Book Of Life

It's been a long time, i shouldn't have left you
Without a strong rhyme to step to
Think of how many weak shows you slept through
Time's up, i'm sorry i kept you
Thinking of this, you keep repeating you miss
The rhymes from the microphone soloist
And you sit by the radio, hand on the dial, soon
As you hear it, pump up the volume
Dance wit the speaker 'till you hear it blow,
Then plug in the headphone 'cause here it go
It's a 4 letter word when it's heard, it control
Your body to dance (you got it) soul,
Ditects the tempo like a red alert
Reaches your reflex, so let it work
When this is playing, you can't get stuck wit
The steps, so get set and i'm a still come up wit
A gift to be swift, follow the leader, the rhyme will go
Def wit the record that was mixed a long time ago
It can be done but only i can do it
For those that can dance and clap your hands to it
I start to think and then i sink
Into the paper like i was ink
When i'm writing, i'm trapped in between the lines,
I escape when i finish the rhyme...
I got soul

You got it (4x)
I know you got soul

Picture a mic, the stage is empty
A beat like this might tempt me
To pose, show my rings and my fat gold chain
Grab the mic like i'm on soul train
But i'll wait 'cause i mastered this
Let the others go first so the brothers don't miss
Eric b. break the sticks (you got it)
Rakim will begin when you make the mix
I'll experiment like a scientist
You wanna rhyme, you gotta sign my list
'cause i'm a manifest and bless the mic i hold
You want it next? then you gotta have soul
'cause if you ain't got it, i'm a make an encore
Take the mic, make the people respond for
The r, 'cause that's the way it'll have to be
If you wanna get on after me
Think about it, wait, erase your rhyme
Forget it and don't waste your time
'cause i'll be in the crowd if you ain't controlling it
Drop the mic, you shouldn't be holding it
This is how it should be done
This style is identical to none
Some try to make it sound like this but you're getting me
So upset that i'm wet 'cause you're sweating me
I drip steam like a microphone fiend
Eager to mc is my theme
I get hype when i hear a drum roll
Rakim is on the mic and you know i got soul

You got it (5x)

I got soul (you got it) that's why i came
To teach those who can't say my name
First of all, i'm the soloist, the soul controller
Rakim gets stronger as i get older
Constant elevation causes expansion
I write my rhyme while i cool in my mansion
Then put it on tape and in the city i test it
Then on the radio the r's requested
You listen to it, the concept might break you
'cause almost anyone can relate to...
Whoever's out of hand, i'm give him handles
Light 'em up, blow 'em out like candles
Or should i just let him melt?
Then give him a hand so they can see how it felt
I'm not bold just cuz i rock gold
Rakim is on the mic and you know i got soul

You got it (4x)

Now i'm a stop to see what you got
Get off the mic before i get too hot
I want to see which posse can dance the best
It should be easy 'cause the beat is fresh
Now if your from uptown, brooklyn- bound,
The bronx, queens, or long island sound,
Even other states come right and exact,
It ain't where you're from, it's where you're at
Since you came here, you have to show and prove
And do that dance until it don't move
'cause all you need is soul self-esteem will release,
The rest is up to you, rakim 'll say peace

You got it (10x)

I came in the door, i said it before
I never let the mic magnatize me no more
But it's biting me, fighting me, inviting me to rhyme
I can't hold it back, i'm looking for the line,
Taking off my coat, clearing my throat
My rhyme will be kicking it until i hit my last note
My mind'll range to find all kinds of ideas
Self-esteem makes it seem like a thought took years to build
But still say a rhyme after the next one
Prepared, never scared, i'll just bless one
And you know that i'm the soloist
So eric b, make 'em clap to this

I don't bug out or chill or be acting ill
No tricks in '86, it's time to build
Eric b easy on the cut, no mistakes allowed
Cuz to me, mc means move the crowd
I made it easy to dance to this
But can you detect what's coming next from the flex of the wrist
Saying indeed that i precede cuz my man made a mix
If he bleed he won't need no band-aid to fix
If they can get some around until there's no rhymes left
I hurry up because the cut will make 'em bleed to death
But he's kicking it because it ain't no half stepping
The party is live, the rhyme can't be kept in-
Side, it needs erupting just like a volcano
It ain't the everyday style of the same old rhyme
Because i'm better then the rest of them
Eric b is on the cut and my name is rakim

Go get a girl and get soft and warm,
Don't get excited, you've been invited to a quiet storm
But now it's out of hand cuz you told me you hate me
And then you ask what have i done lately
First you said all you want is love and affection
Let me be your angel and i'll be your protection
Take you out, buy you all kinds of things
I must of got you too hot and burned off your wings
You caught an attitude, you need food to eat up
I'm scheming like i'm dreaming on a couch wit my feet up
You scream i'm lazy, you must be crazy
Thought i was a donut, you tried to glaze me

Funky...

