Rage Against The Machine

1. Bombtrack

 It goes a-one, two three and It's just another 
bombtrack And suckas be thinkin' that they can 
fade this But I'm gonna drop it at a higher 
level 'Cause I'm inclined to stoop down Hand 
out some beat-downs Cold runna train on punk ho's 
that Think they run the game But I learned to 
burn that bridge and delete Those who compete 
at a level that's obsolete Instead I warm my hands 
upon the flames of the flag As I recall our downfall 
And the business that burned us all See through the 
news and the views that twist reality Enough I call 
the bluff Manifest destiny Landlords and power whores 
On my people they took turns Dispute the suits I ignite 
And then watch 'em burn With the thoughts from a militant 
mind Hardline, hardline after hardline Landlords and 
power whores On my people they took turns Dispute the 
suits I ignite And then watch 'em burn Burn, burn, yes 
ya gonna burn Burn, burn, yes ya gonna burn Burn, burn, 
yes ya gonna burn Burn, burn, yes ya gonna burn 
Yes ya gonna burn, burn, yes ya gonna burn Burn, burn, 
yes ya gonna burn Burn, burn, yes ya gonna burn Burn, 
burn, yes ya gonna burn It goes a-one, two, three Another 
funky radical bombtrack Started as a sketch in my notebook 
And now dope hooks make punks take another look 
My thoughts ya hear and ya begin to fear That ya card 
will get pulled if ya interfere With the thoughts 
from a militant mind Hardline, hardline after hardline 
Landlords and power whores On my people they took turns 
Dispute the suits I ignite And then watch 'em burn Burn, 
burn, yes ya gonna burn Burn, burn, yes ya gonna burn 
Burn, burn, yes ya gonna burn Burn, burn, yes ya gonna 
burn Yes ya gonna burn, burn, yes ya gonna burn Burn,
burn, yes ya gonna burn Burn, burn, yes ya gonna burn 
Burn, burn, yes ya gonna burn Euurrrggghhhhh! Uggh! 
Hey you, it's just another bombtrack... Check it out...

2. Killing In The Name

Killing in the name of! Some of those that were forces 
are the same that burn crosses Some of those that were 
forces are the same that burn crosses Some of those 
that were forces are the same that burn crosses 
Some of those that were forces are the same that 
burn crosses Huh! Killing in the name of! Killing 
in the name of And now you do what they 
told ya (11 times) But now you do what they told ya 
Well now you do what they told ya Those who died are 
justified, for wearing the badge, they're the chosen 
whites You justify those that died by wearing the badge, 
they're the chosen whites Those who died are justified, 
for wearing the badge, they're the chosen whites 
You justify those that died by wearing the badge, 
they're the chosen whites Some of those that were forces 
are the same that bore crosses Some of those that were 
forces are the same that bore crosses Some of those 
that were forces are the same that bore crosses 
Some of those that were forces are the same that bore 
crosses Uggh! Killing in the name of! Killing in the 
name of And now you do what they told ya (4 times) 
And now you do what they told ya, now you're under 
control (7 times) And now you do what they told ya! 
Those who died are justified, for wearing the badge, 
they're the chosen whites You justify those that died 
by wearing the badge, they're the chosen whites 
Those who died are justified, for wearing the badge, 
they're the chosen whites You justify those that died 
by wearing the badge, they're the chosen whites Come on! 
(Guitar solo: 'Yeah! Come on!') Fuck you, I won't do 
what you tell me (8 times building to a shout) Fuck you,
I won't do what you tell me! (8 times screamed/shouted) 
Motherfucker! Uggh!

