There's gon' be some stuff you gon' see
That's gon' make it hard to smile in the future
But through whatever you see, through all the rain and the pain
You gotta keep your sense of humor
You gotta be able to smile through all this bullshit
Remember that, yeah, keep ya head up, yeah
Our lifestyles be close captioned, addicted to fatal attractions
Pictures of actions be played back in the midst of mashin'
No fairy tales for this young black male
Some see me stranded in this land of hell, jail and crack sales
Hustlin' too hard to think of culture
Or the repercussions while bustin' on backstabbin' vultures
Sellin' my soul for material wishes, fast cars and bitches
Wishin' I live my life a legend, immortalized in pictures
Why shed tears? Save your sympathy
My childhood years were spent buryin' my peers in the cemetery
Here's a message to the newborns waitin' to breathe
If you believe then you can achieve, just look at me
Against all odds, though life is hard, we carry on
Livin' in the projects, broke with no lights on
To all the seeds that follow me, protect your essence
Born with less but you still precious, just smile for me now
Smile for me, won't you smile?
(Smile for me now)
Just smile, smile for me
(Smile)
(What cha lookin' all sad for, nigga? You black, smile for me now)
Smile for me
(Nigga, you ain't got nothin' to be worried about)
Won't you smile? Just smile
(No doubt, smile for me now and the next generation)