Keyz 2 The City 2 – English Lyrics

• By: Nipsey Hussle, TeeFlii
• Album: Victory Lap

Lyrics & Translation

Learning a language through music is a powerful tool, and Nipsey Hussle's "Keyz 2 The City 2" offers a unique window into the dialect and slang of West Coast hip-hop. The song is special not only for its confident and motivational message of self-made success but also for its authentic use of language that reflects the culture of Los Angeles. By exploring the lyrics, you can learn colloquialisms and storytelling techniques that are central to modern hip-hop, all while being inspired by a story of perseverance and achievement.

[English]

Uh, rollin' up some good, pourin' up 'til we get faded

You know how we do it, everybody takin' flicks of me

I got the keys to the city, I don't need no limousine

I turn out when I pull up and tell my bookin' agent book a show

Runnin' 'round with the paper bag, runnin' 'round with the paper bag

Goin' crazy spendin' all this cash, goin' crazy spendin' all this cash

If I spend it I'ma get it back, even when I'm ridin' round dirty

A nigga don't need a seatbelt, a nigga don't need a seatbelt

Nah, it don't cost to keep it real, run up, get done up

Shit can get real, fuck around and get your ass robbed

Nigga fuck around and take your shit, got you askin' "God, why?"

Drag your ass into a alley, pull out, aim for the target

Should've never been around 'em killers

In my town, we the fuckin' realest

No Chedder Bobs 'round here, I get to sprayin', they gon' get down

Ski mask over my face, catch a body in broad day

Catch a body in broad day

I got the key to the city, I got a hoe that's saddity

Talk to that bitch in Swahili, tattoo my name in graffiti

Wack at your hood in graffiti, come through your hood on the weekly

None of y'all niggas can see me, none of y'all niggas can see me

Y'all ain't got nothin' like this over there

Bunch of front line millionaires

Bunch of self-made, out the trunk paid, 'gainst the odds, really took it there

Any prob' I'ma reappear, with a squad you already fear

All this time I've been playin' fair, seven digits every single year

Niggas died, niggas disappeared, alibis, I was really there

Life of crime 'til I get the chair, Columbine in my trigger hair

Still I rise and I took the stairs

Feel the fire, it's a different glare

All these fights, it was never fair

Bustin' knuckles, still I'm swingin' fierce

Taste the salt inside my drippin' tears

You should know I never had a fear

You should know I never had a shot

Never had a chance, still I took it here

Manage pride, but I see it clear, strategize, I'm a engineer

Pick a side, gotta keep it there, switchin' up nigga, lookin' weird

I got the key to the city, I got a hoe that's saddity

Talk to that bitch in Swahili, tattoo my name in graffiti

Wack at your hood in graffiti, come through your hood on the weekly

None of y'all niggas can see me, none of y'all niggas can see me

...

Tappin in', said they waitin' for it

Tell the streets a nigga back again

Ridin' round inside the 'Bach again

Rollin' flame inside the 'Bach again

405, another traffic jam

Improvise another master plan

Sit outside a nigga family pad

Another seven grams inside a sandwich bag

My whole life is like a balance act

People's champ, but could you handle that?

I pull up inside the black-on-black

And park this big-ass Benz inside the handicap

What I done, they can't imagine that

One-of-one, it's like a magic trick

Matter fact, it's like a lotto pick

That's why I gotta talk a lot of shit

...

Key Grammar Structures

• I got the keys to the city, I don't need no limousine.

  ➔ Present simple (colloquial 'got' = have) + double negative

  ➔ The verb ""got"" is used colloquially for "have". ""don't need no"" creates a double negative, which in informal English means "do not need any".

• If I spend it I'ma get it back.

  ➔ First‑conditional structure (If + present simple, future meaning) + colloquial contraction "I'ma" (= I am going to)

  ➔ The clause ""If I spend it"" uses the present simple to talk about a possible future. ""I'ma"" is a slang contraction of "I am going to" indicating future intention.

• Should've never been around 'em killers.

  ➔ Modal perfect (should have) + negative adverb "never" + past participle; contraction "Should've"

  ➔ ""Should've"" is the contracted form of "should have". It is followed by the past participle "been" and the adverb "never" to express regret about a past situation.

• I turn out when I pull up and tell my bookin' agent book a show.

  ➔ Temporal clause with "when" + present simple; phrasal verb "turn out"; infinitive without "to" after "tell" (bare infinitive)

  ➔ ""when I pull up"" is a temporal clause using present simple to indicate a repeated action. ""turn out"" is a phrasal verb meaning "appear". After "tell" the verb "book" appears without "to", which is a bare infinitive.

• A nigga don't need a seatbelt.

  ➔ Present simple with negative "don't"; subject‑verb agreement in informal speech (singular "nigga" with "don't")

  ➔ The verb ""don't"" (do not) is used with the singular informal noun ""nigga""; in standard English it would be "doesn't" but in slang the form "don't" is common.

• I got a hoe that's saddity.

  ➔ Relative clause with "that" (contraction of "that is"); present simple "is" omitted in colloquial speech

  ➔ The phrase ""that's"" stands for "that is". In informal English the verb "is" is often dropped, leaving "that" followed directly by the adjective "saddity".

• Talk to that bitch in Swahili, tattoo my name in graffiti.

  ➔ Imperative mood; coordinated verbs "talk" and "tattoo" sharing the same subject (understood "you")

  ➔ ""Talk"" and ""tattoo"" are both in the imperative, giving commands. The subject "you" is understood and therefore omitted.

• I pull up inside the black‑on‑black.

  ➔ Simple present; prepositional phrase "inside the black‑on‑black" describing location

  ➔ ""I pull up"" uses the simple present to describe a habitual action. The phrase ""inside the black‑on‑black"" is a prepositional phrase indicating where the action takes place.

• That's why I gotta talk a lot of shit.

  ➔ "That's why" + clause; modal "gotta" (have got to) expressing obligation; informal contraction

  ➔ The expression ""That's why"" introduces a reason. ""gotta"" is a colloquial contraction of "got to" meaning "must".