You Gotta Be lyrics Lyrics

song lyrics You Gotta Be... lyrics (I used to be a stick-up kid)  --> Rakim [ VERSE 1 ] Everybody in the ghetto tell me... Is it a lie that I must be a ruffneck And wear a frown just to be down? I kinda don t agree with bein (tough) But you gotta be (rough) It s either you claimin your hood, or you re not a gee Forget about respect, I refuse to be the next guy Fitted for a casket, either with it, or get blasted I choose to gangbang, they give me a chrome-plated trigger Say, "If you got any heart, go rob that Mini-Mart, nigga" Now look what I done did, damn, I had to be the big man They re lookin at me shifty, better shut up fore I get slammed Man, I m not a thief, good grief, and I don t wanna act hard But then they said if I didn t do it, they was gonna gat, far As I could see (I was gonna be) The next new member of the crew, cause it s 8 of them and 1 of me I don t wanna do it, but I will Cause I still want folks to think that I m hard and tough Cause you gotta be (rough) Cause you gotta be (tough) Cause you gotta be (rough) (I used to be a stick-up kid) [ VERSE 2 ] Well, it s the niggeroe, again, right back in where I left off Still tryin to make a decision, I might go to prison if I don t step off But if I don t rob this store, then I m not sure If I m gonna be considered as a gee And you gotta be (rough) Cuffs are temporary, homies are for life So I grab the deuce-deuce and go inside I decide to prove in the Mini-Mart, "Don t nobody move Start fillin up the paper sack with loot, or I might shoot" But things didn t go as planned, cause this man had his own gun We re standin toe to toe, eye to eye, so I figured why not Pull the trigger? Put this nigga on the ground It ll show that I had poise, then my boy ll know I m down But I didn t do it quick enough, or he thought of it first Cause he blasted to the chest, and now I m restin yellin, "Nurse!" And holdin on to life, or at least tryin to hold on In a jailward wearin cuffs Cause I had to be (rough) Cause you gotta be (tough) Cause you gotta be (rough) (I used to be a stick-up kid) And everybody, everybody gotta be rough, y all (I used to be a stick-up kid) And everybody, everybody gotta be tough, y all (I used to be a stick-up kid) [ VERSE 3 ] Well, that s the end of my tale, but before we know Fools ll just forget what I said, and the story go On and on, until you re up to no good And back throwin up your hood And still doin what you shouldn t Niggeroes, come together, cause divided we fall So stall that gang shit, stand up Quit standin in handcuffs Really hard s when you got loot And you ain t gotta shoot Damn man, enough is enough So why you gotta be (rough) Cause you gotta be (tough) Cause you gotta be (rough) (I used to be a stick-up kid) song lyrics