#rap rhyme schemes analysis

[futurelibrariansstuff]

Bibliographic Data:

Walter Dean Myers. 2009. LOOKING LIKE ME. Ill. by Chrostopher Myers. Carolrhoda Books. ISBN 978-1606840016.

Plot Summary:

In this splashy, rhythmic celebration of the wonders of life, Walter Dean Myer's hypnotic text combines with his son's fresh photo-collage illustrations to create a new picture book about self-esteem and growing up with an urban beat.

Critical Analysis: 

Looking Like Me  follows Jeremy, the main character, as he works to figure out who he really is. As he greets different people in his life, each of them gives him insight into who he is to them. A son, brother, friend, writer, the main character journeys through all the roles he plays in other’s lives and finally realizes that he is a lot of things by saying “It is kind of amazing all the people I am.” The story shows all the various and positive roles that young black men have in families, education, and society as a whole.

This book is short, but there are many references to African American culture to be found. Although it is not shown much about Jeremy and his life (no nods to his socioeconomic class, evil vs. good, or even where he lives), the book does a good job of representing African American children as the positive influences they are. 

The book reads like a rap song: “I looked in the mirror / And what did I see? / A real handsome dude looking just like me. / He put out his fist. / I gave it a bam! / He said, ‘Jeremy!’ I said, ‘That’s who I am.'” This is a nod to the importance that rap and hip-hop have on African American culture. When read aloud, it evokes a rhythm and has a catchy rhyme scheme. 

Additionally, the young character is greeted by many members of his community and feels waves of love and acceptance, helping the reader understand the impact that positive relationships and role models can have on children, especially young black ones. African American children have historically been portrayed as fighting through adversity and other struggles, but this book celebrates the joy and importance of being black. 

Christopher Myers’ illustrations provide readers with beautiful, vibrant illustrations that showcase the multitude of roles that Jeremy plays in his life. Myers uses collage-style cutouts for the background, and in the foreground are solid cut-outs filled with symbols that represent the specific role Jeremy plays being highlighted on that page.

Looking Like Me by Walter Dean Myers is a short, but important, book that encourages readers to find out all the things they really are. Not only that, it shows a young black character in a positive light, which is so important for today’s youth.

Review Excerpt(s):

"The rhyme and repetition flow naturally, capturing the rhythms of everyday conversation and the hip-hop beats many children hear daily....This book is an excellent introduction to verse, for it vividly demonstrates how poetry is a vital part of daily life." ―starred, School Library Journal

"This very contemporary work is encouraging, energetic, and inspired." ―starred, Booklist

"This vibrant synthesis of poetry and pictures is a natural for classrooms and family sharing." ―starred, Kirkus Reviews

"[E]ven the more curmudgeonly among us might appreciate the message when it's dressed up as fine as it is in this picture book by Myers pére et fils." ―The Horn Book Magazine

Connections:

Other books that celebrate the beauty and importance of young African Americans:

Magnificent Homespun Brown: A Celebration by Samara Cole Doyon. Illustrated by Kaylani Juanita

Bright Eyes, Brown Skin by Cheryl Willis Hudson and Bernette G. Ford.  Illustrated by George Ford

Beautiful You, Beautiful Me  by Tasha Spillett-Sumner. Illustrated by Salini Perera

[blackhistorychatgpt]

Kendrick Lamar

Prompt:

Please answer as an exepert on African American History, music, and rap. Please write an essay on Kendrick Lamar's contributions to music and poetry. Highlight the significance of him performing at the 2025 Superbowl. Please provide a list of links to find out more about Kendrick Lamar, listen to his music, and prompts so someone can do further research.

ChatGPT:

Kendrick Lamar, born in Compton, California, has emerged as one of the most influential figures in contemporary music and poetry. His work transcends traditional rap boundaries, blending intricate storytelling with profound social commentary, thereby reshaping the landscape of hip-hop and affirming its place as a powerful medium for artistic expression.

Musical Contributions

Lamar's discography is a testament to his versatility and depth as an artist. His major-label debut, good kid, m.A.A.d city (2012), is a narrative-driven album that delves into his experiences growing up in Compton, addressing themes of adolescence, gang violence, and the quest for identity. This project was lauded for its cinematic quality and cohesive storytelling.

In 2015, Lamar released To Pimp a Butterfly, an album that masterfully fuses elements of jazz, funk, and soul. This work confronts issues such as systemic racism, black empowerment, and personal struggles, solidifying Lamar's reputation as a socially conscious artist. The track "Alright" from this album became an anthem for the Black Lives Matter movement, symbolizing hope and resilience amid adversity.

His subsequent album, DAMN. (2017), further showcased his lyrical prowess and versatility. The album's complexity and depth earned Lamar the Pulitzer Prize for Music in 2018, making him the first non-classical, non-jazz artist to receive this honor. The Pulitzer board commended the album for its "virtuosic song collection unified by its vernacular authenticity and rhythmic dynamism that offers affecting vignettes capturing the complexity of modern African-American life."

Poetic Contributions

Lamar's work is distinguished by its poetic depth. He employs a range of literary devices, including intricate rhyme schemes, vivid imagery, and allegory, to convey complex narratives and emotions. His lyrics often explore themes of identity, morality, and societal issues, inviting listeners to engage in introspection and critical thought.

For instance, in "Mortal Man" from To Pimp a Butterfly, Lamar engages in a simulated conversation with the late Tupac Shakur, discussing topics such as fame, leadership, and the struggles of the African-American community. This track exemplifies his ability to weave profound philosophical discussions into his music, bridging the gap between poetry and rap.

Significance of the 2025 Super Bowl Performance

On February 9, 2025, Kendrick Lamar is set to make history as the first solo rap artist to headline the Super Bowl halftime show at the Caesars Superdome in New Orleans. This milestone not only underscores his prominence in the music industry but also signifies a broader acceptance and recognition of hip-hop as a central component of American culture.

The Super Bowl halftime show is one of the most-watched musical events globally, and Lamar's selection as the headliner reflects his widespread appeal and the impact of his artistry. His performance is anticipated to be a powerful showcase of his musical and poetic talents, potentially addressing pertinent social issues and further solidifying his legacy as a transformative figure in music.

Further Exploration

To delve deeper into Kendrick Lamar's contributions and explore his music, consider the following resources:

Official Discography: Explore Lamar's albums and tracks on major streaming platforms such as Spotify, Apple Music, and Tidal.

Lyrics Analysis: Genius (genius.com) offers comprehensive annotations and analyses of Lamar's lyrics, providing insights into the themes and literary devices he employs.

Interviews and Documentaries: Platforms like YouTube host various interviews and documentaries that offer a glimpse into Lamar's creative process and perspectives.

Literary Analyses: Scholarly articles and essays, such as those found in The New Yorker and The Atlantic, provide in-depth analyses of Lamar's work from a literary and cultural standpoint.

Research Prompts

For those interested in conducting further research on Kendrick Lamar, consider the following prompts:

Examine the Evolution of Kendrick Lamar's Lyrical Themes: Analyze how Lamar's subject matter has developed across his albums, reflecting his personal growth and societal observations.

Kendrick Lamar's Impact on Contemporary Poetry: Investigate how Lamar's lyricism has influenced modern poetry and the perception of rap as a poetic form.

The Role of Jazz and Funk in To Pimp a Butterfly: Explore how Lamar integrates elements of jazz and funk into this album and the significance of these genres in conveying his messages.

Cultural Impact of "Alright" as a Protest Anthem: Study the adoption of "Alright" by social movements and its role in contemporary protest culture.

Comparative Analysis of Pulitzer Prize-Winning Works: Compare DAMN. with other Pulitzer Prize-winning musical works to identify commonalities and distinctions in their artistic contributions.

Kendrick Lamar's fusion of music and poetry continues to inspire and challenge audiences, cementing his status as a pivotal figure in the cultural and artistic landscape.

DeepSeek:

Kendrick Lamar: A Revolutionary Voice in Music and Poetry

Kendrick Lamar Duckworth, born on June 17, 1987, in Compton, California, has emerged as one of the most influential artists of the 21st century. His contributions to music and poetry transcend the boundaries of hip-hop, offering a profound commentary on race, identity, and the human condition. Lamar's work is deeply rooted in the African American experience, drawing from the rich traditions of jazz, blues, and spoken word poetry. His performance at the 2025 Super Bowl is not just a milestone in his career but a cultural moment that underscores the significance of his artistry in the broader context of American history.

Kendrick Lamar's Contributions to Music and Poetry

Kendrick Lamar's music is a tapestry of intricate lyricism, complex narratives, and innovative production. His albums, such as good kid, m.A.A.d city (2012), To Pimp a Butterfly (2015), and DAMN. (2017), are often described as modern classics. Each album serves as a chapter in a larger narrative that explores themes of systemic racism, personal struggle, and spiritual redemption.

Lyricism and Storytelling: Lamar's ability to weave intricate stories through his lyrics is unparalleled. Songs like "Sing About Me, I'm Dying of Thirst" and "The Art of Peer Pressure" showcase his talent for vivid storytelling, drawing listeners into the world of Compton with raw honesty and emotional depth.

Social Commentary: Lamar's work is deeply political, addressing issues such as police brutality, racial inequality, and the commodification of black culture. Tracks like "Alright" and "The Blacker the Berry" have become anthems for the Black Lives Matter movement, offering both solace and a call to action.

Musical Innovation: Lamar's music is a fusion of various genres, including jazz, funk, and soul. To Pimp a Butterfly is particularly notable for its use of live instrumentation and collaborations with jazz musicians like Kamasi Washington and Terrace Martin. This album redefined the possibilities of hip-hop, pushing the genre into new artistic territories.

Poetic Mastery: Lamar's lyrics are often compared to poetry, with their use of metaphor, alliteration, and complex rhyme schemes. His ability to convey profound ideas in a few lines is reminiscent of great poets like Langston Hughes and Maya Angelou. For instance, in "How Much a Dollar Cost," Lamar explores themes of greed and redemption through a conversation with a homeless man, who is later revealed to be God.

The Significance of Kendrick Lamar Performing at the 2025 Super Bowl

Kendrick Lamar's performance at the 2025 Super Bowl is a landmark event, not just for him but for the culture at large. The Super Bowl, one of the most-watched events in the world, has historically been a platform for mainstream entertainment, often sidelining more politically charged or culturally specific performances. Lamar's presence on this stage signifies a shift in the cultural zeitgeist, where the narratives and struggles of African Americans are given a global platform.

Cultural Validation: Lamar's performance is a testament to the enduring influence of African American culture on mainstream entertainment. It validates hip-hop as a legitimate and powerful art form, capable of addressing complex social issues while entertaining millions.

