They Ask Me

Ya know, right now, whatever you smoke

Right now 'cause they ask me, and they ask me

And they ask me, they ask me

Now they ask me, "How you know so much at 17?"

"What you mean? You never seen a dysfunctional teen?"

Mama cared for me, Papa wasn't there for me

Older brother sold dope and murph blurr for me

Times got hard, I had to get harder

Let me take that back, I had to get smarter

16, I had me a daughter

Hold up J-Kwon, let's get shit in order

Baby mama, that's a whole nother story

Both too young, both too horny

Cell phone rung, but I didn't anwser

Check my voicemail, my grandma got cancer

Now she layin' up in a old folks home

When it seemed like yesterday, she was home

A month later, stroke popped up, her brain cells gone

The last thing she said was let no one steer you wrong, I'm grown

They ask me, do I believe in God?

So I ask them, did I defeat the odds?

They ask me, do I believe in God?

So I ask them, did I defeat the odds?

Shit fucked up but I can't turn away now

Sold dope around the town, self-esteem way down

Jessie made me tougher, he boxed me up

My mama put me in the system, she locked me up

Now this around the time that we lived on Haley

When I think about it, I don't know none of my family

Except, for the immediate ones

That's why I run to the streets and the gennies handguns

He don't talk much so everybody wanna fight him

Every school I went to, nobody liked him

Never could it be right, I'd try sometimes

So I chilled by myself and cry sometimes

And all I ask from God's to buy some time

Would I bring his name in it If I was lyin'

Now look at what the fuck I did done, done

Terry Jones last son, this is a blessing

I'm grown

They ask me, do I believe in God?

So I ask them, did I defeat the odds?

They ask me, do I believe in God?

So I ask them, did I defeat the odds?