this song is possibly Lupe's best lyrically.....wordplay central...check out this decipher of all the lyrics on the song:

Got this from so other Forum
REFERENCES
It's mean, soldier
Now let me put the streets down like steamrollers
^^steamrollers pave streets, i.e.put them down

With the CATS that push
^^Caterpillar steamroller; "cats" = animal theme

40 oz. through the hood like King Cobras
^^animal theme; malt liquor

See me sling soda
'Cause the extra four in the split is mixed
It's really 36
^^seems to be a reference to 40 oz with 4 ounce of soda mixed = 36 ounces (36 oz = a ki)

Used to buy toasters and clips
^^Guns & Ammo

You can tighten your circle or boa constrict
^^animal theme

While you was lighting your purple, I was over the scripts
See, I couldn't walk the walk, couldn't really talk the talk
^^scripts, see = "script glasses"

Had to get my talk to properly explain my walk
'Cause this lack in talk had my walk looking off
Now I'm over the limp
Watch how they mugs drop when they see my Verbal's able
(That's the Usual)
^^Revelation in Usual Suspects of Kevin Spacey / Verbal Kint
At the moment Palminteri finds out he's "able" to walk, i.e. no limp, he drops his mug

When I was po' I was low
Now me and my Chaps cop Purple Label
It's Ralph Lauren on the rap laureate
^^Chaps as chaps or friends
Chaps, Purple Label = Ralph Lauren clothes
also 'when I was po' I was lo...po+lo = Polo

Niggas brownnose, they are like Alf to him
^^Brown nosing is to... have one's nose in someone's ass... as in suck up.
Alf a brown alien from the late 80s/early 90s sitcom.

Runners at Interscope are not as Stoute as him
^^Steve Stoute, exec at Interscope

Please don't Interscope
^^the 2nd "interscope" he's saying "enter scope"

It's gonna be a whole lot of IV'ing and respirating
^^IVing, as in intravenous medication, and Jimmy Iovine, chairman of Interscope

If I lean out this window with Irene
??

Niggas as tall as Yao Ming
With L-U-P-Emperor
^^Emperor Ming

Is the foundation's high beams and the antennas
It's so serious every time I write my John Hancock like
Could damn near see Detroit
Niggas is scared of heights
^^Hitting on the tall idea, i.e. Yao Ming
John Hancock Center is a Chicago skyscraper, 16th tallest building in the world
Antennas sit atop
High beams as a building's structual high beams and high beams as in a high beam signal that links with an anetnna signal
serious = sears tower

This is saranwrap and aluminum foil
Some potpourri, a little machine oil
^^all used to disguise the smell of drugs from police dogs
a/k/a "throw off my SCENTS'

I stack my paper and throw off my 6
^^ Ties into the previous line...6 = CENTS (only keep the bills, don't worry abt the coins)

This is top floor, better look out before
Pennies from heaven is the same as the semi from the second
^^old chicago urban legend about someone being killed by a coin
thrown from the observatory @ the top of the sears tower (throw off my cents)
hence "pennies from heaven" having the same effect as a bullet

And I reign supreme
Turn your umbrellas upside down
Did you even catch the change in theme?
^^As in normally when it's raining your umbrellas is right side up
but turn your umbrellas upside down so you can CATCH THE CHANGE (ties into aforementioned chi urban legend about falling coins)

And them niggas ain't Was nor from his regime
^^wasalu muhammad jaco = lupe's govt

Gangsta lean
Hats on tilt
^^tilt, lean

like these niggas ain't drop out the vending machine
You gotta put more money in
^^http://www.cudakitchen.com/catalog-p...php?p_ref=1372

And I shake niggas up every time I drop a bar
(2 for 1)
^^shaking as what you'd do to the vending machine to try and get a "2 for 1"

It's horse in the Porsche
^^animal theme; horsepower

^^and bricks in the box
brick = kilo of cocaine stashed

Like mo' money them every time I cop a car
^^Ever time he picks up a car (with the coke) funds increase from sales

You see I'm a roller, right
^^another reference along the lines of steamroller

So it might be a Rover, right
^^Range Rover

But every time I drop a 'r'
(Get off the streets)
It's "over" aite
^^Remove the 'R' from "Rover" you get "over"

Bet I be in the head like overnight
^^overhead storage

Like rollers, right
^^You put rollers in your hair for a certain look

She the chauffeur, right
So I keep her sober
^^Friends don't let friends drink and drive

She don't get Fed Ex like overnight
^^Fed Ex as in overnight shipping
"feed ex" as in ecstasy, keeping her sober still

I am Dolemite
All that gas can't help you but solar might
^^Maybe reading too much into it: GAS CAN't
Anyway, solar vs. fossil fuel energy

Just call on sun
^^sun / son

Drop a 's'
Pick up an 'o'
Uno, put it all on "one"
^^y'know / uno
"sun" drop an 's" = 'un' and an 'o' = "uno" = Spanish, Italian, etc. for "one"