Political Statement: Given Lamar's history of addressing social justice issues, his performance is likely to be more than just a musical act. It will be a political statement, a moment of visibility for the struggles and triumphs of African Americans. In a time of ongoing racial tension, Lamar's voice is more important than ever.

Artistic Legacy: Performing at the Super Bowl cements Lamar's legacy as one of the greatest artists of his generation. It places him in the pantheon of cultural icons who have used their platform to effect change, from Muhammad Ali to Nina Simone.

Further Research and Exploration

To delve deeper into Kendrick Lamar's contributions to music and poetry, here are some resources and prompts for further research:

Links to Explore:

Official Website: Kendrick Lamar Official Site

Discography: Kendrick Lamar on Spotify

Interviews and Articles:

The New Yorker: Kendrick Lamar's Radical Performance

Rolling Stone: Kendrick Lamar's Greatest Moments

Documentaries:

Kendrick Lamar: The Making of DAMN. (Available on YouTube)

Hip-Hop Evolution (Netflix series featuring Kendrick Lamar)

Prompts for Further Research:

Comparative Analysis: Compare Kendrick Lamar's lyrical style to that of other influential poets and musicians, such as Tupac Shakur, Langston Hughes, or Gil Scott-Heron.

Cultural Impact: Investigate the role of Kendrick Lamar's music in the Black Lives Matter movement. How have his songs been used as anthems for social justice?

Musical Innovation: Explore the influence of jazz and funk on Kendrick Lamar's music. How does he incorporate these genres into his work, and what impact does this have on the evolution of hip-hop?

Literary Analysis: Analyze the use of metaphor and symbolism in Lamar's lyrics. How does he use poetic devices to convey complex themes?

Historical Context: Examine the historical and social context of Compton, California, and how it has influenced Lamar's music and worldview.

Kendrick Lamar's contributions to music and poetry are monumental, offering a voice to the voiceless and a mirror to society's deepest flaws and highest aspirations. His performance at the 2025 Super Bowl is not just a celebration of his artistry but a recognition of the enduring power of African American culture to shape and redefine the world.

[definitionmusic]

TIMOTHY "ILL POETIC" GMEINER TO TEACH HIP-HOP AT UC-SAN DIEGO IN 2025

from ill poetic:

I'm excited to share that I've been offered the opportunity to teach the Hip-Hop course at UC San Diego Music this winter quarter 2025.

If you follow me here, there's a chance you know my work as an emcee, producer and performer. For those who don't know, I've been publicly and professionally active since the mid-2000s.

Needless to say, this is a pretty big deal for me. I've been in love with this culture and artform since I heard my first Ice Cube record and wrote my first verse at 8 years old. Since making pause tapes in my bedroom at 10 and breaking headphones in half to plug into the mic jack and rap through the right earphone.

I have been a Teaching Assistant for this course at UCSD three times in the past 2 years. It's through this role that I gained an appreciation for hip-hop's long overdue position as a genre and culture worth academic analysis and respect.

As a TA, my sections and discussions covered core musical sensibilities unique to hip-hop, but also extended to topics such as the African diaspora's role in modern hip-hop production and oration, the ethics of sampling, and hip-hop's historical role as Black America's unfiltered voice in our present day country.

As Hip-hop remains a global cultural force in constant motion, my overarching goal for this course is to allow for an exploration of the intersection between timely, historical and academic subject matter on broader topics of race, gender, ethics, musicality, commerce, and culture.

But we're also going to talk about, listen to and deconstruct Kendrick and Odd Future and Dilla and DOOM and Nas and 2Pac and Tribe and NWA and Public Enemy and Style Wars and The Last Poets and rhyme schemes and beat machines and everything we can cram in between.

And really it's all connected: it's riveting, it's tragic, it's brilliant, it's frustrating, it's a gotdamn miracle of existence and black perseverance, it's America's greatest contribution to the modern world.

See y'all this winter.

[songwriterspad2]

Unleash Your Inner MC: How AI Rap Lyrics Generators Are Revolutionizing Hip-Hop

Hip-hop has always been a genre built on innovation and pushing boundaries. From the turntable tricks of early DJs to the complex wordplay of modern lyricists, rappers are constantly seeking new ways to express themselves. Now, with the rise of artificial intelligence (AI), a new tool is emerging to help artists craft their rhymes: the ai rap lyrics generator.

From Writer's Block to Creative Spark

Writer's block is a constant struggle for creative minds, and rappers are no exception. Staring at a blank page, searching for the perfect flow or that killer punchline, can be a frustrating experience. AI rap lyrics generators offer a solution by providing a springboard for creativity.

These tools work by analyzing vast datasets of existing rap music. They learn the patterns of rhyme schemes, meter, and vocabulary used by successful rappers. Users can then input keywords or topics, and the AI generates lyrics that match those criteria. This can be a great way to overcome writer's block, spark new ideas, and experiment with different styles.

More Than Just Rhymes: AI as a Collaborative Partner

While some might fear AI replacing the artistry of rap, the reality is quite different. AI rap lyrics generators are not meant to create fully formed songs on their own. They are best viewed as collaborative partners, providing writers with inspiration and new perspectives.

Imagine being stuck on a chorus and feeding the phrase "chasing dreams" into the generator. It might spit out something like "eyes on the prize, grind never sleeps, hustle 'til the sunrise peeps." This might not be the final line, but it gives you a starting point to build on, a fresh rhyme scheme to explore.

The best AI tools go beyond simple rhyme generation. Some offer features like flow analysis, suggesting how well the lyrics fit a specific beat. Additionally, some allow users to choose the "voice" or style of the generated lyrics, mimicking the flow of their favorite rappers.

The Future of AI in Hip-Hop: Beyond Lyrics

The impact of AI extends beyond the lyrics themselves. AI can be used to create entirely new beats, analyzing existing music to generate unique instrumental tracks that complement the generated rhymes. This opens up a world of possibilities for solo artists or beatmakers who might not have access to traditional production tools.

Furthermore, AI could play a role in music promotion. By analyzing listener data and trends, AI could recommend new hip-hop artists to fans based on their tastes, helping to discover fresh talent and connect them with a wider audience.

Ethical Considerations: AI for Good, Not Appropriation

As with any new technology, there are ethical considerations surrounding AI rap lyrics generators. One concern is the potential for AI-generated lyrics to lack authenticity or originality.

However, this can be mitigated by rappers using the tools responsibly. AI-generated lyrics should be a starting point, not a finished product. The human touch is still essential – rappers should curate the generated content, adding their own voice and perspective to make it truly their own.

Another concern is the potential for AI to be used to appropriate or misrepresent different cultures. It's crucial to ensure a diverse range of rap music is used to train AI models, preventing bias and ensuring the technology is used for good, not cultural appropriation.

Conclusion: AI - A Tool to Empower, Not Replace

AI rap lyrics generators are an exciting new development in hip-hop. They offer aspiring and established artists alike a valuable tool to overcome writer's block, spark creativity, and experiment with new styles. However, it's important to remember that AI is here to empower, not replace, human artistry.

The future of hip-hop lies in the unique blend of human creativity and the power of AI. By embracing this collaboration, rappers can push the boundaries of the genre and create truly groundbreaking music.

[slightlywhelming]

Rhyme Schemes can be your Friends

To my fellow lyricists and poets, remember to use different rhyme schemes and patterns when you get stuck. Not every line needs to rhyme with the very next one. Here's how I like to look at it (featuring shameless plugs to my own music):

Rhyme Schemes/Patterns exist on a spectrum. I call the left-hand side of the spectrum "Extended Patterns", the middle section is called "Standard Patterns", and the far-right side I call "Compressed Patterns".

Standard Patterns look like the poetry you used to read as a class in 3rd grade. A typical scheme in this zone is something like AABB, or in this example from the song "Haunted" off my band's first album, AAAA. (Note the rhymes in this case come from the vowels, not the ending consonants).

I might be afraid

Of what I have to say

But there's too much at stake

For me to walk away

Extended Patterns take longer to wrap up their rhymes, which I find incredibly useful when I want to communicate my message as clearly as possible. In this example from the song "Malevolence" I use the pattern ABC-DEC.

Tell my brother that I'm sorry

I know you tried to find your way

And I know that you regret the way you lied

Made me promise not to burn you

At the stake where you belong

And I know you thought of me each time you cried

Compressed Patterns are most often found in Rap and HipHop and feature lines with several rhymes back to back to back. Watch an analysis on Eminem's lyrics one day if you really want to see this in action. Here's a smaller example from my band's next single "Nomad", where the patten is AA(BB)A. Notice that the B rhymes happen back to back in the same line.

I've gotten sick of my tells

Teach me to lie to myself

I've got a feeling that I'm dealing

With my personal hell

I don't claim to be an expert lyricist, but trying different Rhyme Schemes and Patterns is a great way to work yourself out of a rut. Let me know what you think and tricks you use to help your writing along.

[khizuo]

Why Stray Kids have some of the best rappers in Kpop history (part 1 - Changbin)

I’ve seen a lot of rhyme scheme analysis’ for Western rappers, but like zero for any kpop rappers. Which I think is unfair because seriously, these guys impress. And I want to talk about Stray kids’ rappers, because as much as people have talked about their amazing skills I think the general kpop fandom doesn’t do a lot to say just why they are so amazing, so I’m here to do that today.

I’ll be doing Jisung too, but today I want to zoom in on a specific verse about my boi Changbin, because he deserves the world.

Which verse? Broken Compass, still one of the best 3racha and k-hip-hop songs ever.

Changbin’s rap in Broken Compass (I’m talking about the original 3racha version, because Mixtape 4 cuts his rap in half) is one of my favorite verses in history, and it comes down to two factors - his absolutely mindblowing internal rhyme scheme and the way he plays with your expectations of rhythmic structure.

I don’t think much has to be said about his rhyme scheme that can’t be described in this picture:

Like dude, leave some talent for the rest of us.

A lot of his rhymes in this verse bleed together too, which is why I agonized a bit on how to do this. I’m sure if you were to analyze this, you might come up with a slightly different rhyme scheme, since Korean words blend together a lot more than English words and therefore sometimes the rhymes are less distinct.

If anything, though, that just makes it even more impressive. Changbin raps this verse really fast, too (I mean, it’s I love dak boy, what do you expect) and with this amount of alliteration and internal rhyming, that ain’t easy. A lot of kpop raps don’t put much thought into rhyme - the fact that Changbin as a trainee was able to do this just makes it all even more mindblowing.

There is a ton of alliteration and consonance in this verse too, which makes it all the more pleasing to listen to.

Another reason why I love this verse is the rhythmic structure of it. A lot of rap has a 16 bar (bar = measure) structure. Usually, these 16 bars will further be subdivided into four phrases of four bars - kind of like four quatrains of poetry, which rhyme at the ends. A four-bar (or eight-bar) phrase is very typical in rap, especially for beginners. It’s an easy quantity of music to grasp.

