Until the End of Time
Breathin
2Pac
Lyrics & Rhyme Analysis
20
End
148
Internal
98
Multi
188
Slant
9
Chain
Rhyme Groups — hover to spotlight
[Hook: 2Pac]
Stressed,✦ but busta✦ free
Enemies✦ give me reason✦
To be the last motherfucker✦ breathin'✦
Bustin',✦ my automatic✦ rounds
Catch 'em while they sleepin'✦
Now I'm the last motherfucker✦ breathin'✦
[Verse 2: Young Noble]
Make sure I hold my position,✦ stand firm in the dirt
For all my soldiers gone, we burnin'✦ the Earth
Outlawz worldwide, we pack the block
Shootin' rocks at the kid, I'll bust back for Pac
Ask Yak, he'll tell you that it's hell down here
Stale down here, too many✦ jails down here
Why you act like you don't hear me?
Young Noble, Outlaw✦ 'til these motherfuckers✦ kill me
I'm still breathin'✦
[Verse 3: Napoleon]
Now, we was raised✦ "fuck this life," my wrongs, my rights
Holdin'✦ on a tight grip, with death in my sight
And the dark is my light, I'm cynical, sleep walkin'✦ as a true
Walk around✦ town with a pound full of bitter✦ food
Came a long way from my born day
Dead away✦ where there's✦ war play
Fuck friends! I'll say, rather✦ die for my A-K
With these fag ass niggas,✦ see-through-glass ass niggas✦
Only-ride-my-dick-and-the-skin-of-my-mash ass niggas✦
Breathin'✦
[Hook: 2Pac]
Stressed,✦ but busta✦ free
Enemies✦ give me reason✦
To be the last motherfucker✦ breathin'✦
Bustin',✦ my automatic✦ rounds
Catch 'em while they sleepin'✦
Now I'm the last motherfucker✦ breathin'✦
[Verse 4: Kastro]
I walk around✦ with a knife in my back
Talkin'✦ 'bout a bad day—I live a life like that
It's severe,✦ and I'm losin'✦ my hair, bless a hooligan
Catch me, I'm fallin'✦ out flat, yo, I'm ruined✦ and
Breathin'✦ in sewer✦ stench, no one give a fuck about✦ me
I learned to like it like that when I was still in mommy✦
The side of the city✦ that the Devil✦ run from
In the belly✦ of the beast, that's where the fuck we come from
And still I'm breathin'!✦
[Verse 5: E.D.I Mean]
And still I'm totally wasted,✦ they want me to face this
Just lost two of my closest na'r, one of y'all can take this
But I'm Makaveli trained, simple and plain
We number✦ one, motherfucker,✦ 'bout to do it again✦
Shit, Pac still doin' it, you hoes can't ruin it
Two million✦ every✦ time he drop, I know you fuckers✦ losin'✦ it
We movin'✦ in for the kill, for a meal, holdin'✦ steel
Hold the wheel
I'm 'bout to give these niggas✦ somethin' they can feel
Fakin'✦ real, but we the raw and uncut✦
Style-bitin', thug-lyin' niggas,✦ give it up! We hit 'em up!
[Interlude: E.D.I]
And we still breathin',✦ and we still breathin'…✦
(Who'll be the last motherfuckers✦ breathin'?)✦
[Collision: 2Pac]
Tell 'em! Nigga,✦ tell 'em! (And we still breathin'…)✦
Who'll be the last motherfuckers✦ breathin'?✦
[Hook: 2Pac]
Stressed,✦ but busta✦ free
Enemies✦ give me reason✦
To be the last motherfucker✦ breathin'✦
Bustin',✦ my automatic✦ rounds
Catch 'em while they sleepin'✦
Now I'm the last motherfucker✦ breathin'✦
Stressed,✦ but busta✦ free
Enemies✦ give me reason✦
To be the last motherfucker✦ breathin'✦
Bustin',✦ my automatic✦ rounds
Catch 'em while they sleepin'✦
Now I'm the last motherfucker✦ breathin'✦
Technical Breakdown
7.8
Multisyllabic Rhymes9.5
Complexity of rhyme schemes (data-driven)
Internal Rhymes9.5
Rhymes within a line (data-driven)
Wordplay / Double Entendres5.0
Clever language, metaphors, punchlines
Cadence / Rhythm8.5
Flow variation and timing (data-driven)
Vocabulary Complexity7.0
Range and depth of words used (data-driven)
Delivery / Breath Control7.0
Performance and control
Computed Score7.82
Production
— Johnny JBe the first to rate the production
Critic Analysis
RAPLEDGER BAROMETER™
The verse relies heavily on thematic consistency and raw, aggressive delivery typical of the mid-90s Outlawz aesthetic, though it lacks the complex wordplay depth of contemporaries.
B+
9.5
Multisyllabic
9.5
Internal Rhymes
8.5
Cadence / Flow
7
Vocabulary
5
Wordplay
7
Delivery
End-rhyme repetitionStaccato deliveryThematic imagery of urban decayInternal slant rhyming
Rhyme Architecture: The scheme utilizes a persistent AABB or AAAA structure within segments, focusing on heavy consonant endings and mono-syllabic stress to maintain a aggressive cadence.
Verified Doubles & Entendres
"the dark is my light"
① The speaker finds comfort or guidance in dangerous/negative circumstances.② A literal paradoxical statement highlighting the disorientation of the speaker's environment.
"dead away"
① A location or situation far removed from safety.② A play on 'dead' as a state of being in their environment, echoing the mortality themes of the verse.
Consistent, aggressive delivery that matches the track's dark tone
Strong commitment to the 'Outlaw' persona
Effective use of internal rhyme clusters ('born day', 'war play')
Lack of complex metaphorical layering
Reliance on genre tropes regarding street violence
Wordplay is primarily surface-level and lacks nuanced entendres