[Intro: Ludacris]
I do it for hip-hop
I do it for hip-hop
I do it for hip-hop

[Verse 1: Ludacris]
Now this is what they call poetry in motion
My soul bleeds on the paper, heart screams with emotion
It's my daily devotion, the verses stay deeper than the ocean
So hip-hop you owe me a promotion!
Yeah I do a little boastin and braggin
What's all the commotion and naggin about? Cause I'm still the champ in the South?
Cause rappers get in the booth and I keep draggin em out?
Well they're fired, and these pink slips, I'm handin em out
Cause this is "Theater of the Mind," consider it a sign
Of what's to come next, my money's just fine
Bank filled with dumb checks, terrorist threat flow
Proceed to drop bombs like Mr. Funk Flex
But I don't do it for the money, I do it from the heart
I do it with the beat box, I did it from the start
I do it for the dee jays, I do it for the charts
The Van Gogh flow, Luda do it cause it's art
I do it for the fans, I do it on command
I do it for the front row, I do it for the stands
I spit it for the hood, I do it for the block
And since nine years old I did it for hip-hop, so
[Chorus 1: Ludacris]
I don't do it for them cars and the fancy drops
I do it for hip-hop
I do it for hip-hop
I do it for hip-hop
And I don't it for the chains and the flashin rocks
I do it for hip-hop
I do it for hip-hop
I do it for hip-hop

[Verse 2: Nas]
Uhh, uhh, uh
They say I'm so low key, I'm socially awkward
Only n***as who really know me, who I talk with
They smile in the light, hate in the dark
You call it beef, to me, it's just a fuckin walk in the park
Cause you are who you are when nobody's lookin
That's who you are, so when the cash and the cars is gone
The day after tomorrow, don't be askin to borrow
Ski mask it hard, like the way you rap in your bars
I can ride on you and whoever, devise new endeavors
I'm as live as a hive full of predators
Twenty thousand different species of bees
Some have poisonous stings, some just pollinate leaves
It's like rap, some just buzz, some will attack
Compromise their own life in fact
Sixteen years since my first sixteen
Pardon the rest of my n***as... but I'm the best who ever did it!
[Chorus 2: Ludacris, Nas, Ludacris & Nas]
I don’t do it for the cars and the fancy drops
Uh, I do it for hip-hop
Yeah, I do it for hip-hop
Uh, I do it for hip-hop
And I don’t do for the chains and the flashin’ rocks
Why we do it kid? I do it for hip-hop
Yeah, I do it for hip-hop
Uh, I do it for hip-hop

[Verse 3: Jay-Z]
Hip-hop, started out in the park
We used to do it to avoid the Narcs
I used to do it so the homeboy Clark
Can get the fuck off my back while I knocked off these packs
I used to rap to impress my friends
To pass the time while I was gettin' it in
Just so happens, I'm so illegal with the pen
They ain't want me doin' anything illegal again
I lost a lot of dogs to these streets
I got Grammy Awards on these beats
Thank God for Kool Herc
Without your shit I probably would've got murked
Shout out to Grandmaster Flash and to Caz
And even Jaz bum-ass
Hip-hop helped me wash my rocks
These other rappers couldn't wash my socks
That's why I took the number one slot
The realest shit in rap comes from my voice box
Lord knows when I was on my clock
I prolly never woulda stopped, thank God for hip-hop
[Chorus 3: Ludacris, Jay-Z, Ludacris, Nas & Jay-Z]
I don’t do for the cars and the fancy drops
Uh, I do it for hip-hop
I do it for hip-hop
I do it for hip-hop
And I don’t do for the chains and the flashin’ rocks
Come on, I do it for hip-hop
I do it for hip-hop
I do it for hip-hop

{*DJ scratches and Ludacris ad-libs until 4:56*}

[Chorus 1: Ludacris]
I don't do it for them cars and the fancy drops
I do it for hip-hop
I do it for hip-hop
I do it for hip-hop
And I don't it for the chains and the flashin rocks
I do it for hip-hop
I do it for hip-hop
I do it for hip-hop