I remember there was one moment my brother, eager about music as he often is, was mentioning a line from a rap song he had heard recently that he really liked. Unsurprisingly, this sparked a comment from my mother about how much she hated rap. My father chimed in as well, noting that what he particularly couldn't stand was the arrogance and bragging. My mother notes that there's "just too much cursing".
In regards to the bragging, my brother gives the argument that's been given before: they strove so much to get where they are and came from so little; they've earned, to quote Kanye, the "right to be a little bit snobbish".
I ask whether Catcher In the Rye would be the same novel without Holden's candid expletives.
My father says he feels that's different.
I'd have to agree.
Granted, I think the notion has weight in the context of a well-put-together album such as Reasonable Doubt or the like. And I think there is something interesting and worth studying in seeing a genre – that is largely produced and put out by a group of people consistently kept economically deficient – should find a study of wealth to literally be a past-time. Kanye, in particular (or at least I'm most familiar with him), is rather good at illuminating the source of such consistent and, arguably, negative habits within rap.
However, – much as the sexism and misogyny in rap often tries to be explained away – I don't think all bravado can be so cleanly explained away. Some of it's irritating; and some of it really isn't healthy (within the culture of hip hop and for human beings in general, though I wouldn't say all of it is). And, in general, I don't think most of the bragging and trash talk can be explained with simply "You deserve to be able to do this".
I just don't care.
Granted, I grew up as a kid off of Detroit rap (largely because my introduction into rap was Eminem). So I have a particular affinity for rap battling. Add to that that Midwestern rap does have an appreciation punchlines and wordplay and that my second area of interest was East Coast rap, I have a large appreciation for clever wordplay and creative raps.
I really like trash talk, so long as the trash talker can back it up. Other than working on sentence structures in writing (in part because I'm more of a nerd than I know what to do with), there's a great rush from hearing someone talking about how great they are and then proving it. I dunno, I imagine it's the same rush most rap listeners (or, given the influence rap has had on pop music, any music listener of the 21st century) have to listening to someone brag. I guess it's some vicariousness we've got going on. I dunno.
But, for an example that makes more sense, there's also this real rush to hearing a really clever punchline or witty bit, particular those that make you have to think about it for a moment so that you laugh more than you really should once you get it.
I like the juvenile wordplay of Da Ruckus:
I told you once, but you forget so here's a flashback "You couldn't be shit, if you came out my asscrack"
Or Beastie Boys':
So put a quarter in your ass 'cause you played yourself
Or Juice's pun:
I haven't even started my reign: I'm only drizzling
Or even corny ones from Jay-Z that I still enjoy just because I somehow managed to miss it the first time around:
Flyer that a piece of paper bearing my name
Or other ones which I just can't seem to think of at the moment because I'm blanking.
Sometimes, you just want to hear good, old-fashioned, clever trash talk.
The vibe is unsettling: as soon as the verse cuts, I kill 'em with the medley and then ready the hearse up Overflowin' on the levy and it's ready to burst up: Those that wanna get me, wanna sweat me, get burned up I make 'em feel like they flows is in the amazon, On the land being stampeded, gettin' trampled on They can't beat it: so damn heated, they can't respond And I'm so damn weeded, I can't see 'em – so carry on…
Yerp, that'd be the stuff.
When it comes to rap, I've become a fan of saying that you should find someone's camp to plant yourself in.
There's a couple of reasons for this. One is the often personal nature of rap. It's seems to be one of those few genres in which every single album deals with the development of the artist and tends to be autobiographical to some extent. That's part of the reason, I would argue, that it was capable of becoming mainstream: people got caught up in what was happening to the artist. It's why someone can get interested in Dr. Dre from being a fan of Eminem despite never listening to nearly all of Dre's old material or being born after the intense influence he would have on the East and West Coast during the 90s. Em and Dre have a very close relationship and people relate to that.
The second reason is the inevitable rap politics. Biggie or Pac? Jay or Nas? East Coast, Dirty South, or West Coast? Who do you back, who do you support. While beef has done probably more to destroy the community than build it, harmless cliques form, as with all social circles.
As you guys might've caught on by now, I'm becoming a strong Lady Essence fan. When it comes to Pac or Biggie, I have to go Notorious B. I. G. Despite his faults and the fact that he could never hit mainstream for a variety of reasons, Biggie has too much talent for me to say no.
