The cops used to come around in my neighborhood
"Alright, you kids, stop having so much fun, move along!"
Oh they'd arrest me, you know, especially at night
They had a curfew, niggers had to be home at 11, negros, 12
And you'd be trying to get home, doing your crew runs
And they'd always catch you out in front of a store or something
'Cause you'd be taking shortcuts, right
Cops, "Ree, put your hands up, black boy!"

The cops shot the kid
The cops shot the kid, the cops shot
The cops shot the kid
The cops shot the kid, the cops shot
The cops shot the kid
The cops shot the kid, the cops shot
The cops shot the kid
The cops shot the kid, the cops shot

I don't wanna hurt nobody
We just came here to party
See a few dames, exchange some names
I'm a top shotta, kid, stay in your lane
The cop shot the kid, same old scene
Pour out a little liquor, champagne for pain
Slap-boxin' in the street
Crack the hydrant in the heat
Cop cars on the creep
Doin' they round-ups, we just watch for the sweep
Yeah, it's hotter than July
It's the summer when niggas die
It's the summer when niggas ride
Together we be strong, but forever we divide
So y'all are blowin' my high
Type of shit that's killin' my vibe
White kids are brought in alive
Black kids get hit with like five
Get scared, you panic, you're goin' down
The disadvantages of the brown
How in the hell the parents gon' bury their own kids
Not the other way around?
Reminds me of Emmett Till
Let's remind 'em why Kap kneels

The cops shot the kid
The cops shot the kid, the cops shot
The cops shot the kid
The cops shot the kid, the cops shot
The cops shot the kid
The cops shot the kid, the cops shot
The cops shot the kid
The cops shot the kid, the cops shot
The cops shot the kid
The cops shot the kid, the cops shot
The cops shot the kid
The cops shot the kid, the cops shot
The cops shot the kid
The cops shot the kid, the cops shot
The cops shot the kid
I still hear him scream

Stay tuned up and down your timeline
This fake news, people is all lyin'
Money is bein' made when a mom cries
Won't be satisfied 'til we all die
Tell me, who do we call to report crime
If 9-1-1 doin' a driveby?
It's certain things I can't abide by
I ain't bein' extreme, this is my side
Talkin' big shit, ready to die
I know every story got two sides
Claimin' he paranoid by the black guy
Cop wanna make it home by night time
Just a good kid, he wasn't that guy
Had a little hit, he wasn't that high
Cop gon' claim that it was self-defense
Say he was ridin' dirty so the case rests

The cops shot the kid
The cops shot the kid, the cops shot (workin' nine-to-five)
The cops shot the kid
The cops shot the kid, the cops shot (tryna stay alive)
The cops shot the kid
The cops shot the kid, the cops shot (makin' ends meet)
The cops shot the kid
The cops shot the kid, the cops shot (shot him this week)
The cops shot the kid
The cops shot the kid, the cops shot
The cops shot the kid
The cops shot the kid, the cops shot
The cops shot the kid
The cops shot the kid, the cops shot
The cops shot the kid
I still hear him scream

Copyright: Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC, Universal Music Publishing Group
Writer(s): Andrew Dawson, Che Smith, Kanye West, Nasir Jones, Richard Pryor, Ricky Walters