This weeks post analyzes a historic track from the great hip hop duo, "Outkast". Outkast consists of rappers Andre 3000 and Big Boi. The track is called elevators and it comes from their sophomore album called "A TLiens". A TLiens was such a groundbreaking album for Outkast. The album ventured you to outerspace with the sounds as well as the duo embracing their abnormality.("20 Photos of "ATLiens" Era Outkast | Complex.") It proved that southern rap was much more than the flashy stuff. There was also an intellectual side to them. Outkast has always seen themselves as being different. Which is why I think they chose the name "A TLiens". Showing that yes they are from Atlanta, but they are completely different like nothing you've seen before. Which is what an alien is.
Lil Wayne
Andre 3000
The song itself sounds extremely futuristic. And now when we look back on it and listen to some of their older songs, we realize how much Outkast was ahead of their time. In terms of lyrics, production and even their sense of style and fashion. You can easily say that Outkast has had a huge influence on hip hop.
Within the first couple of seconds of the song, the instrumental puts you in a state of relaxation, almost bringing you into a trance. Then boom, the sophisticated/simple lyricism of the duo hits you in rapid form. Which is whats fascinates me the most about them. They can say the most simple words, but tie them together so you really have to think to find the meaning. "Now everyday we look up at the ceiling" says Andre 3000.("Outkast – Elevators (Me & You) Lyrics | Rap Genius.") This lyric could mean actually looking up at the ceiling or you could take it a little deeper. Which is exactly what I did. When I hear that lyric, I think of Andre praying to god. Because heaven is known as being above us. So when he looks up at the ceiling, hes having a spiritual moment with god. "Watching ceiling fans go round, trying to catch that feeling off instrumentals".("Outkast – Elevators (Me & You) Lyrics | Rap Genius.") By "that feeling" Andre 3000 means a high. A natural high that occurs when he listens to beats and starts his music making process and creates his lyrics. You dont always have to use a physical drug to get high. For Andre 3000, music is his drug.
To me, this whole song is about how far they've come as artists and how much more they have to go to become superstars. "We moving up in the world like elavators" lyric spoken by Big Boi.("Outkast – Elevators (Me & You) Lyrics | Rap Genius.") That lyric simply sums up the entire song. A simple rags to almost riches story. Two young men trying to make it in the game, brainstorming what they could possibly do to push themselves to the next level.
Works Cited
"Outkast – Elevators (Me & You) Lyrics | Rap Genius." Discover the Meaning of Rap Lyrics | Rap Genius. N.p., n.d. Web. 27 Feb. 2013.
With it being almost 4 years since the death of Michael Jackson, its only right that I dedicate at least one post to him! Michael Jackson has never seemed to disappoint with any of his songs, albums, videos, or short films as he would call them. The song "Billie Jean" is no exception. The second single off of his first solo album could possibly be his trademark song. One of his hit songs that sprung him to super-stardom, and certainly helped him claim the title as the "king of pop".
Michael even debuted his signature dance move called "the moonwalk" while performing this song at the Motown 25 special in 1983.("Michael Jackson Does The Moonwalk During Motown 25th Anniversary Concert | The Urban Daily.") This was just the beginning of Michael Jackson's am
The King of Pop displaying the "Moonwalk" for the first time at the Motown 25 Anniversary
azing career as a solo artist.
The song is essentially about Michael's groupie situations.
Billy Jean is a fictional character who claims to be the mother of Michael's son, which isn't even proven to be true. Billy Jean pretty much defines all of the problems Michael has had with females claiming to have children by him. Many of them motivated by the money they could get out of him.(Billy Jean)
Michael describes Billy Jean as a beautiful girl."She was more like a beauty queen from a movie scene"("Michael Jackson Lyrics - Billie Jean.") Often times women like that gravitate to men with the credentials of someone like Michael Jackson to get something out of it. Majority of the time, it turns out like a situation like this one. So the only thing Michael could possibly do, is deny the accusation. He goes on to say, " Billie Jean is not my lover, shes just a girl who claims that I am the one. But the kid is not my son".("Michael Jackson Lyrics - Billie Jean.")
There is a lot of lyric representation throughout this song. For example when Michael says " Her schemes and her plans, cause we danced on the floor in the round".("Michael Jackson Lyrics - Billie Jean.") I think this represents the casual sex they possibly had. Which is why she is claiming the child is his. Of course Michael used different lyrics to paint that picture for the listener because most of his music and lyrics are clean, and I don't think he really planned to change that at all. Hes also been warned by witnessing this same thing happen to many famous men. He even received advice from his own mother about situations like these. "And mother always told me be careful who you love and be careful what you do because the lies become the truth".("Michael Jackson Lyrics - Billie Jean.") That last lyric has always stuck to me because lies can sometimes become true. Not true as in factual, but true as in you don't have the evidence or anything to prove it wrong. So it essentially becomes true by default.
Probably one of my favorite videos and songs by Michael Jackson. The video is posted above, so you can check out his crazy dance moves!
Works Cited
"MICHAEL JACKSON LYRICS - Billie Jean." A-Z Lyrics Universe. N.p., n.d. Web. 21 Feb. 2013
"‘Billie Jean’: Michael Jackson’s landmark single turns 30 | theGrio." theGrio | African American Breaking News and Opinion. N.p., n.d. Web. 21 Feb. 2013
"Michael Jackson Does The Moonwalk During Motown 25th Anniversary Concert | The Urban Daily." The Urban Daily | Black Music, Movies, Urban News, Celebrity & Hip-Hop. N.p., n.d. Web. 21 Feb. 2013.