And, if my constant praises for Reasonable Doubt hasn't made it obvious, I'm a Jay-Z fan.
And it's largely Jay-Z that makes the recent collaboration album with Kanye, Watch the Throne, worthwhile for me. I may do an album review later of it, but, for now, I want to focus on one song.
Now, any fan of Jay has to admit several things out the gate: he has a habit of dumbing down his material just for sales. This often results in having to disregard tracks because they're just meant to make sales. It can be irritating because the man is capable of such talent, it's an insulting waste. He also seems to think that making a track likable for a large audience is just as important as his own artistic interests for the song, which sometimes results in him doing things which seem stupid which he actually thinks isn't dumbing down. He also has quite the ego, despite often sounding (to me, at least) like he's talking to you rather than at you on most songs.
Which is what makes "Welcome to the Jungle" such an interesting song (and reason enough for Watch the Throne to have been made, as far as I'm concerned).
It just may be the most open and honest Jay has been since "Regrets" from Reasonable Doubt (which immediately makes me wonder if he's acting it but I suppose we'll never know).
The Jungle in question he is in the same sense as the Upton Sinclair novel The Jungle and the Guns N' Roses song "Welcome to the Jungle": a city.
What's interesting is that Jay does nearly the whole thing and the complete unraveling with which he does it, making it instantly interesting for its emotional appeal alone. Well, for me, in any case.
The first line Kanye lets off is, "I asked her where she wanna be when she 25: she turned around and looked at me, and she said, 'Alive.'", possibly alluding to Outkast's song "Da Art of Storytellin' (Part 1)".
Jay and Kanye's first verse just set the details, painting for us the projects and the social enviroment therein. Jay proclaims, "Look to the sky, ask why I was born." It's heavy-handed emotionalism that may be, well, uninteresting, particularly considering the often suave persona he's always put on even in the face of discussing these topics in the past.
Yet it's the often personal way he drives them that makes them interesting. The surrounding lyrics contain the fantastic wordplay he's been known for and detail poverty which everyone seems to know of and be aware of (yet never care about). It's his nihilism (both in delivery and lyrics) in response to things that were supposed to have meaning that makes the song so resonant.
"Where the fuck is the sun? It's been a while Mama, look at your son What happened to my smile?"
Frankly, there's something incredibly terrifying about the statement, as if such a thing could just one day leave. And it drives at not only the poverty but the mental affect of such poverty.
Yet it's also the simplicity of the statement, which drives home how basic the emotional need is. And its in that baseness that its loss is so tragic, because it's so needed and is yet deprived.
"My tears is tatted My rag in my pocket I'm just looking for love: I know somebody's got it"
Again, an almost naïve statement, as if love has to be there somewhere. If it's not evident, then somebody has to be hiding it. The statement also gets at how we're promised certain things in life, from the media to community values. Everyone is going to succeed someday, right? Everyone gets an education, right? Everyone gets to fall in love, right? So assured do we become in these promises that life literally doesn't make sense when it defaults on them. Of course I get love: just where is it?
"I'm losing myself I'm stuck in the moment I look in the mirror: My only opponent"
These two bars were the most interesting to me. Anyone acquainted with Jay's ego knows that a statement such as this would be quick to be said. He doesn't actually have any rivals: he's too good.
Yet in the context of "Welcome to the Jungle", the line takes on a very different connotation. During a song in which he's been trying to make sense, following a few lines where he's trying to reclaim control, the line becomes a self-admonishment. He can do better than this, if only he'd try harder. But it also gets at the inner demons he has to struggle with, thereby making himself his own opponent. Excellent turn on the phrase.
And it's with such emotional bluntness that he makes this track easily my favorite on the album. It's here, if anywhere, that you get a true human connection with Jay, making real the message of the song.
"Where the fuck is the press? Where the fuck is the Pres.? Either they don't know, or don't care: I'm fucking depressed No crying in public Just lying to judges Risking my life: I'm already dying, so fuck it"
It's official; I'm buying Lady Essence's album soon as it drops. The girl is rather fantastic (that being an understatement - did you hear her verse??), and I have a strong feeling she's only going to get better. I need to cobble together a playlist of her stuff to keep me sane.
Alyssa Marie doesn't seem that bad either, though I'm far less familiar with her. "Vision of division of the artificial until what's art is official". Loved that. She's got a pretty controlled and solid flow, too.
