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The Mustard Seed

by M Shah

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1.
[Verse 1] Long ago lived a man who was quiet, but keen/ Never known to show off, or desire to gleam/ Just a love burning deep for a woman serene/ And he knew that she had been through unspeakable things/ He loved her despite her past cause he felt she was true/ But he couldn't be with her because his job seemed revue/ He's trapped in a dull profession/ He had to make a confession/ He didn't know what he got himself into, just retrospectively/ Lookin back, in over his head/ No passion/ He had to make a choice, quit his job and take action/ Or be miserable continuing a job that he hates/ Then he heard a voice, familiar, soothing all of his aches/ [Verse 2] Now the young man was aware of his love for this girl/ Nothing but intentions to shower her with diamonds and pearls/ But she was popular to people all over the world/ He felt his chances had diminished and he wanted to hurl/ So many other men attracted to her/ Some that could do her/ Harm when armed with access to armory, she'd get left in the sewer/ He often felt skeptical, filled with self doubt/ Ho he did his best to try helping himself out/ And his head was held high/ And he could tell why he needed to be with this woman/ Cause like the heeds of a sermon/ He intended to save her when the vermin put her in danger/ And he'd tripped and fallen in love with a perfect stranger/ [Verse 3] Now, the man wasn't ignorant, he knew he couldn't quit/ He knew it may have been considered rude and he shouldn't spit/ But he had no choice cause as far as he would admit/ He needed her like a broken bone needed a wooden splint/ And he knew she had been mistreated/ But not defeated/ Decisions to leave his career for something dear to his heart was needed/ For him to stay true to his art without feeling cheated/ But past relationships made this woman kinda conceited/ And he didn't know how to feel/ Confidence isn't a real/ Issue for this cat/ But confidence ain't a seal/ So he took the biggest leap of faith that anyone's seen/ He knew deep in his heart that if it had come down between/ Continuing to live the current life that he led/ Or going and chasing after the girl of his dreams instead/ "I would choose her every time", he said standing there grinning/ But that wasn't the end, his journey was just beginning/
2.
[Verse 1] Yo, let me be real with you for a second/ I don't feel what I need to be doin right now is gettin/ A motherfuckin degree/ But you see/ They tell me go to school, but don't put enough emphasis on my dreams/ Should I take another grass hit/ Write a rhyme, scrap it/ Every time it happens I feel like I'm goin batshit/ Crazy/ Lazy/ Everybody persuade me/ To better my education, but maybe/ This ain't the right path ma/ But you're right, I should probably have something that I can fall back on/ In the event that my spirit instilled in the music doesn't get the recognition it needs and gets passed on/ So I sit my ass in class, faded/ Sometimes my task is to pass the class, waitin around like an idiot procrastinating/ if I keep this up I know that I'll never make it/ [Verse 2] Yeah, so I'm trying to balance/ School, work, and rap, and it's a much bigger challenge/ Than I had anticipated, and it's harder to manage/ I just try not to get jaded, or further the damage/ School's really got me down/ Everybody around me needs a coffee now/ And I'm just chasin dreams while working on plan b/ Too much stress from two sources and I'll probly drown/ And to top it off, I have no passion/ For this programming program cause to program massive/ Projects takes it outta me/ I feel no love for this strategy/ In any part of my anatomy/ Undoubtedly, I'm so much better at writing raps than code/ And I actually truly enjoy it/ Hoping to one day employ it/ Turning it from a hobby into employment/ So I can do what I love and then let you hear where the joy went/ [Verse 3] Man, just gotta keep on grindin right?/ It's kinda like when a car and a wall collide with might/ And it seems even worse when I can't even find a pipe/ Strugglin pretty hard when all I'm doin is tryna write/ But I push on/ And the hook's wrong/ I found a piece only to find that the kush gone/ Bummer/ It's been a long ass summer/ The stress on my shoulders feels like the weight of a Hummer/ It's all the pressure to meet the deadlines/ While tryna open up every time dope rappers headline/ But maybe the pressure is something that I need for self-motivation/ Cause I can write murderous verses just to demo oration/ And I think I got just what it takes to be big/ Taking advantage of and rocking every gig/ Trying to make everybody I meet say that "we dig/ Your music, don't ever lose it, stay true to you kid"/
3.
[Verse 1] Let's take it back to 2008/ Around the time when everyone I knew was browsing the grapevine/ In hopes of finding the next great line, I'd take time/ Whenever I was constructing the words of a straight rhyme/ A couple years into the game/ With nothing more than hunger to rip beats and aspirations of fame/ Rappin about dumb shit, hoping to make a name/ And haters started hating soon as aggravation was gained/ And in an attempt to perfect my skills/ I started talking shit just to vent my feels/ I chose to change my style and some cats took notice/ And they hit me up and said it's bogus/ And they said "Why don't you rap more about the bitches and checks?/ and maybe if you do you'll finally get respect"/ Those words, though with malicious intent, made me reflect/ On when I started out rappin and put it into perspective/ [Hook] And they told me "Swallow your dreams"/ They said "Swallow your dreams"/ They said "Swallow your dreams"/ [Verse 2] I first started rappin bout what I cared in my heart/ But then somebody had to come and tear it apart/ He said "Man, you sound like a fool/ Nobody fuckin wants to listen to you rappin about school/ They wanna hear you rap about money and bitches"/ But to either of those I was never much of a witness/ So I sat down with a pen, pretending owning these riches/ Writin such verses had me thinkin "I'm uncomfortable with this"/ To me it just didn't feel right/ Like I was saying I had a golden staff that was really a steel pipe/ Though very hesitant, I was thinking I still might/ Yo fuck that shit, now I know that I will fight/ To tell my stories my own way, homie I don't play/ I don't care even if it means that my music won't pay/ I'll do all in power to ensure I don't stray/ And to let you know that I've arrived and I'm gon stay/ [Hook] Now I'm sayin "Follow your dreams/ Follow your dreams/ Follow your dreams"/ Yeah
