[Chorus]
My momma always told me, check yourself, ‘fore you wreck yourself
Always remember that you can love yourself, ‘fore you hate yourself
Self-love is a thing that you must put upon yourself, for real
The quickest way to live, the quickest way to die
No matter if you from the bottom, you can still rise
Be careful who you trust, ‘cause they could still lie
Alive in your heart, you can still die
Even I’m standing still, still I rise
A black man can have a heart, but he can still cry, (for real)
I thought it was for sure, thought it was for rеal
I thought we had connection, thought we madе a deal

[Verse 1]
Nature is a thing that is beautiful, but has some twists and turns
The fire sparks quick, and is quick to burn
Always had a mind of my own, was quick to learn
Mama taught me something, and was quick to earn
I’ve been longing for my heart, something I yearned for
My heart pulled up on the spot in which my brain works
I don’t care for the faces, just wondering if your brain works
I took pain as a given, to see if the pain works
I took a turn in life to see if the lane works, (for real)
I came into the game with cross on my chest
Shorty came in with red marks on her neck
Gamble with my heart, but never played chess
No matter you at, we can still bet
[Chorus]
My momma always told me, check yourself, ‘fore you wreck yourself
Always remember that you can love yourself, ‘fore you hate yourself
Self-love is a thing that you must put upon yourself, for real
The quickest way to live, the quickest way to die
No matter if you from the bottom, you can still rise
Be careful who you trust, ‘cause they could still lie
Alive in your heart, you can still die
Even I’m standing still, still I rise
A black man can have a heart, but he can still cry, (for real)
I thought it was for sure, thought it was for real
I thought we had connection, thought we made a deal

[Verse 2]
Always told myself one day, I’ll be in the king’s place
One day, I’ll be running the king’s race
People will always remember the king’s face
I’ll be the one to finish tying up the king’s lace
I’ll be the one to stop the king’s hate
Put the frosting across the king’s cake
I wish I could choose the king’s fate
I wish I could see the king, but the king’s late
No matter where you at, we could still play
Always love yourself, because people will still hate, come on
Put my heart together like clay, fire it up in the kiln, but I bet it’ll still break
We use be the players in the old days
But now we look like we still fake
Dead or alive, he was still great
One of he best, run a race on field day, but now I’m wishing he were still with me
I’m getting tired of the R.I.P’s man, for real
[Chorus]
My momma always told me, check yourself, ‘fore you wreck yourself
Always remember that you can love yourself, ‘fore you hate yourself
Self-love is a thing that you must put upon yourself, for real
The quickest way to live, the quickest way to die
No matter if you from the bottom, you can still rise
Be careful who you trust, ‘cause they could still lie
Alive in your heart, you can still die
Even I’m standing still, still I rise
A black man can have a heart, but he can still cry, (for real)
I thought it was for sure, thought it was for real
I thought we had connection, thought we made a deal

[Outro]
Love for all, hate to none
Because at the start there is hate, but in the end, there is peace
When all is said and done, there will still always be happiness in someone’s heart
You just have to be the one to know it
If you look around and no one notices the happiness, you must acknowledge it
For real