And, just for old time's sake:
I've noticed over the past 4 years that the number of cover, remix, and simply related videos to "Feelin' it" have gone up on YouTube. While that's great, predictably all remix/covers eschew the layered character development that Jay employs in favor of purer partying or bragging. The more time passes, the more strongly I come to love this track.
I'm not even sure this picture makes any sense...but it looks really cool.
So, I've mentioned many (many) times on here, often in (sometimes snide) off-handed remarks, that I think very (very) highly of the album Reasonable Doubt by Jay-Z. The natural follow up question would be, "Why?"
If you even remotely know me, you'll know that I often and readily complain about pop music. While I think there can be decent arguments made in defense of it (and the stuff often makes fantastic character studies, as you'll see soon enough), I think most of it (if not all of it) is the industry and often artists trying to cash in on a quick buck. This is particular true for rap music. For a genre that was born out of the really screwed up black experience starting back towards the 70s, it was not a genre that should have gone commercial so soon.
While Rock 'n' Roll (amongst other genres) were able to articulate (initially) uncomfortable human experiences and taboo emotions in a relatively safe, artistically healthy, and (often) sane way, rap has taken all the gritty and uncomfortable aspects of (majoridly) black life in America - you could make an argument for just referring to it as urban life these days, though that notion steals away some importance from the origins of what birthed this monstrosity - for the past 4 decades and blasts it in defiance, realized it can capitalize off of it, and, in a mix of the mentality of getting out any way you can and honest gusto, twisted and convoluted the stereotypes that came to frame the genre and cemented them. Again, fascinating to study, not so good in terms of being an art-form.
That's why something life "Airplanes" by B.o.B. feat. Haylay Williams or even "Billionaire" by Travie McCoy feat. Bruno Mars (even though the honest reciting of the mental effect of being starved of monetary value on the latter song does honestly annoy the Hell out of me) are welcome changes to the scene of rap. After all, the genre was built off of sampling music.
To quote No Good Advice, "after all, techno was invented by escapist black kids in Detroit who were obsessed with Kraftwerk, and disco bands like Chic (as if the name wasn't enough of a clue) based their aesthetic on a Roxy Music-derived euro-penthouse cool a million miles removed from '70s funk. Disco evolved into house, and early hip-hop went from sampling Chic to assimilating European synthpop and inventing electro. Only in the late '80s did acts like Boogie Down Productions, Eric B & Rakim and Public Enemy transform hip-hop's sonic palette by dropping the more synthetic elements in favour of samples from pre-disco funk, particularly James Brown."
That rap might sample rock or use rock influences only recalls back the (rather thin and in the past) connection they have from being birthed out of the conglomerate of many jazz influenced genres, of which include funk (Jimi Hendrix, anyone?).
However, as No Good Advice also (rather well) points out both here and here, recent pandering to both rock and Euro-pop/dance influences seem to be, once again, intents to just sell as much as possible and appeal to as large an audience as possible. I've considered, quite seriously, of using the phrase Artistry is Dead for the past decade. Leastwise, it seems, when it comes to commercial rap.
There's a reason some rap-heads get caught in a certain time frame. In the 90s, they were complaining that rap had died and it should go back to the 70s/early 80s. The entire past decade, we've wondered what happened to Hip Hop's golden age and why we can't go back to the 90s.
And, admittedly, rap for me still is turn-tablism/sampling and lyricism (flow, wordplay, and rhyme) - gritty production and sparse sampling. But the sampling has changed; that's fine, even to be expected. I don't want to mire the genre. Better production or sampling outside of jazz/funk is not going to make me say that it isn't Hip Hop or bad rap. But, while the production towards the end of this decade has shot utterly up in quality (it had to - that's how they sell), I have yet to get any decent lyricism. Leastwise, not to an astounding extent. And, I mean, the production has been good. Kanye almost never ceases to amaze on that end and, while I dislike the song, the production on "What You Say" by Jason Derulo is enough to make my legs go weak.
But, I'm a Hip Hop purist. I want lyrics. I grew up off of underground Detroit rap. I grew up listening to freestyles done in random radio studios in low-lo-def quality. I've listened, readily, to tracks with so much noise that you can barely make out the mc.
At the end of the day, I breath lyricism. Often times, a track (that has a heavy beat/percussion) without sufficient rap over it won't cut it for me. I almost wanted to personally thank Kanye at the beginning of "Good Morning" because he had finally used multi-syllabic rhyme out of all the songs I had listened to of him at the time (it was like, "Please, do something relatively lyrical!!").