3. Take The Power Back

Spoken: 'Crank the music up' Bring that shit in! 
Yeah, the movement's in motion with mass militant 
poetry Now check this out...uggh! In the right light, 
study becomes insight But the system that dissed us 
Teaches us to read and write So called facts are fraud 
They want us to allege and pledge And bow down to their 
God Lost the culture, the culture lost Spun our minds and 
through time Ignorance has taken over Yo, we gotta take 
the power back! Bam! Here's the plan Motherfuck Uncle 
Sam Step back, I know who I am Raise up your ear, I'll 
drop the style and clear It's the beats and the lyrics 
they fear The rage is relentless We need a movement with 
a quickness You are the witness of change And to counteract 
We gotta take the power back Yeah, we gotta take the power 
back Come on, come on! We gotta take the power back 
The present curriculum I put my fist in 'em Eurocentric 
every last one of 'em See right through the red, white and 
blue disguise With lecture I puncture the structure of lies 
Installed in our minds and attempting To hold us back 
We've got to take it back 'Cause holes in our spirit causin' 
tears and fears One-sided stories for years and years and
years I'm inferior? Who's inferior? Yea, we need to check the 
interior Of the system that cares about only one culture 
And that is why We gotta take the power back Yeah, we 
gotta take the power back Come on, come on! We gotta take 
the power back Hey yo check, we're gonna have to break it, 
break it, break it down Awww shit! Uggh! And like this...uggh! 
Come on, yeah! Bring it back the other way! The teacher 
stands in front of the class But the lesson plan he can't 
recall The student's eyes don't perceive the lies 
Bouning off every fucking wall His composure is well kept 
I guess he fears playing the fool The complacent 
students sit and listen to some of that Bullshit that he 
learned in school Europe ain't my rope to swing on 
Can't learn a thing from it Yet we hang from it Gotta get 
it, gotta get it together then Like the motherfuckin' 
weathermen To expose and close the doors on those who try 
To strangle and mangle the truth 'Cause the circle of 
hatred continues unless we react We gotta take the power 
back Yeah, we gotta take the power back Come on, come on! 
We gotta take the power back No more lies (8 times, 
building to a crescendo) 
Uggh! Yeah! Take it back y'all Take it back, a-take it back 
A-take it back y'all, come on! Take it back y'all Take it 
back, a-take it back A-take it back y'all, come on! Uggh! Yeah!

4. Settle For Nothing

A jail cell is freedom from the pain in my home Hatred 
passed on, passed on and passed on A world of violent rage 
But it's one that I can recognise Having never seen the 
colour of my father's eyes Yes, I dwell in hell, but it's a 
hell that I can grip I tried to grip my family But I slipped 
To escape from the pain in an existence mundane I gotta 9, a 
sign, a set and now I gotta name Read my writing on the wall 
No-one's here to catch me when I fall Death is on my side....suicide! 
A jail cell is freedom from the pain in my home Hatred passed on, 
passed on and passed on A world of violent rage But it's one that 
I can recognise Having never seen the colour of my father's eyes 
Yes, I dwell in hell, but it's a hell that I can grip I tried to 
grip my family But I slipped To escape from the pain in an 
existence mundane I gotta 9, a sign, a set and now I gotta name 
Read my writing on the wall No-one's here to catch me when 
I fall Caught between my culture and the system....genocide! 
Read my writing on the wall No-one's here to catch me when 
I fall If ignorance is bliss, then knock the smile off my face 
Yeah! If we don't take action now We settle for nothing later 
Settle for nothing now And we'll settle for nothing later 
If we don't take action now We settle for nothing later 
We'll settle for nothing now And we'll settle for nothing later 
If we don't take action now We'll settle for nothing later 
We settle for nothing now And we'll settle for nothing later 
If we don't take action now We settle for nothing later 
We'll settle for nothing now And we'll settle for nothing later

5. Bullet In The Head

This time the bullet cold rocked ya A yellow ribbon 
instead of a swastika Nothin' proper about ya propaganda 
Fools follow rules when the set commands ya Said it was 
blue When ya blood was read That's how ya got a bullet 
blasted through ya head Blasted through ya head Blasted 
through ya head I give a shout out to the living dead 
Who stood and watched as the feds cold centralised 
So serene on the screen You was mesmerised Cellular phones 
soundin' a death tone Corporations cold Turn ya to stone 
before ya realise They load the clip in omnicolour 
Said they pack the 9, they fire it at prime time 
The sleeping gas, every home was like Alcatraz And mutha 
fuckas lost their minds Just victims of the in-house drive-by 
They say jump, you say how high Yeah Just victims of the 
in-house drive-by They say jump, you say how high Run it! 
(Guitar solo) Just victims of the in-house drive-by 
They say jump, you say how high Just victims of the 
in-house drive-by They say jump, you say how high 
Check-a, check-a, check it out They load the clip in 
omnicolour Said they pack the 9, they fire it at prime time 
The sleeping gas, every home was like Alcatraz And mutha 
fuckas lost their minds No escape from the mass mind rape 
Play it again jack and then rewind the tape And then 
play it again and again and again Until ya mind is locked 
in Believin' all the lies that they're tellin' ya Buyin' 
all the products that they're sellin' ya They say jump and 
ya say how high Ya brain-dead Ya gotta fuckin' bullet in ya 
head Just victims of the in-house drive-by They say jump,
you say how high Yeah Just victims of the in-house drive-by 
They say jump, you say how high Uggh! Yeah! Yea! Ya standin' 
in line Believin' the lies Ya bowin' down to the flag 
Ya gotta bullet in ya head Ya standin' in line Believin' 
the lies Ya bowin' down to the flag Ya gotta bullet in ya head 
A bullet in ya head (8 times, building to a shout) A bullet in 
ya head (7 times, shouted/screamed) Ya gotta bullet in ya 
fuckin' head!(Sustained to end of drum roll)

