In regards to the meaning of this song:
Before a live performance on the EP Five Stories Falling, Geoff states “It’s about the last time I went to visit my grandmother in Columbus, and I saw that she was dying and it was the last time I was going to see her. It is about realizing how young you are, but how quickly you can go.”
That’s the thing about Geoff and his sublime poetry, you think it’s about one thing, but really it’s about something entirely different. But the lyrics are still universal and omnipresent, ubiquitous, even. So relatable. That’s one thing I love about this band. I also love their live performances, raw energy and Geoff’s beautiful, imperfectly perfect vocals. His voice soothes my aching soul.
Freedom, ignorance, jealousy, belligerence, anger, self-control, tolerance, to and fro, wisdom, exstacy, addiction, dependency, discipline, counter act, pray for peace, then attack. Dominane. Contradict. Upper class derelict. Downgrade. Downsize. Upstate. Uprise.
Now tell me, where my niggas at? Now tell me, where my niggas at? Now tell me, where my niggas at? Now tell me where my nigga at?
Downtown. On the block. At the club. Steaming hot. Dancing. Talking shit. Telling lies. Like a pimp. Meanwhile, underpaid. Read like, second grade. Uncle Sam, sign you up. Benefits. And a gun.
Now tell me, where my niggas at? Now tell me, where my niggas at? Now tell me, where my niggas at? Now tell me where my nigga at?
African People. African people. African People. African People.
Shotgun. Shotgun. Shotgun. Shotgun.
Rise up. Over-stand. Stand your ground. Own your land. Serve all. Love all. Never sleep. Never fall. Meditate. Eat right. Pray first. Then fight. But for truth. Not for fame. Not for glory. Or the game.
Now tell me, where my niggas at? Now tell me, where my niggas at? Now tell me, where my niggas at? Now tell me where my nigga at?
African People. African people. African People. African People.
Shotgun. Shotgun. Shotgun. Shotgun.
Liberia. Iraq. Dark brown. Light black. South Africa. Mozambique. Mud hut. Concrete. AIDS ridden. Heart disease. Strange fruit. Southern trees. Sierre Leone. Diamond mines. Cameroon. Pipe lines. Port au Prince. Salvadore. Civil right. Civil war. Zimbabwe. Trenchtown. Money makin'. Queens bound. BX. Shaolin. Uptown. Brooklyn. Upstate. Newburgh. Unseen. Unheard.
Now tell me, where my niggas at? Now tell me, where my niggas at? Now tell me, where my niggas at? Now tell me where my nigga at?
African People. African people. African People. African People.
Shotgun. Shotgun. Shotgun. Shotgun.
Now tell me, where my niggas at? Now tell me, where my niggas at? Now tell me, where my niggas at? Now tell me where my nigga at?
Downtown. On the block. At the club. Steaming hot. Dancing. Talking shit. Telling lies. Like a pimp. Meanwhile, underpaid. Read like, second grade. Uncle Sam, sign you up. Benefits. And a gun.
Now tell me, where my niggas at? Now tell me, where my niggas at? Now tell me, where my niggas at? Now tell me where my nigga at?
African People. African people. African People. African People.
Shotgun. Shotgun. Shotgun. Shotgun.
Rise up. Over-stand. Stand your ground. Own your land. Serve all. Love all. Never sleep. Never fall. Meditate. Eat right. Pray first. Then fight. But for truth. Not for fame. Not for glory. Or the game.
Now tell me, where my niggas at? Now tell me, where my niggas at? Now tell me, where my niggas at? Now tell me where my nigga at?
African People. African people. African People. African People.
Shotgun. Shotgun. Shotgun. Shotgun.
Liberia. Iraq. Dark brown. Light black. South Africa. Mozambique. Mud hut. Concrete. AIDS ridden. Heart disease. Strange fruit. Southern trees. Sierre Leone. Diamond mines. Cameroon. Pipe lines. Port au Prince. Salvadore. Civil right. Civil war. Zimbabwe. Trenchtown. Money makin'. Queens bound. BX. Shaolin. Uptown. Brooklyn. Upstate. Newburgh. Unseen. Unheard.
Now tell me, where my niggas at? Now tell me, where my niggas at? Now tell me, where my niggas at? Now tell me where my nigga at?
African People. African people. African People. African People.
Shotgun. Shotgun. Shotgun. Shotgun.
Lyrics submitted by pintsofguinness
African Student Movement Lyrics as written by Saul Williams
Lyrics © Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC
Lyrics powered by LyricFind
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Great song, basically saying people contradict themselves. They want peace, they use violence. They pray for peace, then attack. They go get drunk at a club yet they can't even read at a 2nd grad level. He's saying these people need to stop letting themselves be taking advantage of and instead of drinking READ LEARN and THINK. Fight for the truth, fight for what is right and help those in need. Knowledge is POWER. Without knowledge you are under the control of the ones who have the knowledge, the power.