Whatever takes to lay to rest all competition, I do
So pray to repent that those devout forgotten will not find you
Don't make an attempt to follow, wallow in your own discomfort
Discover how to pay your respects, accept them as your brother
I'm leaving a path through trails of mud
Anointing all those in pales of blood
Then focus their lives on lies
And find they're hopeless in eyes of mind and why
We not designed, we right on time
And when we arrive we get it live
Just acknowledge we on fire
Nine Leaves are the set design
Record time remaining nameless
Formless cause your forms are shameless
You've forgotten where you're from
And all your flaws that made you famous
Threats are painless, aim this at your heart to make the pain lift
Shape-shift on this track to scratch your name right off the game's list
Plain shit I am sick of rappers
Pissed cause I'm a sicker cracker
Fire blacking out the room of places that you stage your acting
You've forgotten where's your passion
Need to ask, that's my infraction
Show me where your skills at and I'll show you how to hack and slash 'em
Some are being pushed through the machine
And being told what to do
They're not challenging themselves anymore
They forget about themselves as an artist
That may be how it evolved, but that's not necessarily how it has to be though
Some do what they want to
I'm backhanding the game, she ain't treating us right
I ain't really the one but I cherish her life
I blame the change on us, the same must go for me
Our love is deep but I only write once a week
Listen, I never held a nine besides my 9 to 9
No jail time, trust me, my life is fine
I even rhyme in a suit
Cause my pursuit of happiness is to spit the truth
You lose
And I don't got to change up my flow
It is what it is, you can ride or you don't
You'll decide as I go
Every line you can scope
I ain't losing sleep
You could live a lie but I won't
I ain't beat money, you could talk about all your doe
Man life is sweet
You could peep my gut as it grows
Hold the cheddar for the cheese
And your beef for the streets
Two sides of a coin, my point, we both eat
So yes, I really got to say this is great
You can hate on my hate so your hate's just the same
Don't be mad at me homie I paved my own lane
Speaking honestly, homie you're a waste of a name
A waste of my space man, check out my frame
I'm drained but I still speak my piece
This last piece of hate
For these you'll take heat
Y'all wear shades in the club
I'll rock mine on the beach
Please
It's a competitive sport, Hip Hop
Everything is "I, I, I" because you have to prove that you're the better emcee
And of course, it's a business
Hip Hop wasn't derived from that
There is this other dimension of Hip Hop
There are these songs all over the world
They've already forgotten
How it sounds, felt the taste it
Before the industry reshaped it and raped it
Landscaped your face, now you're the Mona Lisa
You got to do what they do or they won't release you
The fans may greet you, but you can't look them in the eyes
I guess your hustling features was just a disguise
Make us believe you, at least you could try
You want to get rich lying relying on false pride
Sold your soul for the price of the gold and the ice
Now you're a hoe with no hold and they're controlling your life
You were exposed to the light but prefer being dumb
The who, what, where
When will you remember one
The place you've begun
Look what you've become
Succumb to what sucks for a successful some
Regrets you'll have some
Respect you'll have none
Cause when it's all said and done you're one loss was the love
People are forgetting who they are, what Hip Hop culture is, and why they're doing it
That's the forgotten
Everybody in Hip Hop is not an artist
You're doing what you think people want you to do rather than who you are
There's no innovation
Have you ever had the feeling of being in slow-mo
The type of case that comes with a thinking of "oh no"
Or had a vision showing your future as so low
But without a way in which you could alter or re-sow
Well I'm a bring it through like a leader that bestows
A speech upon his men that'll heed 'em to let go
Of the artificial skin that just keeps 'em in limbo
These seeds will bring the being intended to first grow
You're heading to and fro on a path that is void of pride
Happy to put aside who you are on the inside
In truth I can't surmise if this turned out all by design
Did you intend to play the fool or did other people decide
Did managers advise you sever ties for prize
Well now your dragon slumbers while goblins are on the rise
I'm trudging through the snow while you building a man of lies
I'm speaking to your soul but it's greeting me with goodbyes
And now it's time to hide cause I'm wrecking your false disguise
I'm stepping through the haze with intention to bring demise
And when the rug gets pulled and the mirror brings its surprise
Look into your eyes with the question of "who am I?"
---
The Forgotten - Zack Hemsey
