[Produced By: Mark the 45 King]
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[Intro]
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Take the bass line out
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Uh-huh, Jigga
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Uh-huh, uh-huh, uh-huh, yeah
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Let it bump though
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[Chorus]
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Its the hard knock life for us
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Its the hard knock life for us
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Instead of treated, we get tricked
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Instead of kisses, we get kicked
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Its the hard knock life!
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[Verse 1]
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From standin on the corners, boppin
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To drivin some of the hottest cars New York has ever seen
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From droppin some of the hottest verses rap has ever heard
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From the dope spot, with the smoke Glock
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Fleein the murder scene, you know me well
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From nightmares of a lonely cell, my only hell
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But since when yall niggas know me to fail? Fuck naw
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Where all my niggas with the rubber grips, bust shots
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And if you with me, mama, rub on your tits, and what-not
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Im from the school of the hard knocks, you must not
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Let outsiders violate our blocks and my plot
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Lets stick up the world and split it 50/50, uh-huh
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Lets take the dough and stay real jiggy, uh-huh
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And sip the Cris and get pissy-pissy
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Flow infinitely like the memory of my nigga Biggie, baby!
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You know its hell when I come through
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The life and times of Shawn Carter, nigga, Volume 2
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Yall niggas get ready!
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[Chorus]
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Its the hard knock life for us
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Its the hard knock life for us
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Instead of treated, we get tricked
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Instead of kisses, we get kicked
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Its the hard knock life!
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[Verse 2]
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I flow for those ‘droed out
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All my niggas locked down in the 10 by four, controllin the house
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We live in hard knocks
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We dont take over, we borrow blocks
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Burn em down and you can have it back
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Daddy, Id rather that
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I flow for chicks wishin, they aint have to strip to pay tuition
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I see your vision, mama
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I put my money on the longshots
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All my ballers thats born to clock
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Know Ima be on top whether I perform or not
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I went from lukewarm to hot
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Sleepin on futons and cots to King Size
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Green machines, to green 5s
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Ive seen pies, let the thing between my eyes analyze lifes ills
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Then I put it down type Braille
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Im tight grill with the phony
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Rappers, yall might feel we homies
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Im like, “Still, yall dont know me.”
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Shit, Im tight grill when my situation aint improvin
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Im tryna murder everything movin – feel me?
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[Chorus]
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Its the hard knock life for us
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Its the hard knock life for us
~#**************#~
Instead of treated, we get tricked
~#**************#~
Instead of kisses, we get kicked
~#**************#~
Its the hard knock life!
~#**************#~
Its the hard knock life for us
~#**************#~
Its the hard knock life for us
~#**************#~
Instead of treated, we get tricked
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Instead of kisses, we get kicked
~#**************#~
Its the hard knock life!
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[Verse 3]
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I dont know how to sleep, I gotta eat, stay on my toes
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Got a lotta beef, so logically, I prey on my foes
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Hustlin is still inside of me, and as far as progress
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Youd be hard-pressed to find another rapper hot as me
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I gave you prophecy on my first joint, and yall lamed out
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Didnt really appreciate it til the second one came out
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So I stretched the game out, etched your name out
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Put Jigga on top and dropped albums non-stop for ya, nigga!
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[Chorus]
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Its the hard knock life for us
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Its the hard knock life for us
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Instead of treated, we get tricked
~#**************#~
Instead of kisses, we get kicked
~#**************#~
Its the hard knock life!
