"they say pussy & paper is poetry power and pistols"
very deep line.
"they say" - who is 'they?' well the only real possibilities are: the media, the cops, or Pac's enemies. I'm guessing he means his enemies in general (and the other possibilities, in a sense, are all his enemies anyway) since the next line is "plottin on murderin mothafuckaz before they get u" - Pac frequently talked about killing cops who were trying to kill him, or murdering his enemies who were trying to kill him. I think interpreting who he means by 'they' is critical to understanding this line, and it must mean his enemies since the entire song is directed at his enemies.
"pussy & paper"
this reminds me of the infamous line by Pac: "it's about niggaz & bitches, power & money, ridahz & punks. which side are you on?" Pac's side was surely the side of niggaz, power, and ridahz..... as opposed to bitchez, money, and punks. think about this - the PUNK side is the side of bitchez and money, or, "pussy and paper." I think the coincidence is no accident.
"poetry, power, and pistols."
or, in other words, rap, power, and guns. think about the 2 sides - 'niggaz, power, ridahz' vs 'bitchez, money, punks.'
rap, power, and guns is very close to 'niggaz, power, & ridahz.' so in other words, my interpretation of this line is the following: Pac is exposing his enemies plans. his enemies are trying to blend the line between good and evil, and he is redefining this line, and showing that they are NOT the same thing, pussy and paper is NOT poetry, power, and pistols! but that's what THEY SAY. that's why the next line is "plottin on murderin mothafuckaz before they get you, picturin pitiful punk niggaz.... as I position myself to make G's, my enemies scatter..." etc. the whole verse, and the whole SONG for that matter is directed against his enemies, so it only makes sense that the first line of the song is exposing what his enemies SAY, which is not true! also, the "p" alliteration - coincidence that this reminds me of "PUNK?" I think not.
think of the start of the third verse: "polish ya pistols prepare for battle pass the pump." same idea - he is getting ready for war against his enemies.
now, think of the start of the third verse: "they say pussy and paper is poetry power and pistols. plottin on murderin mothafuckaz before they get you." THE SAME EXACT LINE. Pac repeated this, and to my knowledge, this is the ONLY Tupac song where Pac repeats the exact same rhyme to start off his last verse as he did on his first. he obviously did this for emphasis, and did not just make some non-sensical rhyme using alliteration. he had an important meaning behind this, as he does with basically all of his rap and poetry.
pussy and paper is NOT poetry, power, and pistols.
mh
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EDIT: P.S., Dante, I like the OJ Simpson mugshot. if I ever see Ill Mitch on your icon again I'm gonna send 50 crips to your house to destroy your computer no joke
