What Can I Do

[Hook] {x2} What can I do? What can I do? Oh what can I say? [Verse One] During my adolescence I used to think I was up next So I could tip scales to balance checks on social ills I used to analyze environment I used to ponder at length on really how much I would spend By the conditioning from media Manufacturing mediocrity, blocking encyclopedia I used to soak up the knowledge from whatever venue And preach the word out from herds about how they continue To violate the defenseless And I stood against this Like I was the revolutions apprentice But a quick study turned into worse buddy My clear picture of change is all turned muddy And I don't get that feeling anymore you know The feeling you get when you say, "Bet, I'm down for the raw." Because the battle seems uphill for days Why would I wanna struggle just to live like a slave Looks like the way they going is gonna take forever I just wanna live though, make my life better I guess to many, I'm another victim of the system Caught up in the masquerade with no mission But I'd rather be up in the comfortable position Then trying to force truth up into a poor man's vision Is power to the people really worth it? I've seen so many lose sight of life trying to make life perfect And I really want to be happy for myself I can't do that if I'm thinking of everyone else What can I do? [Hook] [Verse Two] Everybody wants to start, the movement Everybody's talking about social improvement Everybody's conversating on how they gon' do shit But ain't nobody rise to the occasion No initiation, sometimes it's a feeble attempt But the stamina drains out before making a dent Everybody loses faith in the time they spent Wondering where the goals and all the dreams went Not really sure if they wanna keep on keeping on Cause so much is gone so wrong See fighting for your rights should never be illegal But somebody new will have to motivate the people And somebody new will fall to the power of evil Corruption in the movement is a sequel He who seeks control has impurity in the soul But he to whom controls with style is ambiguous Because authenticity is hard to detect And you could never really know who you should give your respect It feels good when the movements connect with each other It feels good when the theories connect with one another But theory isn't practical and practically Nobody with power will ever allow us to be free [Hook] [Verse Three] No more rallies around a campfire No more conferences where nothing transpires No more posters and pins and pamphlets And no more sit ins where we all demand shit That ain't never gon' happen No matter what we say everybody that I know is caught up in the melee But I can't live for giving all of me for them This just the nature of the beast, I got my own problems Regardless of whatever the outcome is Somebody will dominate whatever state we live See Utopia's a joke if you think it can really happen It seems like freedom and security is always scrapping Together we are trapped in the mental box concoction Without thinking, no matter what we do we're still locked in Life is a toxin we all suck the fumes And whatever I do we're still doomed I don't want it to look like I don't care at all But history shows that if it rose, it will fall This is just one opinion from a man Who's tired with all the failed movements To destroy the empire I know the truth has been written that's why I'm spitting to y'all I'm still waiting for the final call [Hook]