[Gangsta D:]

I remember way back when I was young

Livin' that crazy life gettin' sprung

Out there gettin' busy holdin' my own

Didn't really care 'cause mama wasn't home

They say, (young child don't you run so wild)

You're out there doin' wrong, hangin' with the wrong crowd

But I didn't really trip it so I kept a hard head

Got myself to the point where I wanted fools dead

Solvin' all my problems with that 1-8-7

Makin' ends meet with the deuce-11

Jacked this one fool, snatched him out his ride

(Get out homie) Nine times but the nigga survived

I didn't even know him or know where he was from

But I didn't really didn't care 'cause I was young

Now I'm rollin' with my daughters and my baby mama

Didn't even know we was in for drama

Here come the nigga on my passenger side

Dumped a whole clip all inside my ride

Hit me four times and one went in my head

Now I'm stretched out in the bed

While this fool kickin' back in Mira Loma

My family stressed out 'cause I'm in a coma

Everbody's prayin' while I'm tryin' to hang on

But even if I die, it's still on... yeah



[Chorus:]

Why must it be like that?..

Why it's gotta be like that?..

Why must it be like that?..

Why it's gotta be like that?



[KK:]

Now I can seem to recall all my days when I was little

Tryin' to put myself right up in the middle

Sprung up off the idea of tryin' to get a rep

You best believe I found trouble when I stepped

Ran up on niggaz like I was holdin' bugs

I was only 5'5, still a young scrub

Didn't even matter if I got my ass jumped

As long as that proved young K wasn't a punk

Now I done got my roam on, buzzed with the oldies on

Didn't really care, it was like ("Nigga, bring yo' ass on")

Yeah, one day rollin' with my straps I got caught (god damn)

No snitchin' and I took all the fault

You see I couldn't go out, lettin' the ones take flight

They was tryin' but I kept my thang tight (that's right)

Damn, I rolled with more than one gun, that felt good to me

But the good Lord wouldn't let it be, man

I tried to keep myself cool and find a little job

Straight workin', but these pockets still hurtin'

So my relative hooked me on a double-up

I found another way for KK to come on up

I'm pushin' quarter pieces down the '10' freeway

Up to Baton Rouge, then back to L.A.

Damn, I was out there kinda young and dumb

That's how it was, where we came from



[Chorus: x2]

Why must it be like that?..

Why it's gotta be like that?..

Why must it be like that?..

Why it's gotta be like that?..