Millennial Psalms
The Art of War
Let me provide you with an overview of the total work. These lines are pulled from the songs in sequence. Together they tell the story. I read this poem at a reading one night in San Francisco. It's kind of long. It's very passionate. It's real. Relatively speaking it is a very clean version of what you will find in the details of the work. So be it. The concept is scalable and the context finds its own audience. Dear sheep, an adaptation of Art of War...
The Art of War by Bone Thugs in Harmony
As we ride, by end of the night, you will envision how thugstas play.
Look into my eyes and tell me what it is you see in me. Would you look into my eyes?
Listen up, and hear what's spoken as I start this locomotion, retaliate because we chosen, open showin' the Lord devotion. Yeah.
Ridin' with death.
I'm ready for war.
One of my heroes, Jesus, blessed me to be lethal with automatic, let you have it, you don't want to see any evil. I'll take it to the people, then I will meet you at the funeral.
See what you see in my eyes--murder, murder, death defied!
We're resistance, baby, tell me what do you wanna do? You can ride and smoke with me, or I can ride and smoke with you. It's all cool.
It ain't gon' change. We won't change. Bone thugs-n-harmony, we keeps it realer.
Ain't nothin' changed everyday. Ain't nothin' changed.
Tell me, can you feel us, feel us, feel us?
Y'all know we don't worship sin, it's the hearts of men that we test.
Stress, wanna be blessed, confess when we sin, it's the wage for sin to be dead. And it ain't promised that all the souls would last 'til the days 'til after tomorrow, and if you'd follow the end of the world, shit, it comin' so soon, it's so hard to swallow. I know.
This is all real, what you see. I said it's all real. It's just the thug in me.
Yeah, I'm just tryin' to prepare myself, ya know what I'm sayin', for the wars to come. Straight warrior, what ya gon' do when we come for you? Ya know what I'm sayin', y'all feel me?
Now I can vouch with God as my witness that this wickedness will not remain. You gotta make up your mind. You wanna be saved? Make up your mind, or you wanna die? You wanna die?
Oh, yes, we're thugs but more than thugs--God's soldiers, wasteland warriors on a mission for God, so pardon ya, pardon ya, pardon ya.
Mind of a souljah, mind of a souljah, release and feel me.
Here's the deal, can I get a witness? It's deeper than survival. Who am I? My brother's keeper? Yeah, I be clutchin' on my Bible, willing to die.
The wicked is near me, dearly departed, but nobody hears me. 'Cause we all gon' fall in misery. It's so serious, it bring tears to me.
But if I could to teach the world to be a thug just like me, you could live your lifestyle worry-free in the arms of the Lord eternally. No mystery, but check the essence of the story: a warrior, wasteland warrior so true.
Some wanna treat me like I'm forbidden, but I'm just lookin' for the shit that's hidden. Could I be? Come a little bit closer, why you cautious when you approach us? Is you scared of the fact we soldiers?
Under my halo, pray more, say Mo Thug with love to the depth that game goes.
You know we're so thuggish ruggish, and yo, we're good humble people, on the grind to teach the world to be a thug in harmony so peaceful.
Gather, souls, get up, get up, and let us move on. Maybe some could follow if their hearts were not so cold to us. Bone, come and venture through the family scripture, flip through every page and you'll find true niggas like no other kind.
The roots exploited clones; therefore, it's my job to describe the loudness, the habitat of rap survival kit. Artistic skin abrasion, so when 'em fadin' my worldly reflections, it's magnified to new levels of elevation. 7 sign, 7 sign seal, now ya'll know . . . Nowhere to run; here come judgement day.
And you know I get greater later, so I continue grindin'. It's all about perfect timin', feel me, it's about perfect timin', hear me.
You get it how you take it, but the only way you'll make it, givin' peace to the G-O-D, your Lord.
I'm a young entrepreneur who can see through the bloody blood. Come prepared for eternal warfare, and I really don't care, 'cause I'm sayin' my prayers to the Man upstairs. Lookin' out for each other everyday, and our peoples' comin' up readin' the Bible.
What it is, it's the book of thugs. Come a little bit closer, nigga, take a look at this, picture this vision of a mission accomplished. Bone thugs all the way 'til the end, and again, and again, and again, and again, don't try to come between my, my . . . Friends, friends, friends.
Feel the thunder in the sky. We've partied overtime. No more evil paradise, we've partied overtime.
And this will all in time come before the days of our last bread and wine, have you thought of dyin'? My, my, my, have ya thought of dyin'? If not, visualize. If you feel me, then ya better wake up. If you feel me, then ya better get up.
Can you visualize your own death? Could ya imagine breathin' your last breath? I bet ya, ya can't. You don't wanna stay. Dear Lord, can I stay?
Armageddon, it's comin'. Yes, it's comin'. Now, look what we've done. What have we brought on amongst ourselves? Why the hell we follow evil footsteps? They'll be no mercy, mercy, mercy... Evil is lurkin', lurkin', lurkin'. You can run, but can't escape from the beast.
Come and look at this world that's ever so cruel, but the good Lord blessed us.
So, I'd like to thank You, Jesus Christ, for givin' for givin' up Your life for us. Now, I can think twice, 'fore roll the dice.
Come on, come on and swing this way, swing this way. It got to be harmony. Evil'll be done, wicked erased.
Humbly United Gatherin' Souls understood.
Get up, get pumped, do what ya want just don't insult my game. Nigga, this is a family thang. 'Til I take one to the brain, I'll remain the same. You look out for me. I look out for you. This is what you do to unite your trues.
Mo Thug, Mo Thug, Mo Thug.