The Notorious B.I.G.
Rocky
Yeah, yo
You see I'm standing here before you
Like a man in a courtroom, solemnly swore to tell the truth
You see you gave me your ears, and I gave you my heart
I told you my story from the start
To my teenage years, testing a gun out in the park
No fear from the banging or the spark
To my days of Christianity
Them times with no electricity
Sitting in my house in the dark
I was raised on a council estate
My mum struggled to put food on the plate
I remember I would stay up late
Watching the videos on MTV
I wanted the same Versace shades like B.I.G
I wanted a Cubana chain like him Jay-Z
I wanted to drive in a Range, that was a childhood dream
I guess I'm victim to all things that I seen
I guess I'm fortunate to get taught 'bout this deen
After Gypsy Hill, that was the street turf
Some young brothers putting in some street work
In 2002, that was the rebirth
Some diamonds growing from the deep dirt
Real pain, that's why we hurt
Some lost souls, a purpose we search
Yeah we step into religion then we reverse
Going back to the life that we live first
A random man then started feeling lost
I found retribution inside the mosque
And I couldn't find happiness in anything
I started reviewing all the places I was searching
Like money, jewellery and women
Cars, guns, killing, clubs, drugs, hustling
Look at the lifestyle we was living
Now I find satisfaction in the simple things
Look at the inner peace that religion brings
Like, just knowing your purpose in life
Like, knowing the Angel of Death can take your soul tonight
Like, the possibility of you getting to paradise
You know, knowing you can get there if you're living right
Like, you was on the left then you went right
Like, Allah found you lost and He chose to guide
So now on the Straight Path, I try to walk
I'm tryna be steadfast, going to a talk
But it's like I'm getting caught between these different sects
They're like "Bro, we don't rep what them brothers rep"
I said "But they're Muslim and we're Muslim too"
And they said "Na, we don't do what them brothers do"
So now that had me feeling confused
I was only 6 month in, was still brand new
It's time for me to research my religion
Fly away to Egypt, Qur'an I put my head in
That's when it was getting lonely in this bedding
I started dreaming 'bout a wedding
I'm from Jamaica, she's from Pakistan
The way your father said no, you'd fink it was 7ram
What happened to the words of Rasulullah?
Peace be upon Allah's messenger
That's why he cried for this ummah
Wallahi, he gave his life to this ummah
Then we took the deen and complicated things
Look at them, look at us, it's not the same thing
I never saw hatred like this before
Racism like this before I never saw
And to find it in religion was the worst bit
Felt like I was being dragged through a dirt pit
Yeah and when a man isn't perfect
They easily serve his flesh on a banquet
You have to be like Rocky Balboa when they knock you down
You have to get up off the floor
You have to be like Rocky Balboa till the last round
You always go for one more
I had to fly away to Kuwait
Wallahi I had to re-evaluate
You see I didn't like the fame I was getting
There shouldn't be no superstars in religion
And I was just tryna give Dawah man
Ibn Mansur, Imran
And now I understand this deen better
A couple things I was doing then really weren't clever
2010, that's when I had Sumaya
Refreshed my wudhu went and made a prayer
Made an oath to Allah, imma do better
Now I really try and do better
And now they hit me on the messenger
Young sister, still a teenager
If her father ever knew, he would hit the roof
The parents none the wiser in the other room
You see our young ones are slipping up
You see our teenagers are all falling off
We need to bring back some real teachers
And get our youth to stop listening to Deen Squad
And when it's all said and done
Forget me, go to the words of the Qur'an
Allah said He perfected this religion
And that religion is Islam
These might be the last words I ever wrote
These might be the last words I ever spoke
And if it's the last words you hear from your brother
I say don't follow me, follow the Qur'an and the Sunnah
Yeah