Back in the Days

[Verse 1] Back in the day 1986 Me and Mad Mike puttin' records in the mix Doin' party after party, high schools and jam Back before the Glock was king and brothas spoke like men Makin' demo after demo tryin' to come up quick It's funny how niggas treat you when you ain't got shit But now I kept on cause pops told me Never to let anybody in the way where I try to get It was me and D.R. freakin' with the funk Jerry in the jail, I had a system in the trunk And it was on, Friday nights the party's jumpin' Summertime hits had the speakers straight bumpin' And believe me even though we had no loot Everybody knew that we was finst' to come up soon I still remember them days They was crazy but now they gone It ain't nothin' like it used to be before Back in the days [Verse 2] 1990, fresh out of college Public Enemy is hittin niggas up with knowledge And I love it cause without them there would be no me Took a trip down to Oakland, heard the minister speak Felt deep and shortly I was in A while Forever down for my people 'til the day that I die That's when "Devil Made Me Do It," it was made I still remember the days, still remember the rage And I was into everyday building, trying to be much more Took a trip down to Cuba, met Assata Shakur Had dinner with Fidel, talked about old times And now America's steady tryin' to destroy minds And when I got back it seemed much clearer to me And when my cousin went to war, he was only 19 I still remember them days They was crazy but now they gone It ain't nothin' like it used to be before Back in the days [Verse 3] 1992 when I'm sour inside Cause a couple homies passed away before their time And even though I'm movin' units Schoolin' better than most and it ain't the same Cause I still feel pain and I'm tryin' to coup And everyday's gettin' clearer to me Cause if it ain't guns and drugs, it's the pigs and HIV And now I'm lookin' for a way to try to fight it back But you see it's votin' time and now you wanna ban rap Thought I was fucked playin' by your rules "Sleeping With the Enemy" was album number two Let's take a look around And see which one of you all Gotta balls to put me out Here's a middle finger off for all you Tripped for a minute but before too long A young brotha said, "Fuck it!" and a label was born I still remember them days They was crazy but now they gone It ain't nothin' like it used to be but yo Now it's 94 and I'm servin' album number three How many fake wannabe-Gees do I see? Now we're back to days of the nigga and the bitch No deposit, no return, it's a trip, I check my grip And realize that it's all in your mind Mothafuck you and that fake gangsta shit I stays righteous and serv'em with the dope Should a truth get a clue? Monkey see, monkey do Back in the days...