MOOSA

(Hello this is a prepaid collect call from Moosa) praise my Lord (how it feel?)
Praise my Lord (how it feel?)
Praise my Lord (how it feel?)
Praise my Lord (how it feel?)

I was beggin' God for a sign, shine a beacon of light
I know I ain't livin' right
Every day is darkness, in this dusty apartment
Half-empty Hennessy bottles and condoms on the carpet
Half a bag of cocaine on the counter by my Smith & Wesson
Misdirected I gripped the weapon connect it to my temple
Resentful to be so sinful, demons on my mental
Dreamin' of when things were simple
On SNL with Kanye, poppin' Ace at the 40/40 next to Beyonce
Now I felt like Michelle and Kelly
As if my destiny wasn't manifested for me
At the same time my dawg James, fightin' an attempted
Class X felony
Rottin' in Cook County with rapists facin' forty years
He'd be lucky to get a twenty-piece
My conversations with him were therapy
Imaginin' how he could be so optimistic
Prayin' in front of a toilet with no pot to piss in
He told me, "Stop and listen
Allah gives me my freedom
If I keep him inside, these devils could never hold my mind in my prison
And you outside bitchin'
You need to practice and some gratitude
Take heed to the blessings that he granted you"

Waitin' by this phone
Better days are comin', I know
You've been gone so long
But one day you'll be home again
Just waitin' by that jail phone (by that jail phone)
Better days are comin', I know
You've been gone so long (you've been gone so long)
But one day you'll be home again

Before long, I'm introduced on the phone
To a brother named Moosa
See Moosa been in Dixon prison since he was a junior
Sentenced to twenty-five years at fourteen
As an adolescent shooter, uh
I knew him through my sister Aja Monet
She asked me if I can help to shed some light on his case
We hop on the horn, knowledge is born
Rapping 'bout criminalization of the black boy
Conversation moved forward, then James asked
"What's the chance he'd be sent to Dixon?"
He says, "Slim to none, Illinois got fifty prisons
I got a clemency petition, you could help me pitch it
Hold on, let me call you back, the C.O.'s bitchin'" (oh, get the fuck up)
As James' trial date approached fruition
I'm goin' through my own trials, caught a gun possession for the .40 cal
All this positive shit and really I'm hardly different
Thinkin' I might end up in a cell right by these niggas
My mind started flippin' when I heard the judge decision
A decade and a half, they don't want him home 'til 2035
That's that shit'll make you spazz
Grab a C.O. and slit his throat with a broken glass
Last but not least, in the feat of serendipity
This nigga got sent to the same penitentiary
I kid you not, on the same cell block
So close to this nigga Moosa that they could share a cot
James started goin' to Jumu'ah
He puttin' me on the Quran
I'm takin' fruit from the faith of Islam
Meditatin' on my burdens as I pray to Allah
To keep my head high through the hoopla
He surrounded by the wolves and a pool of sharks
Fightin' over phone time (come on, man, motherfuckas got kids too)
Wrong place, wrong time
Moosa got into a altercation, on some petty shit
Wasn't even really his beef, it was his celly's shit
Blood everywhere, teeth knocked out
Busted his mouth, somebody shout (goofy ass nigga, player)
Next thing you know the C.O.'s is stomping 'em out (hey, break it off assholes)
Now it's hope of freedom cast in the shadow of doubt
All the classes and the programs, dirty toilet, bowl hands
Hopin' it wasn't all for nothin'
Fast forward to our next discussion
He still stressin' over the repercussions
He told me he came across an initiative
Surroundin' the COVID concernin' clemency prisoners
I doubted the significance, I mean shit, how could it be?
He ain't supposed to see the streets until 2033
I sent a note to the governor's desk, I knew he wouldn't read
I got the call from his lady, three days later, he's home free

We passed through great arches
A fortress of stone
Hands and hair as coarse as wool
Feet like burnished bronze as we march through the sea
In all of your glory (all of your glory)
You need not fear
For the tides are turning
There's a wind in your sails (ooh-ooh, ooh-ooh-ooh)

Keep on dreaming
Keep on loving
Keep on moving
Keep on discovering, yeah, yeah
Keep on existing
Keep on resisting
Keep on fighting
Yeah, yeah (ooh, ooh, ooh, ooh)
Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah
Yeah, yeah
Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah
Yeah, yeah
Simmer down, simmer down, simmer down, simmer down
Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah
Yeah-yeah
Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah
Ooh
Ooh
Ooh, yeah (ah)