Grandmaster Flash ft. KRS‐One - What If Lyrics

What if Hip Hop was never born, yo?
No Herc, No Flash, No Band, No Change, yo (?)
No DJ's, No grab, No breakers, No MC
What would the state of dope world truly be?

No throw your hands, no screaming, no noise no DJ's cutting
No be-Boys, no be-Girls, No graffiti, No nothing
If Hip Hop was never born? let me make this clear
Just a thought if it (?)

It's not about a salary it's all about reality,
And Hip Hop is the reality that creates all these saleries.
HIP HOP, HIP HOP, HIP HOP
It's in the academies,
Hauled from the streets of the hood every family
But what if Hip Hop didn't exist?
There wouldn't be this, there wouldn't be Chris,
Or a Public Enemy with a black power fist.
No Queen Latifa, no Will Smith either,
There would only be tight jeans, tight suits and black sneakers.
No Tango hats either, no bandana headdress, no TV's in the headrest
Who would be a big mess, trust me
Drew it, without rap I'd be saying this here in country music.
We be no stars, imagine be-Boying over acoustic guitars,
Not the sixteen bars.
FEEL ME!
The art of sampling as well as cutting and scratching.
It's all ours.
But really think about it.
FEEL ME!

What if Hip Hop was never born, yo?
No Herc, No Flash, No Band, No Change, yo (?)
No DJ's, No grab, No breakers, No MC
What would the state of dope world truly be?

No throw your hands, no screaming, no noise no DJ's cutting
No be-Boys, no be-Girls, No graffiti, No nothing
What if Hip Hop was never born? let me make this clear
Just a thought if it (?)

So what if Hip Hop was never born?
Never (?)
Never forever wrong,
Never criticing our songs?
What if Hip Hop was never here?
Never that flavour in your ear,
Never that thing that make you want to say OH YEAH!
No street millionaires, no billionaires.
No Russell, No Diddy, No Wayne, No Chamillionaire
Let me get this clear, today you have a real choice,
Because of Hip Hops existence you have a real voice.
But what if Hip Hop never came around to the boogie down,
Never touched Herc and it touched another sound.
You wouldn't know about James Brown, Pull in the Funkdelic, the radio and still have a play in the sound. (?)
It's like wearing the same gown as a model,
Stepping off the runway and go eat out at McDonalds.
We was the models, and society was McDonalds
Comnplete with a presidential clown, McRonald.
But really...

What if Hip Hop was never born, yo?
No Herc, No Flash, No Band, No Change, yo (?)
No DJ's, No grab, No breakers, No MC
What would the state of dope world truly be?

No throw your hands, no screaming, no noise no DJ's cutting
No be-Boys, no be-Girls, No graffiti, No nothing
What if Hip Hop was never born?
Let me make this clear,
Just a thoughtif it(?)

Now that would be something
No scratching, no cutting
Now Listen,
No cars driving by with the boomin' systems,
No prison coz non of us would be in 'em,
No one would be advertisng that rap to our children.
Sure there be murder, and thugs and drugs
But they be on the low, and hardly heard of,
Except if you watch the news.
See,
If there was no Hip Hop in society,
Then there would be fewer alternative views.
See we not about to lose.
Real Hip Hop, is like real estate,
It's never going to move.
I'd be singing the Blues literally,
If I didn't acknowledge and cultivate the Hip Hop living in ME!
So what's It going to be I ask!
Hip Hop wasn't even supposed to last
So I gotta laugh when I look at Flash!

Yeah Grandmaster Flash is on the tracks,
But where would we be without the cut and the scratch?
SO I ask!

What if Hip Hop was never born, yo?
No Herc, No Flash, No Band, No Change, yo (?)
No DJ's, No grab, No breakers, No MC
What would the state of dope world truly be?

No throw your hands, no screaming, no noise no DJ's cutting
No be-Boys, no be-Girls, No graffiti, No nothing
What if Hip Hop was never born? let me make this clear
Just a thought (?)