YOU ARE

AP PREC IA TED

WHEN I WAS YOUNG

ME AND MY MA MA

HAD BEEFS

SEV EN TEEN YEARS

OLD

KICKED OUT IN

THE STREETS

THOUGH BACK

AT THE TIME

I NEV ER

THOUGHT I'D SEE

HER FACE

AIN'T A WO MAN

A LIVE

THAT CAN TAKE

MY MA MA'S PLACE

SUS PEND ED

FROM SCHOOL

SCARED TO GO HOME

I WAS A FOOL WITH

THE BIG BOYS

BREAK IN'

ALL THE RULES

I SHED TEARS WITH

MY BA BY SIS TER

OV ER THE YEARS WE

WAS POOR ER THAN

OTH ER LIT TLE KIDS

AND EV EN THOUGH

WE HAD DIF FER ENT

DAD DIES

THE SAME DRA MA

WHEN THINGS WENT

WRONG

WE BLAMED MA MA

I REM IN ISCE ON

THE STRESS I CAUSED

IT WAS H***

HUG GIN' ON MY

MA MA FROM

A JAIL CELL

AND WHO

WOULD THINK

IN EL EM EN TARY

HEY

I'D SEE THE

PEN IT EN TIA RY

ONE DAY

RUN NIN' FROM THE

PO LICE THAT'S RIGHT

MA MA'D CATCH ME

PUT A WHOOP IN' TO

MY BACK SIDE

AND EV EN AS A

CRACK FIEND

MA MA

YOU AL WAYS WAS

A BLACK QUEEN

MA MA

I FIN ALLY

UN DER STAND

FOR A WO MAN

IT AIN'T EA SY

TRY IN' TO RAISE

A MAN

YOU AL WAYS WAS

COM MIT TED

A POOR SIN GLE

MOTH ER ON WEL FARE

TELL ME HOW

YOU DID IT

THERE'S NO WAY

I COULD

PAY YOU BACK

BUT THE PLAN IS

TO SHOW YOU THAT

I UN DER STAND

YOU ARE

AP PREC I ATED

DEAR MA MA

YOU ARE

AP PRE CI ATED

NOW AIN'T NO BO DY

TELL US IT WAS FAIR

NO LOVE FOR

MY DAD DY

'CAUSE THE COW ARD

WAS N'T THERE

HE PASSED A WAY

AND I DID N'T CRY

'CAUSE MY AN GER

WOULD N'T LET ME

FEEL FOR A STRAN GER

THEY SAY I'M WRONG

AND I'M HEART LESS

BUT ALL A LONG

I WAS LOOK IN' FOR

A FATH ER

HE WAS GONE

I HUNG A ROUND

WITH THE THUGS

AND EV EN THOUGH

THEY SOLD DRUGS

THEY SHOWED

A YOUNG BROTH ER

LOVE

I MOVED OUT AND

START ED REAL LY

HANG IN'

I NEED ED MON EY OF

MY OWN SO I START ED

SLING IN'

I AIN'T GUIL TY 'CAUSE

EV EN THOUGH I

SELL ROCKS

IT FEELS GOOD

PUT TIN' MON EY

IN YOUR MAIL BOX

I LOVE PAY IN' RENT

WHEN THE RENT'S

DUE

I HOPE YOU GOT

THE DIAM OND

NECK LACE

THAT I SENT TO YOU

'CAUSE WHEN

I WAS LOW

YOU WAS

THERE FOR ME

AND NEV ER LEFT

ME A LONE

'CAUSE

YOU CARE FOR ME

AND I CAN SEE

YOU COM IN' HOME

AF TER WORK LATE

YOU IN THE KIT CHEN

TRY IN' TO FIX

US A HOT PLATE

JUST WORK IN' WITH

THE SCRAPS YOU

WAS GIV EN

AND MA MA

MADE MIR A CLES

EV ERY

THANKS GIV ING

BUT NOW THE ROAD

GOT ROUGH

YOU'RE A LONE

TRY IN' TO RAISE

TWO BAD KIDS ON

YOUR OWN

AND THERE'S NO WAY

I COULD PAY YOU BACK

BUT THE PLAN IS

TO SHOW YOU THAT

I UN DER STAND

YOU ARE

AP PREC I ATED

AND DEAR MA MA

YOU ARE

AP PREC IA TED

POUR OUT SOME

LIQ UOR

AND I REM IN ISCE

'CAUSE THROUGH

THE DRA MA

I CAN AL WAYS DEP END

ON MY MA MA

AND WHEN IT SEEMS

THAT I'M HOPE LESS

YOU SAY THE WORDS

THAT COULD GET

BACK IN FO CUS

WHEN I WAS SICK

AS A LIT TLE KID

TO KEEP ME HAP PY

THERE'S NO LIM IT

TO THE THINGS

YOU DID

AND ALL MY

CHILD HOOD

MEM ORI ES

ARE FULL OF ALL

THE THE SWEET THINGS

YOU DID FOR ME

AND EV EN THOUGH

I ACT CRA ZY

I GOT TA THANK THE

LORD THAT YOU

MADE ME

THERE ARE NO WORDS

THAT CAN EX PRESS

HOW I FEEL

YOU NEV ER

KEPT A SE CRET

AL WAYS STAYED REAL

AND I AP PREC I ATE

HOW YOU RAISED ME

AND ALL THE EX TRA

LOVE THAT

YOU GAVE ME

I WISH I COULD

TAKE THE PAIN

A WAY

IF YOU CAN MAKE IT

THROUGH THE NIGHT

THERE'S A

BRIGHT ER DAY

EV ERY THING WILL

BE ALL RIGHT

IF YOU HOLD ON

IT'S A STRUG GLE

EV ERY DAY

GOT TA ROLL ON

AND THERE'S NO WAY

I COULD

PAY YOU BACK

BUT MY PLAN IS TO

SHOW YOU THAT

I UN DER STAND

YOU ARE

AP PREC IA TED

DEAR MA MA

YOU ARE

AP PRE CI ATED

AND DEAR MA MA

YOU ARE

AP PRE CI ATED