"An Open Letter To NYC" lyrics
Listen, all you New Yorkers
Brooklyn, Bronx, Queens and Staten
From the Battery to the top of Manhattan
Asian, Middle-Eastern and Latin
Black, white. New York, you make it happen
Brownstones, water towers, trees, skyscrapers
Writers, prize fighters and Wall Street traders
We come together on the subway cars
Diversity unified, whoever you are
We're doing fine on the One and Nine line
On the L we're doin' swell
On the number Ten bus we fight and fuss
'Cause we're thorough in the boroughs and that's a must
I remember when the Deuce was all porno flicks
Running home after school to play PIXX
At lunch I'd go to Blimpies down on Montague Street
And hit the Fulton Street Mall for the sneakers on my feet
Dear New York, I hope you're doing well
I know a lot's happened and you've been through hell
So, we give thanks for providing a home
Through your gates at Ellis Island we passed in droves
Brooklyn, Bronx, Queens, and Staten
From the Battery to the top of Manhattan
Asian, Middle-Eastern and Latin
Black, white. New York, you make it happen
The L.I.E., the BQE
Hippies at the band shell with the LSD
Get my BVDs from VIM
You know I'm reppin' Manhattan the best I can
Stopped off at Bleeker Bob's got thrown out
Sneakin' in at 4 a.m. after going out
You didn't rob me in the park at Diana Ross
But everybody started looting when the light went off
From the South South Bronx, on out to Queensbridge
From Hollis Queens right down to Bay Ridge
From Castle Hill to the Lower East Side
From 1010 WINS to Live At Five
Dear New York, this is a love letter
To you and how you brought us together
We can't say enough about all you do
'Cause in the city we're ourselves and electric, too
Brooklyn, Bronx, Queens, and Staten
From the Battery to the top of Manhattan
Asian, Middle-Eastern, and Latin
Black, white. New York, you make it happen
Shout out the South Bronx where my mom hails from
Right next to High Bridge across from Harlem
To the Grand Concourse where my mom and dad met
Before they moved on down to the Upper West
I see you're still strong after all that's gone on
Life long we dedicate this song
Just a little something to show some respect
To the city that blends and mends and tests
Since 9/11, we're still livin'
And lovin', life we've been given
Ain't nothing gonna take that away from us
We're lookin' pretty and gritty 'cause in the city we trust
Dear New York, I know a lot has changed
Two towers down, but you're still in the game
Home to the many, rejecting no one
Accepting peoples of all places, wherever they're from
Brooklyn, Bronx, Queens, and Staten
From the Battery to the top of Manhattan
Asian, Middle-Eastern, and Latin
Black, white. New York, you make it happen
Brooklyn, Bronx, Queens and Staten
From the Battery to the top of Manhattan
Asian, Middle-Eastern and Latin
Black, white. New York, you make it happen
Brownstones, water towers, trees, skyscrapers
Writers, prize fighters and Wall Street traders
We come together on the subway cars
Diversity unified, whoever you are
We're doing fine on the One and Nine line
On the L we're doin' swell
On the number Ten bus we fight and fuss
'Cause we're thorough in the boroughs and that's a must
I remember when the Deuce was all porno flicks
Running home after school to play PIXX
At lunch I'd go to Blimpies down on Montague Street
And hit the Fulton Street Mall for the sneakers on my feet
Dear New York, I hope you're doing well
I know a lot's happened and you've been through hell
So, we give thanks for providing a home
Through your gates at Ellis Island we passed in droves
Brooklyn, Bronx, Queens, and Staten
From the Battery to the top of Manhattan
Asian, Middle-Eastern and Latin
Black, white. New York, you make it happen
The L.I.E., the BQE
Hippies at the band shell with the LSD
Get my BVDs from VIM
You know I'm reppin' Manhattan the best I can
Stopped off at Bleeker Bob's got thrown out
Sneakin' in at 4 a.m. after going out
You didn't rob me in the park at Diana Ross
But everybody started looting when the light went off
From the South South Bronx, on out to Queensbridge
From Hollis Queens right down to Bay Ridge
From Castle Hill to the Lower East Side
From 1010 WINS to Live At Five
Dear New York, this is a love letter
To you and how you brought us together
We can't say enough about all you do
'Cause in the city we're ourselves and electric, too
Brooklyn, Bronx, Queens, and Staten
From the Battery to the top of Manhattan
Asian, Middle-Eastern, and Latin
Black, white. New York, you make it happen
Shout out the South Bronx where my mom hails from
Right next to High Bridge across from Harlem
To the Grand Concourse where my mom and dad met
Before they moved on down to the Upper West
I see you're still strong after all that's gone on
Life long we dedicate this song
Just a little something to show some respect
To the city that blends and mends and tests
Since 9/11, we're still livin'
And lovin', life we've been given
Ain't nothing gonna take that away from us
We're lookin' pretty and gritty 'cause in the city we trust
Dear New York, I know a lot has changed
Two towers down, but you're still in the game
Home to the many, rejecting no one
Accepting peoples of all places, wherever they're from
Brooklyn, Bronx, Queens, and Staten
From the Battery to the top of Manhattan
Asian, Middle-Eastern, and Latin
Black, white. New York, you make it happen
Thanks to Mark Dami for correcting these lyrics.
Writer(s): Michael Louis Diamond, Adam Horovitz, Adam Nathaniel Yauch, David Lynn Thomas, Cheetah Chrome
