"Fast car" is kind of a continuation of Bruce Springsteen's "Born to Run." It has all the clawing your way to a better life, but in this case the protagonist never makes it with her love; in fact she is dragged back down by him.
There is still an amazing amount of hope and will in the lyrics; and the lyrics themselve rank and easy five. If only music was stronger it would be one of those great radio songs that you hear once a week 20 years after it was released. The imagery is almost tear-jerking ("City lights lay out before us", "Speeds so fast felt like I was drunk"), and the idea of starting from nothing and just driving and working and denigrating yourself for a chance at being just above poverty, then losing in the end is just painful and inspiring at the same time.
Shit, tired of gettin shot at
Tired of gettin chased by the police and arrested
Niggaz need a spot where WE can kick it
A spot where WE belong, that's just for us
Niggaz ain't gotta get all dressed up and be Hollywood
Y'knahmean? Where do niggaz go when we die?
Ain't no heaven for a thug nigga
That's why we go to thug mansion
That's the only place where thugs get in free and you gotta be a G
... at thug mansion
A place to spend my quiet nights, time to unwind
So much pressure in this life of mine, I cry at times
I once contemplated suicide, and woulda tried
But when I held that 9, all I could see was my momma's eyes
No one knows my struggle, they only see the trouble
Not knowin it's hard to carry on when no one loves you
Picture me inside the misery of poverty
No man alive has ever witnessed struggles I survived
Prayin hard for better days, promise to hold on
Me and my dawgs ain't have a choice but to roll on
We found a family spot to kick it
Where we can drink liquor and no one bickers over trick shit
A spot where we can smoke in peace, and even though we G's
We still visualize places, that we can roll in peace
And in my mind's eye I see this place, the players go in fast
I got a spot for us all, so we can ball, at thug's mansion
Ain't no place I'd rather be
Chillin' with homies and family
Sky high, iced out paradise
In the skyyyyyyyyyy..
Ain't no place I'd rather be
Only place that's right for me
Chromed out mansion in paradise
In the skyyyyyyyyyy..
Will I survive all the fights and the darkness?
Trouble sparks, they tell me home is where the heart is, dear departed
I shed tattooed tears and couldn't sleep good
for multiple years, witness peers catch gunshots
Nobody cares, seen the politicians ban us
They'd rather see us locked in chains, please explain
why they can't stand us, is there a way for me to change?
Or am I just a victim of things I did to maintain?
I need a place to rest my head
with the little bit of homeboys that remains, cause all the rest dead
Is there a spot for us to roll, if you find it
I'll be right behind ya, show me and I'll go
How can I be peaceful? I'm comin from the bottom
Watch my daddy scream peace while the other man shot him
I need a house that's full of love when I need to escape
the deadly places slingin drugs, in thug's mansion
Dear momma don't cry, your baby boy's doin good
Tell the homies I'm in heaven and they ain't got hoods
Seen a show with Marvin Gaye last night, it had me shook
Drippin peppermint Schnapps, with Jackie Wilson, and Sam Cooke
Then some lady named Billie Holiday
Sang sittin there kickin it with Malcolm, 'til the day came
Little LaTasha sho' grown
Tell the lady in the liquorstore that she's forgiven, so come home
Maybe in time you'll understand only God can save us
When Miles Davis cuttin lose with the band
Just think of all the people that you knew in the past
that passed on, they in heaven, found peace at last
Picture a place that they exist, together
There has to be a place better than this, in heaven
So right before I sleep, dear God, what I'm askin
Remember this face, save me a place, in thug's mansion
Tired of gettin chased by the police and arrested
Niggaz need a spot where WE can kick it
A spot where WE belong, that's just for us
Niggaz ain't gotta get all dressed up and be Hollywood
Y'knahmean? Where do niggaz go when we die?
Ain't no heaven for a thug nigga
That's why we go to thug mansion
That's the only place where thugs get in free and you gotta be a G
... at thug mansion
A place to spend my quiet nights, time to unwind
So much pressure in this life of mine, I cry at times
I once contemplated suicide, and woulda tried
But when I held that 9, all I could see was my momma's eyes
No one knows my struggle, they only see the trouble
Not knowin it's hard to carry on when no one loves you
Picture me inside the misery of poverty
No man alive has ever witnessed struggles I survived
Prayin hard for better days, promise to hold on
Me and my dawgs ain't have a choice but to roll on
We found a family spot to kick it
Where we can drink liquor and no one bickers over trick shit
A spot where we can smoke in peace, and even though we G's
We still visualize places, that we can roll in peace
And in my mind's eye I see this place, the players go in fast
I got a spot for us all, so we can ball, at thug's mansion
Ain't no place I'd rather be
Chillin' with homies and family
Sky high, iced out paradise
In the skyyyyyyyyyy..
Ain't no place I'd rather be
Only place that's right for me
Chromed out mansion in paradise
In the skyyyyyyyyyy..
Will I survive all the fights and the darkness?
Trouble sparks, they tell me home is where the heart is, dear departed
I shed tattooed tears and couldn't sleep good
for multiple years, witness peers catch gunshots
Nobody cares, seen the politicians ban us
They'd rather see us locked in chains, please explain
why they can't stand us, is there a way for me to change?
Or am I just a victim of things I did to maintain?
I need a place to rest my head
with the little bit of homeboys that remains, cause all the rest dead
Is there a spot for us to roll, if you find it
I'll be right behind ya, show me and I'll go
How can I be peaceful? I'm comin from the bottom
Watch my daddy scream peace while the other man shot him
I need a house that's full of love when I need to escape
the deadly places slingin drugs, in thug's mansion
Dear momma don't cry, your baby boy's doin good
Tell the homies I'm in heaven and they ain't got hoods
Seen a show with Marvin Gaye last night, it had me shook
Drippin peppermint Schnapps, with Jackie Wilson, and Sam Cooke
Then some lady named Billie Holiday
Sang sittin there kickin it with Malcolm, 'til the day came
Little LaTasha sho' grown
Tell the lady in the liquorstore that she's forgiven, so come home
Maybe in time you'll understand only God can save us
When Miles Davis cuttin lose with the band
Just think of all the people that you knew in the past
that passed on, they in heaven, found peace at last
Picture a place that they exist, together
There has to be a place better than this, in heaven
So right before I sleep, dear God, what I'm askin
Remember this face, save me a place, in thug's mansion
Lyrics submitted by kurtcobain06
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Fast Car
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This is one of my favorite songs. https://fnfgo.io
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Great version of a great song,
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Man, not one of Tupacs best, but still bloody good. Not as deep as some of his tracks (Brenda's Got A Baby, Dear Mama, Changes), but he's still wearing his heart on his sleeve. I mean the lyric "I once contemplated suicide, and woulda tried But when I held that 9, all I could see was my momma's eyes" is just so f*cking real, ya know?