6. Know Your Enemy

Yeah, we're comin' back then with another bombtrack 
Think ya know what it's all about Huh! Hey yo, so 
check this out Yeah! Know your enemy! Come on! 
Born with insight and a raised fist A witness to the slit 
wrist, that's with As we move into '92 Still in a room 
without a view Ya got to know Ya got to know That when 
I say go, go, go Amp up and amplify Defy I'm a brother 
with a furious mind Action must be taken We don't need 
the key We'll break in Something must be done About 
vengeance, a badge and a gun 'Cause I'll rip the mike, 
rip the stage, rip the system I was born to rage 
against 'em Fist in ya face, in the place And I'll drop 
the style clearly Know your enemy...Know your enemy! Yeah! 
Hey yo, and dick with this...uggh! Word is born Fight the war, 
fuck the norm Now I got no patience So sick of complacence 
With the D the E the F the I the A the N the C the E Mind of a 
revolutionary So clear the lane The finger to the land of 
the chains What? The land of the free? Whoever told you that 
is your enemy? Now something must be done About vengeance, 
a badge and a gun 'Cause I'll rip the mike, rip the stage, 
rip the system I was born to rage against 'em Now action must 
be taken We don't need the key We'll break in I've got no 
patience now So sick of complacence now I've got no patience 
now So sick of complacence now Sick of sick of sick of sick of 
you Time has come to pay... Know your enemy! Come on! 
Yes I know my enemies They're the teachers who taught me to 
fight me Compromise, conformity, assimilation, submission 
Ignorance, hypocrisy, brutality, the elite All of which are 
American dreams (8 times)

7. Wake Up

Come on, although ya try to discredit Ya still never edit 
The needle, I'll thread it Radically poetic Standin' with 
the fury that they had in '66 And like E-Double I'm mad 
Still knee-deep in the system's shit Hoover, he was a body 
remover I'll give ya a dose But it'll never come close 
To the rage built up inside of me Fist in the air, in the 
land of hypocrisy Movements come and movements go Leaders 
speak, movements cease When their heads are flown 'Cause 
all these punks Got bullets in their heads Departments of 
police, the judges, the feds Networks at work, keepin' people 
calm You know they went after King When he spoke out on 
Vietnam He turned the power to the have-nots And then came the 
shot Yeah! Yeah, back in this... Wit' poetry, my mind I flex 
Flip like Wilson, vocals never lackin' dat finesse Whadda I got 
to, whadda I got to do to wake ya up To shake ya up, to break 
the structure up 'Cause blood still flows in the gutter I'm like 
takin' photos Mad boy kicks open the shutter Set the groove 
Then stick and move like I was Cassius Rep the stutter step Then 
bomb a left upon the fascists Yea, the several federal men 
Who pulled schemes on the dream And put it to an end Ya better 
beware Of retribution with mind war 20/20 visions and murals 
with metaphors Networks at work, keepin' people calm Ya know 
they murdered X And tried to blame it on Islam He turned the 
power to the have-nots And then came the shot Uggh! What was 
the price on his head? What was the price on his head! I think 
I heard a shot (5 times) I think I heard, I think I heard a 
shot Background: 'Black nationalism' 'He may be a real contender 
for this position should he abandon his supposed obediance to 
white liberal doctrine of non-violence...and embrace black 
nationalism' 'Through counter-intelligence it should be 
possible to pinpoint potential trouble-makers...' 'And 
neutralise them' Wake up! Wake up! Wake up! Wake up! Wake up! 
Wake up! Wake up! Wake up! Spoken: "How long? Not long, 'cause 
what you reap is what you sow."