Well, Changbin’s verse does consist of 16 bars of rap, but he takes the four-bar phrase concept and completely yeets it out the window. Take a look:

(Every ‘|’ indicates a new beat in a bar. Most rap is in 4/4 time, which means four beats per bar, and Broken Compass is this way as well. There seem to be 5 beats in the first bar, but the ‘neon’ is a pick-up note.)

Each different color of highlight is a new phrase from Changbin, but on the right you can count the bars and see how a normal four-bar phrase would work. As you can see, Changbin steamrolls right over that structure. His phrases bleed through phrases, he starts new phrases in the middle of bars - and it all sounds so. damn. good. The way he plays with rhythm and yet still manages to make it pleasing to the ear is completely genius.

Now, I’m not going to say that I’ve gotten everything completely right here. This is just what I have gathered from listening to Broken Compass on repeat. I do think that Changbin’s verse in Broken Compass is one of his best verses, so not all of them are this complex. Still, most of them are just as or almost as impressive as this one. I can not stress how good of a rapper he is. He may not be the best freestyler, but his lyric writing ability is insane.

All the more reasons to appreciate our Binnie!

Look forward to part two, (hopefully) coming soon - Jisung’s rap in P.A.C.E!

[another-music-page]

*originally posted on Instagram on 5/24/20*

I’d heard a lot of hype for it, but I hadn’t heard Black Thought’s verse on Crowns for Kings until a few days ago. And I’m so glad I listened to it. First off, even before hearing this verse, whether it’s his work with The Roots, his solo Streams of Thought projects, or that god-level Funk Flex freestyle, Black Thought has proven time and time again that he is one of the best lyricists and rappers of all time. This verse absolutely cements that. First, to show his lyrical mastery, I did a Check the Rhyme-style analysis of the whole verse on the next two slides:

*check Instagram post for Check the Rhyme slides*

By my count, across this 2-minute, 44 bar verse, he uses 26 separate rhyme schemes for a total of 120 actual rhymes, for an average of 1 rhyme a second and 2.7 rhymes per bar. This verse is a masterclass in internal rhyming, multi-syllable rhyming, basically every type of rhyming you can think of.

Not only does this song showcase Thought’s amazing rhyming, his flow across this is fucking amazing. When I think of Black Thought, the first thing I think of is confidence. He just raps so effortlessly and with so much confidence that it’s hard not to be interested in what he’s saying. And his flow is so natural, it sounds like he’s been rapping since he got out the womb. Specifically, my favorite part of his flow in this verse is the last 8 bars. This verse is one of Black Thought’s best and I don’t think it’s outta pocket to say that it’s one of the best verses of the past few years.

[thewahblife]

Rap Tips from Slaughterhouse's Psychopathic Killer- Rhyme Schemes Analysis https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hf5RZe8TE2c

[rapuvdayear]

1994: “Intro” The Notorious B.I.G. (Bad Boy/Arista)

Strap in, this is going to be a long post (even by my standards). Like, more than 5000 words long.

In the annals of rap history, there are certain periods that are just plain loaded. For example, between 1986 and 1988, Public Enemy, Run-DMC, Boogie Down Productions, the Beastie Boys, Eric B. & Rakim, Big Daddy Kane, Slick Rick, Too $hort, and NWA all released absolute classics that not only redefined the genre, but have become touchstones for the rappers who followed them. 1992-1996 boasts a similar embarrassment of riches: The Chronic, Doggystyle, Enter The Wu-Tang (36 Chambers), The Infamous, Soul Food, All Eyez On Me, The Score, Ridin’ Dirty, and ATLiens, among many, many more. Smack dab in the middle of that run, 1994 was arguably the apex of rap’s golden era. In any other year, The Diary would’ve taken the crown as the best/most important album. But Scarface’s opus gets unfairly ignored because 1994 also saw two releases that appear on any serious (read: not trolling) all-time top ten list, and are perennially in greatest-ever discussions. I already covered Nas’s Illmatic back in April. And today, we celebrate the 25th anniversary of Christopher Wallace’s debut, Ready To Die.

Properly assessing Biggie’s impact and legacy is a near impossible task. No other rapper has burned as brightly for so brief a period. After doing a nine-month bid in North Carolina for crack dealing as a 19-year-old, he was featured in The Source’s Unsigned Hype column—back when it was the still rap’s undisputed publication of record—off the strength of a now-infamous demo tape, a recognition that also helped launch the careers of Eminem, DMX, Common, and others. Big’s come up after The Source nod was similar to that of his contemporaries, like Nas, in that he stole the show on a couple of posse cuts. But while Nas went the “lyrically lyrical” route for a time and, with Illmatic, made an album featuring a Who’s Who of boom bap era producers, Big’s style was harder to pin down. He recorded just two official full-length albums, and only Ready To Die was released during his lifetime; in fact, Ready to Die is now officially older than Big was at the time of his murder, a crime that is still unsolved (and if that’s not a depressing statement about rap, violence, and blackness in America, I don’t know what is). His debut was recorded at a time when the West coast g-funk aesthetic was dominant, and East coast rap still meant “NYC,” which was primarily divided into two camps: the Timbs-and-hoodies style of the so-called New School rappers who could trace their lineages back to the Def Jam superstars of the 80s and Queensbridge’s Juice Crew, and the more “alternative” and Afrocentric stylings of the Native Tongues clique (there was also Wu-Tang, who combined elements of both but were also just weird as fuck). Ready To Die, in this sense, is much more representative of the Timbs-and-hoodies crowd, but it also paved the way toward a much more introspective, darker style of rap focused on violence and material wealth in equal measures that would become the standard in New York for the remainder of the decade. It’s a gangsta rap record with a boom bap sound. And though Biggie was certainly no slouch on the mic—his internal rhyme schemes are complex, and his flow is versatile—he didn’t need to rap fast or sound like he’d memorized a thesaurus in order to distinguish himself, either. His greatest strengths were his lovable-yet-dangerous personality, bawdy sense of humor, and unparalleled skill as a storyteller, which he would showcase to even greater effect on 1997’s Life After Death. Add everything up, and it makes perfect sense why Big is remembered as one of the—if not the—best to ever do it: he emerged at the peak of the golden era, but was also an originator rather than an imitator.

The 2Pac beef, East Coast-West Coast war, and “playas vs. thugs” dichotomy in mainstream 90s rap have all been broken down in painstaking detail elsewhere, with conspiracy theories lurking around every corner (for anyone interested, I think that the best resource for understanding those stories and where Biggie, Pac, and LAPD corruption fit into it all is this 2001 Randall Sullivan article in Rolling Stone). Separating history from hagiography is tough enough in a culture that is built on braggadocio; no rapper worth their salt has ever “let the truth get in the way of a good yarn.” But Biggie’s tall tale/folk hero status is on a different level, arguably even more so than Pac’s, with whom he will forever be linked. Much of that is due to the fact that his career was so short and his talent so undeniable; as distasteful as it is to admit, Biggie’s legacy undoubtedly benefited from his early passing, leaving us with two outstanding, classic albums and a handful of loosies, guest appearances, and posthumous compilations that continue to fuel speculation about the heights that he could have reached. Just as Jimi never made an experimental jazz guitar album and Otis never made disco, Big never recorded Nastradamus or Kingdom Come.

In the final analysis, Biggie’s career is defined by death, but not necessarily his own. Many have observed that the title of his debut album, Ready To Die, was, in a way, a foreshadow of things to come, and that the second, Life After Death, serves as a chilling acknowledgement of what occurred just two weeks before its release. But on a deeper level, a careful listen to both records reveals Biggie’s obsession with death: what he sees happening around him, the ways in which he might die—possibly even by his own hand—and the unanswerable question of whether or not death is the end. Behind all of the jokes, tales of sexual escapades, and reflections on how enjoyable the playa lifestyle can be, at its heart Ready To Die is extremely nihilistic.

That nihilism begins with the cover art, which along with The Chronic is the first rap album cover I can remember noticing. Despite what Nas and Raekwon may think, Ready To Die’s cover probably owes more to Nevermind than it does Illmatic: Nas’s childhood photo laminated over the Queensbridge housing projects on his debut evokes nostalgia for his roots; Ready To Die, on the other hand, is a bleak statement about being born a black man in America. Here’s this cute baby with an afro and a diaper set against a stark white background, and we the viewers are invited to wonder what his future holds. In other words, the point is that every American black male is born “ready to die” because that’s what the statistics tell us (in actuality, the photo model is alive and well). As an 11-year-old American white male from rural Maine, this was completely lost on me at the time. Looking back on it now, I can’t help but feel goosebumps.

The cover also simply yet effectively communicates the album’s narrative arc, such that there is one. Ready To Die isn’t a concept album by any means, but it does chart the life of Christopher Wallace from the womb to the tomb, so to speak. The first sounds we hear on the intro are a heartbeat, a woman in labor, her partner urging her to push, and then a baby crying. The last sounds are of a gunshot, a body falling to the floor, a voice on the other end of the line pleading, and a heartbeat slowing to a stop. But I’m getting ahead of myself. Let’s go through it track-by-track; this is one album that is all killer, no filler.

Intro (link above): This is a classic rap album trope: the introductory skit that establishes where the rapper is coming from, sort of like a superhero’s origin story. Maybe this is symptomatic of having recently been listening to only mid-to-late 90s rap, but it seems to me that these sorts of intros used to be more common than they are now. There’s no actual rapping here. Instead we get something very similar to “The Genesis” on Illmatic, a mashup of different iconic sounds from “the culture.” Whereas for Nas it was an excerpt from Wild Style followed by a skit over that movie’s theme, Biggie’s intro is more personal, and more comprehensive in terms of situating him in a time and a place. It begins with Christopher Wallace’s birth in 1972 over the sounds of “Superfly,” followed by an argument between Biggie’s parents about his antics that turns quickly to violent threats while “Rapper’s Delight” (1979)—the birth of rap, officially-unofficially—plays, then Big and a friend discussing a plan to rob subway passengers set to “Top Billin’” (1987), and finally Big being taunted by a corrections officer as he’s released from prison and Snoop’s “Tha Shiznit” (1993) can be heard in the background (this last part is definitely pure fiction; Big’s only recorded stint inside was back in 1991). The point of the narrative is obvious, but the musical choices are also significant. Biggie was part of an emerging generation of rappers who could still remember a time before rap, but who also grew up alongside the genre, their lives’ milestones scored by a soundtrack featuring the likes of The Sugarhill Gang, Audio Two, and Snoop. By 1994, rap itself had changed several times over already, and with Biggie’s entry it was set to change again. This theme continues on the next track…