As you might guess, I love the Hip Hop culture (and how rap fits into that). But I'm not above calling out its flaws. That's part of the reason I do find myself often looking for alternative rap. I just want good rap, even if that rap has ventured into new places so that only the roots are still present (much like jazz and funk did with the blues, only less so).
So, while I love 90s rap...I can't just straight up say that it's satisfying.
"Juicy" by the Notorious B. I. G. is a great song...but ultimately it's the basic rags to riches story. Admittedly, I love (rather guiltily) "Got a Story to Tell" and it's a fantastic demonstration of a minimalist beat and the power of story telling and delivery in rap. But it also furthers the black-on-black harm so prevalent (and socially ingrained) in the black community and the way that it continually diverts attention away from the real problems that could be dealt with.
"N. Y. State of Mind" offers one of the best phrases out of rap (I still have a hard time thinking it's not some common saying made up a longer time ago) - I never sleep, 'cause sleep is the cousin of death. Plus "Never put me in your box if your shit eats taps" remains one of my favorite (and best delivered) punchlines ever. Not to mention the production is defining, iconic, and to die for. But beyond that...damn it, I just can't get into this song. The description of the shoot out always seemed corny to me and the album as a whole doesn't seem to tell me anything or give me any useful character insight. It's a vague description of a poorly defined immature youth that doesn't give me any sympathy for him. Maybe they were right in that you couldn't understand it unless you lived it - but I still don't see how that's not a flaw in the album.
Sure, "Dear Mama" by 2Pac is a touching song. But this is also the same guy who proclaimed so loudly "M.O.B. - Money Over Bitches 'cause they breath envy" along with many other equally questionable lyrics.
And, yes, The Chronic articulated the culture at a time when no one was listening - it's lyrics are still utterly ugly.
Now, I'm being cursory. I've never believed in so black and white of arguments. But, for being cursory, this is accurate (of the stuff I've mentioned). Hip Hop had an amazing ability to bring out important aspects - without ever resolutely dealing with them. My brother recently showed me rapgenius.com. And it actually has had me gain slight more respect for artists such as Lil' Wayne. But I still stand by my previous statement.
So...why Reasonable Doubt? It's the only album that provides lyricism and a greater sense of subject mater that resolutely deals with itself rather than seeming to be a spewing of streaming consciousness laid out on a track.
Not to say that hasn't been done before. "Somebody's Gotta Die" by Biggie is a perfect song, as far as I'm concerned. While not necessarily preachy or with a sense of preaching, it details the situation with realism (and beautiful story telling) while keeping the cold facts of reality in the picture (i.e. yes, violence opens up many possibilities and opportunities - but you're not the only one living in this world and others will be affected); this was what seemed to have fallen out of the picture on "Niggas Bleed".
Which isn't to say Reasonable Doubt is a perfect album either. Admittedly, I'm still trying to wrap my head around how Jay ever though "Cashmere Thoughts" ever fit on an album about hustling. Yet, outside of two songs, Reasonable Doubt presents an album that acutely focuses around a topic and, through the tracks, examines and assesses this topic through what seems like a very solid and singular character. It's a fascinating personality study that has so many aspects that seem so utterly intended so aware that I have a hard time thinking that much of this album could have been done on accident. And, really, this is mostly clearly illustrated on "Feelin' It".
"Feelin' It" is the track I give to people who I want to hook into the album (or just rap in general). Backed by the smoothest piano loop possibly ever, it sounds just gorgeous and catchy, complimented by a hook by Mecca that just tops it off. It's a clear demonstration of sampling back in the 90s and the essential origin of rap, yet it doesn't have the still blatant evident sound that it is only one piano snippet looped over and over (unlike "D'evils", which sounds like it was picked freshly off a record, with the scratching and all). In fact, for the longest time, I even thought it had accompaniment melodies until I really listened to it. Yet it's not as seamless and complex as "Can I Live". Beautiful Hip Hop still evident, from a purely physical level.
And, with such an instrumental, it sounds like it should be nothing but bragging. Rather foolishly, on my review of Reasonable Doubt, I said that's all it was. It feels good, doing it's basic task really well. Not much wordplay, but the flow is righton (and incredibly hard to imitate). Plus his delivery, the enthusiasms in his voice, are all perfect. Not to mention it's some of the most intricate rhyme-wise that Jay ever gets. It does the job.
