... And Then There Was X
One More Road to Cross
DMX
Lyrics & Rhyme Analysis
49
End
193
Internal
65
Multi
179
Slant
26
Chain
Rhyme Groups — hover to spotlight
[Chorus]
One more road to cross
One more risk to take
Gotta✦ live my life
Like there's✦ one more move to make
One more road to cross
One more risk to take
Gotta✦ live my life
Like there's✦ one more move to make
[Verse 2]
Yo, I've been casin'✦ the liquor✦ store for a month now
But me and two other✦ niggas✦
Is about✦ to run up in there and shut it down
They got four people on the inside,✦ one stay in the back
Two stock boys, one at the register, but he count the stacks
A'ight, bitch, put on the ski mask
Make sure that when we ask
For the dough, they know that we takin'✦ all three bags
Now see that? We got a hero,✦ shoot that nigga✦
Matter✦ of fact, you hit the back, I'll put two in that nigga✦
Hard-head motherfuckers always✦ get it
I told him what would happen✦ if he moved✦
The nigga✦ moved,✦ so I did it (A'ight)
"Did you get it?" I asked✦ my man as he was comin'✦ from the back
Nigga✦ opened✦ his mouth, said nothin'✦ and fell out flat
This cat come out spittin', hittin'✦ my mans, his mans
Couldn't control✦ what was in his hands
I'm hit, damn, I bust back and got the fuck up outta✦ there
Didn't get a dime, but at least I got up outta✦ there
[Chorus]
One more road to cross
One more risk to take
Gotta✦ live my life
Like there's✦ one more move to make
One more road to cross
One more risk to take
Gotta✦ live my life
Like there's✦ one more move to make
[Verse 3]
Ayo, I see it, try to avoid✦ it, but it comes✦
That's how it's goin' in the slums over✦ crumbs (What)
Somethin'✦ little becomes somethin'✦ major✦ (Uh-huh)
Niggas✦ gettin'✦ blown up like a pager✦
Ear to ear with the razor✦ (What)
Pour out my soul, took control✦ of hurt
Why must Earl Simmons swim in dirt?
I'm gon' make it work, twenty-eight and tryna✦ get baptized
Priest scared✦ to touch me 'cause he said I gave him bad vibes✦
Ride when I die, straight down, but I'm plottin'
We all gots to go, but who wants to be forgotten?
I'ma✦ leave a mark and it won't be the mark of the devil
Throw dirt and may your hands burn when you touch the shovel✦
The level✦ of animosity is stoppin' me from thrivin'✦
Fuck what them niggas✦ is talkin'✦ about,✦ I'm survivin'✦
Alive✦ and goin' through it, but I made my bed
So now it's in these flames✦ that I lay my head
[Chorus]
One more road to cross
One more risk to take
Gotta✦ live my life
Like there's✦ one more move to make
One more road to cross
One more risk to take
Gotta✦ live my life
Like there's✦ one more move to make
One more road to cross
One more risk to take
Gotta✦ live my life
Like there's✦ one more move to make
One more road to cross
One more risk to take
Gotta✦ live my life
Like there's✦ one more move to make
Technical Breakdown
8.8
Multisyllabic Rhymes8.5
Complexity of rhyme schemes (data-driven)
Internal Rhymes9.5
Rhymes within a line (data-driven)
Wordplay / Double Entendres5.5
Clever language, metaphors, punchlines
Cadence / Rhythm10.0
Flow variation and timing (data-driven)
Vocabulary Complexity6.0
Range and depth of words used (data-driven)
Delivery / Breath Control9.5
Performance and control
Computed Score8.79
Production
— Swizz BeatzBe the first to rate the production
Critic Analysis
RAPLEDGER BAROMETER™
The verse functions as a cinematic narrative piece, prioritizing visceral, high-stakes storytelling over dense lyrical metaphors, resulting in a gritty, immersive, and highly rhythmic cadence.
A
8.5
Multisyllabic
9.5
Internal Rhymes
10
Cadence / Flow
6
Vocabulary
5.5
Wordplay
9.5
Delivery
Narrative storytellingSyncopated street-realismConversational cadenceStaccato delivery
Rhyme Architecture: The scheme utilizes a conversational AABB/ABCB hybrid structure, heavily reliant on internal assonance and multi-syllabic rhymes tied to the tension of the narrative arc.
Verified Doubles & Entendres
"Hard-head motherfuckers always get it"
① A literal description of a person who is stubborn or refuses to comply with demands.② A grim foreshadowing of the person receiving the gunshot wound, which is the inevitable consequence of their 'hard-headed' defiance.
Unparalleled command of intensity and vocal presence
Impeccable structural buildup of a robbery scene
Authentic, gritty pacing that mirrors the urgency of the situation
Low metaphorical density
Minimal usage of complex wordplay or double entendres
Vocabulary is intentionally utilitarian rather than decorative