4.
[Verse 1] I got that summer heat/ Now let the drummer beat his set quick/ While I come into the booth strictly lookin to wreck shit/ It's seemingly a direct hit/ I'm so damn dope, I'm beginning to forget shit/ But I like to maintain an elevated consciousness/ And try to stay above what the delegate promises/ Lyrical bombardment devastating the competition/ Traitors tryna say they were emulating the wrong position/ I don't fall for that dumb shit/ You better run quick/ Cause some MCs dribble and some spit/ I bet you know by now which one of the two I am/ Cause my lyrics throw you off, I wonder if you could land/ On both feet/ And stick it/ Understand when I'm rippin/ And let it make you think about everything in existence/ Just as long as we know the difference between dreams/ And what's real/ I think it'll be safe if we just chill/ [Hook] This is what I love about rap/ Cause I can say whatever the fuck I wanna, in fact/ Creating multisyllabic rhymes/ Not just to get with the times/ But directing these words helps me relax/ This is what I love about rap/ That I can be myself without falling into a trap/ Because just staying true to these lines/ No need for frugal designs/ I put everything I have into these tracks/ [Verse 2] Now sometimes I have some trouble feeling inspired/ So I sit myself down almost as if it's required/ And indulge in something I don't think I'll ever get tired of/ I can be creative without it homie, but get it fired up!/ We got a seemingly endless supply of special herbs/ Live, love, and smoke are some of my most essentials verbs/ High altitude mental conjuring up potential words/ Making my flow way more well rounded than monumental curves/ I'm feelin plenty tense/ I'm droppin many hints/ The smoke caused by the reefer is getting really dense/ I'll remain true even if I only sell twenty prints/ Penny rappers make dollars but they still don't make any sense/ Mothafuckas be acting as if we all are doomed/ Engulfed with infatuation until we're all consumed/ Waiting for the moment when we're all in a common room/ But I'll find a way out of it when you have all become entombed/ [Hook]
5.
[Verse 1] I am astounded by climate nice as a pleasantry/ Cause where I'm from it always seems like the fog is just next to me/ Now, this ain't my hometown/ But I feel somethin profound/ I live in the fast lane, but everyone's screamin SLO down/ Comin from Humboldt, I was brought out here by the college/ There's no better place to be if you're seekin a girl with milage/ If that's what you're into, I think that she should acknowledge why/ She acted like she's crafted, pretending that you ain't qualified/ Not all the girls are like this/ Some of them pretty righteous/ The kind that have a smile I would instantly label priceless/ Sundresses in march/ And just mentioning barbecues/ And beautiful women in bikinis just makes it hard to do/ Any kinda school work, my distractions are part of you/ When they're around I seldom finish the things I start to do/ Rollin doobies and I think that it's time we should spark a few/ San Luis, but don't get it twisted we ain't no cardinals/ [Hook] This is a place/ Where we try to embrace/ A culture of good times, the city wants to erase/ So let's SLO it down, and live it up/ SLO it down, and live up/ Parties seem never ending/ Women forever sending/ Mixed messages, got cold beverages, and the right weather blending/ Gotta SLO it down, and live it up/ SLO it down, and live it up [Verse 2] I am surrounded by purple mountains majestically/ Gracing the very face of the earth where I built my recipe/ For perfecting the craft/ I almost was stretched in half/ Between university and the musical blessing had/ At first, what I felt from this city was no love/ But ya know bruh, they even said it on Oprah/ We care enough/ And we reserve the right so, let's tear it up/ We in the happiest fuckin city up in America/ The beach is full of niceness/ I'll indulge in my vices/ Cause it's only 10 miles away with girls hotter than spices/ The shining sea's marked/ By what I think is arguably/ The greatest place on the map any person would wanna be, ah/ I fucks with this city and you're just gonna have to pardon me/ Puffin tough enough that my eyes are so low it's hard to see/ Going on 5 years, I'm lovin it with all honesty/ So SLO it down, live it up, this is the place you oughta be/ [Hook] Gotta SLO it down, and live it up/ SLO it down, and live it up/ Yeah/
6.
[Verse] Yeah, I think the time has come to get it in/ Cause my intelligence coupled, with verbal medicine/ Will jettison everything that you've become embedded in/ Individuality ceased to remain as evident/ As everybody thinks/ And everybody drinks/ I'll toast to that/ But I stop before I'm drunk or close to that/ I like my moments of clarity/ Sincerely/ That's why for me getting fucked up is a rarity/ But to each his own/ No preachin goin/ On here, believe that/ And this beat is blowin/ My mind, is seems there no signs of life here/ Cause I've murdered so many words I'm hauntin your nightmares/ Now to forever/ I'm more raw than leather/ I'm so underground I'm molten like a pheonix sheddin its feathers/ That hot flow, like lava/ Oh man, I gotta/ Keep to myself sometimes just to avoid all the drama/ Mothafuckas don't wanna approach him/ Like a piranha encroaching/ Puffin on marijuana, striving for nirvana to open/ My blind eyes to the lies that we've spoken/ And ties that we've broken/ Sometimes it seems hopeless/ But I sit my ass down and focus my energy/ And come up with syllables that align so cleverly/ Man, you'll never see/ Another MC like me, memory/ Servin it up correctly, I'm tellin you that I generally/ Tend to remain shy/ I'm kind of a tame guy/ Going to school but chasing my dreams at the same time/ I can't wait to see the day that my name shine/ And you better believe that I'll come to claim mine/

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released September 17, 2013

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M Shah Omaha, Nebraska

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