Nappy Heads – English Lyrics

• By: Fugees
• Album: The Score

Lyrics & Translation

Discover the vibrant sounds and empowering message of Fugees' 'Nappy Heads,' a groundbreaking track that blends hip-hop, reggae, and R&B. This song provides a window into the Fugees' unique sound and their celebration of Black identity and resilience. Learn about the cultural context and lyrical depth that made this song a pivotal moment in music history.

[English]

- [Wyclef Jean] Yo, Mona Lisa, could I get a date on Friday?

And if you're busy

I wouldn't mind taking Saturday-ay-ay, ay-ay-ay

Round up de posse

Fugee comin' around the way.

Yo, hey nappy head?

- [Lauryn] Yo, what's up?

- [Wyclef] What you got there?

- [Lauryn] Hah, I got some of that lyrical (censored)

- [Wyclef] Word?

♪ Well I'm a Libra, y'all ♪

♪ Well I'm a Libra, y'all ♪

♪ You wanna battle, swing ♪

♪ I bring commanding men like I was king ♪

♪ In all your dreams I write the horror flick ♪

♪ of Stephen King ♪

♪ Cling to false also those papers say ock ♪

♪ I got tired of the fat lady so I song to my own opera ♪

♪ Ba-lang-balang-balang-to-de-man-de-rock-cause I love thee ♪

♪ If you live by the sword you will be die by the gun ♪

♪ 'Cause all guys tell lies and more girls commits sin ♪

♪ I was ordered to "Code Red" ♪

♪ But now I'm chillin' with "A Few Good Men" ♪

♪ Assassination on the kid from the capitol ♪

♪ I never play the soap opera ♪

♪ But now I'm in "General Hospital" ♪

♪ Condition critical, spirit over who's the physical ♪

♪ So if I die, catch me at the funeral ♪

♪ I'll fly away, oh glory ♪

♪ With a mic in my hand to a land where only God knows me ♪

♪ And the angels write raps on holy paper ♪

♪ I said I'm looking for Jesus, he said "Take the escalator ♪

♪ One flight up, is guaranteed He'll be there" ♪

♪ My sister'd be there, my mother'd be there ♪

♪ So, Mona Lisa, could I get a date on Friday ♪

♪ And if you're busy ♪

♪ I wouldn't mind taking Saturday-ay-ay, ay-ay-ay ♪

♪ Round up de posse ♪

♪ Fugee comin' around the way ♪

♪ I don't puff (censored) so I always got my breath ♪

♪ Never had to battle with a bullet proof vest ♪

♪ They call me cock-weasel but I still cave a chest ♪

♪ I don't wear Jheri curls cause I'm not from the west ♪

♪ No disrespect to the West, true indeed ♪

♪ I rock it to the East, the East is the seed ♪

♪ To see that them days back, yo sheepskins and Hot Tracks ♪

♪ Peace to Mr. Magic, things are getting tragic ♪

♪ Now we on some new stuff ♪

♪ I never feared the Ku Klux ♪

♪ My own clan is actin' up ♪

♪ I blame it on the Phillie blunt ♪

♪ What you gonna do, kids are acting ooh ♪

♪ Hill is gettin' badder, yo where's the corporate ladder ♪

♪ Mr. Three Piece Suit ♪

♪ Check the square roots, Girbauds and Timberland boots ♪

♪ Nah, that's the serpents ♪

♪ And know them garment tips, I got a head full of problems ♪

♪ And a hand full of nappy roots ♪

♪ I feel a Jones comin' down, yo I ♪

♪ I got the slang to make the chitty-bang-bang ♪

♪ A-rid-dang-de-dang, the nappy head bang ♪

♪ No, I got the slang to make the chitty-bang-bang ♪

♪ A-rid-dang-de-dang, the nappy heads reign ♪

♪ Yo, Mona Lisa, could I get a date on Friday ♪

♪ And if you're busy ♪

♪ I wouldn't mind taking Saturday-ay-ay, ay-ay-ay ♪

♪ Round up de posse ♪

♪ Fugee comin' around the way ♪

♪ Ay-ay-ay, ay-ay-ay ♪

♪ Nappy heads in the zone and we're not goin' home ♪

♪ Hey, yo, a battle is a battle but a battle's not a battle ♪

♪ If it's snake doesn't rattle ♪

♪ 'Cause my style's as old as a reptile ♪

♪ As slick as a Nu Nile, as new as a new child ♪

♪ So come follow me to the land of Abraham ♪

♪ This land's your land, this land's my land ♪

