Lessons From West 6th

(yeah) West by

6th... You taught me how to read the concrete.

Then you crossed the line

you drew.

Corner of West and 6th where the red bricks lean You taught

me how to read the silence in between Held my hand to

the fire when the block went cold Said loyalty was heavier than

rings of gold Then you traded in the code for an easy

score Now your shadow sits across at the other door Big homie

turned stranger, turned rival in the dusk Left a hollowed-out promise turning

into rust

West by 6th,

where the lessons turned cold Sold out the brotherhood,

traded what was told

(tell me why)

You taught me understanding till you pulled the track Now I gotta

watch the hands that used to have my back

Saw you across the intersection in a different whip

Cold stare out the window,

nobody slipped

Remember on the curb sharing one pack of smoke?

Now every word you speak is wrapped in gunsmoke I learned to

survive off the game you passed down

Now I use those same rules just to stand my ground

Hardest pill to swallow isn't facing the foe It's seeing family in

the crosshairs when you gotta go

West by 6th,

where the lessons turned cold Sold out the brotherhood,

traded what was told

(traded it all)

You taught me understanding till you pulled the track Now I gotta

watch the hands that used to have my back

Was it hunger or pride that broke the chain?

(tell me) We took the same loss,

we walked through the rain

Now West meets 6th and the avenue bleeds You planted the tree,

but you poisoned the seeds

West by 6th,

where the lessons turned cold Sold out the brotherhood,

traded what was told

(never fold!)

You taught me understanding till you pulled the track Now I gotta

watch the hands that used to have my back

(used to have my back,

yeah)

Big homie on the other side.

Nothing left to teach.

West by 6th...

(rest in peace to what we were)