon’ be black as me
Black as brown, hazelnut, cinnamon, black tea
And it’s all beautiful to me
Call your brothers magnificent, call all the sisters queens
We all on the same team, blues and pirus, no colors ain’t a thing
[Outro: Kendrick Lamar]
Barefoot babies with no cares
Teenage gun toters that don’t play fair, should I get out the car?
I don’t see Compton, I see something much worse
The land of the landmines, the hell that’s on earth
12