How deceptive.
Surely, it is bragging. It starts in the first bar, notably, "Crystals on ice; I like to toast, I keep on spilling it." The decadence is clear, as he actually brags about how tipsy he is. The most offensive line of the song comes with, "Transactions illegitimate 'cause life is still a bitch/And then you die - but for now, life, close your eyes and feel this dick..." Yet, his character is so firmly planted there. The delivery is perfect - he almost pulls it off so that it sounds like a classy and cool comeback.
Admittedly, it's the addition of the alliterative, almost fast-paced rhyme that makes it so damn catchy. Just listen to this:
Since diapers, had nothing to live for like them lifers but Making sure every nigga stay rich within my cipher We paid the price to circle us, success - they turned my mic up I'm about to hit these niggas with some shit that'll light they life up If every nigga in your clique is rich, your clique is rugged Nobody will fall cause everyone will be each others crutches
On its own, it's not all too impressive. Admittedly, there's something to like about a confidence so large that you think you can enlighten another's life ("I'm about to hit these niggas with some shit that'll light they life up"). And the crutches line is barely ingenious, maybe a clever spur-of-the-moment quip. But backed with his delivery and the seductive rhyme, you can't help but enjoy it (I mean, listen to that rhyme! "that'll light they life up" Oh, that's so delicious...). Again, he has the gall to claim the ability to provide enlightenment ("I hope you fools choose to listen; I drop jewels, bust it/These are the rules I follow in my life: you gotta love it"). And then you can't help but smile at the last bar:
Jiggy-jigga looking gully in the joint If y'all niggas ain't talking bout large money, what's the point?
Even if it's just rhyming shit several times, the vocab and choice of words here is immaculate for every section of the verse. The use of gully and then the confident quip of confidence at the end continue to be addicting. Admittedly, this is well done bravado, artistically well done (even if not escaping the offenses that bravado can bring). It's not the blunt, often uninventive stuff you often hear now. There's definite talent being employed here.
The second verse continues the absurd over-confidence with "Even if it ain't sunny - hey, I ain't complainin'/I'm in the rain, doing a buck 40, hydroplanin'" (I said to my brother once, and I repeat now, "hydroplaning"? Who rhymes that??).
And almost as another blatant show of confidence, he pulls off using "shit" several times in a row on the ending, stressed rhyme:
Ya feelin' it? To all the girls that bought a girdle to conceal my bricks No doubt, they can vouch, my life is real as shit 95 South and Papi on the Hill and shit And all the towns like Cambridge that I killed with shit And all the thorough-ass niggas that I hustle with Throw your joints in the air one time and bust your shit These fake rappers can't really know I'm lovin' it; ya feelin' it?
Yet notice that last line. They can't know that he's really loving it? Since when, once, in this song did he lead us to think otherwise? In fact, he's made it seem like the totally best thing in the world! From being able to drink Crystal until you can't stand up straight, to being as real as it gets with all the illegal activity - I thought he was living the life, right??
Enter the third verse. Interestingly enough, of all things, he bring up his mother: "I keep it tight for all the nights my momma prayed I'd stop/Said she had dreams that snipers hit me with a fatal shot". Yet he brushes it off immediately with, "Those nightmares, ma..." And yet, he immediately contradicts his claims that there's no reason to worry with, "Those dreams that you say you've got - give me the chills/But these mils, well, they make me hot. Y'all feel me". But I don't think we do at this point. That statement of "Y'all feel me" sounds more like a weak attempt at reassurance.
And notice that. For a character who was confidently telling us what to believe, what we should do in terms of him, he's now asking us for reassurance. It's not a demand anymore - it's seeking confirmation. His statement are no longer (really) rhetorical, though he might be trying to pass them off as such.
And then the interesting line - "Enough to stop the illin', right?" I personally think he's referencing a desire to turn to drugs. Yet the connotation is clearly negative here. Illin' is now being used as a negative phrase, a desire for drugs, acknowledging that they hurt your body. And yet the irony is delightfully there - usually illin' is used as a slang for "killin' it" or something of that nature. Or you're "ill" if you have tons of money. But this line is immediately followed by "But at the same time these dimes keep me feelin' tight". Sounds a little confusing, right? He agrees. This is immediately followed by this almost diminished, "I'm so confused..."
