Grandmaster Flash - New York New York Lyrics
New York New York, big city of dreamsAnd everything in New York ain't always what it seemsYou might get fooled if you come from out of townBut I'm down by law and I know my way aroundToo much, too many people, too much (aha-ha)Too much, too many people, too much, Raaah!A castle in the sky, one mile highBuilt to shelter the rich and greedyRows of eyes, disguised as windowsLooking down on the poor and the needyMiles of people, marching up the avenueDoin' what they gotta do, just to get byI'm living in the land of plenty and manyBut I'm damn sure poor and I don't know whyToo much, too many people, too muchToo much, too many people, too much!A man's on a ledge, says he's gonna jumpPeople gather round, said, "He won't he's just a chump"'Cause he lost his job, then he got robbedHis mortgage is due and his marriage is throughHe says he ain't gonna pay no child supportBecause the ***** left him without a second thoughtHe got nothing to eat, no shoes on his feetShe even left his clothes out in the streetHe keeps hearing noises when he's at homeHe always hears voices when he's all aloneHis wife took the kids, the car and the cribIn this man's world, so much for Women's LibNew York New York big city of dreamsBut everything in New York ain't always what it seemsYou might get fooled if you come from out of townBut I'm down by law, and I know my way aroundDown in the Village, you might think I'm sillyBut you can't tell the women from the men sometimesThey're sugar and spice and everything niceBut when you get em home ain't no telling what you findRight next door is a little old manI seen him eating dog food out of a canHe says, "I got to eat, when I can't afford meatI barely can stand, on my own two feetI got a bad habit and I just can't break itSomething's on my mind and I just can't shake itI need some time, and I want some spaceI gotta get away from the human race?Too much, too many people, too much (aha-ha)Too much, too many people, too much! Raaah!Staring at a skyscraper reaching into heavenWhen over in the ghetto I'm livin in hellJust play ball or be an entertainer'Cause niggaz like me can't read too wellNobody loves me, nobody caresI dreamed about a life but I'm livin in a nightmareParanoid schizo, set back, snowboundBad news psycho, heart attack, breakdown!Hee, Huh, Hee, Huh, Hee, Huh, Hee, HuhHee, Huh, Hee, Huh, Hee, Huh, Hee, HuhHee, Huh, Hee, Huh, Hee, Huh, Hee, HuhHee, Huh, Hee, Huh, Hee, Huh, Hee, HUH!If only I could sleep just ten more minutesI might find the strength to make another dayIf I didn't have to get up and do my thingI would probably sleep my whole life awayI messed up a nice dream, somethin' bout ice creamWhipped cream, fruits and a cherry on topNow I gotta get up and face the world, huhThe pressure is on, It ain't never gonna stopI sho' gotta learn to use my mindI don't wanna be kissing nobody's behindJust standin' on line lookin' like a jerkGotta get off my butt and do a full day's workI ran into a pothole, got into a car crashShould'a been thinking and tried to fake whiplashA crowd gathered round, they're callin' me fatWho you lookin at with a face like that?New York New York big city of dreamsEverything in New York ain't always what it seemsYou might get fooled if you come from out of townBut I'm down by law and I know my way aroundOn 42nd Street, lookin for some actionWomen standing on the corner selling satisfactionOne young punk just leaning on the fenceTryin' to make a dollar out of fifteen centsReally is a prankster, tried to be a gangsterReal big wheel when a gun is in his handsJust did a stick-up, just got picked upOne dead punk, killed by the manNew York New York big city of dreamsAnd everything in New York ain't always what it seemYou might get fooled if you come from out of townBut I'm down by law and I know my way aroundToo much, too many people, too much (haha ha ha)Too much, too many people, too much!Huh!A baby cries and a mother diesAnd the tears fall from the doctor's eyesBecause in this room, on this dayThe Good Lord has giveth, and taketh away, huh!The gift of life really means a lotAnd in the ghetto your life is all you gotSo you take to the streets, trying to existIn the trash and slime of a world like thisWhat you watch on TV tells you what life is supposed to beBut when you look outside the only thing you seeIs the poverty stricken reality, Heh!Abandoned places, angry facesMuch hate and hunger throughout the racesYou say, "I'm grown and I'm on my ownSo why don't everybody just leave me alone!"Now you stay at home, talking on the phoneDoin ninety miles an hour in the fifty mile zoneThey never took the time to tell you bout sexSo you had to learn about it in the discothequesNine months later, the baby is thereAnd the Nigga that did it said, "I don't care!"You don't have enough money to help feed twoSo you have to choose between the baby and youThe sky was crying, rain and hailWhen you put your baby in the garbage pailThen you kissed the kid and put down the lidAnd you tried to forget what you just did, Huh!The muffled screams of a dying babyWas enough to drive the young mother crazySo she ran in the rain trying to ease the painHuh huh, And she drove herself insaneNew York New York big city of dreamsBut everything in New York ain't always what it seemYou might get fooled if you come from out of townBut I'm down by law and I know my way aroundToo much, too many people, too much (haha ha ha)Too much, too many people, too much! HUH!New York New York big city of dreamsBut everything in New York ain't always what it seemYou might get fooled if you come from out of townBut I'm down by law and I know my way aroundToo much, too many people, too much (haha ha ha)Too much, too many people, too much
