Living in the Shadow
lyrics, vocals, and instrumentals by Emcee Lynx
Living In the Shadow
copyright emcee lynx 2005

When I get holes in my clothes I sew that shit up
Cuz I ain’ one of ya’ll ballers with a million bucks
To blow buyin things that I really don’t need
So I’m careful with my cash, don’t waste it on weed
I’ve got records to press and ammunition to buy
My feet on the ground and my eyes on the sky
I’ve seen too many wars, and too many lies
To trust the news or believe their alibis
I’m the autonomist indiginist, anarchist syndicalist,
Sick of this imperial historical revisionist
my people’s history has been buried and suppressed
so I gotta dig it up, but it gets me depressed
Wrote this for Ireland, Scotland, Wales
Fuck their history books full of lies and tall tales
We’re fightin’ for our lives, they keep us colonized
But we would rise to the skies if we just got organized

No justice no peace, we should leave ‘em in pieces
My styles Armageddon, they can never defeat this
You reap what you sow, kick what you know,
my minds a volcano, ready to blow
And so I spit hot lava, black flag intifada
Doper then the drugs you be sellin to your mama
Makin MC’s stutter like pause, coma,
Hyper-realistic, no need for drama
demand your respect, pack techs with text
Rip the dialect when I step to mic checks
Livin in the shadow the future reflects
Decisions that we make in our daily context
It’s not just a test it’s a war that we livin
I try to stay focused, deliberate, driven
walkin in the valley of the shadow of death
ya’ll I carry the past, and feel it’s weight on my chest

our histories a mystery, I gotta find clues
it’s bigger then they teach us in their brainwash schools
we’ve done so much together, have so much in common
so why can’t we unify without warplanes bombin?
It’s like the only unity, that the pigs promote,
is when we’re unified standin on someone’s throat
so much grief and rage, fear and pain
our bodies in shackles, our minds in chains
call this a lyrical jailbreak to liberate brains
and make ya’ll realize that we’re livin the same
race classification, and the erasure of culture
both perpetuate the domination of vultures
capital was built on both white and black
And it’s the rich who relax, and live off the kick-backs
So know you enemy, but be sure you know the right one
Cuz democrats will fuck us just as fast as republicans

‘cuz America’s strange, twisted, deranged
killin’ people for profits, it’s stupid, insane
corporations call the shots in the governments game
a few get rich, but most just worship their fame
I’m not a superstar, and I never wanna be
I’m just tryna speak truth and help the blind to see
So to the kids in the crowd, don’t try to be like me
Just be true to yourself, and let your mind stay free
got to learn from our elders, listen to what they tell ya
fuck the television, and the world they try to sell ya
study Emma Goldman, Angela Davis,
Wolfe Tone and Malcolm X for the insight they gave us
Makhno, Zapata, Haymarket Martyrs
Lucy Parsons for the vision they brought us
so many other folks who’ve helped me open my eyes
all working for the day when our people will rise