Verse one:

I'm rated "r"...this is a warning, ya better void,
Poets are paranoid, dj's d-stroyed,
Cuz i came back to attack others in spite-
Strike like lightnin', it's quite frightenin'!
But don't be afraid in the dark, in a park,
Not a scream or a cry, or a bark, more like a spark;
Ya tremble like a alcoholic, muscles tighten up,
What's that, lighten up! you see a sight but,
Suddenly you feel like your in a horror flick,
You grab your heart then wish for tomorrow quick!
Music's the clue, when i come your warned,
Apocolypse now, when i'm done, ya gone!
Haven't you ever heard of a mc-murderer?
This is the death penalty,and i'm servin' a
Death wish, so come on, step to this
Hysterical idea for a lyrical professionist!
Friday the thirteenth, walking down elm street,
You come in my realm ya get beat!
This is off limits, so your visions are blurry,
All ya see is the meters at a volume,
Pumping lyrics of fury!

It's a ....fearified freestyle!

Terror in the styles, never error-files,
Indeed i'm known-your exiled!
For those that oppose to be level or next to this...
I ain't a devil and this ain't the exorcist!
Worse than a nightmare, you don't have to sleep a wink,
The pain's a migraine every time ya think,
Flashbacks interfere, ya start to hear:
The r-a-k-i-m in your ear;
Then the beat is hysterical,
That makes eric go get a ax and chops the wack,
Soon the lyrical format is superior,
Faces of death remain,
Mc's decaying, cuz they never stayed,
The scene of a crime every night at the show,
The fiend of a rhyme on the mic that you know,
It's only one capable, breaks-the unbreakable,
Melodies-unmakable, pattern-unecscapable,
A horn if want the style i posses,
I bless the child, the earth, the gods and bomb the rest,
For those that envy a mc it can be,
Hazardous to your health so be friendly,
A matter of life and death, just like a ethch-a-sketch,
Shake 'till your clear, make it disappear, make the next,
After the ceremony, let the rhyme rest in peace,
If not, my soul'll release!
The scene is recreated, reincarnated, updated, i'm glad you made it,
Cuz your about to see a disasterous sight,
A performance never again performed on a mic:
Lyrics of fury!

A fearified freestyle!

The "r" is in the house-too much tension!
Make sure the system's loud when i mention
Phrases that's fearsome...
You want to hear some sounds that not only pounds but please your eardrums;
I sit back and observe the whole scenery,
Then nonchalantly tell you what it mean to me,
Strictly business i'm quickly in this mood,
And i don't care if the whole crowd's a witness!
I'm a tear you apart but i'm a spare you a heart,
Program into the speed of the rhyme, prepare to start,
Rhythm's out of the radius, insane as the craziest
Musical madness mc ever made, see it's
Now an emergency, open-heart surgery...
Open your mind, you will find every word'll be
Furier than ever, i remain the furture,
Battle's tempting...whatever suits ya!
For words the sentence, there's no resemblance,
You think you're ruffer, then suffer the consequences!
I'm never dying-terrifying results,
I wake ya with hundreds of thousands of volts,
Mic-to-mouth resuscitation, rhythm with radiation,
Novicane ease the pain it might save him,
If not, eric b.'s the judge, the crowd's the jury...
How do i plead to homicide?
Lyrics of fury!

They're getting furier! a fearified freestyle!

[eric b]: yo rakim, what's up?
[rakim]: yo, i'm doing the knowledge, e., i'm trying to get paid in full
[e]: well, check this out, since nobry walters is our agency, right?
[r]: true
[e]: kara lewis is our agent
[r]: word up
[e]: zakia/4th & broadway is our record company
[r]: indeed
[e]: okay, so who we rollin with?
[r]: we rollin with rush
[e]: of rushtown management. check this out, since we talking over
This def beat that i put together, i wanna hear some of them
Def rhymes, know what i'm sayin? and together, we can get
Paid in full...

