The song lyrics were written by the band Van Halen, as they were asked to write a song for the 1979 movie "Over the Edge" starring Matt Dillon. The movie (and the lyrics, although more obliquely) are about bored, rebellious youth with nothing better to do than get into trouble. If you see the movie, these lyrics will make more sense. It's a great movie if you grew up in the 70s/80s you'll definitely remember some of these characters from your own life. Fun fact, after writing the song, Van Halen decided not to let the movie use it.
One time
Uh for these freaky hoes I lust
But I'm still flickin ashes a lot of other motherfuckers snort dust
But that's they thang
A lot of us fall victim somehow
But that's that game
Won't try to explain
From books to bricks
Now I see crooks and tricks
Caught up in the mix
Of everyday in every way but the right
I control the substance my people fiend for at night
Lord knows I do wrong
Sound like the same old song
A lot of niggas singing
Homeboys conceal your weapons
Cuz ain't gon be no smoking section in heaven
No more be buckin your luck
Seven eleven on the first roll
Don't let the streets rock and roll your soul
Swats GA by way of Cascade Heights
Gunshots roadblocks sidewalks and ice
Sold me out for 3.5 grams of neighborhood clout
Now what the fuss be 'bout
I'm back home from the bullshit
Puttin in work
Meanwhile others dug ditches and covered themselves in dirt
One squirt
And you locked down forever
Can't run from reality
Luring you closer and closer away
To the same old traps
Now you never learn from your mistakes
And now you wear this ass whoopin with pride
What side you on?
It wasn't no I in team
Only in your dreams
Saturated with schemes
Yea you right, God gon deal wit ya
Fallin from his grace
Rookie moves cause shifty game
And 30 days I'm blessed in the hole
But that's till I go to the state federal
Penitentiary
Yea I could did my time standin on one feet
But see I fucked up royally
Thought I was slick
Them herpes-havin ass crackers changed my big check to six
Times wit Dean Whitaker's sermon of the day
But when I go to sleep I don't dream no more I just lay
A wise man knows his limitations
Concrete, concrete like Greg Street
Sufferin from a severe case of inner-city blues
I ain't got no clues to which directions I need to choose
This opportunity to gain is all I got to lose
Cuz I just can't settle for these streets shorty I refuse
That's the shit I like
Lord got the door
Shot down to the pavement
Remove yo hat under the ceiling
Of this building
A rebuff from the usher of sorts
Deacons leading hymns rooted stems
Most strive for the diamonds and overlook the gems
Got skimp wit yo bags
Boulders become shoulders to depend on
Which way to explore
Reform, refrain, we gain inflame
Every thought you walk through the trails is hell
Airborne for one
Clone me
Replace me wit me
Another nation inside a nation
Out the land of Scots
Suction cups to test tube
Layer of skin
Supply the crust
And we'll mix the fruit
Gunshows supplied me in the hour of need
Watch em bleed
Aryan Nation be the dealer
Now who's the killer
Yup yup that's the shit I like
That's the shit I like
Uh puttin forth the effort to make a change
Not doin a lot of talkin bout it what's yo game?
You slippin you can't never do that
That's when you get jacked
For yo life over your emotions runnin wild
Like salamanders swimmin in southwest creeks
Feelin incomplete
Another story
Livin you had it
Now you lost it wasn't worth it look what it costed
Yo life young nigga
Didn't go out without a fight behind the gun trigger
You better think fast or get swept off yo feet
Nigga it hurts to see these drugs deteriorate
The minds of knuckleheads that grow up to be base heads
Don't say I didn't tell you cuz you gon see in the future
I hope I don't have to shoot you
If you switch
Went from hardcore to beggin like a bitch
Revolutions good to bad
Hoods to rags real niggas to fags
What's the news?
But I refuse to lose
Sufferin from a severe case of inner-city blues
I ain't got no clues to which directions I need to choose
This opportunity to gain is all I got to lose
Cuz I just can't settle for these streets shorty I refuse
Well I woke up this mornin with the same frustration from situations like these
Got a call about some work from one of them temporary agencies
No high school diploma or any college degrees
I can't enlist but they'll draft me if there's a war overseas
Oh please
Of course I can slice some OZs
But see I'm one of those aspirin MCs
And uh bills are due so at times I'm doubtful and everyone disagrees
But I'd rather struggle on my feet than to live on my knees
So my uniform tight workin all night at Mickey D's
Got about 90 dollars and some change after the government
Get they fees
These minimum wages ain't enough to feed my babies
Purposely these limitations on black folks opportunities
So I quit cuz I'm tired of being one of those overworked
Underpaid employees
Stop carin at all went on and did a few small burglaries
It seems like my faith done turned into forgotten memories
And I ain't gettin away with nothing because I know He always sees
But see right now I need to see how I can get this here dope sold
I done stuffed in my pocket as many rocks as it can hold
They gonna get high so I'm gonna get my money even though it's freezin cold
Now how many times you done heard this story told?
