Credits
PERFORMING ARTISTS
2Pac
Vocals
Outlawz
Vocals
COMPOSITION & LYRICS
2Pac
Songwriter
Donna Hunter
Songwriter
Hussein Fatal
Songwriter
Kastro
Songwriter
Leroy Williams, Jr.
Songwriter
Rufus Cooper
Songwriter
Tupac Shakur
Songwriter
Tyrone Wrice
Songwriter
Val Young
Songwriter
Yafeu Akiyele Fula
Songwriter
PRODUCTION & ENGINEERING
2Pac
Producer
L Rock Ya
Producer
Tyrone Wrice
Producer
Claudio Cueni
Mixing Engineer
Lyrics
[Verse 1]
I do my shootings on a knob
Praying to God for my squad
Stuck in a nightmare
Hopin' He might care
Though times is hard
Up against the odds I play my cards
Like I'm jailing, shots hittin' up my spot
Like midnight rain hailing
[Verse 2]
Got me bailing to stack more green
God, ain't trying to be trapped
On no block slingin' no rock like bean pies
Brainstorm on the beginning
Wonder how shit like the Qur'an
And the Bible was written, what is religion?
God's words, all cursed like crack
Shaitan's way of getting us back
Or just another one of my Black Jesuz traps?
[Verse 3]
Who's got the heart to stand beside me?
I feel my enemies creeping up in silence
Dark prayer, scream violence
Demons all around me
Can't even bend my knees
Just a lost cloud
Black Jesuz
[Verse 4]
Give me a reason to survive
In this earthly hell
'Cause I swear, they tryna break my will
I'm on the edge looking down
At this bottomless pit
Will it matter if I cease to exist?
Black Jesuz
[Verse 5]
All hail, the pressure, no endeavor can fail
Some missing souls turn to hoes when exposed to jail
In times of war we need somebody
Who will rally the troops
Like a saint that we can trust
To help to carry us through
Black Jesuz
[Verse 6]
He's like a saint that we can trust
To help to carry us through
Black Jesuz
[Verse 7]
Outlawz, we got our own race, culture, religion
Rebellin' against the system
Commence the lynchin'
The president ain't even listenin'
To the pain of the youth
We make music for eternity
Forever the truth
Political prisoner
The two choices that they've given us
Ride or die for life
They sentence us
[Verse 8]
Oh Black Jesuz
Please watch over my brother Shawn
Soon as the sky get bright
It's just another storm
Brother's gone, now labeled a statistic
Ain't no love for us ghetto kids
They call us nigglets
History repeats itself, nothin' new
In school I knew everything I read wasn't true
Black Jesuz
[Verse 9]
To the clique I'm dedicated
Criminal orientated
An Outlaw initiated, blazed and faded
Made for terror
Major league **** pray together
Bitches in they grave
While my real **** play together
We die clutching glass
Filled with liquor and plastic
Cremated, last wishes ****
Smoke my ashes
[Verse 10]
I sigh while I die wishin'
Hopin' for possibilities
I'll mob on, why they copying me sloppily?
Cops patrol projects
Hate the people livin' in 'em
I was born an inmate
Waitin' to escape the prison
[Verse 11]
Went to church but don't understand it
They underhanded
God gave me these commandments
The world is scandalous
Blast till they holy high
Baptize they evil minds
Wise, no longer blinded
Watch me Shawn, trick
Which one of y'all wanna feel the degrees?
Bitches freeze facing Black Jesuz
[Verse 12]
All hail, the pressure, no endeavor can fail
Some missing souls turn to hoes when exposed to jail
In times of war we need somebody
Who will rally the troops
Like a saint that we can trust
To help to carry us through
Black Jesuz
[Verse 13]
Some say someday
Somehow, some way we gon' fail
And it ain't hard to tell, we dwell in hell
Trapped, black, scarred and barred
Searching for truth
Where it's hard to find God
I play the Pied Piper
And to this thug life, I'm a lifer
Proceed to turn up the speed
Just for stripes
[Verse 14]
My Black Jesuz
Walk through this valley with me
Where we so used to hard times and casualties
Indeed, it hurt me deep
To have to sleep on the streets
And haven't eaten in weeks
So save a prayer for me
And all the young thugs
Raised on drugs and guns
Blazed out and numb, slaves to the slums
This ain't livin'
[Verse 15]
(We believed in You)
Jesuz
(Everything You do)
(Just wanna let You know how we feel)
Searching for Black Jesuz
[Verse 16]
(We believed in You, everything You do)
It's hard, it's hard, we need help out here
(Just wanna let You know how we feel)
So we searching for Black Jesuz
[Verse 17]
He's like a saint that we pray to in the ghetto
To get us through
Somebody that understand our pain
You know, maybe not too perfect, you know
Somebody that hurt like we hurt
Somebody that smoke like we smoke
Drink like we drink
That understand where we coming from
That's who we pray to
We need help y'all
Written by: Bruce Washington, Donna Hunter, Katari T. Cox, Leroy Jr. Williams, Rufus Lee Cooper, Tupac Amaru Shakur, Tyrone Wrice, Val Young, Yafeu Fula