Wait, hold up? What happened to our ridiculously pompous and confident individual? The confidence is completely gone. The character is confused, backtracking over what he's said and retracting statement. If you want anymore evidence, look at the next bar: "Okay, I'm getting weeded now: I know I'm contradicting myself/Look, I don't need that now". He seems paranoid (which might make sense, seeing as that line is followed by: "It's just once in a blue moon when there's nothing to do...and/The tension gets too thick for my sober mind to cut through").
When I first noticed this, it seemed far too important a distinction to let go. I mean, think about it. We're used to rap by now. We're used to the notion of bragging and saying you're the best. We're used to singles (this was a single when the album came out) being used to generate buzz and fitting a certain format. In fact, clearly Jay did, seeing as the clean (e.g. censored) version of the song actually has a completely different ending. Without spoiling too much in the next paragraph, let's just say that the fantasy he dreams about is presented as real in the clean version. And that's significant! Even he knows that won't sell. You have to be determined to put this in here and you have to be aware that you are completely undermining the very instrumental and hook that you're using.Are you feelin' it...I'm actually calling into question entirely what I've just bragged about. Umm, what? Most radio listeners don't like introspective (leastwise, not too much) characters. They want it nice and easy, black and white.
But it gets better. After puffing some weed, Jay gets
...to zonin': me and this chick on the L and then we're bonin' I free my mind; sometimes I hear myself moanin' Take one more toke and I leave that weed alone, man It's got me goin'! Shit...
Whoa. Did he just admit to masturbating to himself while high? Mr. "hit these niggas with some shit that'll light they life up"? I don't think that's what they had in mind, Jay.
And that's the beauty of the track. It builds up this overly confident, borderline unlikable character - just to utterly rip him down. That's the life? Masturbating in your room alone, dreaming about a girl because of the stress? I particularly love (and, of course, his delivery of) the line, "I free my mind; sometimes I hear myself moanin'". It perfectly catches that emotion notion - that idea of accessing his own emotions. He frees his mind and sometimes he can hear himself moaning. It's an eerie image. But it notes that he's hiding from his own activity. And yet, that activity is the only recognition of his own feelings (when he's, otherwise, pretending life is just peachy for everyone else). He's hiding from it but at the same time he sounds like he's looking for it, trying to find it. It's ambivilent.
And it's such miniscule details like that that make this track so delightful. And, in its own way, it captures it all. If you wanted a track which got at the reality of black life (in this case, hustling drugs), this is the type of track that does it well. That "feel this dick" line doesn't sound so harsh to our sensibilites because we know it's a cover up, a show. We're allowed the bravado while really getting to the inside of the character and understanding him, given the reality with the fiction.
Complex, artistic, perfectly executed and well done, plus musically sound - THAT is what rap should be. Screw that commercial junk.
I said on here once, a year or more back, that one of my all-time top songs was "Trouble In Paradise" by Bruce Springsteen. I then proceeded to post the lyrics and left it at that.
So, I guess just because it's late and this song is literally festering itself into my veins and also because I usually never do a post that really opens up about me except rarely (or one of my very often vague or difficult-to-articulate complaints about depression), I'll explain it a bit more.
I guess, principally, it's like many of the other things I adore - it's a conglomerate mess of contradictions (or, more specifically in its case, unexpectations) that shouldn't work and yet do, plus it's utterly just joyful in the pleasure it provides.
First and foremost, as the title "Trouble In Paradise" seems to imply, it's not the most uplifting song. However, if you weren't paying attention, you would think quite the opposite. The music, while simplistic, is utterly infectious. It just sounds utterly quaint and upbeat. It's the type of song I'd put on if I were languidly cleaning or cooking something in the kitchen - and enjoying every minute of it. It's just bouncy and pleasant. Really, it has the same effect that "Frankie" does (which, honestly, is really difficult to describe unless you listen to it), though Frankie has a bit more of a complicated arrangement.
And I suppose that's what adds to my liking it. I have a thing for quaint and small (metaphorically/symbolically (as in lowered expectations for art) or literally) things which literally have no flaw. For example, an EP which only has 7 tracks and every track is great musically and maybe brings you a little into a new world. It's not perfect: first and foremost, it doesn't try to be the utter best it can be. Yet it has no actual detractions. You can't say the music is bad, even if it's not better than it is. There are some interesting themes, even if they aren't explored completely or aren't expansive enough. It's quaint.
