Sixteen

Album: God Forgives, I Don't (2012)
Play Video
  • When 16 ain't enough

    It's funny niggas, it's been on my mind lately
    When 16 ain't enough, having a dope beat, dope idea
    16 bars ain't enough!
    How the fuck can I squeeze my whole life into a 16 bar verse?
    You know, so many different levels, when 16 ain't enough, to living your life
    Depicting with your wordplay, when 16 ain't enough, exactly what life means to you
    16 ain't enough

    I know y'all gonna feel me on this one
    You gotta feel me on this one

    Huh, it's funny how things change, funny how time fly
    More than my feet travel, the more that I feel fly
    More that I make now, the more that the chicks smile
    She call me a local nigga, I opened a Swiss account
    Eisenhower status Etta James on the dash
    John Coltrane cruising in the Cadillac
    Seville, feel my life on the real
    We the Last Poets so this is a world premiere
    Rolling like Mick Jagger, the women just getting badder
    All I see is the money, cream, Eric Clapton
    And all I wanted was one 16 ain't enough
    Talking that fast money 15 every month
    When your people labelled poor, that motivated me more
    Everything I ever wore was once worn before
    Roll with the punches now it's box office numbers
    Dressed like Sammy Davis, steamin' my marijuana
    Double MGs, double M fees
    We in every hood, nigga, government cheese
    Yachts and Yacht Masters, Old Dirty Bastard
    Floor seat for the Heat paper that I'm stackin'
    Better put away a penny for the rainy days
    Pick and roll, give and go, fuck a fade away
    Livin' like Scottie Pippen, dribble riddles for vittles
    Started off with a scribble, now I'm flowing a river
    She say my heart cold I'm naming my son December
    Whitney died night before the Grammys, damn, what a memory
    Trump Tower and I started with a 10 speed
    Born broke had to use a nigga's instincts
    Now I get a hundred racks for the 16
    Waking up to turkey bacon and my thick queen
    Niggas hating, I'm just watchin' on the big screen
    3 stacks on the beat and the kicks mean

    When 16 ain't enough, you know how sometimes you got so much to say but
    When 16 ain't enough, they on they only give you 16, heh
    Man it's like I mean I got so much to say ya know
    The world has said so much to me, I just wanna give right back to 'em you know
    When 16 ain't enough, but I only get 16, that's like a cage you know
    When 16 ain't enough, I really can't say what I wanna say, you know it's just a glimpse
    That's all, just one uh, one little single glimpse
    Just a page
    But I guess I'm defeating the purpose of doing all this talking

    Summer '88, or was it '89
    Or was it winter-time, ah, nevermind
    I'm in my room, boomin' drawin' LL Cool J album covers
    With crayolas on construction paper
    I'm trying to fuck my neighbor, I'm tryna hook my waves up
    I'm tryna pull my grades up, to get them saddle lace ups
    Before Le marc was Jacob, before them girls wore makeup
    Before my voice would break up, before we'd tour them shake clubs
    Before my mama wake up, before my palms would cake up
    Before they told me they love me and we'll never breakup
    Before the time she makes love, to someone that I thought was, my homeboy
    But boy was, I wrong now
    I don't budge, don't want much, just a roof and porch
    And a Porsche, and a horse and unfor-tunately
    But of course an assort-ment of tor-ches that scor-ches the skin, when they enter
    Intru-ders, whose tutors did a lousy job
    How's he god if he let's Lucifer let loose on us
    That noose on us won't loosen up but loose enough to juice us up
    Make us think we do so much and do it big
    Like they don't let us win, I can't pretend
    But I admit it, it feel good when the hood pseudo-celebrate
    Hence why every time we dine we eat until our belly aches
    Then go grab the finest wine and drink it like
    We know which grape and which region it came from
    As if we can name 'em, hint hint, it ain't um Welch's
    Hell just fell three thousand more degrees cooler
    Y'all can't measure my worth
    But when you try, you'll need a ruler made by all the Greek gods
    Because the odds have always been stacked against me when back's against the wall
    I feel right at home, y'all sitting right at home
    All Kelly green with envy while I'm jelly beans descending
    Into the palm of a child, looks up at mama and smiles
    With such a devilish grin, Like "where the hell have you been"
    She yelling that selling's a sin, well so is telling young men
    That selling is a sin, if you don't offer new ways to win
    A dolphin gone shake his fin, regardless if he is in
    Or out of water, most important thing for him is to swim
    And flipper didn't hold his nose, so why shall I hold my tongue?
    I miss the days that O' and Market Hole had scowl on his arm?
    And I set off these alarms, when camera's snap snap snap snap
    Return fire, pa-pa-pa, pa, pa-pa, pa, pa, pa
    They'll learn why, near privacy, so essential
    They won't make no laws, I break their laws till they see out our window
    I take the fall to make them all treat human kind more gentle
    Forsake them all, I hate them all, don't like em don't pretend to
    Yea something tells me, we ain't in Kansas anymore
    All that shit that used to be cool ain't cool anymore
    All the women you been pursuing, now they want more
    And they deserve it all, don't settle for what ain't yours

