Ever felt like you're running a marathon on a treadmill? Talib Kweli's lyrical masterpiece dives into the daily grind and the hustle to survive in a world that's often unforgiving. He paints vivid pictures of urban struggles, from selling crack to working dead-end jobs, all just to make it through another day. With nods to pop culture and personal anecdotes, Kweli highlights the resilience needed to navigate life's highs and lows. The song is a poignant reminder that sometimes, despite the chaos, we keep pushing forward—powered by love, dreams, and maybe just a bit of stubbornness—to simply get by.
Get By
Lyrics
Yeah
My Lord
Yeah
We sell, crack to our own out the back of our homes
We smell the musk at the dusk in the crack of the dawn
We go through "Epidodes II" like "Attack Of The Clones"
Work 'til we break our back and you hear the crack of the bone
To get by just to get by
Just to get by, just to get by
We commute to computers
Spirits stay mute while you eagles spread rumors
We survivalists, turned to consumers
Just to get by just to get by
Just to get by, just to get by
Ask him why some people got to live in a trailer, cuss like a sailor
I paint a picture with the pen like Norman Mailer
Mi abuela raised three daughters all by herself, with no help
I think about her struggle and I find the strength in myself
These words, melt in my mouth
They hot, like the jail cell in the south
Before my nigga Core bailed me out
To get by, just to get by
Just to get by, just to get by
We do or die like Bed-Stuy through the red sky
With the window of the red eye
Let the lead fly, on some G. Rap shit, "livin' to let die"
This morning, I woke up
Feeling brand new, I jumped up
Feeling my highs (yeah) and my lows (yeah)
In my soul (yeah) and my goals
Just to stop smokin', and stop drinkin'
And I've been thinkin, I've got my reasons
Just to get (by), just to get (by)
Just to get (by), just to get (by)
Just to get (by), just to get (by)
Just to get (by-by-by-by-by-by)
Just to get by
Just to get (by), just to get (by)
Just to get (by, by-by)
We keep it gangster say "fo shizzle", "fo sheezy" and "stayin' crunk"
Its easy to pull a breezy, smoke trees, and we stay drunk
Yo, I activism attackin' the system, the blacks and latin's in prison
Numbers of prison they victim black in the vision
Shit and all they got is rappin' to listen to
I let them know we missin' you, the love is unconditional
Even when the condition is critical, when the livin' is miserable
Your position is pivotal, I ain't bullshittin' you
Now, why would I lie? Just to get by?
Just to get by, we get fly
The TV got us reachin' for stars
Not the ones between Venus and Mars, the ones that be readin' for parts
Some people get breast enhancements and penis enlargers
Saturday sinners, Sunday morning at the feet of the father
They need somethin to rely on, we get high on all types of drug
When, all you really need is love
To get by, just to get by
Just to get by, just to get by
Our parents sing like John Lennon, "imagine all the people watch"
We rock like Paul McCartney from now until the last Beatle drop
This morning, I woke up
Feeling brand new, I jumped up
Feeling my highs (yeah) and my lows (yeah)
In my soul (yeah) and my goals
Just to stop smokin', and stop drinkin'
And I've been thinkin, I've got my reasons
Just to get (by), just to get (by)
Just to get (by), just to get (by)
Yo-yo-yo-yo-yo
Some people cry, and some people try
Just to get by, for a piece of the pie
You love to eat and get high
We deceive when we lie, and we keepin' it fly
Yo-yo-yo-yo-yo
When, the people decide, to keep a disguise
Can't see they eyes, see the evil inside
But there's people you find
Strong or feeble in mind, I stay readin' the signs
Yo-yo-yo-yo-yo
Some people cry, and some people try
Just to get by, for a piece of the pie
You love to eat and get high
We deceive when we lie, and we keepin' it fly
Yo-yo-yo-yo-yo
When, the people decide, to keep a disguise
Can't see they eyes, see the evil inside
But there's people you find
Strong or feeble in mind, I stay readin' the signs
Yo-yo-yo-yo-yo
Writer(s): Nina Simone, Talib Kweli, Kanye West
Copyright(s): Lyrics © BMG Rights Management, Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC, Reservoir Media Management, Inc., Warner Chappell Music, Inc.
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
What is the Meaning of Get By
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