Yo

I gotta story, about money, women, and power

and who truly has it



Her name, seems to slip my mind

but her face is stuck in my brain

Can vaguely remember the day we met, see it had rained

the road over, on Soppovada was wet

And my car wasn't, huggin the terrain

So there I came into her lane

I was to blame but stopped my headlight in the front

cos I ran into her back

But she didn't, over-react, cos her cruiser wasn't even scratched

In fact, now that I think, back, I was gettin macked

by a tender, oh yeah now I remember

Vanessa from Maryland, aggressive and tanned

It was December, of '94 and she was finding O attractive

Lookin like an actress, skilled in the art of macktress

She asked if I was cool, I said "Sure

but damn I fell like manure because baby I ain't insured"

Her reply - "Poor baby, don't worry, I understand

but man makes the money, money never makes the man

She said



[Hook x2]

Man makes the money, money never makes the man

Man makes the money, money never makes the man

Man makes the money, money never makes the man

And that's real, and that's real



We started chillin, it was all the way live

She flipped me a downtown highrise in 1995

8-50i, no more sess highs, strictly chronic and thai

Rolled in place in a gold cigarette case

Liquorice papers for sweeter taste, my pockets was laced

with big head Benjamins, crushed in cinnamon, linen and black Gators

Platinum, chains, rings and bracelets

Found out she was a mule for the Mob

Had plans to rob, and wanted me in on the job

Bust this, disgusted, one night in the middle of sex

She asked O-Press - "Are you down for this?"

And I said "YES! Baby yes!", ugh

I must confess it was a bit risky this way

But when she hugged and kissed me, uhh, I didn't care

Got to the point I didn't even wear underwear

cos she would want it everywhere and anywhere

(Man makes the money, money never makes the money)



[Hook: w/ variations x2]



The matriarch was established, we was after the cabbage

To continue livin lavish she had a plan - hit her ex-man

for three hundred grand, I just put him to sleep

and keep it movin to a spot where, we used to creep

Agreed, greed, bubbled up inside me indeed

So on Friday when he received loot, I walked in and proceeded to shoot

nigga's in they knees, fuck 'freeze', yeah yeah

there's the money, oh shit and seventeen keys

Stashed up and shit, shot to the designated spot

at the designated time, she was late I had to wait

Escalated my mind to stop the shakes

I had just shot niggas up, like a scene out of Carlito's Way

She walked in around ten

I was in the corner with my 9 sayin "I thought eight was the time

we had agreed upon" but I noticed she was nervous

I said "What's goin on?", that's when she blurted

"??? heard about the Mob, how we did it, the money - give it

Trust me baby, I'll be back in a minute"

Then she kissed me on my face, grabbed me up under my waist

and left, I sat for three hours and still not a trace

Soft nigga, I got the seventeen, I'ma just dip

That's when the cops showed up, talkin bout an anonymous tip

They got the dirty cookers and the pure uncooked

Took me and my attorneys hell just to get me one L

With no possibilities of parole I was lost

Vanessa made me made loot and made off

Uh, what?

I said Vanessa made me, made loot and made off



[Hook to fade]

Man makes the money, money never makes the man

Man makes the money, money never makes the man

She said she said

Man makes the money, money never makes the man

Man makes the money, money never makes the man

What what, what what



[Outro: over top of hook]

That's what she told me

But remember, the lips of strange women, soft like honeycomb

Her mouth drippin in poison oil