KNOWLEDGE IS POWER
Akala spits a conscious flow on the politics of hip-hop and criticises the message it give to not only the youth but everyone else.
[Intro]
Yo
What's going on people
Akala, SBTV
Knowledge is power, listen
Yo, yo
[Verse]
Sorry kids let me apologize before I go further
Unfortunately I don’t rap about how many man I've have murdered
And you may find it boring, appalling and I ain’t scoring braps
From your little rat packs for just stating facts
Lack not the ability to kill a man lyrically
Just thought that killing should not be glorified, silly me
Apparently murdering man has become an aspiration
But what would happen if you reversed the situation?
Black rappers claiming they clap a black in the face
Talked about killing white people as much, would he still get embraced?
Or would you find the applauding would quickly turn to appalling
You got no career by the next morning
I ain’t saying you should do that
True that would be just as dumb
I am just pointing out how absurd that it has become
If a Chinese rapper were to say die ‘Chink’ die
Everybody would be like ‘What is wrong with this guy?’
But some of us have become so accustomed to just behave disgusting
We think it’s just our behavior and it ain’t worth discussing
Or worse yet that it is cultural expression
But who owns Baretta? and who owns Smith and Wesson?
Who owns the car you’re driving that you think’s defining who you are
Running from yourself you’ll find there is no hiding
So, boast about your Prada and your Christian Dior
Still security will follow you when you’re in the store
You can boast about your platinum chains and your diamond rings
While kids in Sierra Leone keep on losing limbs
Act like you got no brain and you ain’t got no shame and say so what I am getting dough
But you’re pawns in a game
They are laughing at the little coons
Who really think they are goons
Real goons don’t wear platinum chains they wear ties and suits
They don’t live in estates and sell flake
They invade with guns and tanks and take your whole state, mate
So pardon me if I don’t find it funny
You boast about it but do you even know what is money?
See it’s hard to act dumb when you have read a couple hundred books
But still in anybody’s hood so tell me who is shook?
When you have been to Brazil and stood in favela streets
Next to kids holding hand grenades and M16s
When you come back to London it ain’t serious
The ghetto's in our head, we are delirious
If you lived in a real slum without food or running water
Where police drive by and kill sons and daughters
You would give your right arm for the chance to go to school
Instead what do we do?
The killer the trigger they play the fool
I ain’t saying school is the answer, educate yourself
See it’s not the money you make, you are the wealth
I ain’t saying we ain’t got a struggle right here in Britain
But you’re taught to act inferior and play position perfectly
It’s disturbing me, the verbal murder be absurd to me
Occurred to me if you have not heard of me
It’s probably because I do not rap about hoochy and booty
Quite enough for the urban scene to fully salute me
But I don’t really care, I’m too busy writing my master thesis
It’s hard to play the stereotype when you study Egypt
Plus urban scene we’re racist to ourselves
Elevating words of hate we’re merely hating ourselves
And if you are musically broad or dare to speak intelligent
People look at you like who the hell you think you are better than
I’m better than no-one on this earth and I know I’m not
But I refuse to play small just to fit in your box
And I don’t hate none of these other rappers
In fact it’s quite the other
Look at me as your bigger wiser older brother
And as a brother should I tell you you’re in trouble
If they clap when you’re talking of killing do they really love you?
If record label bosses kids were dying, would they sell us violence
As quickly as they are ready to desensitise us?
They tell you to shit on your floor, holding all the scoops
Throw you a bone like a dog jumping through a hoop
Don’t take it as a compliment because it is not that
If I tell you that you’re African you tell me it’s not that
Humanity is African even if not black
The truth can be painful
Shh, better stop that
It’s so inconvenient
For those at the top that you talk too much truth, you might just get popped at
And if women are such hoes that we do not want to kiss them
What does it say about us that we still want to put our dick in?
I’m done with the lies third eye open wide, the tougher that you act, the weaker you really feel inside
So all the killer the trigger and when we call ourselves
And want platinum chains bigger than jigga’s
It’s just to run from the fact that we feel insecure
Get as many things as you want but it can not restore
The core of who you are truly that will surpass beauty
That comes from knowledge of yourself and a sense of duty
That comes from knowledge of yourself and a sense of duty
That comes from knowledge of yourself and a sense of duty
So all my brothers pretending that we are thugs
Know if we are honest we just want to be loved
But we feel that we are not worthy and that we are not smart
So we act aggressive to protect our fragile little hearts
But we’ve got to deal with this pain or it will consume
That’s enough honesty now lets resume…
Turn this off go back to rappers that tell you kill
But inside of yourself you know that this is real
Akala here on SBTV, double think coming soon, check the CD
Akala here on SBTV, double think, May 3rd check the CD
If you want a little knowledge bigger than college
I promise you the metaphoric's that will offer you solace like…
The Great Pyramid alone 2.3 million stones
If you took them apart and placed them in a row
They would stretch 2/3 of the way around the earth
That is more stone that there is in every single British church
Each stone cut to a degree of accuracy of 1/1000 of an inch
Well what does that mean?
In 1978 the Japanese ran an experiment to rebuild them with modern technology and failed terribly
But anyway that’s enough for today