[Intro: Common]
The revolution will not be televised
The revolution is here
Yeah, it's Common Sense with DJ Premier
We gon' help y'all see clear
It's real hip-hop music from the soul, y'all
Yeah, check it, yo

[Verse 1: Common]
The perseverance of a rebel, I drop heavier levels
It's unseen or heard, a king with words
Can't knock the hustle, but I seen street dreams deferred
Dark spots in my mind where the scene occurred
Some say I'm too deep, I'm in too deep to sleep
Through me, Muhammad will forever speak
Greet brothers with handshakes on ghetto landscapes
Where a man is determined by how much a man make
Cop cognacs and spit old raps with young cats
With cigarettes in they ear, niggerish, they appear
Under the Fubu is a guru that's untapped
Wanna be in the rap race but ain't ran one lap
Ran so far from the streets that you can't come back
You trippin' with nowhere to unpack, forgot that

[Chorus: Bilal, Prodigy & Common]
This is rap for real, somethin' you feel
And you know, yes, you know
This is rap for real, somethin' you feel
And you know, yes, you know
This is rap for real, somethin' you feel
Hey, hey
This is rap— this is rap for real
And you know, yes, you know
This is rap for the Black people (One, two)
[Verse 2: Common]
In front of two-inch glass and Arabs, I order fries
Inspiration when I write, I see my daughter's eyes
I'm the truth, across the table from corporate lies
Immortalized by the realness I bring to it
If revolution had a movie, I'd be theme music
My music, you either fight, fuck, or dream to it
My life is one big rhyme, I tried to scheme through it
Through my shell, never knew what that divine'd bring through it
I'd be lyin' if I said I didn't want millions
More than money saved, I wanna save children
Dealing with alcoholism and Afrocentricity
A complex man drawn off of simplicity
Reality is friskin' me
This industry'll make you lose intensity
The Common Sense in me remembers the basement
I'm Morpheus in this hip-hop Matrix, exposin' fake shit

[Chorus: Bilal, Prodigy & Common]
And you know, yes, you know
This is rap for real, somethin' you feel (Yeah, one, two)
And you know, yes, you know
This is rap for the Black people (Yeah, how we do it)
Hey, hey
This is rap— this is rap for real (The soul music)
And you know, yes, you know
This is rap for real (Yeah)
[Verse 3: Common]
Some days, I take the L to gel with the real world
Got on at 87th, sat by this little girl
She recited raps, I forgot where they was from
In 'em, she was sayin' how she make brothers cum
I started thinkin' how many souls hip-hop has affected
How many dead folks this art resurrected
How many nations this culture connected
Who am I to judge one's perspective?
Though some of that shit, y'all pop to it, I ain't relatin'
If I don't like it, I don't like it, that don't mean that I'm hatin'
I just wanna innovate and stimulate minds
Travel the world and penetrate the times
Escape through rhythms in search of peace and wisdom
Raps are smoke signals lettin' the streets know I'm with 'em
For now, I appreciate this moment in time
Ball players and actors be knowin' my rhymes, it's like

[Chorus: Bilal, Prodigy & Common]
And you know, yes, you know
This is rap for real, somethin' you feel
And you know, yes, you know
This is rap for real, somethin' you feel
Hey, hey
This is rap— this is rap for real
And you know, yes, you know
This is rap for the Black people
And you know, yes, you know
This is rap— Common Sense
And you know, yes, you know
This is rap for real, somethin' you feel
Hey, hey
This is rap— this is rap for real
And you know, yes, you know
This is rap for real, somethin' you feel
[Outro: Bilal]
You know
And you know, yeah (Woah)
Yeah

[Skit: Common]
Yo, get away from me, man
Yo, man, yo, yo
What are you doin' around here, man? I thought I told you to stay away
Look, man, I told you, I need it, man
No, no, no, I don't got anything for you, man
Uh, excuse me, Common?
Yeah, yeah, what's up?
Oh my goodness, um, I'm sorry, I'm sorry to bother you
I just wanted to know if I could get your autograph, and, and, and
I just wanted to tell you, I just wanted to thank you because your lyrics are so positive for the women out here
Oh, yeah, I appreciate that, I appreciate that, sister, you know
It's like, I think that we gotta portray women in a better light
You know how, you know, most rappers is talkin' all this other stuff, makin' women look bad, you know
I was raised by my mother, you know, I got a daughter, so it's like (Comrade, comrade)
Wait, excuse me, excuse me (I can't be out here on the street)
The police is comin', this skirt's too short, uh-uh, it's rainin', uh-uh
I gotta go, this ain't cool, I ain't gettin' enough money
Bitch, bitch, didn't I tell you to get out there?
I don't give a fuck if the police out there, I don't give a fuck if it's snowin'
I want you out there hoin'
This a business, you ain't gone too far to see that yet
You know what I'm talkin' 'bout? Get your ass on them streets, get on gone, get my paper
Sorry about that, sister, I'm sorry for that
Oh my goodness, how you gon' dis-retrospect me like that?