Can It Be (Half a Million Dollars and 18 Months Later)

Lyrics

[Intro] It's been two years, man Of, of, of waitin', man (Oh!) Can it be I stayed away too long? [Verse 1] For my supporters and my fans, man, I know y'all been waitin' Now it's finally here and thank you for your patience The world's gone crazy since we last spoke Bloodshed in war, the absence of hope Shootin' at the school, economy's a joke Homies on heroine, homies on coke But can you even blame 'em when they only trying to cope? Damn! Can it be I stayed away too long? All these rappers wanna talk about is guns and dope Don't they realise we all at the end of our rope? The future all depends on the power of our quotes The power of a pen, the power of a vote The power of your words, the power of your voice The power of America's the freedom of choice We choose to do nothing, we losing, we suffering Can it be? That it's time to do something? It's not socialism, it's not communism It's loving each other, realise there's no difference It's positive movement, gradual improvement When no-one else does, believe you can do it My heart is a speaker, I bleed this music The beats in my blood, I must transfuse it If it wasn't for this, then I just might lose it, damn! (Look) Can it be I stayed away too long? My goddaughters, Nadia, Simone Diana, knowin' that her father's never coming home Claimed by the streets, victim of a war zone Tears in my eyes as I'm writing this song Mommy working two jobs, tryin' to do it on her own No matter where I go or how far I roam Know that I love you and you'll never be alone Can it be? Damn, y'all so grown [Interlude] (You don't have to worry 'cause I'm coming) And a, and a wise man told me, man Like, life is like a table full of, like, glasses of water (Back to where I should have always stayed) And your job is to keep 'em all full You know what I'm sayin'? (And now, I've learned the meaning to your story) So everyone's happy, but at the same time, you gotta keep your pitcher full of water (And it's enough love for me to stay) So you can fill everybody else up And it's like, damn! Can it be I stayed away too long? [Verse 2] From the independent hip hop scene Now they talkin' like how I'm not a hip hop fiend Needle in my arm, can't they see I'm OD'n? You'll never take the stripes from this triple OG'n I blaze trails, created festival Lost 50 G's on Paid Dues, is that acceptable? What, I'm not down for the cause? Can it be- Hold on Mike, I'ma need a few bars I could've done a Nas and screamed "Hip Hop Is Dead" I got up off my ass and I did somethin' instead (-Long) Signed with the devil, bought the scene up a level Killed the beast from within, I'm a born again rebel Tryin' to save the youth from the way of the gun And if I only save one then my job is done So you can say what you will, but you should judge me none Can it be I stayed away too long? From my God, from my faith as I move place to place At times I thought if I could just die, it'd be great Drop on the spot, man I didn't even care I stopped talking to you, I stopped saying prayers Numb from the liquor and the anti-depressants Pressure from the label, studio stressin' Almost lost my passion to pursue this profession, ahh! Can it be I stayed away too long? For myself, for my soul when I'm out on the road I give so much out to these kids, I don't know I thought I lost you with no-one to talk to But you're the one that opened up these doors that I walked through I can't fault you, only forgive you I'm the only one that's seen the pain that you been though The drama, the struggle that built all your issues Can it be I stayed away too long? The drama, the struggle that built all these issues It's all just to make sure they never forget you [Outro] Did I leave your mind when I was gone? Its not my thing trying to get back But this time let me tell you where I'm at