Ahmad - You Gotta Be... Lyrics
[ verse 1 ]Everybody in the ghetto tell me...Is it a lie that i must be a ruffneckAnd wear a frown just to be down?I kinda don't agree with bein (tough)But you gotta be (rough)It's either you claimin your hood, or you're not a geeForget about respect, i refuse to be the next guyFitted for a casket, either with it, or get blastedI choose to gangbang, they give me a chrome-plated triggerSay, "if you got any heart, go rob that mini-mart, nigga"Now look what i done did, damn, i had to be the big manThey're lookin at me shifty, better shut up 'fore i get slammedMan, i'm not a thief, good grief, and i don't wanna act hardBut then they said if i didn't do it, they was gonna gat, farAs i could see (i was gonna be)The next new member of the crew, cause it's 8 of them and 1 of meI don't wanna do it, but i willCause i still want folks to think that i'm hard and toughCause you gotta be (rough)Cause you gotta be (tough)Cause you gotta be (rough)(i used to be a stick-up kid)[ verse 2 ]Well, it's the niggeroe, again, right back in where i left offStill tryin to make a decision, i might go to prison if i don't step offBut if i don't rob this store, then i'm not sureIf i'm gonna be considered as a geeAnd you gotta be (rough)Cuffs are temporary, homies are for lifeSo i grab the deuce-deuce and go insideI decide to prove in the mini-mart, "don't nobody moveStart fillin up the paper sack with loot, or i might shoot"But things didn't go as planned, cause this man had his own gunWe're standin toe to toe, eye to eye, so i figured why notPull the trigger? put this nigga on the groundIt'll show that i had poise, then my boy'll know i'm downBut i didn't do it quick enough, or he thought of it firstCause he blasted to the chest, and now i'm restin yellin, "nurse!"And holdin on to life, or at least tryin to hold onIn a jailward wearin cuffsCause i had to be (rough)Cause you gotta be (tough)Cause you gotta be (rough)(i used to be a stick-up kid)And everybody, everybody gotta be rough, y'all(i used to be a stick-up kid)And everybody, everybody gotta be tough, y'all(i used to be a stick-up kid)[ verse 3 ]Well, that's the end of my tale, but before we knowFools'll just forget what i said, and the story goOn and on, until you're up to no goodAnd back throwin up your hoodAnd still doin what you shouldn'tNiggeroes, come together, cause divided we fallSo stall that gang shit, stand upQuit standin in handcuffsReally hard's when you got lootAnd you ain't gotta shootDamn man, enough is enoughSo why you gotta be (rough)Cause you gotta be (tough)Cause you gotta be (rough)(i used to be a stick-up kid)