This Is Why We Ride

People always wanna know
 The reason for what they consider senseless violence in the hood
 I'ma break it down for you
 This is why we ride
 And this is why we ride
 And this is why we ride
 I gotta say this clear, I gotta say this loud
 I should've been dead, don't know how I'm here now
 I should've been dead, damn it, 40 years ago
 How the fuck did I survive? Something that I'll never know
 I played the crack game, gang bang, guns
 Motherfuckers told me I'd never see 21
 I come from L.A., deep in the heart of the hood
 Every night the bullets fly, this shit ain't Hollywood
 Could be your best friend, mother, or brother dead
 Cops can't do shit, these streets are blood-red
 So we leave the block and we load the guns
 And we want revenge, until revenge comes
 And this is why we ride
 And this is why we ride
 I made it out the hood, I got a great life
 But them bullets fly every motherfucking night
 Another kid dies every motherfucking night
 Another mother cries every motherfucking night
 Ghettoes of deep crack, made to never escape
 A place to store the poor, made to never escape
 They're all over the world, people go to die
 Murders go unsolved, I understand why
 They remove hope and then we sell dope
 Pain and poverty has us at each other's throat
 Families are broken and so we gang bang
 A bit form of unity but most love some of us ever seen
 And this is how we die
 And this is why we ride
 ♪
 Oh man, coming up and surviving in the ghetto
 The smallest argument goes from little drama to big drama
 Next thing you know, somebody's dead
 I don't think you can understand
 If you've never been in your streets and held your best friend in your arms
 Your child in your arms
 And watch them breathe their last breath
 'Cause somebody shot 'em dead in the streets
 You ain't thinking of calling the police
 You want revenge and you want it now
 I gotta be honest with you
 If somebody were to kill me, shoot me right now
 My last words wouldn't be, "Peace"
 It would be, "Get those motherfuckers" (and this is why we ride)
 This song is dedicated to all of you who has lost somebody to street violence
 And this is why we ride
 And this is how we die