♪ The blacker the black man, the better the next man ♪

♪ Yo, some nappy heads need to check they necks for red ♪

♪ I feel injection ♪

♪ Put the (censored) to your skin, feel reality's (censored) ♪

♪ You maintain to put a negro in pain you used to diss me ♪

♪ Oh you wanna hang with old Eddie Kane ♪

♪ Ain't nothin' wrong, snap your head to the song ♪

♪ Word is bond, you get wrong ♪

♪ I'll have you sing like Louis Armstrong ♪

♪ And I say to myself, what wonderful world ♪

♪ But what the hell was so wonderful ♪

♪ 'Bout pickin' cotton in the farm ♪

♪ Mr. Slave Man ♪

♪ The harder they come, the harder they fall ♪

♪ So come one, come all ♪

♪ Don't stall or I'ma stick you like a voodoo doll ♪

♪ Doors locked stop drawer for the count who drops ♪

♪ You slept on a kid from the boondocks ♪

♪ Out of Hootaville, land of the ill kill ♪

♪ Vailsburgh Viking so you know I'm top ranking Phil ♪

♪ Some say who comin' like the Yuma but save the rumor ♪

♪ 'Cause I've been rockin' ever since '82 ♪

♪ When I used to rock my Pumas ♪

♪ Yes-yes y'all, well I'm a Libra, y'all ♪

♪ A-yes-yes-a-yes, well I'm a Libra, y'all ♪

♪ Yes-yes y'all, well I'm a Libra, y'all ♪

♪ C'mon ♪

♪ Well I'm a Libra, y'all ♪

♪ Yo, Mona Lisa, could I get a date on Friday? ♪

♪ And if you're busy ♪

♪ I wouldn't mind taking Saturday-ay-ay, ay-ay-ay ♪

♪ Round up de posse ♪

♪ Fugee comin' around the way ♪

♪ Ay-ay-ay, ay-ay-ay ♪

♪ Nappy heads in the zone and we're not goin' home ♪

♪ Mona Lisa, could I get a date on Friday ♪

♪ And if you're busy ♪

♪ I wouldn't mind taking Saturday-ay-ay, ay-ay-ay ♪

♪ Round up de posse ♪

♪ Fugee comin' around the way ♪

♪ Ay-ay-Ay, ay-ay-ay ♪

♪ Nappy heads in the zone and we're not goin' home ♪

♪ I wear my sunglasses at night ♪

♪ To spy on my girlfriend, that's right ♪

♪ They dancin', romancin', freakin' at night ♪

♪ Yes-yes, yes-a-yes, yes y'all ♪

♪ I wear my sunglasses at night ♪

♪ To spy on my girlfriend, that's right ♪

♪ They dancin', romancin', freakin' at night ♪

♪ Say, Mona Lisa, could I get a date on Friday night ♪

Key Grammar Structures

• Well I'm a Libra, y'all

  ➔ Present Simple, colloquial contraction ('I'm'), use of 'y'all' (Southern American English)

  ➔ The sentence establishes a personal characteristic using the **present simple** tense. 'I'm' is a contraction of 'I am'. '**y'all**' is a colloquial term meaning 'you all', common in Southern American English.

• You wanna battle, swing I bring commanding men like I was king

  ➔ Ellipsis (omission of 'do'), conditional clause ('like I was king'), colloquial language ('wanna')

  ➔ The phrase 'You **wanna** battle' uses ellipsis, omitting the auxiliary verb '**do**'. The phrase '**like I was king**' functions as a simile, creating a conditional comparison. The use of '**wanna**' is a colloquial contraction of 'want to'.

• I got tired of the fat lady so I song to my own opera

  ➔ Past Simple, metaphorical language, unusual verb usage ('song' instead of 'sang')

  ➔ The sentence uses the **past simple** to describe a completed action. The 'fat lady' is a metaphor for something being over. The use of '**song**' instead of '**sang**' is grammatically incorrect but used for stylistic effect, adding to the song's unique flow.

• If you live by the sword you will be die by the gun

  ➔ Conditional sentence (Type 1), future in the 'if' clause, unusual verb form ('die' instead of 'be killed')

  ➔ This is a **Type 1 conditional** sentence, expressing a likely outcome. The 'if' clause uses the **present simple**, and the main clause uses 'will + base verb'. The use of '**die**' instead of '**be killed**' is a stylistic choice, making the statement more direct and impactful.