Things Done Changed: First of all, this is one of the few songs I can think of that takes full advantage of stereo sound as the beat jumps from right to left and back again before the first harmonies kick in. In college, my friends and I used to love driving around with Ready To Die in the tape deck and performing a ritual of sorts to this opening, nodding our heads and pointing to the speakers on one side of the car and then the other (Side note: after college when I moved to Prague, a group of friends rented a car one night for the express purpose of driving around the city and listening to this album in its entirety. We actually got pulled over when we accidentally found ourselves in a Czech police extortion trap and had to bribe our way out, but that’s another story…). “Things Done Changed” is exactly what the title declares: a mix of Biggie waxing nostalgic about the bygone days of his Brooklyn childhood and communicating the harsh reality of post-crack NYC. The “back in the day” rap is another trope, but whereas previous examples like The Pharcyde’s “Passin’ Me By” (1992), Pete Rock and CL Smooth’s “T.R.O.Y.” (1992), and even Nas’s “Memory Lane” (1994) all are accompanied by production that emphasizes the slow, sweet, happy remembrances of things past, “Things Done Changed”—with samples from 70s funk group The Main Ingredient—sounds downright foreboding. The message is that there’s no time to lament the past because it’s over and done with and the future is anything but certain. As if this point weren’t clear enough, the Dr. Dre sample on the chorus—“Remember they used to thump? But now they blast, right?”—and Biggie’s appeal to his contemporaries—“Motherfucker, this ain’t back in the day/ But you don’t hear me though”—eliminate any sense of ambiguity. There are so many great Biggie lines sprinkled throughout (e.g., “And we coming to the wake/ To make sure the crying and commotion ain’t a motherfucking fake”; “Back in the days our parents used to take care of us/ Look at ‘em now, they even fuckin’ scared of us”; and “The streets is a short stop/ Either you slingin’ crack rock or you got a wicked jump shot,” which incidentally was quoted in the cringeworthiest way possible in 2000’s Boiler Room), but one in particular stands out to me: “It make me wanna grab the 9 and the shotty/ But I gotta go identify the body.” A former roommate of mine always loved this part because it encapsulates not just Biggie’s moral dilemma, but in many ways the definitive contradictions of gangbanging and the drug trade: I’m so angry and in pain that I want to visit extreme violence upon the world, but at the same time I have to deal with the fallout of the violence around me in the most intimate of ways. Did I mention already that this album is nihilistic to the core?

Gimme The Loot: This song will always hold a special place in my memory. It was either this or Snoop’s version of “Lodi Dodi” that was the first rap I memorized word for word. In high school, my friends and I used to go out to the cross-country running trails after school to, uh, do what burnouts do, and more often than not would end up reciting “Gimme The Loot” in its entirety at the top of our lungs (I hope that we changed all the ****** to “suckas” or something…). Biggie voices two characters, both plotting small-scale robberies with grotesque levels of passion. For real, some of the lyrics for the album version had to be censored because, well, this: “I don’t give a fuck if you’re pregnant/ Give me the baby ring and the #1 mom pendant.” “Gimme The Loot” is also a perfect example of Big’s style: it’s played for laughs, but the subject matter is darker than dark. I like to think of this as a companion piece to “****** Bleed” from Life After Death—my all-time favorite Biggie track—which is about a much more ambitious robbery that is also full of jokes. In line with the album’s theme, “Gimme The Loot” ends with Big presumably dying in a hail of bullets during a shootout with the cops, “a true motherfucker going out for the loot.”

Machine Gun Funk: Ooh, this beat! As anyone who follows this account already knows, one of my favorite things about rap is how much great music I’ve been introduced to via samples. In this case, “Something Extra” by 70s funk band Black Heat. Easy Mo Bee, who produced this and five other tracks on Ready To Die, doesn’t get the acclaim of contemporaries like DJ Premier, Pete Rock, or Large Professor. But his bona fides are solid—coming up with the Juice Crew—and his work on this album is spectacular. As with “Gimme The Loot,” some of the lyrics in the second verse censored: “For the jackers, the jealous-ass crackers in the blue suits/ I’ll make you prove that it’s bulletproof.” This was, after all, around the time that NWA and Ice-T had provoked outrage—and FBI investigations!—for their anti-police lyrics. “Machine Gun Funk”’s overall gist is summed up in one line: “I’m doing rhymes now, fuck the crimes now.” In other words, Big is just as hard as he was on the ascent, but he’s transcended that life now and is making bank from rap. It’s another well-worn trope that’s become almost obligatory for rappers to talk about now.

Warning: Another funky Easy Mo Bee beat, this time with an Isaac Hayes sample. Biggie relates a story of being awakened early in the morning by a friend who has gotten wind that his enemies are plotting his demise (he also shouts out fellow Brooklynites M.O.P., which is a nice touch!). He demonstrates his capacity for catchy internal rhymes—“They heard about the Rolexes and the Lexus/ With the Texas license plates out of state/ They heard about the pounds you got down in Georgetown/ And they heard you got half Virginia locked down”—and penchant for clever metaphors—“There’s gonna be a lot of slow singin’ and flower bringin’/ If my burglar alarm starts ringin’”; “The criminals, tryna drop my decimals.” There’s also the continuation of the “ready to die” theme with a depressing statement about trust and paranoia: “It’s the ones that smoke blunts witcha, see your picture/ Now they wanna grab they guns and come and getcha.” “Warning” ends with a darkly funny skit of sorts that leads right into the next track…

Ready To Die: I mean, it’s right there in the title: this is the entire album in a nutshell. Big is defiant here and completely nihilistic: “My shit is deep, deeper than my grave, G/ I’m ready to die, and nobody can save me/ Fuck the world, fuck my moms and my girl/ My life is played out like a Jheri curl, I’m ready to die!” And why all the violence? It’s simple, really, a means to an end: “Shit is real, and hungry’s how I feel/ I rob and steal because that money got that whip appeal.” This Easy Mo Bee beat is appropriately eerie, too, flipping the organ from blaxploitation film score legend Willie Hutch’s “Hospital Prelude Of Love Theme.” “Warning” ends with Puffy reciting “Now I Lay Me Down To Sleep,” similar to how he would start “You’re Nobody (‘Til Somebody Kills You)” on Life After Death with the 23rd Psalm: both are prayers about death and the afterlife.

One More Chance: This was one of the tracks that Big recorded during the second half of the Ready To Die sessions at Puffy’s urging. While Big allegedly didn’t want to make any concessions to commercial tastes, being the ever-calculating businessman that he is, Puff encouraged him to include a few tracks that weren’t just about robbing and killing. As such, the tone here is a little different from the album up to this point. However, it does give Big a chance to explore another of his signature topics and themes: sex, but in the lewdest way possible (I mean, he raps about shifting kidneys, shattering bladders, and “fuck[ing] her ‘til her nose bleed”). As my friend Jason pointed out to me recently, the skit in the intro is more interesting than it would appear at first, too. Ostensibly, it’s recordings of women on Big’s answering machine who he’s ghosted. However, the second caller doesn’t seem to be someone he’s slept with, but rather a female friend chiding him for being inconsiderate. Who knows whether this is meaningful or not, but maybe just maybe it’s a small subversion of the “g’s up, hoes down” mantra pervading rap? Eh, it’s a stretch. “One More Chance” was remixed and released as a single in 1995, becoming one of Big’s biggest hits. The original version is far superior, though, IMHO. Another minor note: verse 2 contains a cool shout out to Houston’s Geto Boys and the “Mind Playing Tricks On Me” video, complete with the beat switching up briefly to index that song.

Fuck Me (Interlude): A skit featuring Lil’ Kim. I usually don’t like rap skits, but this one is notable for making “Oreo cookie eatin’, pickle juice drinkin’, chicken gristle eatin’, biscuit fuckin’ suckin’ … V8 juice drinkin’, Slim Fast blendin’, black greasy muthafucka” into passable dirty talk. And that’s all I have to say about that.

The What: When Nas said, “My first album had no famous guest appearances/ The outcome: I’m crowned the best lyricist” on Stillmatic, this is the song he was talking about (well, either this or “Brooklyn’s Finest”… yeah, it was probably the latter). Given how rappers have stuck to the formula of paying for the services of more accomplished figures to drive interest in their debuts, it’s a testament to Nas’s and Big’s greatness that both Illmatic and Ready To Die only had one feature apiece: AZ on “Life’s A Bitch,” and Method Man on “The What.” With all due respect to AZ, no one’s mistaking him for a “famous” guest. Meth, on the other hand, had only really been famous for a couple of years at this point, but he was far and away Wu-Tang’s breakout star and would become the first group member to drop a post-36 Chambers solo just two months later. His participation here is also unexpected given the less-famous-yet-still-potent beef that existed between Wu-Tang and Biggie. Collabos and features are often underwhelming; either the guest feels like an unnecessary afterthought, or ends up “murder[ing] you on your own shit.” In this case, though, Meth is able to keep pace with Big and vice versa. Although his chemistry with Redman is legendary and their work together was super enjoyable, “The What” makes me wonder what a Meth and Biggie full-length would have sounded like. Easy Mo Bee laces the beat with the most stonerific production on the album, a laid back, fried melody that samples the outro to Leroy Huston’s “Can’t Say Enough About Mom” (1974). It works!

Juicy: It’s funny, this used to be my least favorite track on Ready To Die, entirely because of the chorus, which I thought was too “soft.” But now that I’m older, I appreciate its anthem-ness and the funky-ass Mtume sample. “Juicy” was, of course, the album’s lead single, but it was recorded toward the end of the sessions because Puff realized that they needed a radio-ready hit if Biggie was going to be a success. As a result, it’s the most discordant track on the album because of its uplifting tone, message of positivity, and nothing in the lyrics about death or dying. Along with “Things Done Changed,” this is the most autobiographical song on Ready To Die. And it’s chock full of quotables: “Time to get paid/ Blow up like the World Trade” (which has subsequently been censored in post-9/11 radio versions); “Spread love, it’s the Brooklyn way”; “Considered a fool cuz I dropped out of high school” (that one always resonated with me, haha); “Super Nintendo, Sega Genesis/ When I was dead broke, man, I couldn’t picture this” (which sounds hilarious now as far as stunting goes); “Birthdays was the worst days/ Now we sip champagne when we thirstay.” Also like “Things Done Changed,” “Juicy” is a nod to the past—the first verse is basically a list of 80s rap influencers—while signaling that a paradigm shift is happening; when Big says, “You never thought that hip-hop would take it this far,” he means for both himself and for the genre as a whole. He probably would have been a star anyway without “Juicy,” but its inclusion on Ready To Die definitely helped drive his early mainstream appeal.

