If I Ruled the World (Imagine That) by Nas Lyrics Meaning – A Vision of Liberation Through Hip Hop Verse

You can view the lyrics, alternate interprations and sheet music for Nas's If I Ruled the World (Imagine That) at Lyrics.org.

Lyrics

[Intro: Nas (Lauryn Hill singing in the background)]
Life….. I wonder….
Will it take me under…. I don’t know…

Imagine smoking weed in the streets without cops harassin
Imagine going to court with no trial
Lifestyle cruising blue behind my waters
No welfare supporters more conscious of the way we raise our daughters
Days are shorter, nights are colder
Feeling like life is over, these snakes strike like a cobra
The world’s hot my son got not evidently
It’s elementary, they want us all gone eventually
Trooping out of state for a plate knowledge
of coke was cooked without the garbage we’d all have the top dollars
Imagine everybody flashin, fashion
Designer clothes, lacing your click up with diamond vogues
Your people holdin dough, no parole
No rubbers, go in raw imagine law with no undercovers
Just some thoughts for the mind
I take a glimpse into time
watch the blimp read ‘The World Is Mine’

[Chorus: Lauryn Hill, Nas]
If I ruled the world (Imagine that)
I’d free all my sons, I love em love em baby
Black diamonds and pearls (Could it be, if you could be mine, we’d both shine)
If I ruled the world (Still livin for today, in these last days and times)

The way to be, paradise like relaxin black, latino and anglo-saxon
Armani exchange the reins
Cash, Lost Tribe of Shabazz, free at last
Brand new whips to crash then we laugh in the iller path
The Villa house is for the crew, how we do
Trees for breakfast, dime sexes and Benz stretches
So many years of depression make me vision
The better livin, type of place to raise kids in
Open they eyes to the lies history’s told foul
But I’m as wise as the old owl, plus the Gold Child
Seeing things like I was controlling, click rollin
Trickin six digits on kicks and still holdin
Trips to Paris, I civilized every savage
Gimme one shot I turn trife life to lavish
Political prisonner set free, stress free
No work release purple M3’s and jet skis
Feel the wind breeze in West Indies
I make Coretta Scott-King mayor the cities and reverse themes to Willies
It sounds foul but every girl I meet to go downtown
I’d open every cell in Attica send em to Africa

[Chorus]

[Lauryn Hill]
And then we’ll walk right up to the sun
Hand in hand
We’ll walk right up to the sun
We won’t land
We’ll walk right up to the sun
Hand in hand
We’ll walk right up to the sun
We won’t land

You’d love to hear the story how the thugs live in worry
Duck down in car seats, heat’s mandatory
Runnin from Jake, gettin chased, hunger for papes
These are the breaks many mistakes go down out of state
Wait, I had to let it marinate we carry weight
Tryin to get laced, flip the ace stack the safe
Millionaire plan to keep the gat with the cop camera
Makin moves in Atlanta, back and forth scrambler
Cause you could have all the chips, be poor or rich
Still nobody want a nigga havin shit
If I ruled the world and everything in it, sky’s the limit
I push a Q-45 Infinit
It wouldn’t be no such thing as jealousies or B Felonies
Strictly living longevity to the destiny
I thought I’d never see but reality struck
Better find out before your time’s out, what the fuck???

[Chorus til fade]

If I ruled the world
I love em love em baby!!

Nas’s ‘If I Ruled the World (Imagine That)’ is more than just an anthem; it’s a manifesto for social reform, a glimpse into an idealistic reality painted by one of hip hop’s most erudite scribes. Blending Lauryn Hill’s soulful chorus with Nas’s gritty verses, the song opens up like a diary from the streets, offering a no-holds-barred critique of society’s ills while aspiring towards a more egalitarian world.

Released during the height of the East Coast-West Coast rivalry, the song stands not as a battleground cry but as a call for peace and prosperity. Nas’s lyrics carry the weight of a communal dream, one where the trappings and trials of street life are cast aside for a utopian fantasy steeped in African-American culture and lore.

The Streets Meet Utopia: Dissecting the Dream

Imagine a world with no barriers, where freedom is the default state for all, not just a privileged few. Nas takes us through the streets he knows but adjusts the lens to show us what could be. The words beat a rhythm of what ifs – ‘Imagine smoking weed in the streets without cops harassin’, ‘Imagine going to court with no trial’ – challenging us to envision a society that rectifies its present woes.

These aren’t just casual musings; they are grievances that reveal the depth of systemic oppression, framed within a hopeful alternate reality. It’s storytelling with a purpose, a conversation starter meant to ignite discourse and reflection on the stark differences between the world as it is and as it should be.

A Tapestry of Trials and Triumphs: Highlighting Socio-Economic Commentary

‘Days are shorter, nights are colder…The world’s hot my son got not’. Here, Nas is a documentarian, capturing the essence of struggle. The imagery is powerful, evoking a sense that the coldest nights and hottest days aren’t just about geography—they’re about survival in an unforgiving social climate.

But even as he outlines a reality filled with avarice and betrayal, Nas also posits a world where wealth does not equate to wickedness. His vision is comprehensive, one where affluence and social responsibility can coexist, where one’s success doesn’t automatically breed another’s suffering.

The Unveiling of a Hidden Meaning: Beyond the Surface of Rhetoric

While delving beneath the aspirations of grandeur and freedom, ‘If I Ruled the World’ uncloaks a deeper narrative. It beckons listeners to look past the facade of success—the ‘cash, Lost Tribe of Shabazz, free at last’—and discern the quest for cultural redemption and historical acknowledgement that’s woven into the fabric of the song.

Nas takes us on a historical journey, with nods to a shared ancestry and the shackles of the past that still grip the present. These references aren’t just callbacks; they’re reminders of an inheritance that perseveres in spite of perpetual oppression, an inheritance that shapes the present ambition for a more just and equitable society.

Reflections in the Mirror: Memorable Lines and Their Lasting Impact

‘I’m as wise as the old owl, plus the Gold Child, seeing things like I was controlling, click rollin’.’ These aren’t just verses; they’re windows into Nas’s soul. Each line is memorable, serving as an affirmation of potential, control, and the quest for clarity amidst chaos.

The song’s enduring potency comes from its ability to merge the political with the personal. It’s a reminder that the individual’s journey is intimately tied to the larger social narrative. Every quote encapsulates a facet of the human condition, turning lyricism into a potent form of advocacy.

Daring to Dream: ‘If I Ruled the World’ as a Catalyst for Change

Nas’s envisioning of a benevolent rule—free from the plagues of systemic inequality—is not merely a flight of fancy. It’s interwoven with commands to act, to think, to imagine the possibilities inherent in every one of us to instigate change.

By the final verses, the song is no longer just imagining; it’s prophesying. It embodies a hope that music can awaken minds and that one voice can echo the sentiments of many, urging unity and action in the pursuit of a world once imagined, now demanded.