Can I Live

Can I live? Can I live? Yeah, it's me, huh, I know you all seen me I'm the one who brings the blingin' Pushin' whips and 22 inch chromes spinnin' (Can I live?) La da y'all wanna judge me? Hair braided up, pants saggin' Can I just live, yo? (Yo, I'm just tryna live) Why can't y'all leave me alone? Man seem like everybody be judging me Talkin' behind my back, fakin' the smiles and huggin' me Pointin' fingers, hatin', jealous of my success Praying for my downfall, can't handle me being blessed Now you'd rather see me at the bottom of the totem poll Scraping for dollars on the edge 'bout to lose control Back on the corner, still livin' in the projects Still strugglin' down and out with no prophets Still drivin' through the hood in a bucket I'm 'bout bringing my people over like I'm Harriet Tubman, huh Been through the fire like Kanye West Beat the odds, now I'm on shuffles and I-pods See most of y'all could never reach stature 'cause half of you gangsta rappers is gangsta actors And back-stabbers, y'all got the game backwards But Bone and Darkchild make hits like linebackers Can I live? If you wanna be in my shoes then get in You can talk the talk but don't live the life I live So can I live? that's my question, can I? Can I live? If you wanna be in my shoes then get in You can talk the talk but don't live the life I live So can I live? that's my question, can I? I shed blood, sweat and tears, been on this grind for years I'm at the top of the charts, no respect from peers I could be the franchise still I'm chastised Spreading ya lies, need to recognize there's two sides My whole life been the underdog Against the odds, back still against the wall Fighting to represent in the ring for God Consciously makin' records for a different cause This crab game keep pullin' me down But like Ron Artest been known to rebound And like Roy Jones, I'm pound for pound Spittin' a different kind of message over platinum sounds Can I get some love and a little respect? Can I rock your world without giving you sex? And can I live in peace? Man I paid my dues You'll never know where I been until ya walked in my shoes Can I live? If you wanna be in my shoes then get in You can talk the talk but don't live the life I live So can I live? that's my question, can I? (Can I live yo?) Can I live? If you wanna be in my shoes then get in You can talk the talk but don't live the life I live So can I live? that's my question, can I? Yeah, I'm in it for the long hall, committed to the end like John Paul I'm tryin' to make a change, throw stones if I'm wrong If you can do it better then by all means Shoot for the stars but stop crushin' all my life?s dreams And let me fulfill my destiny and purpose Why you try to make me feel no good and worthless? This life is all a player got to give So back up and give me room to breath, can I live? Can I live? If you wanna be in my shoes then get in You can talk the talk but don't live the life I live (It ain't easy, yo) So can I live? that's my question, can I? (Can I live, yo?) Can I live? If you wanna be in my shoes then get in You can talk the talk but don't live the life I live (Ya ain't been in my shoes) So can I live? that's my question, can I? Can I live? If you wanna be in my shoes then get in (Yeah, so hard, yo) You can talk the talk but don't live the life I live (Just tryna be me) So can I live? that's my question, can I? (It's only when I know how, yo) Can I live? (Came from the ghetto I'm just tryin' to give back) If you wanna be in my shoes then get in (Ya ain't ever walked in my shoes) You can talk the talk but don't live the life I live (So y'all don't know what I've been through) So can I live? that's my question, can I? (How can y'all judge me? Can I live, yo?) I feel about myself in this world sometimes Nobody relates what I've been tryna do for so many years Just tryna make a change, make a difference in all your lives Can I live? Can I live? Can I live?