Brace yourself like overbite
^^mouth theme; braces used to correct overbites

"For that quiet nigga that relocated down south
Coming back to floss"
^^Reference to Nas' NY State of Mind PT II with "floss" being used in the mouth theme

Nigga get your molars right
^^mouth theme

Fix your grill
^^mouth theme

No plaque but a whole lot of cheese
^^no platinum plaque but a whole lot of money, i.e. cheese
mouth theme: plaque as in tooth decay, cheese as in smile

This the drill
^^mouth theme

Mr. Chill
^^Chilly, Lupe's 1st & 15th partner

Gave me the green light like Yoda knife
So I'ma force my will
Like the Force I wield
^^green light as in "go ahead"
Yoda's light saber was green
Star Wars: "Force be with you"

Of course you will
Take my time
But weight behind only pertains
To that Porsche grill
^^time / wait / weight
"weight" as in drugs as in "bricks in the box"

It's snakes in the hood
Gotta watch for that Cobra bite
^^animal theme; snakes as in shady people
earlier reference to King Cobra

Let me see
There's snakes in the hood
A bird, a horse behind the grill
^^animal theme; bird = cocaine...a ki of heron hidden behind the grill of the porsche

Something gator on the seat
^^animal theme; gator leather seating

And a fox behind the wheel
^^"fox" as in "attractive, alluring person"

For achiever
My procedure's
To proceed at all cost
With no breather
I'm all walk
Rain, snow, or fever
^^Postal Service: through Rain, Sleet, or Snow

I'm all coughs coming after your teacher
^^I don't know; coughs as in trying to get the teacher sick?
which contrasts with the previous fever reference

I'm on the ball like FIFA
^^Federation Internationale de Football Associatio; soccer

Viva
^^soccer chant

Lupe Duce
Long live the leader
^^Italian from Latin duke, meaning Emperor (see earlier) or leader
viva il duce" (long live the leader) = mussolini reference
the word Duce, without necessarily historical context, relates to Emperor, from the earlier line, and the general Euro sensibility which goes with Uno and FIFA.

I remember I ain't have sneakers
It was welfare
Coming up for air is like
Whales there
^^Whales, unlike fish, have to come up from the water for air

Fila
^^Shoe company know for soccer ware

But now I'm well here
I'm Shamu with twelve pair
^^Shamu the whale

And niggas wanna take me back to zero like tear fare
^^fair / fare
Maybe reading too much into it: Fare, as in subway fare, having no worth when torn

Well, my skill's clear
You Sea World
^^See world, Sea World home of Shamu

It's Braille here
^^"see world" Braille how blind people read and write

I'm Bumpy Johnson, I stick to the streets
^^Bumpy Johnson = Harlem gangster
ties into Braille refrence...dude is connecting Harlem street legends to reading for the blind

Keep my dogs out in front of me
^^dogs on the street / dogs = chaps

You see what I'm saying
And I push ki's wonderfully
^^push keys as in piano, push ki's as in sell kilos of coke (duh)

uppin^^^

nice work, but how long did that take you man? and hows about the track, its not on Food & Liquor

^^naw its not on F&L....but i got this fromanother forum.....ill see if i can find u the trak

wasnt even all that good

^ And I suppose you think Papoose did better.

^ And I suppose you think Papoose did better.
pap done way better

are u serious...lupe killed this track.....every fuckin line had wordplay that niggas prolly wouldnt even catch on the first couple listens

Wow. Is this nigga serious?

Lupe > Pap.

Anyday son.

Lupe > Pap.

*Co-Sign*
This is a dope song I had it on my computer, and I lost it =(

Thattss an ILLL track shit guy thanks for showin me that but kilo i agree paps good n shit but he doesnt touch Lupe ... lupes straight hoood..haha peace


P.s Support Lupe Fiasco buy his shittt

word up

Wow. Is this nigga serious?

Lupe > Pap.

Anyday son.

co-sign, Lupe is way more lyrical, better flow, better subject matter, better voice... pap is still dope but can't tough lupe

trust i like Pap and given the right amount of hype he may have wat it takes to bring back NY but he cant fuck wit Lupe on a lyrical level and this track shows it

^ he can't fuck with Lupe on many levels. But the thing I love about Lupe is that he raps about anything he wants, he doesn't rap about guns and drugs but instead skateboarding and politics, he's something new and origional, there's no one quite like him

i think by scripts he means lyrics.

Iv Had This Song For Awhile And Never Really Listened To It...Now I Will Haha This Is Good Shit

Hahaha, this is like how they teach Shakespeare scripts at school.

was just listening to this earlier ... song should have been on Food & Liquor ...

Hahaha, this is like how they teach Shakespeare scripts at school.

Yea...Its How They Teach Every Book, If U Have The Right Teacher...I Wud Kno =/

Anyway, That Song Is Crazy Good, I Dont Really Like The Beat Or The Flow That Much Tho

yea the flow through me off at first but it grows on u........shit is a lyrical masterpiece.....Lupe fucked up by no puttin this on F&L lol

I like Lupe's lyrics and subject matter, but I really prefer Papoose's emphasis and force with each line he spits making his flow more listenable in most cases IMO.