[rakim]
Thinkin of a master plan
Cuz ain't nuthin but sweat inside my hand
So i dig into my pocket, all my money is spent
So i dig deeper but still comin up with lint
So i start my mission- leave my residence
Thinkin how could i get some dead presidents
I need money, i used to be a stick-up kid
So i think of all the devious things i did
I used to roll up, this is a hold up, ain't nuthin funny
Stop smiling, be still, don't nuthin move but the money
But now i learned to earn cos i'm righteous
I feel great! so maybe i might just
Search for a 9 to 5, if i strive
Then maybe i'll stay alive
So i walk up the street whistlin this
Feelin out of place cos, man, do i miss
A pen and a paper, a stereo, a tape of
Me and eric b, and a nice big plate of
Fish, which is my favorite dish
But without no money it's still a wish
Cos i don't like to dream about gettin paid
So i dig into the books of the rhymes that i made
To now test to see if i got pull
Hit the studio, cos i'm paid in full

I ain't no joke, i use to let the mic smoke
Now i slam it when i'm done and make sure it's broke
When i'm gone i wrote this song cuz i won't let
Nobody press up and mess up to seen i set
I like to stand in a crowd and watch the people wonder damn
Bu think about it then you'll understand
I'm just an addict addicted to music
Maybe it's a habit, i gotta use it
Even if it's jazz or the quiet storm
I hook a beat up convert it in a hip-hop form
Write a rhyme in graffitti in every show you see me in
Deep concentration cuz i'm no comedian
Jokers are wild if you wanna be tame
I treat you like a child then you're gonna be named
Another enemy, not even a friend of me
Cuz you'll get fried in the end if you pretend to be
?can be? cuz i just put your mind on pause
And i can beat you when you compare my rhyme wit yours
I wake you up and as i stare in your face you seem stun
Remember me, the one you got your idea from
But soon you start to suffer but you only get rougher
When you start to stutter that's when you had enuff of
Biting it, i make you choke, you can't provoke
You can't cope, you should of broke cuz i ain't no joke

I got a question, it's serious as cancer
Who can keep the average dancer
Hyper as a heart attack nobody smiling
Cuz you're expressing the rhyme that i'm styling
This is what we all sit down to write
You can't make it so you take it home, break it and bite
Use pieces and bits of all the hip-hop hits
Get the style down pack then it's time to ?swit?
Put my tape on pause and add some more to yours
Then you figure you're ready for the neighborhood chores
The e-m-c-e-e don't even try to be
When you come up to speak, don't even lie to me
You like to exaggerate, dream and imaginate
Then change the rhyme around, that can aggravate me
So when you see me come up, freeze
Or you'll be one of those 7 mc's
They think that i'm a new jack but only if they knew that
They who think wrong are they who can't do that
Style that i'm doing, they might ruin
Patterns of paragraphs based on you and
Your offbeat dj, if anything he play
Sound familiar, i'll wait til e say
Play 'em, so i'ma have to dis and broke
You could get a smack for this, i ain't no joke

I hold the microphone like a grudge
B'll hold the record so the needle don't budge
I hold a conversation cuz when i invent
I nominated my dj the presdient
When i'm see i'll, people freestyle, going steadily
So pucker up and whistle my melody
But whatever you do, don't miss one
They'll be another rough rhyme after this one
Before you know it, you're following and fiending
Waiting for the punchline to get the meaning
Like before the middle of my story i'm telling
Nobody beats the r so stop yelling
Save it, put it in your pocket for later
Cuz i'm moving the crowd and be a record fader
No interruptions and the mic is broke
When i'm gone, then you can joke
Cuz everything is real on a serious tip
Keep playing and i varies quick
And take you for a walk through hell
Feed your dome then watch your eyeballs swell
Guide you out of triple stage darkness
When it get dark again then i'ma spark this
Microphone cuz the heat is on, you see smoke
And i'm finish when the beat is gone, i'm no joke