Everyday Struggle: This anthem is still relevant today. They wouldn’t be brave enough (or stupid enough, depending on your perspective) to actually do it, but Elizabeth Warren and Bernie Sanders could totally use this as a campaign song in 2020. The name of the game here is “precarity” and the choices people make just to survive. The sample, from Dave Grusin’s cheesy 80s jazz composition “Either Way” (1980), starts off in a vaporwavish muffle that makes the intro sound like a classic TV theme song. And then immediately we’re vaulted back into Biggie’s bleak, nihilistic take on contemporary life, and his suicidal ideations (a foreshadowing of things to come…): “I don’t wanna live no more/ Sometimes I hear death knocking at my front door/ I’m living everyday like a hustle, another drug to juggle/ Another day, another struggle.” The whole song is about drug dealing, but it’s not all glorification: Big makes it quite clear that a) violence and the possibility (inevitability?) of death are ever-present, and b) it is an endeavor that is fundamentally about preying on one’s community. As he puts it, “Baggin’ five at a time/ I can clock about nine on the check cashin’ line/ I had the first and the third rehearsed, that’s my word,” all of which is to say that he had a clear understanding of the temporal rhythms of government assistance, wage payments, and the financial habits of the unbanked. It’s less of a lament than what appears in other rappers’ odes to “the game,” but I think it’d be remiss to ignore his discomfort with being a participant in an activity that clearly destroys lives and neighborhoods.

Me & My Bitch: Woooooo, talk about a problematic song! This is Kevin Gates before Kevin Gates. On the one hand, you could make a legitimate case for “Me & My Bitch” being the most romantic gangsta rap song ever (which is saying something in and of itself). On the other hand, Big would definitely be cancelled in 2019 for this. The opening line is classic Biggie humor: “I’ll admit when I first saw you my thoughts was a trip/ You looked so good, huh, I’d suck on your daddy’s dick.” But it soon devolves into your run-of-the-mill rap misogyny: “When the time is right, the wine is right/ I treat you right; you talk slick, I beat you right.” It’s all a fantasy—AFAIK Big never had a romantic relationship like the one depicted here—that’s the textbook definition of “ride or die.” Emphasis on “die” because that’s where the song ends up (because of course it does, this is Ready To Die after all). At first, Big tells us, “And if I deceive, she won’t take it lightly/ She’ll invite me, politely, to fight, G/ And then we lie together, cry together/ I swear to God I hope we fuckin’ die together,” which say what you will, that’s kind of a sweet sentiment. But alas, he doesn’t get his wish, as his lover is gunned down by his enemies, collateral in a war against him. Again, his eulogy for her is also kind of sweet, in a perverse way: “It didn’t take long before the tears start/ I saw my bitch dead with a gunshot to the heart/ And I know it was meant for me/ I guess the ****** felt they had to kill the closest one to me/ And when I find ‘em, your life is to an end/ They killed my best friend.”

Big Poppa: Another of the more radio-friendly, Puffy-inspired tracks, and consequently one of the album’s biggest hits (and second single). This is also the closest the Ready To Die comes to emulating 1994’s pop rap zeitgeist as the production on “Big Poppa” is clearly g-funk, complete with a high-pitched synthesizer straight out of Dre’s toolkit. It’s quite the contrast with the previous track, going from “ghetto soap opera” to “big willie playa fantasy.” Overall, “Big Poppa” is solid club song. Also, did Biggie invent the “weird flex” with this line: “A t-bone steak, cheese, eggs, and Welch’s grape”?

Respect: This one’s a nod to Biggie’s Jamaican roots, and introduces another chapter in the autobiography established through “Things Done Changed” and “Juicy.” “Respect” features Jamaican reggae/dancehall singer Diana King on the hook and reggae-ish beat from Poke of the Trackmasters that interpolates KC & The Sunshine Band’s “I Get Lifted” (1975). Even here Biggie pushes the “ready to die” theme as he narrates his birth!: “Umbilical cord wrapped around my neck/ I’m seein’ my death, and I ain’t even took my first step.” Verse 2 contains some more reflection on the uncertainties of the drug game: “Put the drugs on the shelf? Nah, couldn’t see it/ Scarface, King of New York, I wanna be it/ Rap was secondary, money was necessary/ Until I got incarcerated, kinda scary/ … Time to contemplate, damn, where did I fail?/ All the money I stacked was all the money for bail.”

Friend Of Mine: Easy Mo Bee does it again! Another of my favorite beats on Ready To Die. This one’s mostly Biggie-style sexual humor, similar to “One More Chance” only funkier and more misogynistic. It’s Big’s version of “g’s up, hoes down” or “Scandalouz.” The double standard regarding male and female promiscuity is in full effect. Even so, there’s a cleverness to the lyrics; Big’s descriptions are just plain different from other rappers’ (side note: the same argument can be made for Gucci Mane): “I don’t give a bitch enough to catch the bus/ And when I see the semen, I’m leavin’”; “Now I play her far like a moon play a star.”

Unbelievable: Scoring a DJ Premier beat for your album in the 90s was basically confirmation that you were someone worth paying attention to. Nas did it with Illmatic, and Big pulled the legendary producer’s card for this, the final track recorded for Ready To Die. Premo even gave Big a discount, charging him less than his usual fee because he’d gone overbudget already! The sample, from The Honeydrippers’ “Impeach The President” (1973), is well-traveled territory in rap, having been sampled in dozens of songs already by that point. “Unbelievable”’s content is mostly just Biggie boasting about his greatness at all things. And you’ve gotta respect the audacity of sampling yourself, from another song on the same album, giving yourself props (“Biggie Smalls is the illest!”). Even without a clear narrative or any deeper message, “Unbelievable” is a showcase of Biggie’s range of technical skills from internal rhymes—“And those that rushes my clutches get put on crutches/ Get smoked like Dutches”—to sly metaphors—“I got three hundred and fifty-seven ways/ To simmer sauté”—and original adjectives—“car weed-scented.” Big and Premier would link up again on Life After Death for two of that album’s standouts—“Kick In The Door” and “Ten Crack Commandments”—but three tracks still feels like far too few for such a potent combination.

Suicidal Thoughts: Dear lord, what an ending! If you doubted that Ready To Die was nihilistic up to this point, “Suicidal Thoughts” leaves no question as to the tone that Big intended. This is my second favorite of Biggie’s songs, and IMHO his most poignant. I almost feel as if he invented emo-rap here, letting the listener into his tortured psyche in a way that only Pac and Eminem have even come close to imitating. I’ve written about this track and my fondness for it already, naming it my “rap of the year” for 1994. The overall concept is Big calling up Puff to deliver what amounts to a suicide note. As Puffy pleads with him not to go through with it, Biggie enumerates all of the reasons that he’s “a piece of shit, it ain’t hard to fucking tell” and why the world would be better off without him: his criminal escapades, his sense that he’d let down his loved ones, his lies and infidelity. The key passages: “All my life I been considered as the worst/ Lyin’ to my mother, even stealin’ out her purse/ Crime after crime, from drugs to extortion/ I know my mother wish she got a fuckin’ abortion/ She don’t even love me like she did when I was younger/ Suckin’ on her chest just to stop my fuckin’ hunger/ I wonder if I died, would tears come to her eyes?/ Forgive me for my disrespect, forgive me for my lies”; “People at the funeral frontin’ like they miss me/ My baby mama kiss me, but she glad I’m gone/ She know me and her sister had somethin’ goin’ on.” Additionally, this is one of the things that truly separates Big from Pac when it comes to their musings on death and the afterlife: while Pac rapped about heaven and “thugz mansion,” Big seemed convinced that he was headed to hell both here and elsewhere: “When I die, fuck it, I wanna go to hell/ … It don’t make sense goin’ to heaven with the goodie-goodies/ Dressed in white; I like black Timbs and black hoodies.” If “Ready To Die” was a defiant declaration, then “Suicidal Thoughts” is Biggie proving that it was no lie, that he is, in fact, ready to pass on even if it’s his own doing. The beat is handled by Lord Finesse—another boom-bap veteran—and complements perfectly the tension that builds until the final moments: the gunshot, the thud, and the flatlining heartbeat (the sample is Miles Davis’s “Lonely Fire” (1974)).

There’s no denying Ready To Die’s place in the pantheon of rap history. People can debate whether or not it and/or Big are the greatest ever, which is fine, but ultimately meaningless. What we have here is an album that can be enjoyed on many different levels. And even if it is all about death, as with any work of art, it will live on as long as people keep listening to and loving it.

[theblackpoets]

3 Ways Rap Music and Poetry are Unified

American society has made sweeping generalizations in regard to Hip-Hop culture, Rap music, and Poetry. Historically, European elitism, intellectualism, literary piety, chastity, and moral virtue have been preeminent facets of Poetry in European folklore; whereas Hip-Hop and Rap music have long been voyeuristically praised for its Black nihilism, materialism, Black male phallocentrism, masculinity, and virility, anti-Blackness, anti-femininity, and misogyny.

Despite the fact that white supremacist capitalist patriarchal pop culture traditionally exploits and demonizes Hip-Hop culture and Rap as “primitive,” “criminal,” “impure,” and “anti-intellectual,” Hip-Hop culture and Rap music, nonetheless, continues to be a monolith of the most epoch-making creations within the Black diaspora since the birth of 1939’s The Dozens.

Though many Black artists, who have been compartmentalized into a sub-category of Rap music known as “mumble-rap,” a preponderance of Black Hip-Hop artists still address the racial issues of anti-Blackness and Black cultural appropriation. Hip-Hop and Rap should be held in the same esteem as Poetry, if not more. Unfortunately, poetry has also been stigmatized as “weak,“ “effeminate,” and “sentimental.”

In an analysis of Plato’s View of Poetry, writer William Chase Greene expands on Plato’s assessment of poetry:

Plato criticizes poetry because it is imitation, because the artist is ignorant of the things which he imitates, and because poetry addresses itself to the lower faculties of man, with which he cannot grasp truth.

Consequently, both Rap music and Poetry have often differentiated as exclusive art forms, having no relation to each other.

You might be speaking with a friend, and say that you are a writer. The friend will ask, what type of art do you create? You might say that you write poetry. They might respond with, “Poetry? Ugh, I like more forceful, aggressive stuff, like Metal and Rap.

You might refute, "Aren’t Metal and Rap music the same thing as Poetry?”

You can take away the instrumental and read Metal or Rap music as Poetry in the same way you can apply the instrumental to Poetry. As a result, the Western world has been conditioned to assign a masculine perspective to art. Despite those who believe Poetry and Rap music to be contrary to each other, here are three reasons how both the art forms are virtually indistinguishable.

