A Wise Guy and a Wise Guy

The Reality

Styles P

Lyrics & Rhyme Analysis

19

End

156

Internal

73

Multi

194

Slant

7

Chain

Rhyme Groups — hover to spotlight
[Verse 2: Pusha T]
It's like a never✦ endin'✦ story,✦ I'm here for my glory✦
The engine's too loud, these haters can't ignore✦ me
Feelin'✦ like a legend, anyone✦ that came before✦ me
Drug dealer,✦ posin'✦ all this motherfuckin'✦ jewelry✦ (motherfuckin'✦ jewelry)✦
Came from the crack house, back room, black out
Smoke hit they lungs, make 'em UFC Tapout✦
No plan B, it was nothin'✦ else to map out
So we throw stones✦ while we livin'✦ in this glass house (glass house)
It's been a minute✦ so they ask where the fire went
My kitchen clean but I still got the pilot✦ lit
Made a fortune out of fumes,✦ my MacGyver shit
Reality TV before✦ Survivor, bitch
Yuuuck, put our lives✦ on display
Who's thinkin'✦ about✦ tomorrow? We ain't promised✦ today✦
This rap game fickle, we ain't promised✦ to play
The last of the greats, pay homage✦ to me
[Verse 3: Joe Budden]
Yo, if my past had an encore,✦ it'd be like an onslaught
A lot of niggas✦ died, there's✦ too many✦ to mourn for
I'm thinkin'✦ about✦ my youth, us as little kids, am I wrong for
Havin'✦ thoughts Bishop Eddie would Long for?
I got decade✦ old wounds, that'll still bleedin'
That chapter of my life's✦ closed,✦ that y'all still readin'✦ (still readin')✦
Straight face on, pretendin' to feel decent✦
Casket✦ shoppin' for a loved✦ one that's still breathin'✦ (still breathin')✦
Uh, swear that shit got in the way of summer✦
Avoidin' calendars, since all your days were numbered
Laid out in the bed, could barely✦ sit up (uh)
Those were your last breathes, I was mistakin' for hiccups (oh!)
Y'all don't get the picture (uh), when your medicine is liquor (uh)
I'm talkin'✦ phone ringin',✦ bein' too afraid✦ to pick up
I know you in a better✦ place and that joy is felt
I learned when death calls, it won't leave a voicemail (nah)
You would be proud, I'm due to be caked✦ up
Wanna✦ make your dreams come true? Gotta✦ wake up (gotta✦ wake up)
You groupie niggas,✦ I don't see how you deal with it
Broke and starvin' but clingin' to your meal ticket✦ (meal ticket)✦
Broke hustlers that bake that trash
Back and forth to they vacant✦ stash
Still in all I know a few that'll make that cash
Quick flip (uh), even✦ Rex Ryan ain't lose the weight that fast
Y'all should treat me like royalty✦ (royalty)✦
Last of a dyin' breed, that puts money✦ and power✦ behind loyalty✦ (word)
Careful, that bitch shit'll rub off
Me, I'd rather✦ die with my balls, than have to live with 'em cut off (cut off)
Long winded,✦ be patient enough✦ to hear 'em
I'll give you the jewels, if you brave enough✦ to wear 'em
But know before✦ you swallow it up
Food for thought's only✦ as important as what'll follow✦ it up, Joey
(Joey...)
[Outro: Joe Budden]
Ta ha
Dessert for thought for y'all
Uh, go 'head, live with that
Yeah

Technical Breakdown

7.9
Multisyllabic Rhymes9.5

Complexity of rhyme schemes (data-driven)

Internal Rhymes9.5

Rhymes within a line (data-driven)

Wordplay / Double Entendres7.0

Clever language, metaphors, punchlines

Cadence / Rhythm7.5

Flow variation and timing (data-driven)

Vocabulary Complexity8.0

Range and depth of words used (data-driven)

Delivery / Breath Control7.5

Performance and control

Computed Score7.91

Production

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Critic Analysis
RAPLEDGER BAROMETER™

The verse functions as a study in contrast: Pusha T delivers high-energy, aggressive coke-rap bravado utilizing crisp cadence, while Joe Budden shifts the tone to introspective, narrative-heavy storytelling that favors dense, multi-syllabic emotional recall.

B+
9.5
Multisyllabic
9.5
Internal Rhymes
7.5
Cadence / Flow
8
Vocabulary
7
Wordplay
7.5
Delivery
Multisyllabic internal rhymingAllusive metaphorStaccato deliveryThematic progression
Rhyme Architecture: Both artists employ dense, rhythmic end-rhyme chains combined with aggressive internal syncopation, particularly in Pusha T's 'crack house/back room/black out' sequence.
Verified Doubles & Entendres

"My kitchen clean but I still got the pilot lit"

① Maintaining a clean aesthetic in the cooking space (kitchen).② Maintaining the drug manufacturing 'cook' (pilot light) despite avoiding legal detection.

"That chapter of my life's closed, that y'all still readin'"

① The events of his past are finished.② The audience continues to consume the drama/controversies of his past as if it were ongoing media.

High technical rhyme density

Strong thematic consistency within the bars

Effective use of cinematic and cultural references to anchor street narratives

Occasional reliance on genre-standard bravado tropes

Budden's verse lacks the immediate punchline impact of the preceding bars

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