Wise (The Art of Tragedy)

Heed my words and learn from this I won't give you respect unless you earned it Kid better shake their hands with the firmest grip Hands out your pocket when working Quit walking around like you purposeless Don't burn a bridge that's sturdy Give earnest service to him, her, and them You special but don't deserve shit Real men these days, they hard to find A mama's love is permanent But no one else is on your side Your girlfriend ain't your journal kid Know when you have to start a fire Or compromise or turn and sprint Always have your keys in hand Some ride-alongs ain't worth the trip Don't trust a soul that has two eyes A nose, two ears, and yapping lips Hair of wool and skin of bronze They look at us like savages But you can be a warrior in a garden That's a massive gift What's money without management Another nigga trapped again Keep your mirror at hand as men All that ego is damaging You chilling with your gang and them You lucky if you have one friend By the time you reach my age You'll develop a callousness I wish someone had told me these things In my adolescence shit Please don't follow me Just follow my words I was still a child During my child's birth What makes up a man I never quite learned Before you can provide Gotta be wise first You gotta be wise first You gotta be wise first You gotta be wise first You gotta be wise first You gotta be wise first You gotta be wise first Yeah, yeah, yeah Please don't follow me Just follow my words I was still a child During my child's birth What makes up a man I never quite learned Before you can provide Before you can provide Gotta be wise first You gotta be wise first You gotta be wise first You gotta be wise first I walked out the store and wondered Why this man had stopped me for Shocked at how he oddly warned me Like he knew me fondly But this man I never saw before He's yapping on and I ignored He' s snappy, told me I was lost Talking out of pocket I stopped him like what's the problem dog He started pouring his heart out more I'm thinking when this guy gon' need A dollar to go cop some water Talking like some prophet Then he grabbed me with a lot of force He wiped his eyes, he starts to cry He lost his son, the mom's divorced Then lost his son on Project corners All because his father wasn't around And when his mom's divorced his pops He found a father with his mobster boys He said he'll probably take his life Tomorrow morning All that trauma was a bridge He couldn't walk across PTSD no less than a soldier That had fought and lost People, he was looking right At his dead son, but it was me We looked alike, he took the time To give me that lecture He wished he told his son before The streets had came and took his life Please don't follow me Just follow my words I was still a child During my child's birth What makes up a man I never quite learned Before you can provide Gotta be wise first Gotta be wise first Gotta be wise first Gotta be wise first Yeah, yeah, yeah Please don't follow me Just follow my words I was still a child During my child's birth What makes up a man I never quite learned Before you can provide Gotta be wise first Gotta be wise first You gotta be wise first You gotta be wise first Yeah, yeah, yeah