Distant Relatives
Africa Must Wake Up
Nas
Lyrics & Rhyme Analysis
31
End
154
Internal
112
Multi
199
Slant
15
Chain
Rhyme Groups — hover to spotlight
[Hook: Damian Marley]
Africa✦ must wake up, the sleeping✦ sons of Jacob✦
For what tomorrow✦ may bring, may a better✦ day come
Yesterday✦ we were kings, can you tell me young ones✦
Who are we today?✦ yeah, now
Africa✦ must wake up, the sleeping✦ sons of Jacob✦
For what tomorrow✦ may bring, may a better✦ day come
Yesterday✦ we were kings, can you tell me young ones✦
Who are we today?✦
[Verse 2: Nas]
Who are we today?✦ The slums, diseases, AIDS
We need that all to fade, we cannot✦ be afraid
So who are we today?✦
We are the morning✦ after,✦ the makeshift youth
The slave ship captured, our diaspora is the final✦ chapter
The ancestral lineage built pyramids
America's first immigrants
The kings, sons and daughters from Nile waters
The first architect, the first philosophers
Astronomers, the first prophets and the doctors was us (Us)
[Bridge: Damian Marley]
Now can we all pray? Each in his own way
Teaching and learning, we can work it out
We'll have a warm bed, we'll have some warm bread
Shelter from the storm dread and we can work it out
Mother✦ nature✦ feeds all in famine✦ and drought
Tell those selfish in ways, not to share us out
What's a tree without✦ root? Lion without✦ tooth?
A lie without✦ truth? You hear me out!
[Hook: Damian Marley]
Africa✦ must wake up, the sleeping✦ sons of Jacob✦
For what tomorrow✦ may bring, may a better✦ day come
Yesterday✦ we were kings, can you tell me young ones✦
Who are we today?✦ yeah, Lord
Africa✦ must wake up the sleeping✦ sons of Jacob✦
What tomorrow✦ may bring. may some more love come
Yesterday✦ we were kings, I tell ya young bloods
The world is yours today...✦
[Bridge: K'naan]
Dadyahow✦ daali✦ waayey, nabada✦ diideen✦
Oo ninkii✦ doortay✦ dinta,✦ waadinka✦ dillee
Oo dal markii✦ ladhiso,✦ waadinka✦ dunshee
Oo daacad✦ ninkii✦ damcay,✦ waadinka✦ dooxee
Dadyahow✦ daali✦ waayey, nabada✦ diideen✦
Oo ninkii✦ doortay✦ dinta,✦ waadinka✦ dillee
Oo dal markii✦ ladhiso,✦ waadinka✦ dunshee
Oo daacad✦ ninkii✦ damcay,✦ waadinka✦ dooxee
[Guitar/Instrumental Break]
[Break: Nas]
We want to thank y'all, everybody out there
This is Nas, Damian✦ Marley✦
Distant✦ Relatives✦
We're all distant✦ relatives✦
No matter✦ where you from, where you live
How near, how far
Africa,✦ China,✦ Japan,✦ Afghanistan, Israel
We're all fam, we're all distant✦ relatives✦
So that's why we came together✦
One of the reasons why myself and Damian✦ came together✦
'Cause we all come from one place, and that's Africa✦
That's right, you too
And you
The whole world!
We're all family,✦ we're just spread out all over✦ the place
So to all my distant✦ relatives,✦ let's take it back home!
[Hook: Damian Marley]
I say! Africa✦ must wake up, the sleeping✦ sons of Jacob✦
For what tomorrow✦ may bring, may a better✦ day come
Yesterday✦ we were kings, can you tell me young ones✦
Who are we today?✦ yeah, now
Africa✦ must wake up, the sleeping✦ sons of Jacob✦
For what tomorrow✦ may bring, may a better✦ day come
Yesterday✦ we were kings, can you tell me young ones✦
Who are we today?✦ Who are we today?✦
[Outro: Damian Marley]
Morning✦ to ya! Morning✦ to ya man!
Morning✦ to ya love!
Technical Breakdown
9.0
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 / Rhythm10.0
Flow variation and timing (data-driven)
Vocabulary Complexity7.0
Range and depth of words used (data-driven)
Delivery / Breath Control8.5
Performance and control
Computed Score8.96
Production
— Damian MarleyBe the first to rate the production
Critic Analysis
RAPLEDGER BAROMETER™
Nas balances high-density socio-historical education with a somber, authoritative cadence, effectively pivoting from the fragility of current circumstances to the grandeur of historical legacy.
A+
9.5
Multisyllabic
9.5
Internal Rhymes
10
Cadence / Flow
7
Vocabulary
7.5
Wordplay
8.5
Delivery
Historical enjambmentMultisyllabic internal rhyme clustersAlliterative densitySocio-political synthesis
Rhyme Architecture: Nas employs a sophisticated AABB-adjacent internal rhyme scheme that frequently breaks to accommodate multi-syllabic historical descriptors, emphasizing the 'a-uh' vowel sound to maintain flow continuity.
Verified Doubles & Entendres
"the makeshift youth / The slave ship captured"
① Describes the current generation as improvised or struggling due to systemic neglect.② A direct phonetic and historical link connecting modern youth to the trauma of the Middle Passage/slavery origins.
"America's first immigrants"
① Refers to the forced arrival of enslaved Africans as the foundation of American labor.② An ironic reversal of the 'immigrant' narrative, asserting African primacy in the building of the American state.
Strong historical grounding and thematic cohesion
Excellent use of internal rhyme to drive the narrative forward
Commanding vocal tone that suits the regal, pan-African subject matter
The rhyme density occasionally forces the syntax into slightly rigid historical cataloging
The transition from the hook to the verse is effective but relies on repetition rather than novel rhythmic interplay