    When 16 ain't enough, when 16 ain't enough, ooh yeah, oh yeah

    When 16 ain't enough, when 16 ain't enough, ooh (When 16 ain't enough) yeah, oh yeah (When 16 ain't enough)

    (Break down, break down) Does your mama know you see me, does she know you're freaky?
    Does she ever wonder if it's 'bout ya I am speaking?
    Do you ever ponder where I'm at when you get sleepy?
    How the hell I'm gonna tell the youth don't be me?
    Yea, ha ha

    (I love it) Does your daddy think you perfect, does he know for certain?
    Does he know how you act when you pull back all them curtains?
    Do he think I'm 2Pac 'cause I'm black and put them works in?
    Does he know his daughter might have caught a real merman yeah?

    It's funny because, cause you're a changer
    But because we love you, we go that extra mile, break it down for 'em Andre huh,
    (Next level)
    (Amazing) Writer/s: ANDRE BENJAMIN, ERIK ORTIZ, KENNY BARTOLOMEI, KEVIN CROWE, WILLIAM ROBERTS
    Publisher: ANDREW MOORE MUSIC, BMG Rights Management, Capitol CMG Publishing, Kobalt Music Publishing Ltd., Peermusic Publishing, Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC, Universal Music Publishing Group, Warner Chappell Music, Inc.
    Lyrics licensed and provided by LyricFind

Comments

Be the first to comment...

Editor's Picks

Billy Joe Shaver

Billy Joe ShaverSongwriter Interviews

The outlaw country icon talks about the spiritual element of his songwriting and his Bob Dylan mention.

Richie Wise (Kiss producer, Dust)

Richie Wise (Kiss producer, Dust)Songwriter Interviews

Richie talks about producing the first two Kiss albums, recording "Brother Louie," and the newfound appreciation of his rock band, Dust.

Linda Perry

Linda PerrySongwriter Interviews

Songwriting Hall of Famer Linda Perry talks about her songs "What's Up" and "Beautiful," her songwriting process, and her move into film music.

Timothy B. Schmit of the Eagles

Timothy B. Schmit of the EaglesSongwriter Interviews

Did this Eagle come up with the term "Parrothead"? And what is it like playing "Hotel California" for the gazillionth time?

Modern A Cappella with Peder Karlsson of The Real Group

Modern A Cappella with Peder Karlsson of The Real GroupSong Writing

The leader of the Modern A Cappella movement talks about the genre.

Which Restaurants Are Most Mentioned In Song Lyrics?

Which Restaurants Are Most Mentioned In Song Lyrics?Song Writing

Katy Perry mentions McDonald's, Beyoncé calls out Red Lobster, and Supertramp shouts out Taco Bell - we found the 10 restaurants most often mentioned in songs.