[Mos] Sometimes, you gotta be direct with the people, y'know like..

[T.K] Give it to 'em (c'mon)

[Mos] Yo!

[T.K] Give it to 'em

[Mos] GET, UP, NOW!



[Talib Kweli]

Yo, we keep it type raw, and know exactly what we fight for

when the nightfall come, we in the right war

Cats who spill blood for a cause, not just because

Defy the authority and follow God's law

Revolutionary entrepeneurs; who make the fans

clap they hands and stompin the floor not start the applause

(Ahhh ssssh! Yeah!) Thank you very much, without further adieu

Let me introduce the rest of my crew, Mos Def!



[Mos Def]

Yo, I am the world renowned, verb adjective adverb

pronoun preposition suffix prefix

Original or remix, sunburst and eclipse

Me and Kwe' combine like strands on a double-helix

My speech seasoned, with dialect of my region

Booga-nam Brooklyn Bed-Stuy Eastern

Where youth and policemen, they nah reach agreement

Pressure in the mornin, pressure in the evenin



{*scratching* "Mos Def" .. "Kwe'-Kweli" ..

"Hi Tek on the beat!" .. "brothers and sisters"}



Chorus One: BlackStar (Mos Def Talib Kweli)



You, need, to, get, up, right, now

and, move, with, this, yes, this, means, you

You, you



[Talib Kweli]

Yeahh, alright yeah, alright yeah, alright yeah

Alright yeah, alright yeah, alright yeah, yeah-ehhhh



Uh, uh, uh, uh, yo, yo, yo

Things changed since we came out, been some shit in New York

Niggaz stopped gettin jig in New York, bloods and crips in New York

The Y-2-K celebration wasn't big in New York

Babylon live in New York, should I keep a crib in New York

or just V.I., to handle my B.I.

When with my A-Alikes we see with