Akala Why Do Lyrics

Familiar scene, street corner, tape and sheets,
18 put to sleep, talk on the street,
Til next week when a different face is another life wasted,
Self-hatred is dangerous, the world see him as a thug,
But don't understand,
That a poor black man, ain't born with a strap in his hand,
Was soft like all children at 5 years old,
But the cycle and society, turned him cold,
Pops fled the scene, left mom's on her own,
To feed 3 seeds alone, so she never home,
Sweatin' for change, but there's big dough in the game,
And he wanna be next to push a range,
So we change innocent, to militant ways, Rollin' with the bigger boys, doin whatever they say,
But wait these streets ain't got no glory,
Man rolled up on him, you know the rest of the story

[Chorus:]
Why do we live this way oh lord?
Why do we have to live this way?
Why do we live this way oh lord?
Why do we have to live this way?

Look at what we see and go through,
Of course we're thugs, cause of our will to survive,
Not cause of drugs,
Living in foulest conditions, still breed proudest traditions,
We speak, everybody listen,
But we still jealous, when one of us shining,
Like I'm grindin, why's my man shining?
I ain't criticizing, been known to be whiling, Just tryna give you food for thought when I'm rhyming,
Cause I'm tired of youts' them dyin' cause there's no guidance,
But I won't have my fam cryin,
An eye for an eye? That's your science?
Cool we're the same then, let's get blinded,
I'm not in the hype ting-handle ma business,
If I feel somethings a threat, then that threats missin,
Just know that my heart was good and that I tried,
I just had too much pride,

[Chorus]

No matter how we act, we all got emotion,
Just learn to hide it, it hurts to open,
The street is a movie, stay in your role,
If you let it go, vultures swallow you whole,
But it don't fool me bro, I see things clear,
Big killers get big years and shed big tears,
If not at trial, gradually as the years pass,
The guilt set in like a vice on the heart,
Reminiscing bout the nigga at your side,
Now he's missin' and no wishin could give him back life,
That's just life, shit ain't fair,
Man scream "street dreams', all I see is the nightmare's,
Locked up, years pass seed dun grown,
Get murked or hit the pipe, Either way you a ghost,
And that's reality even though it's crazy,
Got to change, or it's the same fate for our babies...

[Chorus]