Didn't take nothing, that I didn't need 'Cause they didn't offer classes in what I wanted to be They didn't offer manhood, responsibility Had to learn it the hard way Earned my degree in the streets Graduated from Hard Knocks Got my education Hard Knocks Out on the street Can't bust through that ceiling without feelin' the burn And I ain't got nothing that I did not earn Chasin' that mighty dollar 'Stead of hittin the books Studying Donny and Stevie Learned to sail the hooks I graduated from hard knocks Got the bumps and the bruises to prove it Hard knocks Summa cum laude Hard knocks Hard knocks Had a real good teacher named Mr. Life Didn't teach no chemistry but he taught me how to fight Didn't teach biology but I learned it from the birds and the bees Said stay close to your friends even closer to your enemies Hard knocks Graduated Hard knocks Bumps and bruises to prove it Hard Knocks Hard Knocks Got to bring it on home Said these streets keep calling me Don't know what it is Is it the thrill that I seek I don't know Is it the night Or the sound of the city Whatever it is These streets keep calling me Day in and night, can't get them off