Kings Never Die (feat. Gwen Stefani)

Here to stay

Even when I'm gone

When I close my eyes

Through the passage of time

Kings never die

I can hear the drummer drummin'

And the trumpets, someone's tryna summon someone

I know something's comin'

But I'm runnin' from it, to be standing at the summit

And plummet, how come it wasn't what I thought it was?

Was it too good to be true?

Have nothin', get it all but too much of it

Then lose it again, did I swallow hallucinogens?

'Cause if not, where the hell did it go?

'Cause here I sit in Lucifer's den by the dutch oven

Just choosing to sin, even if it means I'm sellin' my soul

Just to be the undisputed again

Do whatever I gotta do just to win

'Cause I got this motherfuckin' cloud over my head

Crown around it, thorns on it

Cracks in it, bet you morons didn't think I'd be back, did ya?

How 'bout that? I'm somehow now back to the underdog

But no matter how loud that I bark

This sport is somethin' I never bow-out at

I complain about the game, I shout and I pout, it's a love-hate

But I found out that I can move a mountain of doubt

Even when you bitches are countin' me out

And I appear to be down for the count

Only time I ever been out and about

Is drivin' around town with my fuckin' whereabouts in a doubt

'Cause I been lost tryna think of what I did to get here

But I'm not a quitter, gotta get up, give it all I got or give up

Spit on, shit on, stepped on, but kept goin'

I'm tryna be headstrong

But it feels like I slept on my neck wrong

'Cause you're moving onto the next, but is your respect gone?

'Cause someone told me that

Kings never die

Don't give me that sob story, liar, don't preach to the choir

You ain't never even had to reach in the fire to dig deep

Nobody ever handed me shit in life, not even a flyer

Wouldn't even take shit into consideration

Obliterate anyone in the way

I think I see why a lot of rappers get on these features

And try to show out on a track with me

But it'd actually have to be a fuckin' blow-out to get me to retire

Tell these new artists that kings never die

I know shit has changed in this age, fuck a Twitter page

Did it just say I've been upstaged?

Why am I online? It's driving me crazy

I'm ridin' shotgun tryna get a gauge

On what's hot, but I'm not one to conform

But as days pass in this shit

And opinions sway, I can hear 'em say

If I stay passionate, maybe I can stage a miraculous

Comeback, as if I went away

But detractors just say so much for the renegade

Someone's gonna make me blow my composure

Here I go again, center stage, and I feel like I'm in a cage

They so want a champion to fall

It's no wonder why I laugh at 'em

'Cause why can't we win 'em all?

So fuck what these cynics say!

It just goes to show that when my back's against the wall

And I'm under attack again, that I'll act as if I'm 'posed ta

With this pent-up rage, 'cause all these plaques in my office

On the floor, stacked against the door

Are they just metaphors for the odds of me comin' back again?

'Cause all the accomplishments, accolades, awards

And trophies just don't mean jack anymore

If I'm here today and gone tomorrow, and I'm not gonna be

Here to stay

Even when I'm gone

When I close my eyes

Through the passage of time

I want it, I'm comin' to get it

(Kings never die)

So you son of a bitches don't duck

You're gonna get Riddick Bowe'd

Critics'll end up in critical

Think your shit is dope, all you're gonna get is smoked and

I ain't stopping till I'm on top again

All alone and on a throne, like a token of respect

Or a homage poem or an ode I've been owed

Tossed in the air by my own arm

And launched so hard it broke my collarbone

And when it's my time to go

I'm still not leaving

Stop for no one, I don't know

But I've been told an obstacle that blocks your road, ya

Knock it over, time to go for the pot of gold, 'cause

They say kings never die

Just ask Jam Master Jay

They just grow wings and they fly

So, hands up, reach for the sky!

Try to hold on and prolong these moments

'Cause in a blink of an eye

They'll be over

So you're tryna secure your legacy like Shakur

And ensure nobody's ever gonna be what you were

So before you're leavin' this Earth

You want people to feel the fury of a pure evil cerebral, berserk

Deacon of words, syllable genius at work

Plus, I'm thinkin' that they're mistakin' my kindness for weakness, kill 'em with meanness

I went from powdered milk and Farina

To flippin' burgers on the grill for some peanuts

At Gilbert's to arenas, call me Gilbert Arenas

Still appeal to the dreamers

I made it to the silver screen

But Rocky's still what the theme is

Khalil on the beat, 'cause makin' the beat ain't the same

Feelin' to me as killin' the beat is or fulfillin' to me is what fillin' a seat is

It's that sound-bombing, Thirstin Howl

Common, underground, Diamond D, Outsidaz

Stomach growl, throbbin' hunger, out-rhymin' everyone

God, just give me one shot

I swear that I won't let you down

I'ma be around forever-and-a-day, even in the ground

You ain't never ever gonna hear 'em say I ain't

Here to stay

Even when I'm gone

When I close my eyes

Through the passage of time

Kings never die

Kings never die