MOS DEF – MATHEMATICS

Lyrics

Bucka-bucka-bucka-bucka-bucka-bucka, haha!
You know the deal; it's just me, yo
Beats by Su-Primo for all of my people, Negroes and Latinos
And even the gringos
Yo, check it
1 for Charlie Hustle, 2 for Steady Rock
3 for the forth-coming live future shock
It's 5 dimensions, 6 senses
7 firmaments of heaven and hell
8 million stories to tell
9 planets faithfully keepin' orbit, with the probable 10th
The universe expands left
The body of my text possess extra strength
Power-lift the powerless up out of this towering inferno
My ink so hot it burn through the journal
I'm blacker than midnight on Broadway and Myrtle
Hip-Hop passed all your tall social hurdles
Like the nationwide projects-prison-industry complex
Working-class poor, better keep your alarm set
Streets too loud to ever hear freedom ring
Say evacuate your sleep, it's dangerous to dream
For ch-ching, cats get the "cha-pow!" You dead now
Killing fields need blood to graze the cash cow
It's a numbers game, but shit don't add up somehow
Like I got 16 to 32 bars to rock it
But only 15% of profits ever see my pockets
Like 69 billion in the last 20 years
Spent on national defense, but folks still live in fear
Like nearly half of America's largest cities is one-quarter black
That's why they gave Ricky Ross all the crack
16 ounces to a pound, 20 more to a key
A 5 minute sentence hearing and you're no longer free
40% of Americans own a cell phone
So they can hear everything that you say when you ain't home
I guess Michael Jackson was right, you are not alone
Rock your hardhat black, 'cause you in the Terrordome
Full of hard niggas, large niggas, dice-tumblers
Young teens and prison greens facing life numbers
Crack mothers, crack babies, and AIDS patients
Young bloods can't spell but they could rock you at PlayStation
This New Math is whipping motherfuckers' ass
You want to know how to rhyme, you better learn how to add
It's mathematics
"The Mighty Mos Def"
"It's simple mathematics"
"Check it out"
"I revolve around science"
"What are we talking about here?"
"The Mighty Mos Def"
"It's simple mathematics"
"Check it out"
"I revolve around science"
"What are we talking about here?"
"Do your math, do your math"
"1, 2, 3, 4"
"What are we talking about here?"
Yo, it's 1 universal law, but 2 sides to every story
3 strikes and you biddin' for life, mandatory
4 MC's murdered in the last 4 years
I ain't trying to be the 5th when the millennium is here
Yo it's 6 million ways to die, from the 7 deadly thrills
8-year-olds getting found with 9mils
It's 10 PM, where your seeds at? What's the deal?
He on the hill pumping krills to keep they bellies filled
Light in the ass with heavy steel, sights on the pretty shit in life
Young soldiers trying to earn they next stripe
When the average minimum wage is $5.15
You best believe you've got to find a new grind to get C.R.E.A.M
The white unemployment rate is nearly more than triple for black
Some front-liners got their gun in your back
Bubbling crack, jewel theft and robbery to combat poverty
And end up in the global jail economy
Stiffer stipulations attached to each sentence
Budget cutbacks but increased police presence
And even if you get out of prison still livin'
Join the other 5 million under state supervision
This is business; no faces, just lines and statistics
From your phone, your Zip Code, to SSI digits
The system break man, child, and women into figures
2 columns for "Who is" and "Who ain't niggas"
Numbers is hard and real and they never have feelings
But you push too hard, even numbers got limits
Why did one straw break the camel's back?
Here's the secret
The million other straws underneath it
It's all mathematics
"The Mighty Mos Def"
"It's simple mathematics"
"Check it out"
"I revolve around science.."
"What are we talking about here?"
"The Mighty Mos Def"
"It's simple mathematics"
"Check it out"
"I revolve around science.."
"What are we talking about here?"
"Do your math, do your math"
"1, 2, 3, 4"
"What are we talking about here?"
(Mathematics, mathematics, mathematics...)

Paroles (Traduction)

Bucka-bucka-bucka-bucka-bucka-bucka, haha!
Tu connais le deal ; c'est juste moi, yo
Beats par Su-Primo pour tous mes gens, Noirs et Latinos
Et même les gringos
Yo, écoute
1 pour Charlie Hustle, 2 pour Steady Rock
3 pour le choc futur en direct à venir
C'est 5 dimensions, 6 sens
7 firmaments du ciel et de l'enfer
8 millions d'histoires à raconter
9 planètes gardant fidèlement leur orbite, avec probablement la 10ème
L'univers s'étend à gauche
Le corps de mon texte possède une force supplémentaire
Je soulève les impuissants hors de cet enfer colossal
Mon encre est si chaude qu'elle brûle à travers le journal
Je suis plus noir que minuit sur Broadway et Myrtle
Le Hip-Hop a surpassé tous vos grands obstacles sociaux
Comme le complexe industriel carcéral des projets nationaux
Pauvres de la classe ouvrière, mieux vaut garder votre alarme réglée
Les rues sont trop bruyantes pour entendre jamais sonner la liberté
Dis évacue ton sommeil, il est dangereux de rêver
Pour l'argent, les chats reçoivent le "cha-pow!" Tu es mort maintenant
Les champs de bataille ont besoin de sang pour faire paître la vache à lait
C'est un jeu de chiffres, mais les choses ne s'additionnent pas d'une manière ou d'une autre
Comme si j'avais 16 à 32 mesures pour le rapper
Mais seulement 15% des profits voient jamais mes poches
Comme 69 milliards de dollars au cours des 20 dernières années
Dépensés pour la défense nationale, mais les gens vivent toujours dans la peur
Comme près de la moitié des plus grandes villes d'Amérique sont un quart noires
C'est pourquoi ils ont donné toute la drogue à Ricky Ross
16 onces dans une livre, 20 de plus dans une clé
Une audience de 5 minutes et

Thématique Réalité sociale

Style Hip-hop

Keywords Mathématiques, Réalité sociale

Entités normées DJ Premier, Mos Def, Talib Kweli