and the whole world is the Ville

Lyrics

[Verse 1: J. Cole] What I rep to the death is where my steps were first taken At that same time, my moms felt the earth shakin'Under her, her youngest son was aBaby Godzilla , raised amongst the dazed and the crazy-eyed killers, uhThe V-I-L-L-E Some of thеm sell cars, some of them sеll weedSome of them sell pills, some of them sell ki'sSome of them sell grills , some of them sell Studio time so that you can go rhymeUsing your mind to dream bigger than most do Well, listen close, the perfect nigga to coach youIs on the mic to ignite the 'Ville's first at flightI'm a Wright brother The hardest nigga on the mic, got a white mother She picked a hell of a spot From the bottom, one day her son was finna dwell at the topYeah, I been all around the world, but I never forgotThe fuckin'— [Chorus: J. Cole] 'Ville, the motherfuckin' 'VilleI said the 'Ville, the motherfuckin' 'VilleThe 'Ville, the motherfuckin' 'VilleI said the 'Ville, the motherfuckin' 'VilleF-A-Y-E-T-T-E-V-I double L-EF-A-Y-E-T-T-E-V-I double L-EF-A-Y-E-T-T-E-V-I double L-EF-A-Y-E-T-T-E-V-I— uh [Verse 2: J. Cole] The best cyphers was football gamesOr at the skatin' rink, wherever all the neighborhoods came A lot of niggas carried razors and be hangin' with gangsBut when I started rappin', I wasn't afraid of them thangs I started killing niggas one by oneThe crowd was gettin' bigger, when I got doneThey said, "Youngin is a problem" , but yet and still We in an unknown city where no record dealsHad ever filled somebody's pockets, that's when I clocked it If they won't come to me, I'll go to them and make a profit I took it up top, now can you visualize the optics?The only southern nigga that New York ever adopted, aQueens nigga with the honorary doctorate, butStill, the 'Ville remains in my veins I came to do what I claim I do to attainWhat was ordained unattainable for a nigga from the— [Chorus: J. Cole] 'Ville, the motherfuckin' 'VilleThe 'Ville, the motherfuckin' 'VilleI said the 'Ville, the motherfuckin' 'VilleI'm from the 'Ville, the motherfuckin' 'Ville F-A-Y-E-T-T-E-V-I double L-EF-A-Y-E-T-T-E-V-I double L-EF-A-Y-E-T-T-E-V-I double L-EF-A-Y-E-T-T-E-V-I— uh [Verse 3: J. Cole] Now, this tale was composed for thoseWho arose within this lil' area code on the globe Like the rose that grows from out the concrete abodeYou gotta just go, no matter the goal You're from a beautiful, but not reputable placeYou seen your fair share of funeral datesBut smiles far outweigh the tearsEmbrace the hurt, don't downplay your fearsIt may take years, just keep your eyes on the road as you steer Keep all negative peers in your rear-view mirror 'Cause most niggas is scared, they wanna be safe And they gon' try to tear you down because you wanna be great In order for there to be love, there's gonna be hate Remember, this life ain't guaranteed Talk to the mic for your therapy Aim for the top, you'll be there with me, from the— [Chorus: J. Cole] 'Ville, the motherfuckin' 'VilleThe 'Ville, the motherfuckin' 'VilleI'm from the 'Ville, the motherfuckin' 'VilleThe 'Ville, the motherfuckin' 'VilleF-A-Y-E-T-T-E-V-I double L-EF-A-Y-E-T-T-E-V-I double L-EF-A-Y-E-T-T-E-V-I double L-EF-A-Y-E-T-T-E-V-I— uh [Outro: The Isley Brothers] Love put me on the cornerLove put me in the streetLove put me on the cornerLove put me in the street