They claim we’re products from the bottom of Hell,
But the black is back, and it’s bound to sell.
Picture us coolin’ out on the Fourth of July…
And if you heard we were celebratin’, that’s a worldwide lie.

Flavor Flav, “Louder than a Bomb,” from Public Enemy’s It Takes a Nation of Millions to Hold Us Back, 1988

Rosa Parks sat so Martin Luther could walk,
Martin Luther walked so Barack Obama could run,
Barack Obama ran so all the children could fly…
So, I’mma spread my wings, you can meet me in the sky.

Jay-Z, “My President is Black (Remix)” from Young Jeezy’s The Recession, 2008

Every time the ball drop on New Year’s Eve,
We toast to more money, we smoke to more cheese…

Prodigy, “New Yitty,” H.N.I.C. Part 2, 2008

1988 1990 1991 1992 1993 1994 1995 1996 1998 1999 2011 2012 2013 atlanta brooklyn death dj premier east coast girls Guns hip-hop humor life los angeles love lyrics midwest money nas new york philosophy queens queensbridge Rap Quote RZA South south bronx staten island truth violence weed west coast wisdom wordplay wu-tang clan

The Chinamen built the railroad, the Indians saved the Pilgrim,
And in return, the Pilgrim killed ‘em.
They call it it Thanksgiving, I call your holiday ‘hell-day.’

Nas, “What Goes Around,” Stillmatic, 2001

DMX • “Innocent Man” • 2006

You say I’m rehabilitated but I still can’t vote
You say I paid my debt but I still can’t vote
Gotta pay taxes but I still can’t vote
Come on dawg, y’all stay trying to keep a nigga broke.

DMX, “Innocent Man,” from Mark Morrison’s Innocent Man, 2006