[Intro]
99 on the clock, sine 808 hums like a warning
Neon rain on cracked pavement, midnight keeps on morphing
Take a breath — feel the sub, let the city tell its story
This one’s for the nights that taught me how to worry
[Verse 1]
Streetlight halo, cheap motel curtains, cigarette glow
Counting rent on paper napkins, every number moving slow
Watch busted, time's a liar — missed calls and missed shows
I pawned a dream for gas, learned the route where hope goes
Concrete sermons, gutter prayers, I scribble down the plan
Cold coffee burned my tongue; still I hustle with a pen in hand
The block knows my secrets — footprints in the wet sand
They said I’d never make it — so I flipped the script and ran
Pocket lint, pocket threats, deposit slips with prayers
Late night confessions to the rearview, headlights stare
I tell the city to go fuck itself but keep it in my prayer
'Cause the same asphalt that chewed me also taught me how to care
[Chorus]
99 and the 808, heartbeat under streetlights
Neon veins, we levitate, city saints and city fights
Repeat — 99 and the 808, keep the needle in the groove
Say it loud, say it proud: we survive, we move
[Verse 2]
Two a.m., tire spin, summers swallowed by the cold
Mama on the phone cryin' 'bout the rent, about the days of old
Stacks folded in the glovebox, half of hope, half of gold
I sign my name on dotted lies, sell tomorrow to be sold
I slit the silence with a laugh — that’s the only way to cope
Smoke curls up like old regrets, but every breath's a rope
I climbed outta basements with ambition and a broken coat
Now promoters call my name but I still check my coat
Explicit truth: I told my demons “fuck the doubt” and they left
Left a lighter lit on stage, paid the cost for every step
The crowd was small the first time, but I learned to project
Now every scar’s a chorus line, every loss a check
[Chorus]
99 and the 808, heartbeat under streetlights
Neon veins, we levitate, city saints and city fights
Repeat — 99 and the 808, keep the needle in the groove
Say it loud, say it proud: we survive, we move
[Bridge]
Filtered low end, breathing space — the night exhales my name
I double up my chorus voice, let the shadow hold the flame
Short delays on the ad-libs, let them bounce off broken frames
When the bass slides up, the pain becomes a frame to change
[Verse 3 — Catharsis]
I remember cousin’s laughter in a forty-degree apartment room
We split two slices of ambition and prayed it wasn't doom
Now my name’s on cheap flyers, taped to subway tombs
I wear my wins like bulletproof — but sometimes I still assume
That luck is a two-way mirror; you see what you project
I spit a line that stings like truth: I don't give a fuck — I check
Every promise, every throat, every sleepless silhouette
I’ll ride this 808 until the morning sun forgives regret
[Chorus — Final]
99 and the 808, heartbeat under streetlights
Neon veins, we levitate, city saints and city fights
99 and the 808 — one short line, one long groove
Repeat it 'til
