The best of times, it was the worst of times

from Jay-Z – Diamond is Forever Lyrics on Rap Genius

The opening line to Dicken’s ‘A Tale of Two Cities’

It was the best of times, it was the worst of times, it was the age of wisdom, it was the age of foolishness, it was the epoch of belief, it was the epoch of incredulity, it was the season of Light, it was the season of Darkness, it was the spring of hope, it was the winter of despair, we had everything before us, we had nothing before us, we were all going direct to Heaven, we were all going direct the other way…

He’s saying that the worst time of his life, when he was still in the hood, actually was his best.

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