Believe it or not, there's some very intelligent junkies
But dependencies is eating away at they souls like disease
Anyone can turn into somebody who covets and envies
Unequal economics can easily make you some enemies
And the crime rate never drops so the cops ride around in threes
I knew he would have killed me if I did anything but freeze
They found the rest of the dope in some nearby shrubberies
In a dimlit room being questioned by these authorities
And they gave me some time in correctional facilities
And now my woman's gotta take on a man's responsibilities
Uh for these freaky hoes I lust
But I'm still flickin ashes a lot of other motherfuckers snort dust
But that's they thang
A lot of us fall victim somehow
But that's that game
Won't try to explain
From books to bricks
Now I see crooks and tricks
Caught up in the mix
Of everyday in every way but the right
I control the substance my people fiend for at night
Lord knows I do wrong
Sound like the same old song
A lot of niggas singing
Homeboys conceal your weapons
Cuz ain't gon be no smoking section in heaven
No more be buckin your luck
Seven eleven on the first roll
Don't let the streets rock and roll your soul
Swats GA by way of Cascade Heights
Gunshots roadblocks sidewalks and ice
Sold me out for 3.5 grams of neighborhood clout
Now what the fuss be 'bout
I'm back home from the bullshit
Puttin in work
Meanwhile others dug ditches and covered themselves in dirt
One squirt
And you locked down forever
Can't run from reality
Luring you closer and closer away
To the same old traps
Now you never learn from your mistakes
And now you wear this ass whoopin with pride
What side you on?
It wasn't no I in team
Only in your dreams
Saturated with schemes
Yea you right, God gon deal wit ya
Fallin from his grace
Rookie moves cause shifty game
And 30 days I'm blessed in the hole
But that's till I go to the state federal
Penitentiary
Yea I could did my time standin on one feet
But see I fucked up royally
Thought I was slick
Them herpes-havin ass crackers changed my big check to six
Times wit Dean Whitaker's sermon of the day
But when I go to sleep I don't dream no more I just lay
A wise man knows his limitations
Concrete, concrete like Greg Street
Sufferin from a severe case of inner-city blues
I ain't got no clues to which directions I need to choose
This opportunity to gain is all I got to lose
Cuz I just can't settle for these streets shorty I refuse
That's the shit I like
Lord got the door
Shot down to the pavement
Remove yo hat under the ceiling
Of this building
A rebuff from the usher of sorts
Deacons leading hymns rooted stems
Most strive for the diamonds and overlook the gems
Got skimp wit yo bags
Boulders become shoulders to depend on
Which way to explore
Reform, refrain, we gain inflame
Every thought you walk through the trails is hell
Airborne for one
Clone me
Replace me wit me
Another nation inside a nation
Out the land of Scots
Suction cups to test tube
Layer of skin
Supply the crust
And we'll mix the fruit
Gunshows supplied me in the hour of need
Watch em bleed
Aryan Nation be the dealer
Now who's the killer
Yup yup that's the shit I like
That's the shit I like
Uh puttin forth the effort to make a change
Not doin a lot of talkin bout it what's yo game?
You slippin you can't never do that
That's when you get jacked
For yo life over your emotions runnin wild
Like salamanders swimmin in southwest creeks
Feelin incomplete
Another story
Livin you had it
Now you lost it wasn't worth it look what it costed
Yo life young nigga
Didn't go out without a fight behind the gun trigger
You better think fast or get swept off yo feet
Nigga it hurts to see these drugs deteriorate
The minds of knuckleheads that grow up to be base heads
Don't say I didn't tell you cuz you gon see in the future
I hope I don't have to shoot you
If you switch
Went from hardcore to beggin like a bitch
Revolutions good to bad
Hoods to rags real niggas to fags
What's the news?