1. Rhyme Pattern

Traditional English poetry is often written in fixed-form, with varying rhyme schemes. Whether you are writing a sonnet or a ballad, both forms are written in a repetitious “ABAB,” or “AABB” rhyme scheme. Like Poetry, Rap music is also written in a fixed form:

When I have fears that I may cease to be Before my pen has glean’d my teeming brain, Before high piled books, in charact’ry, Hold like rich garners the full-ripen’d grain; — John Keats

I was a fiend,before I became a teen I melted microphone instead of cones of ice cream Music-orientated so when hip-hop was originated Fitted like pieces of puzzles, complicated — Eric B & Rakim

2. Utilization of the Human Body

The human body is the main asset of the vocalization of Rap and Poetry. Poets and Rap musicians alike utilize their vocals to bring to life their personal experiences, thoughts, memories, feelings, and dreams (while sleeping and awake), to the world to share. Though there are varying stylists in Rap and Poetry who have differing modes of how they vocalize their messages, and their expression might be conveyed conventionally or unconventionally, expression in itself is to a degree, universal. A mode of expression from one art form is not alien to another art form.

3. Accent and Duration

Don’t worry about these mechanical terms. Once you weave your way through the concepts, you’ll understand what how they are implemented in Poetry and Rap music. Accent refers to how words are enunciated whereas duration refers to the timely manner in which the words are enunciated. In Rap music, accent and duration are crucial to creating flow, which is a combination of both rhyme and rhythm. Unlike poetry, a rap song has to be precisely in time with the rhythm of the lyrics being spit. Keep in mind, that the rapper’s elongation, pronunciation, and enunciation, of words, i.e. their delivery, is interpretative. Translation: the way I might interpret a rapper’s delivery, might be vastly differing to someone else who interprets it. Anyway, that fire, that beat, however you want to describe the instrumental of the song, is the rhythm of it, which is determinant on how the poet or rapper is going to rap:

There COMES a TIME in every man’s life WHEN he’s gotta HANDLE shit up on his own Can’t DEPEND on FRIENDS to help you in a SQUEEZE PLEASE, they got problems of their own — Slim Kid Tre of The Pharcyde

The words I have capitalized and boldened are the words that Slim has elongated when he pronounces them. Contrary to the rest of the lines, there is significantly more sonic presence to these words, giving us euphonious variety. If a rapper is flowing on an instrumental exceptionally well, but his delivery is too monotone, it comes off as unexciting, predictable, and boring. In Poetry, stanzas are often read mechanically and there is a pause at the end of each line. Sometimes, the reader will read the poem as though it were prose. Enjambment, end-stopped, and caesura, are a few primary literary tools that determine the rhythmical and vocal reality of the poem:

–Then ask not wherefore, here, alone Conversing as I may I sit upon this old grey stone And dream my time away — William Wordsworth

If read aloud, Wordsworth is posthumously asking us to pause at where he says the words, wherefore, here, and alone as caesura, the commas in between the words are used. In this context, the syntactical order of the poem suggestively gives us the idea that he is tempestuously expressing a meditation on his existence.

So, before any of us follows up on the ignorant claims like poetry is “only for girls” and Rap music is “barbaric, lexical nonsense,” let’s take a step back, look within our minds, and start unlearning what we’ve been taught, y’all.

via TheOdysseyOnline: https://www.theodysseyonline.com/3-ways-rap-music-and-poetry-are-unified

[mambasaid]

Scorpion Review (Side A)

Before I get into this review, I’d like to start off by giving you a synopsis of my history with Drake and his music.  

Like a lot of Drake fans, I was introduced to Drake’s music when So Far Gone was released early in 2009.  I may have heard a few of his songs with Lil Wayne prior to that, but I binge watched a lot of Family Guy and South Park around that time so my memory for most of 2008-2010 is pretty spotty.  I really just remember chicken fights and singing pieces of shit (no, I’m not talking about Chris Brown) with random songs sprinkled throughout.  Anyway, my point is that if I did hear anything by Drake prior to So Far Gone I didn’t find it compelling enough to skim through the rest of his discography, but So Far Gone was a different beast entirely.  The production was incredible; a lot of the beats made me feel as if I was in a dream.  Drake’s lyrics were also noteworthy; as a rapper Drake has his flaws, but he has always been a technically proficient rapper who was not afraid to come across as vulnerable, and I have always respected that.  That combination is rare today, but it was nearly unheard of back in 2009; at least in the realm of mainstream hip hop.  So here we had a lyricist with a great ear for production who was even able to sing pretty well on occasion; I was all in.  I went back and downloaded Drake’s two prior mixtapes, Comeback Season, which is still great, and Room For Improvement, which is an interesting listen, but not really all that good, and played both of them dozens of times.  For a few months in 2009 I was a full-fledged Drake stan.  

However, Drake had slowly started to fall out of my good graces by the time his debut album, Thank Me Later, came out in 2010.  In hindsight, I don’t really remember why.  Maybe it was the fact that he was singing too much for my taste.  I was a stereotypical hip hop head back then.  All I wanted were complex punchlines and rhyme schemes over a gritty or soulful beat and I was satisfied.  Drake definitely had his fair share of “lyrical miracle” songs, but he also started to venture into R&B territory a bit too much for my liking.  For whatever reason, I thought that his music was too “soft” and self-indulgent.  I grew up in the suburbs, so I really have no right to call anybody soft, but that’s how I felt at the time.  I definitely liked quite a few of the song that Drake was putting out, but I just didn’t view him as the guy who was going to bring “real hip hop” back to the mainstream anymore.  On Take Care, which is still probably his best album, Wheelchair Jimmy Champagne Papi The light-skinned Keith Sweat  Drake continued to toe the line between rapper and singer, and I was such a hip hop elitist that I dismissed damn near ⅓ of the album because Drake was singing too much.  I’ll save my final thoughts on that album for another day, but I certainly didn’t give that album it’s due at the time.  

As Drake continued to dominate the radio with inescapable songs, he became harder to hate on.  Eventually, I accepted the fact that Drake was no longer

Survival

This is fine for an intro, but it’s a bit underwhelming when compared to Drake’s past introductions.  He even says that he doesn’t want to get ahead of himself because this is “Just the intro” when on prior opening tracks he has rapped much longer, sometimes for what felt like an eternity, and used the intro to catch us up to speed on what has been going in his life since his last album dropped.  Here he mostly treads water, bringing up the Meek Mill and Diddy beefs he was involved in over 3 years ago, although he does seem to take a few shots at Kanye.  Anyway, this was pretty good, just not as epic as I was expecting.  “My Mount Rushmore is me with four different expressions” is an all-time great Drake line, though.

Nonstop

I hate this song.  The beat is fine, but this is probably the most annoying flow and cadence that Drake has ever used.  In the second verse he starts doing this weird thing where he mumble whispers (?) the first half of each bar, then raps the second half in his regular voice, and it’s just terrible.  On top of that, the song title isn’t even accurate because I stopped this track at least six times to make sure that this was actually a song by Drake and not something from Lil Overdose’s new album.  This might be Drake’s worst song ever.

Elevate

There was literally no way this song could have been worse than Nonstop, so at least it already had that going for it.  This song still isn’t anything special, though.  I like this beat a lot, its celebratory and ominous at the same time, I imagine this is the beat Thanos heard once he got all six soul stones and snapped his finger.  Unfortunately, Drake didn’t snap on here, so we get a lot of very forgettable lines.  Girls seem to love that line about God playing favorites, though.

Emotionless

After giving Drake a pretty mundane beat for Survival, No I.D completely redeems himself here by giving Drake one of the best beats of his career; it’s so soulful.  Drake uses the first verse to take more shots at Kanye and Pusha T, and uses the second verse to make excuses about why we didn’t know he had a son until Pusha played detective.  Props to him for calling out the people who take dozens of pictures when they go on vacation for 2 days then post those pictures a month later so they can flex like they’re still vacationing, but what the hell does that have to do with us knowing you have a kid?  Your son barely even knows that you exist, so how do you expect him to know about the lives of people on social media?  The kid won’t be old enough to even understand what is on a phone for several years.  It’s a good line, but it is also really dumb, but this is hip hop, not a thesis defense, so I’ll let it slide.  Finally, a song I want to listen to again.

God’s Plan

Originally released as part of Drake’s Scary Hours EP, along with another way better song called Diplomatic Immunity,  God’s Plan quickly rocketed up the charts and became one of Drake’s most successful songs ever.  I like it, I just don’t understand why it was so popular.  Drake has released a lot of other singles that I felt were destined to be chart toppers in the past, but for whatever reason this one was way more successful.

I’m Upset

This song came out a day after Drake’s Duppy Freestyle, a track that became a bit of a footnote after Pusha T sonned him on The Story of Adidon, but still a good diss in its own right.  Duppy got a pretty warm reception when it first dropped, and I think I’m Upset initially suffered because of that.  There is a pretty stark contrast between the two songs.  Duppy has more of a classic hip hop feel, with more of an old school beat and Drake adopting a quicker flow with a lot of slick punchlines.  I’m Upset is very clearly a modern hip hop song, Drake raps over a much slower beat and gives us a lot of lines that are easy to digest and remember, the type of lines you would see under a picture on Instagram, but that isn’t such a bad thing.  While this isn’t one of Drake’s best songs by any measure, I do think it’s better than people initially gave it credit for.  Ironically, Pusha’s diss track that dropped a few days later makes this song sound better, as a lot of the first verse is clearly about his baby’s mother.

8 out of 10

Drake mentions that he likes to take things from an 8 to a 10, which sounded nice until I remembered that he once rapped about going from 0 to 100 real quick.  Now I’m left wondering if he has slowed down and abandoned his more reckless ways now that he has a baby to care for.  Anyway, upon first hearing Scorpion, this was one of my favorite songs.  However, after listening to Joe Budden’s excellent breakdown of the meaning behind a lot of these lines, I’m beginning to realize that, even though I liked this song, I didn’t really appreciate it as much as I should have.  Drake utilizes Boi 1da’s beat to take more shots at Kanye and Pusha T, but a lot of the lines are so subtle that they might fly over your head, and I mean that as a compliment.  When he wants to be, Drake really is a lyricist, and he puts that on full display in this song.  Listen to Budden’s analysis of the bridge for this song and tell me this man doesn’t care about what he writes.  This is my favorite song on this album by a pretty wide margin at this point in time.  

Mob Ties

Aside from maybe Chance the Rapper, Drake is pretty much the least threatening rapper to have ever lived.  Not only does he spend like 40% of his discography crooning or crying to women, but even his public persona is that of an unabashedly a corny guy.  He is like the opposite of Doggystyle era Snoop Dogg and that’s completely fine, people love him for it, so why does he always have these random songs in which he transforms into Only Built for Cuban Linx era Raekwon and pretends to be some kind of mob boss?  We know you’re not putting hits out on people dude, just chill.  Granted, a lot of rap is built on people building up fake personas, but at least they stick to them.  Yeah Rick Ross is a liar, but the guy has always stuck to his character.  We know so much about Drake’s personal life that it’s hard for me to take any threats that he makes seriously.  Anyway, I didn’t mean to rant for so long, this song is ok.  I like this beat, but I just don’t think it was well suited for Drake, it seems more like something Migos would have picked.  