The issue I have? I've become very picky and demanding in my art. I will certainly enjoy the piece. But it's not something I can show someone to fully experience the true power of art. If we're looking and aiming for the best - well, it's not it. It's the difference between the breath-taking experience of Reasonable Doubt vs. Straight From the Lab EP. So, I'm immediately pulled to the song. And that's another one of the wonderful contradictions I love about "Trouble In Paradise" - it's deceptively simple. Sure, the instrumentation (very much) is. But the themes (and, if you couldn't tell by now, the emotions it can evoke) aren't.
So, while the song sounds catchily upbeat...well, the first bar and a half starts with:
You do the drying I'll do the dishes... Who'll do the crying when all them wishes don't come true?
Uplifting, yes? The song deals with relationships and the responsibilities therein. Yet, the lyrics are just as simplistic and quaint as the music as well as delightfully abstract. As you might glean from the bar and a half above, it starts with washing and drying dishes...and then talking about crying over unfulfilledwishes??? Yes, honey, I know I promised you a new washing machine, but we just can't afford one yet (because all wives want new home devices for doing chores at home - all women; silly feminists).
No, rather the chores and jobs littered throughout the song ("You do the washing/I'll do the folding"/"You did the dusting/I did the sweeping") stand for basic jobs that might occur throughout a relationship (caring for the other person, being receptive, doing favors for them, etc.). Likewise, a series of similarly abstract disasters occur throughout the song:
You do the washing I'll do the folding Whose heart is breaking when whose arms are holding someone new?
Sittin' on a peaceful lakeside Didn't hear the roar of the waterfall come in When it's all a storybook story When it's all so easy and nice
Here comes Trouble in Paradise
[...]
You did the driving - oh, and I did the sleeping a little too long
On a picnic 'neath a sky so blue We didn't see the rain and heartache coming through When it's all a black and white movie And you're sure you've seen the ending twice
Here comes Trouble in Paradise
I just love the imagery. I remember, back in probably around middle school (kinda weird thinking it's actually been that long since I read it), I read this book. I would actually like to re-read it, if I ever I remembered what it's called. But, towards the end of it, in trying to convince this boy to come out and be social (his brother abused him for the longest time), she remarks that the movie is an old black-and-white where everything turns out alright in the end and life is good.
And it's such a great symbol, in that light. Everything was fine and dandy, right? Just go on auto-pilot, fall into comfortable routines and things will proceed just fine? But no...you were sleeping too long, imbuing neglect. And the rain came down in showers. The language is, in essence, very simplistic - but I just love that vivid second to last stanza above. It evokes such images and emotion.
And, speaking of, Bruce once again demonstrates his ability to nail a performance just right, in a way that really aids in how you see the song. In as close to literal as the song every gets, he delivers perfectly:
You said everything was fine I'm sorry, baby, I didn't see the signs Oh, so beautifully you read the lines... In a play where the hero has no vice And love comes without a price
So does Trouble in Paradise
That second line - it's like the line "I'm a thief in the house of love and I can't be trusted!" in "Roll of the Dice". It's delivered so perfectly, capturing the frustration and desperation as well as the regret all together, and then followed by the next line in regretful defeat.
It's all so beautifully descriptive, so that even the abstract way of telling it adds to the message it's trying to convey, in how it tells us how easily "all of love's glory and beauty/Can vanish before you think twice" from forgetting that basic notion of any relationship - it's give and take. There are certain obligations when it comes to caring and leaving the mess cleanup for the other guy (metaphorically speaking), whether intentional or accidental, obviously isn't going to leave him or her feeling satisfied or cared about. Even that simple title does the excellent job of getting to the emotional root of it all - Trouble in Paradise.
It's really a great song and I won't ruminate on the rest of the lyrics so you can enjoy them yourself.
Alright, I'm speaking as someone who'd been an Eminem fan since I first heard him - just quite rap, Em.
You've stopped being the only beacon of talented rap and just become part of the crap that's garbage music that's been oozing out of the industry these days. Recovery was utterly awful.
We didn't like you because you were offensive - we liked you because you were purposely and intentfully offensive to prove a point, had a remarkable keen eye for biting satire, and a level of talent not seen since Biggie (yeah, I said it).
