[2Pac]  Damn, take a ride, to my block  My block, that's right! Heh  F'real on my motherfuckin block    [Verse One]  They got a nigga  Sheddin tears, reminiscin on my past fears  Cause shit was hectic for me last year  It appears that I've been marked for death, my heartless breath  The underlying cause of my arrest, my life is stressed  And no rest forever weary, my eyes stay teary  for all the brothers that are buried in the cemetery  Shit is scary, how black on black crime legendary  But at times unnessecary, I'm gettin worried  Teardrops and closed caskets, the three strikes law is drastic  And certain death for us ghetto bastards  What can we do when we're arrested, but open fire  Life in the pen ain't for me, cause I'd rather die  But don't cry through your despair  I wonder if the Lord still cares, for us niggaz on welfare  And who cares if we survive  The only time they notice a nigga is when he's clutchin on a four-five  My neighborhood ain't the same  Cause all these little babies goin crazy and they sufferin in the game  And I swear it's like a trap  But I ain't given up on the hood, it's all good when I go back  Hoes show me love, niggaz give me props  Forever hop cause it don't stop... on my block    [Chorus: a bunch of kids - see the liner notes]  Livin life is but a dream  Hard times is all we see (on my block)  Every block is kinda mean  But on our block we still playyyyyy  But on our block we still playyyyyy...    [Verse Two]  Now shit's constantly hot, on my block, it never fails to be gunshots  Can't explain a mother's pain, when her son drops  Black male slippin in hail when will we prevail  Fearin jail but crack sales got me livin well  And the system's sucidal with this Thug's Life  Stayin strapped forever strapped in this drug life  God help me, cause I'm starvin, can't get a job  So I resort to violent robberies, my life is hard  Can't sleep cause all the dirt make my heart hurt  Put in work and shed tears for my dead peers  Mislead from childhood where I went astray  Till this day I still pray for a better way  Can't help but feel hopeless and heartbroke  From the start I felt the racism cause I'm dark  Couldn't quit the bullshit make me represent  Hit the bar and played the star, everywhere I went  In my heart, I felt alone out here on my own  I close my eyes and picture home... on my block    [Chorus w/ minor variations]    [Verse Three]  And I can't help but wonder why, so many young kids had to die  Caught strays from AK's and the driveby  Swollen pride and homicide, don't coincide  Brothers cry for broken lives, mama come inside  Cause our block is filled with danger  Used to be a close knit community but now we're all cold strangers  Time changes us to stone them crack pipes  All up and down the block exterminatin black life  But I can't blame the dealers  My mama's welfare check has brought the next man chrome wheels  Shit's real, I know ya feel, my tragedy  A single mother with a problem child, daddy free  Hangin out pickin up game, sippin cheap liquor  Gamin the hoochies hopin I can get to sleep with her  It's a man's world, stayin strapped  Fantasies of a nigga livin phat, but held back  Pipe dreams can make the night seem hopeless  Wide eyed and losin focus... on my block    [Chorus w/ minor variations]    [Verse Four]  And block parties in tha projects lastin way past daylight  A young nigga learned to break night  Used to play fight with my homies but they stuck in the pen  I send them ends, but it's tough on a friend, in my mind  I see the same motherfuckers ballin  Alcohol will make a lazy nigga slip and fall, miss his call  I know the young niggaz understand this  Growing up in this world where everything is scandalous  I reminisce on tha fast times, past crimes  Tryin to cop a slice of pizza with my last dime  Can't explain, just what attracts me to this dirty game  Gold chains, some extra change, and the street fame  And what's strange is everybod knows my name, swear they all know me  And lots of cash make a nigga change  I hit the green just to maintain, feelin pain  For all the niggaz that I lost to the game... from my block    [Chorus w/ minor variations; kids repeat last line over and over]    [2Pac - speaking over Chorus]  Rest in peace to all the muh'fuckers who passed away  From all the blocks that I'm from  One-twelve street, 7th Avenue, New York, Uptown, knahmsayin?  183rd and Walt, my block, that's right  122nd and Morningside, my block, that's right  Decatur Avenue, Baltimore, my block, that's right  In the jungle of Marin City, that's my block, that's right  Los Angeles, haha, that's my block too  Oakland, can't forget Oaktown, that's my block for sure  And all the other blocks around this motherfucker  Houston, Florida, St. Louis, Tennessee, Miami, Chicago  All y'all niggaz stay kickin up dust  Represent the motherfuckin block