Let the rhythm hit 'em

I'm the arsenal
I got artillery, lyrics of ammo
Rounds of rhythm
Then i'm 'a give 'em piano
Bring a bullet-proof vest
Nothin' to ricochet
Ready to aim at the brain
~now what the trigger say
Tempos triflin'
Felt like a rifle
Massage 'n' melodies
Might go right through
Simultaneously like an uzi
Nothin' can bruise me
Lyrics let up when lady say don't lose me
So re-load quickly
And you better hit me
While i'm lettin' this fifi get wit me
You steppin' with .007
Better make it snappy
No time to do your hair, baby
Brothers are bustin' at me
Beats and bullets pass me
None on target
They want the r hit
But wtch the god get
Quicker, the tongue is the trigger
'cause i'm real fast
Let off some rhythm at 'em
Let 'em feel the blast
Penetrate at a crazy rate
This ain't no .38
Hit 'em at point blank range
And watch 'em radiate
Runnin' out of ammunition
I'm done wit' em
You ask me how i did 'em
I let the rhythm hit 'em

I push a power that's punishable
Better be a prisoner
The hit man is the
Brother wit' charisma
Showing you that i have
Powerful paragraphs
Followers will become leaders
But without a path
Ya mentally paralyzed
Crippled ya third eye
Rhymes are blurred
Then it occurred that you heard i
Reduced the friction with crucifixion
Let loose the mix then
Boost the piston
Eric hit 'em with' some of that
Cut like a lumberjack
And me gettin' hit back
It won't be none of that
I'm untouchable
You see me in 3-d
When i let the rhythm hit another m.c.
Lyrics made of lead
Enters your head
Then eruptions of a mass production
Will spread when
Music is louder
Full of gunpower
Microphone machinery
When i see a crowd of
Party people pumpin'
Their fist like this
Ya hide in the back
Thinkin' that i might miss
But the r is accurate
Plus i'm packed up with
Educated punch lines that
I have to hit
Whatever i aim at
I line 'em up
Ya body is weak, feel with pain
That time is up
You been hit with somethin'
Different, isn't it?
Rakim is gonna radiate and nothing's equivalent
Nothin' can harm me
Why try to bar me
You couldn't come around to rob with a army
You'll get wrecked by the architect
So respect 'em
I disconnect 'em, soon as i inject 'em
With radiation
Put 'em by the basement
Bust his chest open
Bash his face in
Let it split 'im
Since he brought his main man wit' 'im
He ask me how i did 'im
I let the rhythm hit 'im
Let it hit 'im

Dance floor's dangerous
Packed in like a briefcase
Rhyth with ral rough rhyme
Beats with deep bass
Girls with tight pants
Maybe they might dance
Tonight if the rs on the mike
There's a slight chance
The crowd is crucial
M.c.'s grounds are neutral
Now that you're here let me introduce you
Get ready
I'm hard read like graffiti but steady
Science i drop is real heavy
Radiant energy, that'll be the penalty
Touch the third rail on the pain of remedy
The prescription's one every hour
Now it's a havoc
If ya need another hit from the freestyle fanatic
Attention: follow directions real close
Keep out of reach of children
Beware of overdose
Too many milligram
But what made a iller jam
My rhyme is the rhythm of thoughts
That kill a man
I deas for the ear to fear
Might split 'im
He'll never forget 'im
He'll rest in peace wit' 'em
At least when he left he'll know what hit 'im
The last breath of the words of death
Was the rhythm

Now throw you hands in the air and yo, go
Rakim will do the rest of this slow
If i speed they know you'll blow the hell up
If i slow up, catch up, hell no
Wicked as i kecked it
Don't need to remix it
'cause i prefixed it
Reversed and switched it
To perform to perfection
Section for section
Rhymes keep connectin'
Ya guessin' what's next an'
Blood pressure rise as ya damn near lost it
Ya hit the ground burnin' and woke up frostbitten
'cause when i explained ya can't complain for pain
Travel through the brain hit a vein
Then remain, let it radiate
Vibes will vibrate
Why did you violate
Now i'm 'a have to let the style brak
Moans now the tone is ingrown
After this here's thrown, gimme another microphone
Before i get that fifi i met
Whisper i wanna reach your intellect
Kiss her 'cause i wanna give her the most respect
So i shine and let the write reflect
Hold 'er, mold 'er, make 'er feel older
Lay her on my shoulder
Eeverything i told her
Makes her feel secure whenever i'm wit' 'er
And you know how i did 'er
Me and the rhythm hit 'er

Verse one:

Turn up the bass, check out my melody, hand out a cigar
I'm lettin knowledge be born, and my name's the r
A-k-i-m not like the rest of them, i'm not on a list
That's what i'm sayin, i drop science like a scientist
My melody's in a code, the very next episode
Has the mic often distortin, ready to explode
I keep the mic in fahrenheit, freeze mc's and make em colder
The listener's system is kickin like solar
As i memorize, advertise, like a poet
Keep you goin when i'm flowin, smooth enough, you know it
But rough that's why the middle of my story i tell e.b.
Nobody beats the "r", check out my melody...

