There`s a lot of people out here 
Who just don`t know 
What plays a factor 
In movin` heads and toes 
It be them hits 
Hangin` out of them stereo kits 
Whether cassette radio or cd bits 
Mix tapes from the best 
Going on and on 
Throughout the city grounds 
To suburban lawns 
Man  we don`t play 
Even where we stay 
Videos shows the visuals 
Of jams today 
Coinciding with the rhythm 
Of the heart and neck 
The brakes got you 
In your proper context 
You let your lex or your 
Sixty-four suspension 
Bounce away all your tension 
En route to the club 
Where girls need the quenchin` 
Diamonds on your wrist 
Sunroof top 
But niggas out front 
Makin` guns go pop 
So the spot gets shut 
But on to the next 
`Cause your ears get vexed 
When they don`t get the fix cause 
[These are the brakes] 
It be your listenin pleasure 
While you`re doin your chores 
[These are the brakes] 
No matter where you from 
It`s for you and yours 
[These are the brakes] 
Bringing it back to the brakes 
Like the `yes yes y`all` 
[These are the brakes] 
So let it be your anthem 
When you`re havin` a ball 
Well it`s silly of me 
To think that I 
Would never get a chance to see 
A piece of this pie 
I sat dead in front of speakers 
Thinkin` that could be me 
Anticipatin` open microphones 
So I could emcee 
Had a catalogue of raps 
Impressin` all the `round-the-wayers 
Before I went to bed 
Included rhymes into my prayers 
But that rhyme is all on paper 
I want my song on vinyl plates 
I dreamin` hits and doin` shows 
Makin my niggas spines shake 
Expectin` nuttin but a little bit 
Of radio play 
Gettin diced on 1 and 2`s 
By the best djs, hey 
Time was kinda tight 
But still i dotted on the line 
And some expected me 
To start buhlooning in the mind 
Seein` spaces and places 
That i couldn`t pronounce 
But still i had the pulleys 
To make all the bullies bounce 
With the blessings of the great 
We took it from state to state 
`Cause we landed on the good foot 
And got our biggest brake cause 
[These are the brakes] 
A mother gets mugged 
By her crackhead son 
That`s the brakes, that`s the brakes 
You`re in the wrong part of town 
So the shots make you run 
That`s the brakes, that`s the brakes 
Your best comrades put six tabs 
In your o.e. 
That`s the brakes, that`s the brakes 
Your boyfriend made you a carrier of HIV 
That`s the brakes, that`s the brakes 
Now what`s gonna happen 
When the sun don`t shine 
I`m buyin tickets aboard 
The caravan of love 
Hey fellas 
See, money don`t make shots repel 
I break woes and compose 
Some rhymes to tell 
So when the party`s live 
It shouldn`t be beef 
Or playin` indian roles 
I guess you thought you was chief 
Seems all broke up 
And now you woke up surprised 
Situation`s gettin sticky 
Dead in front of your eyes 
We play the wall 
Similar to tacks 
Until the dj plays 
The necessary track 
In fact as the jam plays on 
Out comes all your bread 
To pay for drinks 
For them girls you want to spread 
Don`t be mislead 
When the brakes inside your head 
And have you reminiscing 
On them kids who got you fed 
Until reality reveals a miss 
Who wants to know 
If you can play her real close 
Out on the dance floor `cause 
[These are the brakes] 
It be your listenin pleasure 
While you`re doin your chores 
[These are the brakes] 
No matter where you from 
It`s for you and yours 
[These are the brakes] 
Ringin it back to the brakes 
Like the `yes yes y`all` 
[These are the brakes] 
So let it be your anthem 
When you`re havin, a ball