Can’t Take a Joke

Lmaooooooooooo what is this flow?  Maybe this song really is a joke because this weird sing/rap flow actually made me laugh the first time I heard it.  Aside from Nonstop, this is pretty easily my least favorite song on the A side.  I’ll be skipping this one.

Sandra’s Rose

Drake finally got a beat from the legendary DJ Premier and the collaboration doesn’t disappoint, I do wish Preemo had scratched on the hook, though.  This isn’t an all-time great Premier beat, but it does the job, and so does Drake.  While there are a few pretty weak bars in here, most of the punchlines are on point, so much so that a few of them went over my head on my first listen, and Drake rides the beat well.  I wish Drake would rap over beats like these more often, my 3 favorite songs on this side have all featured soulful vocal samples.  

Talk It Up

Drake and Jay-Z seem to have thrown subliminal shots at each other several times in their careers, yet Jay seems to be one of Drake’s favorite collaborators (he has appeared on 3 Drake albums, as many as Lil Wayne).  Drake has a cute little double entendre about lump sums, but aside from that his verse is pretty forgettable.  Jay fairs a little bit better, but not really. It seems like 2010 Jay usually only raps about being a boss or his past as a drug dealer, and on this track he chooses the latter.  Jay’s verse is ok, but this pretty easily the weakest of their 3 collaborations, which is a pretty impressive feat given that Jay spent his second verse on Pound Cake interpolating a Rihanna song.  This was kind of a waste of a great DJ Paul beat.

Is There More?

Drake asks the same question that I have been asking for the vast majority of this album.  I would have sworn that this was a 40 beat, but it was produced by Wallis Lane.  This is one of Drake’s better lyrical performances on the album, arguably his best.  Drake presents himself as someone who has finally made it, but is now left wondering what else there is to accomplish.  However, Drake spends a lot of this song bragging about how successful he is rather than talking about how becoming successful has left him feeling empty, so I wonder what his goal was with this song.  The title and the beat suggest that the song would be more introspective, and a few lines in the first verse are, but most of this sounds more like Drake asserting his dominance over the rap game again.  Even if the subject matter is a bit confusing, this is not a bad way to end this side.

Side B

Trash, this whole side sounds like a bootleg Jon B album.  Maybe that’s why he called it side B.

I’m just kidding!  I’ll give my thoughts on Side B soon, but that’s a lot more to write and a lot more for you guys to read, so for now I’ll stop here and give you my thoughts on Side A.  This isn’t a bad album, but it’s pretty bland.  There are a few highlights, most of which feature soul beats, but Drake sounds very uninspired on the majority of this album.  He switches up his flow every now and then, but it’s usually to his detriment, and a lot of the punchlines on here are bad or non-existent.  Drake has always had an excellent ear for production, and that remains true on this album; there isn’t a bad beat on here, I just think Drake used them wrong or wasn’t suited for them.

Swishes:  Emotionless, 8 out of 10, Sandra’s Rose

Bricks: Nonstop, Can’t Take a Joke

Overall, I’d give Side A a 6/10

[theworstbob]

yellin’ at songs, week thirty-nine

Opinions on the songs which debuted on the billboard charts 4 october 1997, 6 october 2007, and 7 october 2017

10.4.1997

24) "The One I Gave My Heart To," by Aaliyah

I agree, '90s R&B. It IS sad when people you love hurt you. I used to think it was good when people you loved made you feel sad, but I've been listening to your arguments for the last few months, and you know what? You're right. People you love should make you feel good! Took a while, but I'm finally coming around to your side.

28) "Criminal," by Fiona Apple

So I'm on vacation from work, and I've been taking this time off to not think about anything and just sorta stare blankly at whatever the screen has to offer, so this is not a song for my current mental state. There's so much to unpack with this song, and I'm just not yet acclimated to thinking about what this song has to offer. I need to get back on that critical thinking horse, but I've been lazy the last couple days, aand like you know how difficult it is to concentrate on anything? Y'all givin' me shit like "I've got to make a play to make my lover stay, so what would an angel say? The devil wants to know," and I gotta try to frame it in some context or another, and meanwhile the Link to the Past rando tournament is right there. I can just turn that back on at any moment. Shit, dude. I'm sorry, Fiona Apple. I'm trying. You caught me at a bad time, but this is still probably the best song I've heard in a hot minute, so you've got that going for ya!

84) "Last Night's Letter," by K-Ci & JoJo

THANK YOU, 1997. This is how the list should've been ordered. Groove these '90s R&B slo jamz up the middle so I can make jokewords and get some practice thinking, THEN throw something with lyrical depth and whatnot at me. This song says "I'll love you always" before we even hit the first chorus. Follow Aaliyah up with this, then give me the country song that's gonna follow, THEN I'll be ready to say something substantive about Fiona Apple. Fiona Apple was a thing, right? Like, she would've pretty much been '97 Lena Dunham? Or would she have been a Woke Twitter Hero? I don't know, and it's too late to ever find out because the list has moved on to a song where two men with nice voices sing about passion and devotion. "I wrote this letter last night." Do you think they wrote "I wrote this letter" in the actual letter? Do you think they repeated the chorus in the actual letter? I hope so!

87) "Valentine," by Martina McBride & Jim Brickman

Imagine going to a hoedown, turning on the local country radio station, and hearing this. I mean, maybe this was a solid play for adult contemporary radio, I dunno who Jim Brickman is but I dobut he goes hard too often, but Tay Tay's "Red" was a #2 country single. It would follow that country would listen to anything Martina McBride, but like just... Every single bro country dude was weaned on songs like this. This was what country music sounded like before "i respect the flag AND the party" bullshit. I've made this point before, but it's worth noting, pop/country? That's a genre with a bizarre evolutionary line!

91) "Please," by The Kinleys

you could tell me these white girls are either sisters or two girls named kinley that happened to meet one day, and i would believe it. this is a song that would've been good enough to make the top 20 back when i only had like ten weeks of '97 to sift through, i would've said "yeah this is basic but it's not 'my baby daddy,'" but it's october and we've listened to so many other things and i've already forgotten what this was. country? sure. country. good job, country girls who probably named their kids Carson and Mackenzie.

95) "Go Away," by Lorrie Morgan

If you are using tumblr, your opinion of Marilyn Monroe has gone through three stages: 1) Marilyn Monroe is the epitome of glamour 2) Marilyn Monroe was basically Paris Hilton, like what did she do even? 3) HELL YEAH, MARILYN MONROE WAS PARIS HILTON. SHE WAS HOT AS HELL AND FUCKED ALL THE TIME. GOALS. This is the hottest country girl jam 1997 has provided, but it opens with some Marilyn Monroe cosplay, and this song is a hot jam in a way where it's like "hell yeah, I'd listen to this again!" and not "let's start a music discussion club to delve into the deeper meanings of this song. When she asks, 'Go away and wait a minute,' what does she mean?" so let's just goof on the video!

10.6.2007

53) "Do it Well," Jennifer Lopez

I heard the annoying Timbalandy intro and thought for sure 2007 was hitting us with more of that Kara DioGuardi. Nope! Ryan Tedder! Still a shitty Timbaland ripoff, that Latin pop jam J. Lo released a few months (and ten years) ago was way more in her wheelhouse than this, but I misidentified the bad songwriter who'd been tasked with wasting these three minutes of my life. Ryan Tedder's been doing things for ten years. I am so glad I'm an unexceptional white man, because it means life will never stop presenting me with opportunities regardless of whether or not I deserve them.

73) "1973," James Blunt

The fact that this song actually debuted at #73 makes me so happy. You have no idea. Like, this song is what you would expect the follow-up to "You're Beautiful" to be, James Blunt is trying desperately to show he has some edge and is also a Deep Thinker who doesn't look at girls and think about whether or not he thinks they're hot, he now tries to figure out a year in which she could have been beautiful. "Girl, you're so hot, you remind me of the year before I was born." Swoon. Such a serious artist, this one. Also: did you guys know three people are credited songwriters on "You're Beautiful?" Also also: there's a song called "2005" which is pretty much about "You're Beautiful?" Oh, James Blunt. I am prepared to fall down this YouTube hole someday, but not today. I have to figure out who Playaz Circle is.

91) "Duffle Bag Boy," Playaz Circle ft./Lil Wayne

Oh, 2 Chainz! That's who this is! Well, here I am, forgetting 2 Chainz existed as an entity before he was 2 Chainz and omitting him from the Decade Dance Club! Anyway, this is a song that presages Lil Wayne's extremely good decision to rebrand as a rock god, and it's, y'know, it's fine. It's an acceptable 2007 rap song, much like "Good Drank" was an acceptable 2017 rap song about half a year ago. I accept that this was ever in my life, and I will move on once I feel this paragraph appears large enough that someone could conceivably mistake this for in-depth analysis. What a large paragraph I wrote with no actual content! We have done good work.

94) "Freaky Gurl," Gucci Mane

Gucci Mane is another of the 35-member Decade Dance Club, and with songs like this, there's no shortage of reasons we've kept him around for so long! The way he only uses one flow so you don't get confused and think you're listening to multiple rappers. Intricate rhymes like in the third verse, where he ends six consecutive lines with "girl." And the way each verse only has eight bars so he can go back to the chorus is so polite, it knows why we came to the song and doesn't wanna screw around or seem indulgent with all those fancy A A A A A A rhyme schemes! Gucci Mane: ten years of greatness. Truly, something whose endurance I understand.

95) "Famous in a Small Town," Miranda Lambert

Miranda Lambert is one of my favorite country artists. I also get squicked out when millionaires sing lines like "Who needs their faces in a magazine?" You are incredibly famous! You don't get to sing this song! You are famous in several big cities! Don't sing songs revelling in mediocrity when you, yourself, are special! Like, Gucci Mane is awful, but at least he doesn't fuck around about the fact he owns a Hummer. He's not like "Don't worry if you can't afford a Hummer, life's not all about glamour!" he's saying, "Hell yeah, I got a Hummer. I fuck inside this big ol' car. You should get a Hummer. They're rad." Gucci Mane is a truth-teller, and we should respect that.

99) "Can't Help but Wait," Trey Songz

so like did they record one person clapping their hands and use that for every single '07 r&b song, or did they record hand claps every time they banged one of these out. i hope they made new hand clap noises for every song, it would make each song feel a little more personal, but i think all the studios just like shared the same hand clapping noise. i wonder whose hands they were that made this noise. this song is boring. why did anyone listen to this. they made this song a thousand times in 1997. seems like a waste of the handclaps.

7 October 2017

2) "rockstar," by Post Malone ft./21 Savage

"i cannot contain lyrical abilities of going so hard." what. why. why. who is this... i'm listening to this and wishing i was listening to a nickelback song. this is how fucking dire this song is. like legitimately. this song bites from nickelback, then has the audacity, the muthafuckin AUDACITY to say, "i can tell you're a lazy-ass aritst." preacher, heal thyself.

