Lupe Fiasco - Body of Work (Lyrical Breakdown)

There is too much to unpack in this song in one video. Generally:

Bones are the sins.
Skin covers the bones.
Body is the life's work (full of bones).
Anatomy is the study of the body.
Therefore, If one studies this body of work, one will understand the bones (anatomy will be the death of me).

A Body of Work is a cohesive collection of work by an artist, or the total output of an artist's life work. The body of work here can refer to Tetsuo and Youth, Lupe's entire career, or his entire life up until now (ie. skeletons in his closet). The body is also a metaphor for a physical body, that can refer to using a body for sin (sex, smuggling, racial prejudice etc), or the bodies of The Game and The Streets.

The Game and The Streets are characters in Lupe's "Michael Young History/My Cool Young History" Saga. They are literal personifications. The anatomy of The Game and The Streets are described in the song 'Real Recognize Real'. MYH is raised by the anatomy of The Game, and he falls in love with the anatomy of The Streets. Both are full of vices, and are eventually the death of him.

Homework:

Deep Cover, Bill Duke
Hamlet, Shakespeare
2001: A Space Odyssey, Stanley Kubrick
Oedipus Rex, Sophocles

Michael Young History Saga:

Real Recognize Real (Description of the The Streets and The Game)
He Say She Say (MYH loses his father)
Put you on Game (MYH meets The Game; new father)
The Coolest (MYH meets The Streets; new mother/lover)
Hello Goodbye / Uncool (MYH gets too big, his downfall)
The Die (MYH dies)
Superstar (MYH gets rejected from heaven)
The Cool (MYH is sent back to earth, to relive the same cycle forever)