Knife crimes is near a record high

With more than 40 blade offenses every day in London

At a youth club in South LondonNot far from where someone was stabbed less that 24 hours ago

He outlined a direct link between violent crimes, social exclusion and austerity

A study by City Hall found that London has seen

An increase of 71 percent in victims of serious youth violence since 2012

The Mayor says this is linked to an increase in poverty

And the highest rates of violence take place in some of the poorest boroughs

Look, I bet them boys think I′m panickin'

Check what my young Gs are carrying

His blade, same length as a javelin

I don′t know about B-ball or what's happenin'

But know that it′s fucked if he travellin′ and we see him

I can't lie, I was depressed at phases

I was 19 when the team nearly left him faceless

Hopin′ that we never left no traces

You know when you're so damn tired in your house

But you can′t sleep cah you got pendin' cases

I used to love temptin′ fate, but now it's temptin' faces

For half my career I was part of that

My best friend got a burner, and it′s lookin′ like an artifact

Put it in your puffer or your Prada hat

Like fuck panic, that's a heart attack

Yeah, it′s like, life so fucked in the time that we're in

We′re fightin' the world, and we′re fightin' within

Somali dad ran away from a war

Now his son's in a war, that′s the cycle we′re in

I know niggas that didn't do time in a bin

That have never had freedom of mind, are you sick?

′Round here main way to provide for your kin

Is in a flick blade, little push-bike and a sim

In London, a place where it's nicer to live

Is only five minutes out from the guys on the strip

Where man make yay′ work, heard he's a soldier

I know that nigga hasn′t got balls like Grey Worm

As I grow older, change of perspective

I gotta stay loyal to my girl, that's the trait she was blessed with

Restaurants, raves with my bredrins

Life's too short, so we gotta turn up

Man talk on my ting for the ′Gram, it′s intrusive

I never really thought 'bout taking a life

′Til I found out my ex-girl's dad is abusive

I felt, "How could I be man and not do shit?"

I′m on the way there now, and I don't wanna lose it

But fightin′ her battle's only hurtin' the girl

How can I protect her from the world

When I couldn′t even protect her from myself?

On my grandmother′s grave, shit happens again

I put a knife through a family friend

Most the women that I know had shit happen to them

So innocent 'til guilty, ain′t somethin' I have to respect

I think back to my youth and I was so ungrateful

How many of our parents had dreams they abandoned

So they could put food on the table?

Intelligent, worthy and able, that′s somebody's parent

You know?

And that affected the way that I see shit

Nightclub toilet, you peed on the seat

′Cause you don't know how it feels when your mom's gotta clean shit

And her boss treats her like she don′t even mean shit

And she gotta wait for the bus in the rain and it′s freezin'

And Miss said that you would never be shit

And you don′t wanna cry about dad, but you need him

I grew up so fucked, but I didn't even deep it

I′m numb to the feelin' of grievin′

And man gettin' birded

African moms on the floor, just screamin'

It′s mad cah I try so hard

Death′s got to be easy, cah life's so hard

I was 12 wishin′ that I was a white man, hard

Cah if I was then they probably wouldn't life mans darg

I was dead broke, fam, I couldn′t swipe mans card

And time might pass, but I still gotta stay with it

It wasn't his beef, but I see him try claimin′ it

That's why he caught a bullet with another man's name on it

Now he can′t do leg day or put strain on it

Every time you hear me freestyle, I put pain in it

I used to wonder, "Does God have favorites?"

Touch me, it′s dangerous, I wouldn't play with it

′Cause you can go sleep, and have a different type of wake for it

I miss my dawgs, unstable

You violate Chris? Then rah, turn Chris Benoit

Have him hit from far, nah

Fill 'em up with bricks and glass, nah

My young Gs will grip, then blast

Have you tried in the street? Fuck findin′ my feet

I could ride, but it's better when I′m ridin a beat

My emotions are peak, it ain't a sign of defeat or the weak

I would've - you, then cried in my sleep

Dropped Juss two racks and told him "Buy the machine"

I′m LeBron in Miami, I provide for the heat

God strike me if I′m lyin', I ain′t cryin' in this beef

Unless the tears comin′ tatted on the side of my cheek

I provide for my peeps, the Lamb' white in the seats

So I′m literally a wolf disguised in a sheep

You have five figure dreams, I have five figure sleep

Five hours more than enough time that I need

Man want a fair fight, but I ain't on it when I see him

Fuck honour, this revolver is onomatopoeic

Let it "Stut-tut-tut-tut-tut-tut-ter" when you see him

Free Scalez, Free C and free my niggas 'til I see ′em

I wouldn′t wanna be him

My old Gs roamin', I don′t need a Colosseum

You see it?