66) "Too Much to Ask," by Niall Horan

Niall Horan is a nice boy making nice songs and this is going to be another week where 2017 gives me absolutely nothing to work with, isn't it. I mean, I guess it's fine that Niall Horan is a person making John Mayer songs in a world where garbage like Post Malone rules the day, but why does he have to be John Mayer? Can't we do better than John Mayer? Is this really all we have to look forward to on the weeks that divas are not accompanied by an army of brass instruments, is maybe we're cool with Lorde but mostly the hope someone will sound like John Mayer instead of Calvin Harris? 2017, what ya doin'.

67) "Curve," by Gucci Mane ft./The Weeknd

No, sir, Gucci Mane has not lost a step in the last ten years! He's actually improved: this song is two and a half minutes long. Like, we're minimizing time loss, here. I know nothing good will happen. On some level, Gucci Mane knows he's not creating great, lasting art. Just talk about your dick for two and a half minutes and let me go back about my day.

85) "DNA," by BTS

My favorite was the one with the silver hair with the haunted voice because I think The Goth One is unexplored territory for boy bands and I'm glad that BTS has decided to be pioneers. I'm into this! It's dumb, loud pop music, but after so many months of dumb quiet pop music, I think it's high time we just let some young men dance their hearts out and sing about whatever grand emotion they're singing about, probably love, I don't know, I'm actually not ready to let go of this being a Kendrick cover. This is fun! Pop music should sound like Coke tastes, not how Coke makes you feel. This is a sugary little treat, and I'm glad that I was able to listen to it.

92) "Homemade Dynamite," by Lorde ft./Khalid, Post Malone & SZA

I like the original. I liked Melodrama because it sounded like its own thing, and this just sounds like something I could've gotten from any of the EDM bros. Khalid and Post Malone add their usual nothing, and with SZA, it's the same thing, I'd much rather listen to her on her own thing than her on someone else's thing. I dunno. I think y'all should've listened to this song before they felt like they had to ruin it with Post Malone. Lorde's great! I wish I could figure out why the general public rejected her but embraced Khalid!

Who won the week?

1997 because it had the only song I liked.

Current standings: 1997: 14 2007: 12 2017: 13 Next week: Elton John remakes “Candle in the Wind” for some reason, we insist on summoning old Tay Tay to the phone, and oh goddamnit 2017′s gonna give us Macklemore come on 2017 get it together

[shonasthoughts-blog]

REVIEW: Dice’s winning formula

Award winning artist Edu Lutetu or just “Dice” as his commonly known is back to doing music after a long hiatus from the music industry. His debut album #1Stunner was dropped on 01 October 2011 and it had been about six years until he dropped another album. His first album would go on to be the album that would solidify his reign in the local Hip-Hop arena.

His second album is titled Winter is Near (WIN) and was recently dropped just in time for the Namibian winter. Immediately after I went into deep thinking maybe a bit too much…I think I was on the same level as conspiracy theorists, I thought to myself “What if this is a message to the industry about his impending arrival to reclaim his once number one spot in the local Hip-Hop industry?”

For a moment I am convinced Dice is a strategist, Winter is Near (WIN) is a double entendre in technical Hip-hop terms. The album title legit means Win…maybe something Dice wants to achieve…maybe he wants to win over many hopeful and potential listeners of the album or maybe that could be the focus of the album…the point is to Win at everything he does…or maybe I am just too damn technical. But then again he drops the album in Winter in attempt to show his fellow rappers what kind of heat (pun intended) he is about to bring to them. Enough of the technical jargon and album title pleasantries…lets dive straight into this analysis!!!!

The first track on the album which is the intro titled Bodies starts off on a cold and murky note, the beat is obscure and deep. A resonant and sonorous voice can be heard spiting fire bars that can only match the dark nature of the beat. I like how Dice immediately addresses the fact that he has not been in the music industry for a while when he spits “I been gone for a minute though, coming back, blow far ahead of you and nothing change since the day I left,”. The intro is straight bars an unforgiving Dice rips the beat apart minute by minute and is relentless as he talks about “catching bodies” even takes shots at rappers who think of taking him down. I like the energy he projects on the song, the complex rhyme scheme and diverse rap flows…Track one leaves a good impression, we have nine more to go.

On the second track 1#Stunner slows is it down a bit…this is a jam for the ladies and it is titled Second Guessing. I am kind of disappointed because the energy levels immediately dropped on the album…it was too sudden. Dice is no stranger to creating hits for ladies…listen to If I could. Second Guessing is  a bold song but it is not the greatest Dice song either. The song revolves around a guy who is not sure whether he should get intouch with a bad girl, he even ignores warnings about the girl from other people and  he doesn’t learn his lesson. It’s a listenable song that is well-written. I also like the guitar on the song it creates a lovely aura.

Onto the third song titled Go Tell Them the record features Patrick from PDK and 4x4 Too Much Power. This is a different sound, it’s a deftly produced song with a strong African Sungura/Kwasa Kwasa and Hip-Hop effect. 4x4 Too Much Power and PDK bring do the song some justice and the rapper can be heard exasperating and yelling in a few verses of the song. I’m sure this will be played at a bar somewhere in Katutura and up in the north.

I’m not sure whether Dice does it on purpose but he slows down the energy on the album again with the fourth song titled Botsotso. The song is another banger on the album and Dice raps and sings about a girl that has stolen his heart. The jam is harmonically-rich with a memorable hook that is easy on the ear. The beat of the song is ethereal and calming. So far so good. I am still worried about the alternating choice between songs but it’s not that serious of an issue. Also so far I’m struggling to get the focus of the album. Feels like the album was just thrown together but it’s too early to tell…let’s give the album another listen.

On track six I listen to my desired song on the album it’s called Monster. This song is levelled pretty well. Dice is trying to develop the sex symbol the ladies love him to be. The beat is very seducing and Dice is erotic and very suggestive. I think of Lloyd featuring Lil Wayne You as Dice continues to serenade the ladies on the song. It’s a hybrid song and a mixture of RnB, Rock and features heavy Hip-Hop drums. Well done 1#Stunner!!

Dice turns it up a notch with The Dogg on Topa. Topa is basically an enjoyable and welcoming song. The adlibs from Dogg are just amazing. It has a great summer feel to it and structures a solid verse from the Namibian Kwaito King. It’s a Kwaito song with a funky chorus. This is song has the potential of being a chart topper!

Seven songs deep and the rapper has turned up the energy with Conquer. The title is a cliché Hip-hop title but the song is resonating. Dice bleeds on the song talking about his journey in the music industry and some of the sacrifices his made and the lack of sleep that has made him who he is in the industry. There is a great combination of singing and rapping as Dice plots on ways he can take over the industry.

So far the journey in the album is engrossing and compelling. Dice sings along to a rollicking guitar on the remix of Second Guessing on the album. I prefer the original…that’s pretty much what I can say about the song.

Revolve Around You is the nineth trajectory on the album. I’m enthusiastic about this one because it’s something Dice has mastered over the years…the ability to make good music and his ability to switch between different sounds or genres. It’s a Rock and Hip-Hop song much like his previous successful songs such as his song Ombili fit Hishishi Papa. It’s a fresh song categorised by pure rock vocal from Famaz attack. It’s a notable song and the rapper rides the wave of the song  very well. It’s a “proudly Namibian” song and the artists reflect on a few achievements made by Namibians locally and globally.

Another favourite of mine is the last and tenth record featuring Exit titled Kwaito Meets Hip-Hop. There is a certain absorbing and sublime yell that is remarkably strident…you should listen to the song to understand what I mean. There is a sonic sound effect that only makes the song sound very timeless.

Production on the album is also noteworthy and of outmost signifigance. There is choice for the listener…there is a variety of songs as well. The album is a bundle of genres for all kinds of listeners and the project spells musical growth for an artist with Dice’s stature. Dice proves he can take on a number of genres and still remain relevant enough to make good music. I enjoyed the fact that Dice did not try to hard or put any pressure on himself even after staying away from the industry for such a long time. Don’t get me wrong Dice was not in the industry for a while but he wasn’t a stranger he still dropped good songs…listen to Mission featuring Jericho. The music is effortlessly beautiful and the rapper is easy on the ear and has a good recipe and thoughtful process about the kind of music he releases. The album is a step up from his previous album. I may have struggled with the overall message and theme of the album but something is pretty clear...it’s a performance on the album from the rapper. Dice is here to stay and he has proven not only to me that he is a topical issue in Hip-Hop but to other rappers as well. The sounds and tunes on this album will win over anybody. The standard and artistry brought by Dice on the album is enormous!

It’s a virtuous and decent album, and it gets The Media Guy’s stamp of approval. Shout out to Dice!

Album score: Production=-4/5 Lyricism= 3/5 Subject and Content=3/5 Flow and Delivery=4/5

Overall Album Rating:   🔥 🔥 🔥

[siwardito]

When I Read Our Old Conversations, I Can Feel Us Reconnect Again

It’s bittersweet to reread our old conversations, the conversations I saved from the past year or so. I see our words to each other on the screen, and I can’t help but still smile. I still laugh at the banter and the silly one liners. Or my attempts at rapping. I should probably keep those ‘special’ rhyme schemes to myself, but I have a feeling you were amused. I liked to amuse you. I can actually recall the thoughts that were going through my head at those exact moments in time. This was my opinion about this. And that was your view on that. We rarely agreed, and yet, we somehow synced on another level. We somehow found comfort in one another, where a deeper understanding was solidified under the surface. I told you dreams I would have. You would provide insightful analysis. Well, sometimes. Sometimes, you had no clue what the fuck my dream implied; I didn’t know either. My dreams are fucking bizarre. You’d send me a song that you were listening to, and it was almost as if the musical artist was you. You would chat with me through music, and I would absorb the words and sounds, and then I’d like the song, too. I told you about my anxieties, and you told me to breathe. To reach. To respond accordingly. You showed me how you think, how you see the world, and I devoured it all. Our talks were usually raw. It’s bittersweet to reread our old conversations, the conversations I saved from the past year or so. Right now, our connection remains, it’s floating somewhere, but I’m not sure how to find it. I even miss those message alert sounds I’d hear when I told you my dreams, and you sent me your songs, and I told you my anxieties, and you illustrated how you think. I miss what those sounds represented. The conversations are still here, though. It’s always nice to have proof that something existed

[thewahblife]

Rap Tips from Slaughterhouse's Psychopathic Killer- Rhyme Schemes Analysis https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hf5RZe8TE2c

[thewahblife]

Rap Tips from Vince Staples's Hive- Rhyme Schemes Analysis https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ljvl0V5liio