For What It's Worth

[Solo] I remember my very first taste of this obsession Fresh-faced kid at Next Level copping lessons Wide-eyed I'd stay for hours at a time Just grilling Dr. Phibes like a Q&A session Pestering him with all types of questions What's good this week? Who did the beats and who's guesting? I had a part-time job so I'd work all week Then blow my whole paycheque in a few seconds And if it had that Oz Hip Hop sticker on the front You could bet I'd pick it up and add it to the collection Something bout the way my native tongue Sound over dirty drums is like I found a connection And looking back now I bought a lot of classics But I also spent a lot of cash on a lot of wack shit And if I added it up I'd probably cringe at the thought But really I got way more than I bargained for Cause if I could put an hourly wage On all the time that I've spent locked away with a pen and a page Or every drop of sweat that I shed when I step on a stage Then brother I'd be getting paid To some it might sound crazy But music took me in, taught me and shaped me And the life lessons learnt over break beats Are worth way more than anyone could pay me [Hook] It's the ticket price at the show It's the bandwidth of a download Everybody's so concerned with the bottom line This is something you can't measure with a dollar sign And it can't be bought for no amount Throw 'em up if you know what I'm talking about This is something that predates trade and predates money Something that's as old as time [Solo] I know this kid who's been digging through the crates for ages Born and raised Gold Coast of all places Ordinary Joe, goes by the name of Mark Better known to most as M-Phazes They say it ain't where you're from, it's where you're at Well this here is proof of that He worked hard just to master the boom and the bap Till the beats so phat, they make the party people say "Good Gracious" So he hooked up with some of the finest emcees from across the nation Did a few joints for some overseas cats Cause you know word spread quick like it's contagious Hooked up with an agent Took a CD of beats to the One Stop Shop competition, stood up and played it Panel of judges some of the greatest And well, what do you know? The whole room went ape-shit Uh, tell me what that's worth Dollars can't buy respect cause respect is earned And I gotta give respect where respect is due Very few who would test for you Wanna talk about dedication? Wanna talk about hours spent, I bet he's spent a few So when he hit me up with a track for the compilation I said I'm down for whatever dude See this world dictates that all get paid cause we all gotta eat But this here is not for the feed In my own small way I'm just tryna pay back Everything that music lent to me I spent my life feeling like I didn't fit into the puzzle Now people telling me my shit help 'em through they struggle Huh, and if you can't respect that Then you either need a slap or discover what I'm talking about [Hook] [Solo] Solo know what it's worth M-Phazes knows what it's worth A-diddy knows what it's worth Horrorshow know what it's worth My brother Nick Lupi, he know what it's worth Jimmy Nice knows what it's worth DJ Joyride, he knows what it's worth Urthboy knows what it's worth And my brother Lou Dubs, he know what it's worth Gusto know what it's worth Muph & Pluto yo, they know what it's worth And The Herd know what it's worth Illy Al Murray, he knows what it's worth Flago knows what it's worth Obese, they know what it's worth E Traks know what it's worth, do you? [Hook]