So I'm playin′ it good, let hood politics stay in the hood

Fuck the internet, you see this new generation

The Insta beefin' and I ain′t into speakin'

When I duck down

I had him runnin' in a lift like he missed a meetin′

There′s no good reason to risk your freedom

The yutes dem snitch and bitches sneakin'

She don′t wanna talk 'bout friendships

She just wanna deal with the pipe like I′m fixin' leakin′

And sleep with a legend like Chrissy Teigen

Where I'm from, the word "Life" has a different meanin'

Man smile in your face, but them niggas schemin′

Try involve me in a flakey dealin′

Sistine Chapel, I'ma paint the ceilin′

I been violated and I hate the feelin'

That′s why nowadays man hates the preachin'

We smile in the visit, cah we ain′t defeated

The Supreme Court's where my mates appealin'

I can′t breed that girl, that′s torture

South London, it's just slags on the corner

And influencers tryna bag them a baller

She a gold-digger, I can tell from her aura

Her socials say princess, she a pauper

When it′s time for it, need more for my daughter

Call me a talker, but man are gettin' lined like lambs in the slaughter

It′s life-threatening and I can tell from the borer

Cut through a nigga like a knife though flora

Feds got the guys on a case and they stalk us

It's conspiracy like tinfoil hats and a new world order

Touch me, better have a life insurer

Blood thirsty, I got sharks in the water

And trust me, I know a killer whale, no orca

Have you ever seen a nightmare brought to life?

Where I′m from, you get cheffed on a normal night

Men talk on my name, but it's porkie pies

I really put it in a prick like a porcupine

Little bro wanna save for a .45

Go board a flight, there's more to life

Yutes on the M6 all the time

We don′t need TFL for a northern line

All the best politicians been taught to lie

Where do they buy cocaine when they′re snorting white?

Are their dealers safe or on the borderline?

It's ironic, ′cause we don't where to draw the line

Man see Blue Story, they′re mortified

Man see Scarface and it's glorified

′Cause when you're black, everything gets scrutinized

That's why they call it "Urban", it gets euphemized

South London, man are gettin′ euthanized

I see a yutes demise, I wasn′t too surprised

He got soaked but his right hand scuba dived

Don't die by a sword that you used to shine

You can drown for your king, you don′t know about Ophelia

Cah we got iron, I don't know about anaemia

I took the hard road, we don′t know 'bout the easier

One bag of whores and drug paraphernalia

When ends got sticky, had a flicky with Emelia, I mean Olivia

This ain′t Libya, this ain't Syria

You act sillier, we let it seep in your skin like Nivea

Who wants to be a millionaire? I won it

Never done a gameshow or trivia

I done Wandsworth, Erlestoke visitor

I done Springhill, Grendon, Swinfen, Whitemoor, Swaleside, Brixton visitor

I done M-way trips, done shit that I wished I never did

Becah I could have been a prisoner

Is this the shit that appeals to the listeners?

Road ain't no amazing life

The ends full of snakes and jails, just a waste of time

I tell my young Gs "Take your time"

Fuck Jazz, you can really see a major nine

Yo, I′m so ashamed of how I used to get figures

Man sell you a dream like the road tings lit

And then they leave out the parts where you′re burying your niggas

Or in jail, wonderin' who′s puttin' dick in your Missus

I′m so fuckin' determined

I was in intensive care when I was born, mommy fell down the stairs

Whether I was gonna live or not was somethin′ uncertain

I used the word "Fell", with the commas inverted

You see, growin' up I had it far from perfect

But nobody did, so I'm a normal person

I gotta be grateful, we all have demons and all see angels

Or maybe it′s me

A black yutes more than a face on a screen

A number on a laptop or name on a sheet

We got stories to tell and got places to be

From my heart, that′s the makin' of me

I was selling look, I was selling tomatoes

I sat pon my two hands

I struggled ′cause I didn't want to suffer again

I just wanted, it just make me so upset

Three times I tried

I went to Hannover, they sent me back

I tried so much, we have no say it here

I was in detention camps for months at the end, I didn′t give up

I was not even 20 when I left Africa

I was determined to survive

I was determined to succeed

I didn't know anybody, nobody was ready to help me

Even when you were born

You were six weeks old, this one is not even Africa, it′s this nation

I was on the streets for three years

I had three babies in my hand

Nobody let me in, nobody in this nation

I couldn't pay my rent, deported gangsters carried-

I didn't give up, I carried my babies everywhere

And now this is happening

Pay me back for all those pain that I go through

Every day, I′m in pain, I′m in pain, I'm in pain

You see what he′s doing to me, you want to kill me, you want to kill me