8. Fistful Of Steel

Check it. Silence Something about silence makes 
me sick 'Cause silence can be violent Sorta like a 
slit wrist If the vibe was suicide Then you would 
push da button But if ya bowin' down Then let me do 
the cuttin' Some speak the sounds But speak in silent 
voices Like radio is silent Though it fills the air 
with noises Its transmissions bring submission As ya 
mold to the unreal And mad boy grips the microphone Wit' 
a fistful of steel Yeah...and mad mad boy grips the 
microphone Wit' a fistful of steel Wit' a fistful of steel 
('Cause I know the power of the question) Wit' a 
fistful of steel Wit' a fistful of steel (And I won't 
stop 'cause I know the power of the question) It's time 
to flow like the fluid in ya veins If ya will it, I will 
spill it And ya out just as quick as ya came Not a silent 
one But a defiant one Never a normal one 'Cause I'm the 
bastard son With the visions of the move Vocals not to soothe 
But to ignite and put in flight My sense of militance 
Groovin', playin' this game called survival The status, 
the elite, the enemy, the rival The silent sheep slippin', 
riffin', trippin' Give ya a glimpse of the reality 
I'm grippin' Steppin' into the jam and I'm slammin' 
like Shaquille Mad boy grips the microphone Wit' a 
fistful of steel Yeah...and mad boy grips the microphone 
Wit' a fistful of steel Wit' a fistful of steel 
('Cause I know the power of the question) Wit' a 
fistful of steel Wit' a fistful of steel 
(And I won't stop 'cause I know the power of the question) 
Ahh shit And I won't stop 'cause I know the power of the 
question And if the vibe was suicide Then you would push 
da button But if ya bowin' down Then let me do the cuttin` 
Yeah! Come on! A .44 full of bullets Face full of pale Eyes 
full of empty A stare full of nails The roulette ball rolls
alone on the wheel A mind full of fire And a fistful of steel 
And if the vibe was suicide Then you would push da button
But if ya bowin' down Then let me do the cuttin' Yeah! 
Wit' a fistful of steel! Come on! Uggh! Wit' 
a fistful of steel! Uggh!

9. Township Rebellion

Rebel, rebel and yell 'Cause our people still dwell in 
hell Locked in a cell Yes, the structure's a cell 
Mad is the story I tell How long can we wait? Come on, 
seein' what's at stake Action for reaction If your mind's 
in a somewhat complacent state Get a check up This is a 
stick up Our freedom or your life Lord, I wish I could 
be peacful But there can be no sequel Now freedom must 
be fundamental In Johannesburg or South Central On the 
mic, 'cause someone should tell 'em To kick in the 
township rebellion Yeah, what about that sucker? Yeah, so 
you thought you could get with the hardlines That fill 
your mind Thoughts, battles fought And lessons taught 
Yes I'll display the fitness And flip like a gymnast 
Raise my fist and resist Asleep, though we stand in the 
midst Of the war Gotta get mine Gotta get more Keepin' 
the mic warm against the norm 'Cause what does it offer me? 
I think often it's nothin' but a coffin Gotta get wreck 'Till 
our necks never swing on a rope From here to the cape of 
no hope Now freedom must be fundamental In Johannesburg or 
South Central On the mic, 'cause someone should tell 'em 
To kick in the township rebellion Why stand on a silent platform? 
Fight the war, fuck the norm (4 times) (Guitar solo) 
Why stand on a silent platform? Fight the war, 
fuck the norm (4 times) What's it gonna take? 
Euuurrrggghhhhh! Shackle their minds when they're bent on the cross 
When ignorance reigns, life is lost Shackle their minds 
when they're left on the cross When ignorance reigns, life 
is lost Shackled our minds when we're bent on the cross 
When ignorance reigns, life is lost Shackled our minds 
when we're left on the cross When ignorance reigns, 
life is lost, lost, lost! Shackle your minds and you're 
left on the cross! When ignorance reigns, life is lost! 
Just shackle your minds when you're bent on the cross! 
When ignorance reigns, life is lost, lost! Why stand on a 
silent platform? Fight the war, fuck the norm (4 times)

10. Freedom

Freedom Uggh! Pump, pump.. Wah! Come on! Uggh! 
Solo, I'm a soloist on a solo list All live, never on 
a floppy disk Inka, inka, bottle of ink Paintings of 
rebellion Drawn up by the thoughts I think Yeah! 
Come on! The militant poet in once again, check it 
It's set up like a deck of cards They're sending us to 
early graves For all the diamonds They'll use a pair of 
clubs to beat the spades With poetry I paint the pictures 
that hit More like the murals that fit Don't turn away 
Get in front of it Brotha, did ya forget ya name? Did ya 
lose it on the wall Playin' tic-tac-toe? Yo, check the 
diagonal Three brothers gone Come on Doesn't that make it 
three in a row? Spoken quietly: "Anger is a gift" Come on! 
Uggh! (Guitar solo) Check that! Uggh! Come on Yeah Uggh 
Brotha, did ya forget ya name? Did ya lose it on the wall 
Playin' tic-tac-toe? Yo, check the diagonal Three million 
gone Come on 'Cause they're counting backwards to zero 
Environment The environment exceeding on the level Of our 
unconciousness For example What does the billboard say Come 
and play, come and play Forget about the movement Spoken 
quietly: "Anger is a gift" Yeeeaaahhhh! Uggh! Awww, bring 
that shit in! Freedom...yea... Freedom...yea right... (x4)