Early Days -

I lived in Detroit and I lived in LA

In Houston and Boston and San Jose

I slept in the Hilton, I slept on the curb

I lived in the cities and in the suburbs

I was born in the Bronx 19 years ago

My mother was a roadie for an acid rock show

My old man went to 'Nam, I never saw him alive

And my mother started living with a guy named Clive

Clive was a con that was on the lamb

But Clive could cut and scratch and we used to jam

And so at 9 years I was already rappin'

But that ain’t nothin', let me tell you what happened

We jammed all day and we jammed all night

But the noise from the crowd put the neighbors uptight

They showed Clive’s picture on the news one day

The building super called the cops, they took old Clive away

But I made every jam and I just wouldn’t stop

'Cause I knew I could make my way right to the top

I had a friend at school, his name was Fred

Fred was on drugs and now Fred is dead

All the guys at school liked Brenda and Sue

They had so many friends, they didn’t know what to do

It seems every night they all got laid

Now them and their friends, they all got AIDS

Meanwhile I’d draw a crowd wherever I’d be

To everyone in my school I was the number 1 MC

In the bathrooms and the halls and out in the street

We’d rap and jam wherever we’d meet

When I was fourteen my mother moved in with a banker

Fred had plenty of money but Fred was a wanker

He had sweaty palms and a nervous glance

And when my mother was away he tried to get into my pants

They had the of the night when I was out rappin'

But that ain’t nothin', let me tell you what happened

My mother one day was taking a nap

And Fred said «Hey, why don’t you come sit on my lap?»

I said «I don’t do it with wankers», he said «Gimme a chance»

A wanker is a jerk whose got his brains in his pants

My mother saw the light on one fateful day

When Fred was caught in a raid where wankers pay to play

They caught him in flagrento at the Bristol hotel

If you don’t know where that’s at you have to ask LL

Meanwhile they were comin' from miles around

Diggin' my jam and gettin' down

From number one in the state to number one in the nation

The deffest the baddest, number one of creation