Stop being offensive, get an actual flow, and stop laying God-awful punchlines on us (go study Reasonable Doubt or something). I'm sorry, Recovery was offensive to me, it was so bad. You're supposed to mature as an artist, not regress.
So, Eminem, Li'l Wayne, and Drake performed at the Grammys, I was informed:
On the comments of this video, someone had said, "Great moment in hip-hop."
Is that so?
For a genre that was founded on pushing boundaries and trying to bring awareness to issues that - quite frankly - the country didn't give a damn about hearing, it's kinda embarrassing as a rapper to hear Wayne censor every two words of his song. Now, of course, he's not (by any means) using cuss words in any purposeful fashion. Jay-Z's immortal "I kept feeding her money until her shit started to make sense(cents)" both utilizes the words for double entendre and are aptly appropriate for the character construction in the song. Further, since cuss words are words of frustration, often enough they can be utilized for the appropriate show of anger.
But fine, it's not the ideal use of the words and, let's face it, you can't hope to go mainstream if you don't censor yourself a bit. Plus there are ways to subvert this concept through censorship.
Let's focus on the quality of the verses instead. ...haha. Other than Eminem, they SUCK. And I feel I have to be that blunt, that big, that obnoxious about this, I really do. Because rap is a beautiful genre which really calls on the voice as an instrument and speech as a form of rhythm and delivery in a skilled fashion - yet we are utterly unaware of this.
Yes, rap became commercial, hit the mainstream, etc. Yay! But at what cost? Alright, the songs are somewhat angsty. Teens like angsty, right? Forget actually knowing what they're talking about, it sounds nice, though. No, seriously, I mean, did you hear Drake's rhyme schemes? Anyone who starts off with "Last name 'Ever'/First name 'Greatest'" should not be allowed to touch a mic again. You call that wordplay?? And then you continue that pace of rhyming for the rest of your short verse??
I know Wayne got famous for his use of wordplay - but I don't hear any. Honestly, Em puts these two to shame. Intensive rhyme schemes and unique flows, he's the only one pushing himself in this current music industry as an artist (even if his subject matters are treading old ground without the same amount of focus often...).
Alright, fine, but this is just rap. The commenter said hip hop (as in the culture), right?
Now, I'll admit - I actually like the polished, computerized beat. I like the harmonized singing which is pure pop. Culturally speaking, these are not hip hop (though they are hip pop). Actually, I wouldn't mind them becoming a further part of hip hip (and, let's face it - computerized beats are pretty much hip hop by now).
Admittedly, I really like alternative rap. I like lyricism. For me, I like hearing words rhymes. Show me how you move around the beat, give me an impressive flow. That's why Linkin Park's Reanimation is still something I listen to. More of a hybrid between what's emerged as rap these days and old school hip-hop, it's got fantastic lyricism for a lot of its songs, plain and simple. I can't understand most of what Curse is saying - but Hell, the guy knows how to rhyme and that's a pretty damn impressive flow:
And, yes, Flobots doesn't sample (though using live instruments gets a similar result, the point is that it's different from the cultural roots of rap in terms of creation), but they're pretty insane lyricists.
But rap in terms of the culture has changed greatly. As HipHopDX put it about Beastie Boys' Paul's Boutique, an album like that can never happen again. The amount of samples used can't be recreated simply because of copyright laws. Whereas beats used to be taken from carefully chosen drum work on different songs, now they must be created on the computer, making them mostly sound the same and not as authentic.
Nas's New York State of Mind or Jay-Z's Can I Live (it's the song playing on my profile page) or Brooklyn's Finest are very hard to come by again.
Further - well, the subjects just aren't the same that they were. I'm not saying we need to bring back Afro-centric lyrics, though they did bring out the plights of the ghetto and racism, just as the Hip Hop Renaissance brought out the frustrations of the crack generation, poverty, and even larger increasing crime (even if not in as focused a manner as the Golden Age of Hip Hop did).
And it's there that the notion of this moment being great for hip hop becomes downright ridiculous. Lack of any genuine revolutionary change, a major departure from the roots of the culture, a crowd cheering at these things with (likely) a complete lack of knowledge of the culture and its roots, and reduced and skipable subject matter - this is a great moment for hip hop for you?
Hell, in terms of rap, even - it's pretty bad. Like I said, Eminem's the only salvageable piece of this. Reasonable Doubt being performed at Radio City by a live orchestra was a great moment for hip hop. This was not.
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