[Mos] Sometimes, you gotta be direct with the people, y'know like..

[T.K] Give it to 'em (c'mon)

[Mos] Yo!

[T.K] Give it to 'em

[Mos] GET, UP, NOW!


[Talib Kweli]

Yo, we keep it type raw, and know exactly what we fight for

when the nightfall come, we in the right war

Cats who spill blood for a cause, not just because

Defy the authority and follow God's law

Revolutionary entrepeneurs; who make the fans

clap they hands and stompin the floor not start the applause

(Ahhh ssssh! Yeah!) Thank you very much, without further adieu

Let me introduce the rest of my crew, Mos Def!


[Mos Def]

Yo, I am the world renowned, verb adjective adverb

pronoun preposition suffix prefix

Original or remix, sunburst and eclipse

Me and Kwe' combine like strands on a double-helix

My speech seasoned, with dialect of my region

Booga-nam Brooklyn Bed-Stuy Eastern

Where youth and policemen, they nah reach agreement

Pressure in the mornin, pressure in the evenin


{*scratching* "Mos Def" .. "Kwe'-Kweli" ..

 "Hi Tek on the beat!" .. "brothers and sisters"}


Chorus One: BlackStar (Mos Def + Talib Kweli)


You, need, to, get, up, right, now

and, move, with, this, yes, this, means, you

You, you


[Talib Kweli]

Yeahh, alright yeah, alright yeah, alright yeah

Alright yeah, alright yeah, alright yeah, yeah-ehhhh


Uh, uh, uh, uh, yo, yo, yo

Things changed since we came out, been some shit in New York

Niggaz stopped gettin jig in New York, bloods and crips in New York

The Y-2-K celebration wasn't big in New York

Babylon live in New York, should I keep a crib in New York

or just V.I., to handle my B.I.

When with my A-Alikes we see with three eyes


[Mos Def]

Yo Kweli I agree I, was thinkin the same thing myself

Smog in the city ain't no good for your health

Things changed in New York, type strange in New York

Forty-Deuce don't look the same in New York

Just politics, tricks and big games in New York

Switched trains a writer can't get fame in New York

Internet and Wall Street got paid in New York

Poor folks and workin class got slayed in New York

Even still, everyday they make weight in New York

Flashlights lookin for a brighter day in New York

In New York they say it's - red hot

Will the temperature ease up?  Black I guess not

It's multi-lane traffic, no sign for rest stops

No corner breaks, put on your gloves and just box

No dance school to teach you to wop and bus stop

Better get up in the booth, hop up and just rock

If you think it's like that, it's not so just stop

All mankind time runnin down on one watch, just watch


Chorus Two: BlackStar (Mos Def + Talib Kweli)


If, you, are, just, coming, in, I, will

say it, once, more, so, you, can, hear, cause

You, need, to, get, up, right, now

and, move, with, this, yes, this, means, you

You, you


[Talib Kweli]

Yo, Mos Def and Talib Kweli bring disaster to the industry

We best-sellin authors writin great chapters in history

These cats undercover like gay rappers dealin with mystery

My platinum grey matter spray batter that's specifically

designed to make rappers break faster than eggshells in the mornin

Inhaled the divine in that's laid dormant

Water from the well STAY pourin

I answer back when I hear fate callin

Freedom fighter ready to attack at the crack of a new day dawnin

Way more than necessary skills for the application

My flow is Great like the Lakes and it rocks like Applachains

My facts more than make up for what you lack in imagination

You more confused than Tiger Woods when he made up Cabalaysian

I'm sayin!


[Mos Def]

Break bounds like the jet Concorde

Win awards before I leave for my world award tour

When they scream encore, that's when they want more

Flow steadily, whether I'm on or off shore

High potent, zone coastin, no jokin

Safecracker sniff gon' keep the joint open

Peep the focus, high resolution, high reception

My "Train of Thought" connectin with my bredren from Reflection like


Chorus Three: BlackStar (Mos Def + Talib Kweli)


You, need, to, get, up, right, now

and, move, with, this, yes, this, means, you, again!

You, need, to, get, up, right, now

and, move, with, this, yes, this, means, you, we goin

[M] New York [T] Philly

[M] Chicago [T] Detroit

[M] Miami [T] D.C.

[M] L.A. [T] The world

[M] London [T] Amsterdam

[M] Paris [T] Japan

[M+T] Any place that a human being might stand, we goin..