As far as hip hop lyrics and messages within music goes, this track has to be one of the deepest to date. This song serves as a form of enlightenment for the listener. Early in the track you can hear Damian Marley using sarcastic lyrics in order to paint a picture of people posing as all knowing beings but not truly understanding the depths of what needs to be understood. "Some of the smartest dummies, cant read the language of the Egyptian mummies. Wanna fly go a moon and can't find food for the starving tummies." says Marley. "Pay no mind to the youth, cuz it's not like the future depends on it," he continues.(Nas) He uses witty wordplay to allow you to focus on the issues at hand that he feels aren't being paid attention to and also stating the things that should be of less importance relative to other obligations.
This particular song comes off of Nas and Damian Marley's collaborative project entitled "Distant Relatives" which was an album that went against the grain and had the purpose of bringing light to Africa, its cultures, and affects on people around the world. It also brought about understanding of the ancestral history that has recently been placed in the background by the youth. They attempted to use this project to also share a theme of togetherness and knowledge seeking through their highbrow lyrics and topics throughout each song on the album.(Distant)
The verse contributed by Nas on this track poses questions throughout. "Who wrote the Bible, Who wrote the Koran, and was it a lightning storm that gave birth to the Earth and then dinosaurs were born," he poses. "Who made up words, who made up numbers, and what kind of spell is mankind under," Nas continues.(Nas) Allowing you to think about this high end questions while listening and vibing to the music. They implement a little more than just beats and rhymes, they provide an informal open forum
Throughout the chorus of the song you can hear a chant of "Sabali" which in Swahili speaks to wisdom and patience.(Nas) There are many different aspects to this song that you would not expect of an ordinary hip hop record. This is definitely a cut that can stand the test of time just for the simple fact that its content can be used to broaden anyone's understanding or want to learn.
Works Cited
"Nas – Patience (Sabali) Lyrics | Rap Genius." Discover the Meaning of Rap Lyrics | Rap Genius. Web.
"Distant Relatives - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia." Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. Web.
This is a great feel good song. Probably one of my favorite from Coldplay. It was released as their third single off of the album "Mylo Xyloto". But there may be a deeper meaning to this song that one might not be able to recognize on the first listen. The video posted above certainly will help in understanding the lyrics. The song is almost like a story. A story about being young, wild and free. The video completely illustrates this. This is my interpretation of the song.
"We'll run wild, we'll be glowing in the dark".("COLDPLAY - CHARLIE BROWN LYRICS.") This represents everything about being young. Teens or young people are generally described as free spirited people. Which isn't always true, but in the right environment or surroundings, it is. The second part of that lyric talking about glowing in the dark is associated with a rave or party that young people attend. Which is clearly shown in the video. Raves are usually embodied with people wearing items that glow in the dark, or holding accessories that do the same. Raves are events where one can unwind and just have tons of fun.
The majority of the video takes place at a rave. The band Coldplay, stands in the middle partying with the young kids. The members of Coldplay arent that old, but I think them being in the middle of the rave symbolizes the contrast of young and old. They are almost encouraging them to just let loose and have fun. In essence, that is what Coldplay is all about, living life, learning, and making the best out of any situation; positive outlooks.
Works Cited
"COLDPLAY - CHARLIE BROWN LYRICS." Song Lyrics - MetroLyrics. N.p., n.d. Web. 7 Feb. 2013.
Tragedy and struggle can truly motivate one to be the best they can be. Its evident that this is what happened for artist Kanye West. On October 23 2002, Kanye's life changed for the worst. He was in LA at a music studio working on up and coming tracks for certain artists. It was about 3 am when Kanye decided to leave. Being extremely tired, he crashed head on into another vehicle. Luckily Kanye didn't die. He did have some serious injuries though. His face was completely damaged and unrecognizable. Kanye West was soon rushed to the hospital where they had to insert a metal plate into his chin, and his jaw wired shut. His jaw remained wired for two months. (Shmoop Editorial Team)
His jaw was even wired shut while recording the song "Through The Wire". A song inspired by the accident and the trials and tribulations of his life. The title itself even has a meaning of its own because he had to speak his lyrics through the wire, if that makes sense. The whole idea for the song sort of came to him while he was in the hospital. He was lying in the hospital bed, as he heard Chaka Khans "Through The Fire" on the radio. He sampled the lyrics from the original song to use for his chorus. (Shmoop Editorial Team) Though he slightly changed the lyric from "through the fire" to "through the wire". Both have the same similar meanings of beating hard times, and triumphing.
This song has a bevy of memorable lyrics. But one that sticks out to me the most is this one. "If you could feel how my face felt, you would know how mase felt. Thank god I aint too cool for the safe belt". Kanye is basically describing how much pain he was in from the accident. When he says " you would know how mase felt", he is refferring to how rappers mase and ghostface killa got into a fight, and resulted in mase's broken jaw. He is also saying that if it wasnt for the seat belt, he wouldve been dead.
The song was a hit, and sprung Kanye West from the backgrounds of being a producer, to being a household name. It was a single off College Dropout, which went on to sell 3 million copies in the US. (Shmoop Editorial Team)
Works cited
Shmoop Editorial Team. "Through the Wire Meaning" Shmoop.com. Shmoop University, Inc., 11 Nov. 2008. Web. 1 Feb. 2013.
