In The Heights

Lights up on Washington Heights, up at the break of day
I wake up and I got this little punk I gotta chase away
Pop the grate at the crack of dawn
Sing while I wipe down the awning
Hey yall, good morning
Ice cold piragua!
Parcha, china, cherry, strawberry
And just for today, I got mamey!
Oye, piragüero, como estás?
Como siempre, Señor Usnavi
I am Usnavi and you probly never heard my name
Reports of my fame are greatly exaggerated
Exacerbated by the fact that my syntax
Is highly complicated cause I immigrated
From the single greatest little place in the Caribbean
Dominican Republic, I love it!
Jesus, Im jealous of it, and beyond that
Ever since my folks passed on, I havent gone back
Goddamn, I gotta get on that
Fo!
The milk has gone bad, hold up just a second
Why is everything in this fridge warm and tepid?
I better step it up and fight the heat
Cause Im not makin any profit if the coffee isnt light and sweet!
Ooh-ooh
Abuela, my fridge broke
I got café but not con leche
Ay Dios, try my mothers old recipe
One can of condensed milk
Nice
Oh wait, your lottery ticket
Paciencia y fe
That was Abuela, shes not really my abuela
But she practically raised me, this corner is her escuela
Now, youre probly thinkin, 'Im up shits creek
Ive never been north of Ninety-Sixth Street'
Well, you must take the A Train
Even farther than Harlem to northern Manhattan and maintain
Get off at 181st, and take the escalator
I hope youre writing this down, Im gonna test ya later
Im getting tested, times are tough on this bodega
Two months ago somebody bought Ortegas
Our neighbors started packin up and pickin up
And ever since the rents went up
Its gotten mad expensive, but we live with just enough
In the Heights, I flip the lights and start my day
There are fights, and endless debts
And bills to pay
In the Heights, I cant survive without café
I serve café
Cause tonight seems like a million years away
En Washington
Next up, ding, Kevin Rosario
He runs the cab company, he struggles in the barrio
See, his daughter Ninas off at college, tuition is mad steep
So he cant sleep, everything he gets is mad cheap
Good morning, Usnavi!
Pan caliente, café con leche!
Put 20 dollars on todays lottery
Okay, must be a lucky day
Gotta be
Oh my God, youre so excited
My Nina flew in at 3 A.M. last night!
Sweet, Abuelas been cooking all week
Compay when I see you this weekend
Are we gonna eat?
So then Yesenia walks in the room (uh-huh)
She smells sex and cheap perfume (uh-oh)
It smells like one of those trees
That you hang from the rear view
(Ay, no)
Its true! She screams, 'Whos in there with you, Julio?'
Grabs a bat and kicks in the door
Hes in bed with José from the liquor store!
(No me diga )
The salon ladies
Thanks, Usnavi!
Sonny, youre late
Chillax, youknow you love me
Me and my cousin runnin
Just another dime-a-dozen mom-and-pop stop-and-shop
And, oh my god, its gotten too darn hot
Like my man Cole Porter said
People come through for a few cold waters and
A lottery ticket, just a part of the routine
Everybodys got a job, everybodys got a dream
They gossip, as I sip my coffee and smirk
The first stop as people hop to work
Bust it, Im like
One dollar, two dollars, one fifty, one sixty-nine
I got it, you want a box of condoms? What kind?
Thats two quarters, two quarter waters
The New York Times
You need a bag for that? The tax is added
Once you get some practice at it
You do rapid mathematics automatically
Sellin maxi-pads, fuzzy dice for taxicabs and practically
Everybodys stressed, yes!
But they press through the mess
Bounce checks and wonder whats next
In the Heights, I buy my coffee and I go
(I buy my coffee and I go)
Set my sights on only what I need to know
(What I need to know)
In the Heights, money is tight
But even so (even so)
When the lights go down I blast my radio
You aint got no skills (Benny!)
Yo, lemme get a- (Milky Way)
Yup, and lemme also get a- (Daily News)
And a- (Post) and the most important, my-
Bosss second coffee, one cream, five sugars
Im the number one earner (what?)
The fastest learner (what?)
My boss cant keep me on the damn back burner (yes, he can)
Im makin moves, Im makin deals, butguess what? (What?)
You still aint got no skills (hardee-har)
Yo, Vanessa show up yet? (Shut up!)
Hey little homie, dont get so upset (man)
Tell Vanessa how you feel, buy the girl a meal
On the real, or you aint got no skills
No!
No no no!
No no no, no-no- no!
No, no-no-no!
No-no-no-no-no-no-no-no, no-no-no-no-no!
Mr. Johnson, I got the security deposit
Its locked in a box in the bottom of my closet
Its not reflected in my bank statement
But Ive been savin to make a down payment and pay rent
No, no, I wont let you down
Yo, heres your chance, ask her out right now!
Ill see you later, we can look at that lease
Yo, do somethin, make your move, dont freeze! ( Hey!)
You owe me a bottle of cold champagne
Are you moving?
Just a little credit check and Im on that downtown train
Well, your coffees on the house
Okay
Usnavi, ask her out
No way
Ill see you later, so...
Yo, smooth operator, aw, damn, there she goes!
Yo, bro, take five, take a walk outside
You look exhausted, lost, dont let life slide
The whole hood is struggling, times is tight
And youre stuck to this corner like a streetlight
Yeah, Im a streetlight, chokin on the heat
The world spins around while Im frozen to my seat
The people that I know all keep on rollin down the street
But every day is different so Im switchin up the beat
Cause my parents came with nothing, they got alittle more
And sure, were poor, but yo, at least we got the store
And its all about the legacy they left with me, its destiny
And one day Ill be on a beach with Sonny writing checks to me
In the Heights, I hang my flag up on display
We came to work and to live and we got a lot in common
It reminds me that I came from miles away
D.R. , P.R., we are not stoppin
In the Heights, every day, paciencia y fe (ooh)
Until the day we go from poverty to stock options
In the Heights, Ive got today
And todays all we got, so we cannot stop
This is our block
In the Heights, I hang my flag up on display
Lo le lo le lo lai lai lo le!
It reminds me that I came from miles away
My family came from miles away
In the Heights, it gets more expensive every day (every day)
And tonight is so far away
But as for mañana, mi pana , ya gotta just keep watchin (in the Heights)
Youll see the late nights, youll taste beans and rice (in the Heights)
The syrups and shaved ice, I aint gonna say it twice (in the Heights)
Turn up the street lights (ah)
Were takin a flight to a couple of days
In the life of what its like
En Washington Heights!