I'll be late for that, baby I'll wait for that
If you had a taste of that, you'd probably pay for that
I'm comin in when I feel like
So turn this motherfucker up only if it feels right
I'll be late for that, I can't wait for that
I think I was made for that
So I'm comin in when I feel like
So turn this muh'fucker up only if it feels right

Stop all your blood clot cryin, I was flyin'
Made it to school with barely 'nuff time to sign in
Yeah I hear the alarm, yeah I hear ya mom
Yeah yeah I don't wan' be broke when I'm 31
They said the best classes go to the fastest
Sorry Mr. West there's no good classes, and that's what yo' ass get
Not even electives? Not even pre-requits?
You mean I missed my major by a couple of seconds?
Now I'm in the shop class or the basket weavin
With all the rest of the muh'fuckers underachievin
Man, this is an insult
I went to junior high with all of them and they been slow
If I can catch the beat then slow down the tempo
Just throw this at the end if I'm too late for the intro
Will I make it from the student loans to a Benz-o?
Like old folks pissin, I guess it all depends, oh, oh
Stop your cryin baby

I'll be late for that, baby I'll wait for that
If you had a taste of that, you'd probably pay for that
I'm comin in when I feel like
So turn this motherfucker up only if it feels right
I'll be late for that, I can't wait for that
I think I was made for that
So I'm comin in when I feel like
So turn this muh'fucker up only if it feels right

You know when you be late you miss all the lights
That's right (that's right) that's right (that's right)
And when you get back she gon' start up a fight
That night (that night) that night
Baby it's too late for that, lately I've been takin it slow
Try and make it to the party 'fore the guest list close
With the freshest hoes, the professors know
We about to get real unprofessional
Like them eskimos, what would you do for a Klondike?
Or two dykes that look Christina Milian like
Hmmm, I'll be on time for that
I ain't thought of no line that could rhyme with that
Yo, I'll be there in five minutes, five hours later
I'll be there in five minutes, go 'head ride with it
I'm so live with it, look how I did it
Been bullshittin but I finally arrived with it
I know it's late and I took all year but
You can stop complainin cause I'm finally here, yeah


Lyrics submitted by pearljam79

Late Lyrics as written by Sylvia Robinson George Kerr

Lyrics © Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC

Lyrics powered by LyricFind

Late song meanings
Add Your Thoughts

7 Comments

sort form View by:
  • 0
    General Comment

    this is probably my favorite kanye west song ever, i'm saddened by the lack of songmeaning love for it.

    jjjonatronon February 19, 2008   Link

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

Album art
Standing On The Edge Of Summer
Thursday
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.
Album art
Mental Istid
Ebba Grön
This is one of my favorite songs. https://fnfgo.io
Album art
Dreamwalker
Silent Planet
I think much like another song “Anti-Matter” (that's also on the same album as this song), this one is also is inspired by a horrifying van crash the band experienced on Nov 3, 2022. This, much like the other track, sounds like it's an extension what they shared while huddled in the wreckage, as they helped frontman Garrett Russell stem the bleeding from his head wound while he was under the temporary effects of a concussion. The track speaks of where the mind goes at the most desperate & desolate of times, when it just about slips away to all but disconnect itself, and the aftermath.
Album art
No Surprises
Radiohead
Same ideas expressed in Fitter, Happier are expressed in this song. We're told to strive for some sort of ideal life, which includes getting a good job, being kind to everyone, finding a partner, getting married, having a couple kids, living in a quiet neighborhood in a nice big house, etc. But in Fitter, Happier the narrator(?) realizes that it's incredibly robotic to live this life. People are being used by those in power "like a pig in a cage on antibiotics"--being pacified with things like new phones and cool gadgets and houses while being sucked dry. On No Surprises, the narrator is realizing how this life is killing him slowly. In the video, his helmet is slowly filling up with water, drowning him. But he's so complacent with it. This is a good summary of the song. This boring, "perfect" life foisted upon us by some higher powers (not spiritual, but political, economic, etc. politicians and businessmen, perhaps) is not the way to live. But there is seemingly no way out but death. He'd rather die peacefully right now than live in this cage. While our lives are often shielded, we're in our own protective bubbles, or protective helmets like the one Thom wears, if we look a little harder we can see all the corruption, lies, manipulation, etc. that is going on in the world, often run by huge yet nearly invisible organizations, corporations, and 'leaders'. It's a very hopeless song because it reflects real life.
Album art
Page
Ed Sheeran
There aren’t many things that’ll hurt more than giving love a chance against your better judgement only to have your heart crushed yet again. Ed Sheeran tells such a story on “Page.” On this track, he is devastated to have lost his lover and even more saddened by the feeling that he may never move on from this.