Verse two:

So what if i'm a microphone fiend addicted soon as i sing
One of these for mc's so they don't have to scream
I couldn't wait to take the mic, flow into it to test
Then let my melody play, and then the record suggest
That i'm droppin bombs, but i stay peace and calm
Any mc that disagree with me just wave your arm
And i'll break, when i'm through breakin i'll leave you broke
Drop the mic when i'm finished and watch it smoke
So stand back, you wanna rap? all of that can wait
I won't push, i won't beat around the bush
I wanna break upon those who are not supposed to
You might try but you can't get close to
Because i'm number one, competition is none
I'm measured with the heat that's made by sun
Whether playin ball or bobbin in the hall
I just writin my name in graffiti on the wall
You shouldn't have told me you said you control me
So now a contest is what you owe me
Pull out your money, pull out your cut
Pull up a chair, and i'ma tear shit up
My name is rakim allah, and r & a stands for "ra"
Switch it around, but still comes out "r"
So easily will i e-m-c-e-e
My repetition of words is "check out my melody"
Some bass and treble is moist, scratchin and cuttin a voice
And when it's mine that's when the rhyme is always choice
I wouldn't have came to ?set? my name ?around the? same weak shit
Puttin blurs and slurs and words that don't fit
In a rhyme, why waste time on the microphone
I take this more serious than just a poem
Rockin party to party, backyard to yard
Now tear it up, y'all, and bless the mic for the gods


Verse three:

The rhyme is rugged, at the same time sharp
I can swing off anything even a string of a harp
Just turn it on and start rockin, mind no introduction
Til i finish droppin science, no interruption
When i approach i exercise like a coach
Usin a melody and add numerous notes
With the mic and the r-a-k-i-m
It's a task, like a match i will strike again
Rhymes are poetically kept and alphabetically stepped
Put in order to pursue with the momentum except
I say one rhyme and i order a longer rhyme shorter
A pause, but don't stop the tape recorder

Verse four:

I'm not a regular competitor, first rhyme editor
Melody arranger, poet, etcetera
Extra events, the grand finale like bonus
I am the man they call the microphonist
With wisdom which means wise words bein spoken
Too many at one time watch the mic start smokin
I came to express the rap i manifest
Stand in my way and i'll lead a ??? words protest
Mc's that wanna be dissed they're gonna
Be dissed if they don't get from in fronta
All they can go get is me a glass of moet
A hard time, sip your juice and watch a smooth poet
I take 7 mc's put em in a line
And add 7 more brothas who think they can rhyme
Well, it'll take 7 more before i go for mine
And that's 21 mc's ate up at the same time
Easy does it, do it easy, that's what i'm doin
No fessin, no messin around, no chewin
No robbin, no buyin, bitin, why bother
This slob'll stop tryin fightin to follow
My unusual style will confuse you a while
If i was water, i flow in the nile
So many rhymes you won't have time to go for your's
Just because of a cause i have to pause
Right after tonight is when i prepare
To catch another sucka duck mc out there
Cos my strategy has to be tragedy, catastrophe
And after this you'll call me your majesty
My melody...


Verse five:

Marley marl synthesized it, i memorize it
Eric b made a cut and advertised it
My melody's created for mc's in the place
Who try to listen cos i'm dissin ???
?take off your necklace, you try to detect my pace?
?now? you're ?buggin? over ??? off my rhyme like bass
The melody that i'm stylin, smooth as a violin
Rough enough to break new york from long island
My wisdom is swift, no matter if
My momentum is slow, mc's still stand stiff
I'm genuine like leather, don't try to be clever
Mc's you'll beat the "r", i'll say "oh never"
So eric b cut it easily
And check out my melody...