Poverty's Paradise

[Female singer harmonizes in background for 22 seconds] [Voice over singer] Just another day in the hood Let's good [Male singer] I plan out my hustle for the day then take a shower When your {?} dope, everybody jealous When you come up short, everybody tellin you 'bout Who got that dope to sling tonight, who got the music And the song uncut, everything you tellin You the ghetto symphony (believe it) [Hook: male singer] Poverty.. is paradiiiise.. ask me how I know (how you know) You see the niggas on the corner and you know they smokin wood Chasin dollars and Impalas, it's the same way in yo' hood Poverty.. is paradiiiise.. ask me how I know (how you know) I see the ladies on they hustle, makin dollars in the club Feedin babies, her Mercedes, came from niggas stolen drugs [Alkaholiks] I know what it feels like to wake up broke And face another day wit'cha back against the ropes And I also know how to survive the struggle When shit gets tough you gotta up your hustle Set some new goals, raise your self-esteem Don't let nothin intervene or get in between If you gotta push weight, keep your money clean And if you gotta strip girl, be the best you can be If you gotta run scams then, cover your trail Cause it's hard feedin babies when you locked in jail If you cain't hold a job cause you just got out Try another route, you know what I'm talkin about And when you do make it big give back to the hood So when you gotta go back it's still to the good Stay loyal to your people, show 'em that you care Cause in the end you know they be right there, just remember that [Hook] - (how you know) [Female singer ad libs harmony to fade]