Dying Breed

Mahogany Jones - “Dying Breed”
[Emcee(s): Mahogany Jones]
[Producer(s): Mozaic (AGO)]
[Scratches: DJ Los]

[Intro]
Every day, natural wonders of our world disappear. Some slip away quietly, without notice, without fanfare

[Verse 1: Mahogany Jones]
It started with a fader, two record players
So fresh, could be a blessing with DJs and beatmakers
Some dancers and some breakers with that cardboard paper
Some Masters of the Ceremony, hood orators
Renegades with spray cans, hood crew faders
Forty years later, we’re global, we’re curators
Trendsetting go-getters—now go on and pay us
That new mathematics, we’re common denominators
We wasn’t even factors, you figured that you could faze us
Magic-Marker erase us—”no, they just entertain us”
Make a mistake to mistake us as just entertainers
Vultures and imitators forget we’re originators
Who engineered the mechanics to give you much greater—now
Remember that, never, never forget the lesson. Let’s
Bring it back, never forget the essence

[Hook: Mahogany Jones with Scratches by DJ Los] (x2)
I’m the last of a dying breed. Hip hop ain’t what
You do, but it’s what you bleed. I got that
Realness, it’s what you need. I can see
The light, so follow my lead

[Verse 2: Mahogany Jones]
The school of hard knocks with hardrocks never rocked locks
But battle on linoleum, challenge you to pop-lock
Our boombox was the beatbox—on the block, we took that bebop and we
Turned it into hip hop, our emcees were our Aesops
Stories more Psycho than that man Mr. Hitchcock
Sported fades before the J’s, when we rocked them hi-tops
Chicks rocked doorknocks, big earrings, two
Finger rings, Kangol chains, gold fronts, mayne
All-gold everything. Bigger than the music
Bigger than the fashion. Power of the people to
Expressive passion, years of aggression—this is
Our rites of passages, our gift to uplift and to
Educate the masses. Culture birthed love, so we
Came to bring the peace, but we declare a war upon
The Mark of the Beast. Culture clash and race come
Together unified. It’s much more than music, it’s
A movement worldwide, w-w-w-w-worldwide

[Hook: Mahogany Jones with Scratches by DJ Los] (x2)
I’m the last of a dying breed. Hip hop ain’t what
You do, but it’s what you bleed. I got that
Realness, it’s what you need. I can see
The light, so follow my lead

[Outro: Samples with Scratches by DJ Los]
“Rap is something you do, hip hop is something you live” - Sample from KRS-One - “Hip Hop Vs. Rap” (x4)
“There it is” - Sample from [?] - “[?]” (x3)