[Mos Def] 

 Against the canvas of the night 

 Appears a curious celestial phenomena 

 called Black Star, but what is it? 

 [Talib Kweli] 

 Black people unite and let's all get down 

 We got to have what? We got to have that love 

 [Mos Def] 

 What is the Black Star? 

 Is it the cat with the black shades, the black car? 

 Is it shinin from very far, to where you are? 

 It [bad word] and different 

 Intimate and distant 

 Fresher than an infant 

 [Talib Kweli] 

 Black, my family thick, like they're striped molasses 

 Star, on the rise, in the eyes of the masses 

 Black is the color of my [bad word] love's hair 

 Star's are bright, shining, hot balls of air 

 [Mos Def] 

 Black like my baby girl's stare 

 Black like the veil that the muslimina wear 

 Black like the planet that they fear, why they scared? 

 Black like the slave ship that later brought us here 

 Black like the cheeks that are roadways for tears 

 that leave black faces well traveled with years 

 Black like assassin crosshairs 

 Blacker than my granddaddy armchair 

 He never really got no time to chill there 

 Cause this life is warfare, warfare 

 [Talib Kweli] 

 Deep on the front lines, and blacks is all there 

 Black like the perception of who, on welfare 

 Black like faces at the bottom of the well 

 I've been there before 

 To bring the light and heat it up like "la cocina" 

 Make without imagine happen but maybe I'm just a dreamer 

 I love rockin tracks like John Coltrane love Naema 

 [M] Like the student love the teacher 

 [T] Like the prophet love Khadeja 

 [M] Like I love my baby features 

 [A] Like the creator love all creatures 

 [Talib Kweli] 

 Who acknowledge [bad word] and peace seekers 

 We on point like heat seekers 

 Targettin the black marketing strategists 
 [bad word] up on em with the heaters 

 Everybody followin with no leaders 

 Feelin like we killin ourselves 

 because I know they can't defeat us 

 It don't stop til [bad word] this, keep this fly 

 There's so much to life when you just stay Black and God 

 [Mos Def] 

 Blacker than the nighttime sky of Bed-Stuy in July 

 Blacker than the seed in the blackberry pie 

 Blacker than the middle of my eye 

 Black like feh-lah man cry 

 Some man wan ask "Who am I?" 

 I simply reply, "The U.N.I., V.E.R.S.A.L. Magnetic" 

 Work to respect the angelic, climb the mountaintop 

 and tell it til the valley's enveloped 

 You're full of big chat but you nah know me 

 I'm dark like the side of the moon you don't see 

 when the moon shine newly 

 [M] You know who else is a Black Star? (Who?) Me 

 [T] You know who else is a Black Star? (Who?) Me 

 [A] You know who else is a Black Star, who we? (And we) 

 [A] be shinin and shinin, when we rhymin and rhymin 

 We be shinin and shinin, when we rhymin and rhymin 

 [Mos Def] 

 Now everybody hop on the one, the sounds of the two 

 It's the third eye vision, five side dimension 

 The 8th Light, is gonna shine bright tonight 

 It's the third eye vision, five side dimension 

 [T] You know the light 

 [M] Go from the dark 

 [T] The other way is [bad word] backwards 

 [M] It's absurd 

 [T] Make you wanna crow like a blackbird 

 [M] That's right 

 [T] You livin from your first day to your last night 

 [T] Sometimes you show your [bad word] like 

 [M] Lint on your clothes 

 [T] When you froze in 

 [A] THE BLACK LIGHT 

 [M] Dead that 

 [T] Before you get your head wrapped 

 [M] Like Badu 

 [T] W