Return of the “G” Lyrics

[Produced by Organized Noize]

[Intro: André 3000]
Yeah, yeah it goes like this right here
Like uh, niggas always be hollering "peace"
You know what I'm saying, "peace my brother"
Peace this, peace that, you know what I'm saying but

Every time I uh try to get a peace of mind
Niggas try to get a piece of mine
So I gotta grab my piece


[Verse 1: André 3000]
It's the return of the gangster, thanks ta'
Them niggas that's on that blow that run up in your crib
Which contains your lady and an 8 month old
Child to raise plus you true blue 'bout this music but
They do not want to hear it
Because they'd rather be bouncing and shooting
And killing and bouncing and shit
, get down
Return of the gangsta, thanks ta'
Them niggas that think you soft and say y'all be gospel rappin'
But they be steady clappin' when you talk about
Bitches, and switches, and hoes, and clothes, and weed
Let's talk about time travelin', rhyme javelin
Somethin' mind unravelin', get down

Return of the gangsta thanks ta'
Them niggas that got them kids
That got enough to buy an ounce
But not enough to bounce them kids to the zoo
Or to the park so they grow up in the dark never
Seein' light 'til they end up being like yo' sorry ass
Robbin' niggas in broad-ass daylight get down

Return of the gangsta thanks ta'
Them niggas who get the wrong impression of expression

Then the question is Big Boi what's up with Andre?
Is he in a cult? Is he on drugs? Is he gay?

When y'all gon' break up? When y'all gon' wake up?
Nigga I'm feelin' better than ever what's wrong with you
You get down!

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About

Genius Annotation

OutKast brings their gangster sides out for the first time since the pimp-alicious Southernplayalisticadillacmuzik in order to address the tedious rumors surrounding the duo. Producer Rico Wade claimed this song was “when Big and Dre were coming into their own.”

André 3000 was a heavy subject in this track and he provided some insight into his verse:

I was young and wilder and some of my fashion choices people didn’t accept at the time. I started getting flak from some people, so they were like, ‘Either he’s gay or on drugs.’ And it’s funny because I was high as hell all the way through Southernplayalisticadillacmuzik, but by ATLiens and Aquemini I wasn’t smoking or drinking.

With Big Boi standing by me I knew I had to address some of the shit ‘cause I can’t have my homeboy looking bad. I knew a lotta people felt like Southernplayalistic was some of our hardest work and they felt like we strayed from that. So 'Return of the Gangsta’ was trying to give them a sense of, ‘Hey, I’m still a regular person.’

At the end of the day, you’ve still got to go through the same neighborhoods so sometimes you have to say stuff to let people know what it is. I’m a man so you can’t say some of this stuff to me. The things in that verse were addressing all of that.

Big Boi added:

Back then, there was a whole bunch of shit talking. People just couldn’t understand how we were making the type of music we were making. There were a lot of attacks coming at my partner, so we wanted OutKast to be like, ‘You fuck with my homeboy, we gonna fuck you up.’ We wanted to let people know, this man doesn’t stand by himself. I mean, that’s my dog. It’s a team effort.

Q&A

Find answers to frequently asked questions about the song and explore its deeper meaning

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