A reference to the previous line, Game believes that in the continuous cycle of life a person has to die before a new one can come into the world.

You’re broken and in tears, but the only thing you can think of is revenge and retaliation, just like the family revenged the brother that was killed earlier in the verse.

The Bloods knew where this man lived, but instead of shooting when they found out they waited for the best time to retaliate; with the man’s family with him having a barbecue.

A reference to gang violence, most notably the Bloods and Crips; 2 huge and powerful L.A.-based street gangs. The person KRIT is talking about was a Crip (blue), and a gang of Bloods (red) drove by.

This is an example of the line earlier in this song, “You are what you eat, I was fed the streets”. While XO might not have been a thief, he was with them when they stole. When he might not have been a killer, he was with them when they killed. This can shape a young man, with so much exposure to the streets it is almost impossible to separate yourself.

All 4 of these movies, Star Wars, Planet of the Apes, Avatar, and The Matrix were about rebellions.

In the Star Wars movies, the rebellion tried to fight back against the evil forces that were controlling the galaxy.

In Planet of the Apes, the apes originally fought back against the human race who had enslaved them, and eventually the humans had to fight back against the apes who now ran their world.

Avatar was about an alien species rebelling against the humans who came to essentially destroy their planet.

The Matrix trilogy was about the human rebellion fighting back against the machines that ruled the humans and imprisoned them inside a fake world.

All of these movies were about rebellion, and in all of them (except Planet of the Apes) the “good” side overcame the evil. XO is foreshadowing a rebellion about to take place for him and his people, fighting against those who are enslaving them.

A common idiom, “You are what you eat”, meaning that whatever you are exposed to will shape who you become. From a young age, XO was exposed to the streets. Whether he likes it or not, the streets have shaped him in both positive and negative ways.

In the hood, bad things can happen. In this specific incident, the character shot a smaller man (pint sized) and ended up getting shot himself, due to the spiritual concept of Karma.

Also a play on words with alcohol; pint, shot, swallow.

Rembrandt and Van Gogh were famous artists with exceptional paintings. “She” is ranting/complaining about KRIT’s past and how the things he used to do were exceptional.. As time progressed he’s sketching and its less artistic and she isnt happy about it. He used to be a great man now he’s dull. Again playing to the love/painting theme of the song.

Burt and O'hene’s classmates may be laughing now, but down the road they will be nothing and Burt and O'hene will be rich. Knowing this makes O'hene feel better about himself, which muffles the effects of the bullies.