The Day The Niggaz Took Over

(album: The Chronic - 1992)

I'ma say this and I'ma end mine
If you ain't down for the Africans here in the United States
Period, point-blank
If you ain't down for the ones that suffered in South Africa from apartheid and shit
Dammit, you need to step your punk-ass to the side
And let us brothers and us Africans step in
And start putting some foot in that ass!

Break 'em off something, break 'em off something
Break 'em off something, break 'em off something
Break 'em off something, break 'em off something
Break 'em off something, break 'em off something

I got my finger on the trigger, some niggas wonder why
But living in the city, it's do-or-die
I got my finger on the trigger, some niggas wonder why
But living in the city, it's do-or-die

Them wonder why mi violent, them no really understand
For the reason why mi take mi law in mi own hand
Mi not out for peace and mi not Rodney King
The gun goes click, mi gun goes bang
Them riot in Compton and them riot in Long Beach
Them riot in L.A. 'cause them no really wanna see
Niggas start to loot and police start to shoot
Lock us down at seven o'clock, barricade us like Beirut
Mi don't show no love 'cause it's us against them
Them never, ever love me 'cause it's sport to break them
And kill, at my own risk, if I may
To lay, to spray with my AK, and put 'em to rest

Yes, we have—there have been riots, ah, uh, rioting
Well, I don't wanna say rioting, but there's been looting downtown
But right now, Bree, what I want to show you is
They have started fires down at the end of the street

How many niggas are ready to loot?
Yeah, so what you wanna do? What you wanna do?
I said, how many niggas are ready to loot?
Got myself an Uzi and my brother a 9

That's what they told us today, "In other words, you still a slave"
No matter how much money you got, you still ain't shit!

Sitting in my living room, calm and collected
Feeling that gotta-get-mine perspective
'Cause what I just heard broke me in half
And half the niggas I know, plus the niggas on the Row is bailing
Laugh now, but cry much later
You see, when niggas get together, they get mad 'cause they can't fade us
Like my niggas from South Central, Los Angeles
They found that they couldn't handle us
Bloods, Crips on the same squad
With the Ese's helping, nigga, it's time to rob and mob
And break the white man off something lovely, biddy-bye-bye
I don't love them so them can't love me
Yo, straight putting it down, getting my scoot on
It's jumping off in Compton so I gots to get my loot on
And come up on me some furniture or something
Got a VCR in the back of my car
That I ganked from the Slauson Swap Meet
And motherfuckers better not try to stop me
'Cause they will see that I can't be stopped
'Cause I'ma cock my Glock and pop 'til they all drop

Yes, on the videotape we seem to have the, uh
People in the crowd throwing things at the officers
And swinging at them as well
As there was a, uh, young woman there, you see, took a swing at—
At an officer with some object in her hand

How many niggas are ready to loot?
Yeah, so what you wanna do? What you wanna do?
I said, how many niggas are ready to loot?
Got myself an Uzi and my brother a nine

I got my finger on the trigger, some niggas wonder why
But living in the city, it's do-or-die
I got my finger on the trigger, some niggas wonder why
But living in the city, it's do-or-die

One-time trigger happy, no nigga love
One-eighty-seven time, time to grab the glove
Can't get prints on a nine I throw away
Or get prints on my Uzi when it spray
Pop-pop, pop, another motherfucker drop
And I get relief like, plop, plop, fizz
Smash, I crashed his head like a window
I ain't Nintendo, I'm high off the indo
Creeping, with the quickness to the cut
Bust one to his head while he munches on a doughnut
And crack-up, so now he best to back up
I guess I gots to pack up, filling the clip up
I zip uptown but motherfucking cops are all around
Helicopters flying, these motherfuckers trying
To catch me and stretch me on Death Row
But hell no, the poor blacks refuse to go

This now covers a very, very wide area of Los Angeles where these fires have been, uh, ignited
I mean, from here to the, uh, to the south end of South Central is a long way

Break 'em off something, break 'em off something
Break 'em off something, break 'em off something
Break 'em off something, break 'em off something
Break 'em off something, break 'em off something

The outcome of this is destruction, so them all fall
Niggas don't give a fuck, so them bust and them fall
The description of three blacks
Shows no justice, so, pick up it's your right
If you riot again, mi, turn the other cheek
We, be too many, mi got, mi nine to my side
So mi bust, flick, 'cause he don't give a fuck
And mi don't give a fuck
And all my problems end with that buck-buck

Blam, blam, blam 'til them fall
Listen to the shots from a nigga Doggy Dogg, biddy-bye
Dr. Dre, him bust gun shots
Diggidy Daz and RBX, them bust gun shots
Come again