KAYTRANADA
The Artful Dodger
[Hook]
I mean, we all had to fall on our shit before
I know y'all n***as was late on your rent before
Ran into a couple Harvey Dents before
Maybe you n***as breathin' too many chemicals
You think I'm finna go?
Fuckin' with the children of the indigo
Bring the cash in manila envelopes
My n***as in the cut, you tryna interlope
And I can't go for that

[Verse 1]
Hold up, hold up, hold up, hold up
Free ain't what cheap is
N***as rolling like some cheapskates
I see kids talking work with empty briefcase
We put the beef under rugs and call that sweepstakes
Then roll a joint like a n***a need a knee brace
Breeze will let you know who got the smoke if you down wind
In the middle of the wolves
Karl Anthony Towns and Carl Thomas the sounds
Summer rain water color paints all over town
Oliver Twist, the artful dodger's all over this
If she with me, then don't call her my bitch
I'm in the VIP, with a big bottled water and I'm sparkin' the piff
Good woods on some carpenter shit
Move the queen like the parliament is
This is a game of chess
Funny thing that got me playin' the refs
Food for thought, I ain't paying the chef
With cleft lips on the bass clef
Singin' with strep, I'm sick with it
Brought the light for the dimwitted
On one knee like Tim with it
And I'm praying for my wrists
Message gettin' clear as the piss
Now i stress it, n***a givin swimmin' lessons at the pier with the kids
[Hook]
I mean, we all had to fall on our shit before
I know y'all n***as was late on your rent before
Ran into a couple Harvey Dents before
Maybe you n***as breathin' too many chemicals
You think I'm finna go?
Fuckin' with the children of the indigo
Bring the cash in manila envelopes
My n***as in the country trying too interlope
And I can't go for that
I mean, we all had to fall on our shit before
Know y'all n***as was late on your rent before
Ran into a couple Harvey Dents before
Maybe you n***as breathin' too many chemicals
You think I'm finna go?
Fuckin' with the children of the indigo
Bring the cash in manila envelopes
My n***as in the cut, you tryna interlope
And I can't go for that

[Verse 2]
Cause a storm's comin', n***a, see this overcast
All these n***as talkin money 'bout to overdraft
See Colin Powell's at all your fences, you're defenseless, fam
All my n***as in the cul-de-sac, ready to strike with the hood like a Cobra
Black culture, they’ll never get over that
So I'm in this bitch over dressed
Runnin’ through a n***a Rolodex
Remember nights with the coldest sweats
When we ain't really have shit but some old advice
Told you once, I told you twice
Never was in it for the Oberweiss alone
The skeleton's out the closet, more poltergeist
The poems I write, most nights, more dramatic
Freeze-frame, that's poster-like
The poster child, he posted right?
From Chicago, deep off in Pilsen with the vatos
Mercy mercy, me, that Murciélago
That 7 hundred-dollar jacket purchased from Barney's
Ain't hurtin' my pockets, but fuck, what do I know?
I'm really just a southside n***a with a Nas flow
Never been as passive as Rondo, I mean, a
Condo on my wrist has never really been a goal of mine
Less “Goldie,” more Dolemite
I look around, like “Y'all trollin', right?”
It's overkill, we know the type
It’s overpriced, the quality probably won't suffice
I don't condone the roll of dice on this one, fam
I mean, we all had to fall on our shit before
Just get up 'fore shit hit the fan
[Outro]
Patience, patience
You wanna understand my truth
Then just comb through my statements
Just comb through my statements, statements
‘Til it's Roger Roger
Renaissance Man, no wonder they call him Artful Dodger
Art gon' prosper
The art gon' prosper
Patience, patience
You wanna understand my truth
Then just comb through my statements
Just comb through my statements, statements
'Til it's Roger Roger
Renaissance Man, no wonder they call him Artful Dodger
Art gon' prosper
The art gon' prosper