For The City

take your breath away
thick traffic runs deep like scarlet blood cells through my artery
giving life to this body of work, a factory
whatever sells to a buyer remains a mystery
are you a  traveller or the first transplant,
a child or a grandchild of an immigrant?
folk songs give a voice to the voiceless, 
give a name to the faceless
and put a face to the nameless
same biz, blocks painted in gray
living on the bleeding edge everyday 
stoke more fiyah beneath the boiling cauldron
b-boys and girls, fight to hold on

For The City 
where the realness resides
in the eyes of the neighbors 
we see as family
For The City
where the kids stay gritty
grinding on street corners
like skateboarders

bask in the nice sun till dusk from dawn 
just in the name of fun, talk heart to heart 
on the corner of the Ave and the Boulevard, 
bombard with the avant-garde 
original art fill the space with various tastes,
stickers on lampposts, Polk to Post,
march to Market & Mission with proud agendas 
wage war on war, so on and so forth
but to be on the side that's winning 
we gotta big up our women
without the right Misses, all dynasties demise
like the way the Bay the misses a legit franchise

For The City
now living in a bubble
once stand for the struggle
come back on the double
For The City
she keeps me sleepless
jump across the bay
still wear it on the sleeveless

This goes out to the all-city lovers
downtown dwellers and the back alley settlers
hustlers versus the hungry developers
while the children walk past the petty peddlers
your local shops need defending,
schools need funding
and the teams need cheerin'
pump up the volume for the artist residence,
see you at the jams, you can be part of the evidence
that the City is still alive and well with the culture
a scene that'll nurture
the finest in the business
no stopping this, roll with the Beatropolis,

One For The City
where the realness resides
in the minds of the people
we see as family
For The City
where the kids stay gritty
grinding on hard corners 
like skateboarders
F...T...C...