[Verse 1]
Yo, the trains are New York veins, the city's a cycle
People are the blood stream — mean and ice cold
Laid back, counter clockwise the dice roll
Yank hats, gang flags, plane crash
Ground Zero, no lost angels
Ain't you from my man's and them area? It's good to meet you
Your man did 20 years for some FILA sneakers, right? True
Had the 560 Benz — light blue
When Ed shot himself in the stomach
Smoke the dust, he let the Culture-Culture bust
Back when we took the D train Uptown
Shanté and her whole crew — groovy hair style
"Yo, baby, yo! Baby, yo!" t-shirts
Gold teeth smirks
At mark 125th, hope the heat work
Few numbers I bagged, then caught a cab back to Jamaica Ave
By the library seen the part of Shabazz

[Hook]
New York (*scratched*)
(All of those who live in Queens know just what I'm talkin')
New York (*scratched*)
(All of those who live in Brooklyn know just what I'm talkin')
New York (*scratched*)
(All of those that live in Harlem know just what I'm talkin')
New York (*scratched*)
(All of those from South Bronx know just what I'm talkin')
[Verse 2]
Skate Key, Empire, USA
Rooftop, 2 O'clock, skate's off, break north
To the rink, minks
Springfield in Newark
The 6th borough Jers' — car jack city
The G-W bridge to Co-op City
Po-po's hot, Glocks in your Benzy box
Stashed it, we move fast, dropped off Miss Pretty
Shakes her ass to the building, knowin' I just killed it
Dudes in front of the door blocks her entrance
Askin' her who she been with? She laugh, "Mind ya business"
Tinted windows, pop Dutches with box cutters
Drop brothers off at Comstock to see locked brothers
Hick town up in New York State
Jakes hate a black New York face
Jumpin' out the Phantom with the Bapes
Planet of the Apes
With the hammers on her waist
Gorillas in the tri-state of...

[Hook]
New York (*scratched*)
(All of those who live in Queens know just what I'm talkin')
New York (*scratched*)
(All of those who live in Brooklyn know just what I'm talkin')
New York (*scratched*)
(All of those that live in Harlem know just what I'm talkin')
New York (*scratched*)
(All of those from South Bronx know just what I'm talkin')
[Verse 3]
It don't matter if I been outta town
Cigar lounge, doin' rounds of tequila soon as I touch down
In New York City streets, the heat is on
The talk, who said what
I catch up on the new Teflon Dons
Who got they death bond? Who still stable?
Where beefs got squash at the round table
Who still holdin' it? Who hangin' with snitches?
Couple of Zulu's from back in the days is still up in Clinton
No more hand shakes, fake arm swings, see if your flinchin'
Need to hold somethin' that's mentioned in every n***a's sentence
When I get it, you got it
D's ran up in the project
Bail a couple of homies out, no doubt
Ferrari's in the summer
Winter's the Hummer, or the Turtle Top Van satellite
Spillin' drinks, hittin' potholes with the savage types
Club 17 marquee, the team flash
Next day, hit the spas and the steam bath
Knock out this business
Do some promo, make paper in the grind capital
Sign a 'graph or two
Hit the hood, see the folks reminisce how it was
In the most powerful city that I love