Still Livin’

[Intro]
Welcome to the night train
I can remember
I can remember, yo
I can remember

[Verse 1]
See I was never one to mess around with none of the fake shit
I learned the basics from my ace I used to trade tapes with
And we was sitting in class, watching the clock ticking
Waiting till we can be kicking raps in the basement
We was a tag team; young rap fiends
Caught the microphone fever, and we didn't want the vaccine
Bad days, rap made them good
Nevertheless I was nervous 'cos I was new to the neighborhood
On the block hard pumping I was cuttin' across
The boulevard so the thugs wouldn't start nothing
Me and my dog, we was keepin' it raw
Dubbing our own instrumentals with blank tapes and pause button
Constantly confronted and chased, seems like I couldn't go a day without a punch in the face
They laughed at me at school, they said
"who's that guy, the quiet little white kid with two black eyes"
I couldn't take it; ten years old getting attacked
He was the only reason I didn't collapse
My man Will saw me fallin' apart he said
"I know they hit hard, but you gotta start hitting them back"
So I did it: raised my knuckles and swung proper
Me and Iron Will, a couple of young boppers and
Man, he got an earful 'cos nobody liked it
A young black boy sticking up for the white kid
We was together every day of the week
Banging beats while we sat up at the table to eat
He pulled me out of all my dark days and cold nights
He was more than my friend, man, he was my whole life
And now...

[Hook 1]
Now that you left me
What will I do?
What will I do, girl
And I said ...

[Hook 2]
Why?
Bottom line is wishing that he still was around
Why?
I remember it used to be
Why?
Bottom line is wishing that he still was around
Why?
Ayo, I wish he was still living, word

[Verse 2]
Ayo, skinny ninth grader, SCO
Black hat, backpack, I'm at every show
Went from trying not to get beat down on Broadway
To rhyming at San Francisco Public High School hallway
Running around, thinking I was a G
Drinking bottles of brandy, smoking powerful weed
That was me, white tee with the Jordan wristband
On the bus, listening to my thirty-dollar disc-man
I gave a fuck about permission and rules
I got in trouble I had to go to three different schools
I wasn't payin' attention to the teacher or the lesson plan
I was in the back studying Nas and Method Man
And I never really lost the flame
I hit lunchtime cypher, met [?] James
And it didn't take long, we started writing songs
And before we both knew it, we was off the chain
Mix the Third Street flavor with the uptown flow
Running round the city straight murdering shows
And yo, the po's couldn't stand us, still spitting a verse
While we were sitting on the curb wearing handcuffs
School, we barely set foot in the place
Playing hookey at the record store, looking for breaks
Everyday seem like it was nothing but green grass
But I had a mean past, and I couldn't escape
Now come on

[Hook 2]
Why?
Bottom line is wishing that he still was around
Why?
I remember how it used to be
Why?
Bottom line is wishing that he still was around
Why?
Ayo, I wish he was still living, word

[Verse 3]
Ayo this life is a heart breaker
It ain't a thing they can tell you to help you sustain the pain
First, the sun shining (sun shining), but when the sun goes down
It's just another cold night on the train
I walked a lonely mile as a only child
Inherited a dream from my brother who showed me how
To keep my dukes up, my man no longer with me
But I see him under every lamp in this cold city
I never got a "goodbye", (goodbye)
Even when the accident happening right in front of my eyes
And every year his birthday flies right on by
That's why I still cry every fourth of July
He told me that we was brothers, and I guess he was right
'Cos part of me'll be alone for the rest of my life
I never had my man standing at a stick-up for me, and
I never seen when he was gonna grow up to be
I sit alone, and I stare at his hat
Thinking back about when I was too embarrassed to rap
He said, "Richie, your shit is ill, son, spit that shit"
He said, "no Richie, for real, son, spit that shit"
So I did it, started getting loose with a pen
And motherfuck blowin' up, man, I do it for him
To the Heaven above, and the Hell below
Just know Richie Cunning is a two man show
It's like that

[Hook 2]
Why?
Bottom line is wishing that he still was around
Why?
I remember how it used to be
Why?
Bottom line is wishing that he still was around
Why?
Ayo, I wish he was still living, word

[Hook 1]
Now that you left me
What will I do?
What will I do, girl
And I said ...

[Spoken Outro]
Yeah
Richie Cunning
Iron Will
I'll see you on the next train, homie