Capital Punishment
Capital Punishment
Big Pun
Lyrics & Rhyme Analysis
21
End
238
Internal
162
Multi
337
Slant
5
Chain
Rhyme Groups — hover to spotlight
Huh, it's mine, it's all mine, you understand?
That means me and my peoples, can you dig that?
21st century, thought I'd never✦ see it
Right around the corner,✦ baby✦
Ours for the taking✦
Yo
I've seen child blossom to man
Some withered and turned✦ to murderers
Led astray✦ by the liars, death glorifiers observin' us
Watching us close, marketin' toast, easy✦ to purchase
Purposely overtaxin' the earnings
Nervous,✦ burnin'✦ down the churches
They're scared✦ of us, rather✦ beware✦ than dare to trust
Always in jail, million✦ dollar✦ bail, left there to rust
Let's call in order,✦ give ourselves a chance to enhance✦ broader
Advance✦ to where minorities are the majority✦ voter✦
Holdin'✦ my own, I'm livin'✦ alone✦ in this cold world
My sister✦ just bought a home without a loan, you go girl
She's an exception,✦ some people can leap to the impression✦
See, me myself, I start flippin' and fall victim✦ to deep depression✦
I'm stressin' the issue here, so we can gross the fiscal✦ year
Tired✦ of gettin'✦ fired✦ and hired✦ as a pistol-eer
There's✦ no longevity✦ living✦ off negativity✦
Fuck it, I'd rather✦ sell reefer✦ than do pizza✦ delivery✦
That's how the city✦ be, everybody gettin'✦ they hustle on
Judge singin'✦ death penalty like it's his favorite✦ fuckin'✦ song
Word is bond, takin'✦ my life you know they lovin'✦ it
God, F the government✦ and it's fuckin'✦ capital✦ punishment✦
Capital✦ punishment,✦ given✦ by the government✦
System✦ so organized✦ they get to you and who you runnin'✦ with
Can't live alone,✦ watch for the spies and tapped✦ phones✦
Totin'✦ the llello✦ for life, the rightful✦ heir to the throne
We come from Kings and Queens, people with dreams, Gods and Earths
For what it's worth we benefit✦ the Earth with infinite✦ worth
First it's turnin'✦ tables,✦ open✦ our own labels✦
Disable✦ the Republicans,✦ then reverse✦ capital✦ punishment✦
I've seen it all up close, shit out the movies✦ you'd be buggin'✦
My cousin✦ Chuchi barely✦ a juve', lost it and turned✦ on the oven✦
He wasn't playin', blew out the flame and started inhalin'
Barin'✦ a secret✦ too deep to keep on the street for sharin'✦
Wearin'✦ the virus, Acquired Immune✦ Deficiency
Dishin'✦ his dick in every✦ thick promiscuous✦ fish in the sea
Listen✦ to me, shit is rough in the ghetto✦
You bluff, blow your head off, fuck a snuff, we bust lead off
Get off your high horse, or die off like an extinction✦
Boriquans are like Mohican's,✦ 'The Last of the Po' Ricans'✦
We need some unity,✦ fuck all the Jeeps and jewelry
The maturity,✦ keeps me six feet, above✦ obscurity✦
The streets are deadly✦ and everybody's a desperado
I guess tomorrow ain't promised unless✦ you're Amish✦ and death's your motto✦
Like Zorro,✦ I mark my territory with a symbol
Not with a Z, but a P, 'cause Punishment's what I resemble
I lend you this if it expands yours, for you and yours
A real man can't fall, he stands tall
The Man's claws are diggin'✦ in my back, I'm tryin' to hit him back
Time to counteract, where my niggas at?
Capital✦ punishment,✦ given✦ by the government✦
System✦ so organized✦ they get to you and who you runnin'✦ with
Can't live alone,✦ watch for the spies and tapped✦ phones✦
Totin'✦ the llello✦ for life, the rightful✦ heir to the throne
We come from Kings and Queens, people with dreams, Gods and Earths
For what it's worth we benefit✦ the Earth with infinite✦ worth
First it's turnin'✦ tables,✦ open✦ our own labels✦
Disable✦ the Republicans,✦ then reverse✦ capital✦ punishment✦
You like that, it's Pun and Prospect
We hold nines,✦ own more treasure than gold mines,✦ makin'✦ progress
With Don Juan's, there's✦ rules✦ to be made, crews to be sprayed
Dues to be paid, nothin'✦ y'all can do to behave✦
We laid in the slums, made a cake out of crumbs
Even✦ though the government✦ tryna✦ take out our sons
Rudy✦ Gulliani tryna✦ blind me, but I see reality✦
Was raised✦ with the street mentality✦
My strategy's why my battery✦ never✦ die
The ghetto✦ kept me wise, so I would never✦ fall to the lies
It's no surprise, but do or die if you want the glamour✦
Yeah, I want the glamour,✦ laid up with cheese and trees in Atlanta
While Cubans✦ smoked✦ out like Ronald Isley✦ with Havana's
The hammer✦ in the palm, never✦ shaky,✦ calm handlers
This renegade blow through barricades✦ like grenades✦
I turn the sun to shade, then the night back to day
Like the twenty-four✦ hour rotation✦
Y'all know the location,✦ it's just a little information✦
From the Squad, bringing the Terror for the nine-era
And let it rain on your fine leather, my nigga,✦ what?
Technical Breakdown
7.9
Multisyllabic Rhymes9.5
Complexity of rhyme schemes (data-driven)
Internal Rhymes9.5
Rhymes within a line (data-driven)
Wordplay / Double Entendres7.5
Clever language, metaphors, punchlines
Cadence / Rhythm6.5
Flow variation and timing (data-driven)
Vocabulary Complexity8.0
Range and depth of words used (data-driven)
Delivery / Breath Control8.5
Performance and control
Computed Score7.87
Production
— Jugrnaut, Mike "Trauma" DBe the first to rate the production
Critic Analysis
RAPLEDGER BAROMETER™
Big Pun utilizes his signature multisyllabic density to transition from introspective social commentary into a pragmatic, albeit blunt, economic survivalist manifesto, showcasing a masterful command of flow mechanics.
B+
9.5
Multisyllabic
9.5
Internal Rhymes
6.5
Cadence / Flow
8
Vocabulary
7.5
Wordplay
8.5
Delivery
Multisyllabic internal rhyme chainsSociopolitical commentary synthesisDynamic cadence shiftsEnjambment for rhythmic tension
Rhyme Architecture: The verse relies on complex, heavy-density multisyllabic internal rhyming, particularly in the mid-section (purchas/earnings/nervous/burnin/churches), creating a cascading percussive effect that drives the verse forward while maintaining a consistent terminal rhyme structure.
Verified Doubles & Entendres
"marketin' toast"
① The literal selling of guns (toast) to the community.② A play on 'making a toast', suggesting the promotion of death as a celebratory or ritualistic act.
"pistol-eer"
① A play on 'pioneer' or 'musketeer', framing the violent role of a street soldier as a career path.② The literal state of being a person who wields a pistol to survive.
Exceptional technical mastery of rhyme density
Authentic blend of grim social observation and personal aspiration
Strong command of cadence variation despite the dense syllable count
Some thematic transitions between political critique and personal struggle feel slightly abrupt
Certain rhyming choices prioritize sonic density over precise semantic clarity