When the Dominoes Fall

[Intro]
See you boys gotta learn how to stay in your lanes man
Unless you ready to swim with the sharks
Everybody that think it’s all fun and games
‘Til them boys run down on you, the cops at your door
Stick up kids tying you up, tying your moms up
You ready for that? ‘Cause if you ain’t
It’s gon’ get real bad real fast
You better links up

[Verse 1]
He zips his backpack, one strap on the jeans pull
Gives mama a kiss, then he closes the van door
15, rebellious, easily influenced
The type to jump off a bridge if he sees other kids do it
His homie’s bigger brother got a pluck in the game
Gives him a pound on a scale and a couple of names
Tells him take it to school, figure out a subtle exchange
Smaller that you break it down, the more you double your change
He hears his homie:
C’mon man I don’t think you feel like, I don’t think you feel like that for real
But he’s tired of being some fucking ghost in a hallway
Poster on raw space, no one notices it all day
As soon as the bell rings, a jolt in his pulse rate

[Chorus]
This is kill or be killed
People with will will survive
Unless you’d never been tried
You ain’t built to survive
And is you wanna be here
But it’s abundantly clear that the truth: is this you?

Yeah you wanted it all soon as they got you involved
But you the first to crumble when the fucking dominoes fall
It’s abundantly clear that you wanna be here
But the truth: is this you?

[Verse 2]
Couple misdemeanors later, and some slaps on the wrists
Only 17 now so they don’t actually stick
School expels him, but by then, he says he’s had it, he quits
His homie’s at his house, helping him to pack up his shit
Now the bigger brother don’t even supply him with weed
Moved on, tripling the profits, moving white on the streets
He told him that he’d set him up, even front him a brick
Give him a beater to move it and leave a gun in the whip
He hears his homie:
Whoa Whoa Whoa. Yo, you need to slow down. This shit is on a whole aother level right here
What’s he supposed to do, find a job for minimum wage?
Burgers flipping all day, hoping someone gives him a raise?
Heart beats as he pulls up to deliver the yay (yayo)

[Chorus]
This is kill or be killed
People with will will survive
Unless you’d never been tried
You ain’t built to survive
And is you wanna be here
But it’s abundantly clear that the truth: is this you?

Yeah you wanted it all soon as they got you involved
But you the first to crumble when the fucking dominoes fall
It’s abundantly clear that you wanna be here
But the truth: is this you?

[Verse 3]
Now buddy around 20, making plenty of guap
Feels invincible, 3 years; never been caught
He takes a turn down the side street and gets to the drop
Crown Vic cuts him off, he tries to jet from the cops
German shepherds go nuts when they get to the trunk
2 ki’s of coke and they find unregistered guns
They watched him tremble and shake
Looks like he’s headed upstate
They put a deal on the table, try to get him to break
He hears his home:
Yo listen, you don’t have to say a damn thing. You ain’t got no record. Keep your mouth shut
Now he knows that he isn’t built for surviving a cell
Prison is violent as hell, he ain’t ‘bout to lie to himself
He’s on an island, he starts crying and finally tells

[Chorus]
This is kill or be killed
People with will will survive
Unless you’d never been tried
You ain’t built to survive
And is you wanna be here
But it’s abundantly clear that the truth: is this you?

Yeah you wanted it all soon as they got you involved
But you the first to crumble when the fucking dominoes fall
It’s abundantly clear that you wanna be here
But the truth: is this you?

[Verse 4]
One second, he’s facing time; the next thing, he’s out
His neighborhood treats him like he has leprosy now
His homie’s bigger brother doesn’t even have a defense
With the priors plus all the evidence, he’s maxing a ten
He could’ve closed his mouth and maybe done two at the most
It’s ironic now how’s back to being the dude who’s a ghost
He hears a knock at the door, it’s someone that he expects
His homie with the .45 sees a flash in the end