But I refuse to lose
Sufferin from a severe case of inner-city blues
I ain't got no clues to which directions I need to choose
This opportunity to gain is all I got to lose
Cuz I just can't settle for these streets shorty I refuse
Well I woke up this mornin with the same frustration from situations like these
Got a call about some work from one of them temporary agencies
No high school diploma or any college degrees
I can't enlist but they'll draft me if there's a war overseas
Oh please
Of course I can slice some OZs
But see I'm one of those aspirin MCs
And uh bills are due so at times I'm doubtful and everyone disagrees
But I'd rather struggle on my feet than to live on my knees
So my uniform tight workin all night at Mickey D's
Got about 90 dollars and some change after the government
Get they fees
These minimum wages ain't enough to feed my babies
Purposely these limitations on black folks opportunities
So I quit cuz I'm tired of being one of those overworked
Underpaid employees
Stop carin at all went on and did a few small burglaries
It seems like my faith done turned into forgotten memories
And I ain't gettin away with nothing because I know He always sees
But see right now I need to see how I can get this here dope sold
I done stuffed in my pocket as many rocks as it can hold
They gonna get high so I'm gonna get my money even though it's freezin cold
Now how many times you done heard this story told?
Believe it or not, there's some very intelligent junkies
But dependencies is eating away at they souls like disease
Anyone can turn into somebody who covets and envies
Unequal economics can easily make you some enemies
And the crime rate never drops so the cops ride around in threes
I knew he would have killed me if I did anything but freeze
They found the rest of the dope in some nearby shrubberies
In a dimlit room being questioned by these authorities
And they gave me some time in correctional facilities
And now my woman's gotta take on a man's responsibilities
Lyrics submitted by sweetinsanitee
I Refuse Limitation Lyrics as written by Jamahr Williams Cameron F. Gipp
Lyrics © BMG Rights Management, Exploration Group LLC
Lyrics powered by LyricFind
Add your thoughts
Log in now to tell us what you think this song means.
Don’t have an account? Create an account with SongMeanings to post comments, submit lyrics, and more. It’s super easy, we promise!
More Featured Meanings
Light Up The Sky
Van Halen
Van Halen
I Can't Go To Sleep
Wu-Tang Clan
Wu-Tang Clan
This song is written as the perspective of the boys in the street, as a whole, and what path they are going to choose as they get older and grow into men. (This is why the music video takes place in an orphanage.) The seen, and unseen collective suffering is imbedded in the boys’ mind, consciously or subconsciously, and is haunting them. Which path will the boys choose? Issac Hayes is the voice of reason, maybe God, the angel on his shoulder, or the voice of his forefathers from beyond the grave who can see the big picture and are pleading with the boys not to continue the violence and pattern of killing their brothers, but to rise above. The most beautiful song and has so many levels. Racism towards African Americans in America would not exist if everyone sat down and listened to this song and understood the history behind the words. The power, fear, pleading in RZA and Ghostface voices are genuine and powerful. Issac Hayes’ strong voice makes the perfect strong father figure, who is possibly from beyond the grave.
Blue
Ed Sheeran
Ed Sheeran
“Blue” is a song about a love that is persisting in the discomfort of the person experiencing the emotion. Ed Sheeran reflects on love lost, and although he wishes his former partner find happiness, he cannot but admit his feelings are still very much there. He expresses the realization that he might never find another on this stringed instrumental by Aaron Dessner.
Amazing
Ed Sheeran
Ed Sheeran
Ed Sheeran tells a story of unsuccessfully trying to feel “Amazing.” This track is about the being weighed down by emotional stress despite valiant attempts to find some positivity in the situation. This track was written by Ed Sheeran from the perspective of his friend. From the track, we see this person fall deeper into the negative thoughts and slide further down the path of mental torment with every lyric.
Plastic Bag
Ed Sheeran
Ed Sheeran
“Plastic Bag” is a song about searching for an escape from personal problems and hoping to find it in the lively atmosphere of a Saturday night party. Ed Sheeran tells the story of his friend and the myriad of troubles he is going through. Unable to find any solutions, this friend seeks a last resort in a party and the vanity that comes with it.
“I overthink and have trouble sleepin’ / All purpose gone and don’t have a reason / And there’s no doctor to stop this bleedin’ / So I left home and jumped in the deep end,” Ed Sheeran sings in verse one. He continues by adding that this person is feeling the weight of having disappointed his father and doesn’t have any friends to rely on in this difficult moment. In the second verse, Ed sings about the role of grief in his friend’s plight and his dwindling faith in prayer. “Saturday night is givin’ me a reason to rely on the strobe lights / The lifeline of a promise in a shot glass, and I’ll take that / If you’re givin’ out love from a plastic bag,” Ed sings on the chorus, as his friend turns to new vices in hopes of feeling better.
Cee-Lo's verse is the greatest ever.
word! throwing in the sold-hold-cold-told flow to break the rhythm but always extending the story--droppin shit matter of factly. deep sob. but the Mob as whole stepped up on this. challanges Black Ice as my faves on this album, the best of theirs, and also Cee-lo heavy.