trip down memory,
lane at the cemetery
Rain, grey skies,
seems at the end of every
Young black life is this line,
"Damn, him already?
Such a good kid," got us
pouring Henn' already
Liquor to the curb for my,
niggas up above
When it, cracks through the pavement
that's my way of sending love
So, give Big a hug, tell Aaliyah I said hi
'Til the next time I see her,
on the other side
He was just some thug that,
caught some slugs
And we loved him 'cause,
in him we, saw some of us
He walked like us, talked like us
His back against the wall,
nigga fought like us, damn
Poor Isis, that's his mama name
Mama ain't strong enough to raise no boy,
what's his father name?
Shorty never knew him,
though he had his blood in him
Hot temper, mama said he act
just like her husband
Daddy never fucked with him,
so the streets raised him
Isis blaming herself,
she wish she could of saved him
Damn near impossible,
only men can raise men
He was his own man,
not even him can save him
He put his faith in her,
thirty- eight in his waist
But when you live by the gun
you die by the same fate
End up,
dead before thirty- eight and umm
That's the life of us raised by winter,
it's a cold world
Old girl turned to coke,
tried to smoke her pain away
Isis, life just, ended on that rainy day
When she got the news her boy
body could be viewed
Down at the City Morgue,
opened the drawer, saw him nude
Her addiction grew, prescription drugs,
sippn' brew
Angel dust, dipped in woo
She slipped into, her own fantasy world
Had herself pregnant by a different dude
But reality bites and, this is her life
He wasn't really her husband,
though he called her wife
It was just this night when,
moon was full
And the stars were just right,
and the dress was real tight
Had her sounding like Lisa Lisa,
I wonder if I take you home
Will you still love me after this night?
Mike was the hard head from
the around the way
That she wanted all her life,
shit she wanted all the hype
Used to hold on tight when he
wheelied on the bike
He was a Willie all her life he wasn't
really the one to like
It was a, dude named Shy who would
really treat her right
He wanted to run to the country
to escape the city life
But Isis, like this, Broadway life
She loved the Gucci sneakers,
the red green and whites
Hanging out the window when she
first seen him fight
She was so turned on that
she had to shower twice
How ironic it would, be some fight that
Turned into a homicide
that'll alter their life
See Mike at thirty- two
was still on the scene
Had a son fifteen that he never saw twice
Sure he saw him as an infant,
but he dissed on him like
"If that was my son,
he would look much different
See I'm light- skinnded and that
baby there's dark
So it's, mama's baby,
poppa's maybe"
Mike was still crazy out there running
the streets (fuck niggas want?)
Had his old reliable thirty-
eight gun in his reach
It's been fourteen years,
him and Isis ain't speak
He running around like life's a peach,
'til one day
He approached this thug that,
had a mean mug
And it looked so familiar that he
called him "Young Cuz"
Told him, get off the strip but the boy
ain't budge (fuck you)
Instead he pulled out a
newer thirty- eight snub
He clearly had the drop but the boy
just paused (hold up)
There was something in this man's
face he knew he seen before
It's like, looking in the mirror
seeing his self more mature
And he took it as a sign from
the almighty Lord
You know what they say about he who
hesitates in war
(What's that?) He who hesitates is lost
He can't explain what he saw
before his picture went blank
The old man didn't think he
just followed his instinct
Six shots into his kin, out of the gun
Niggas be a father, you're killing your son
Six shots into his kin, out of the gun
Niggas be a father,
you killing your sons
Jay-z 
