Friday, January 9, 2009

Song Analysis

Nas a rapper who is from Queensbridge,NY. Started rapping in 1991 and still is going.Nas has created a song called "Rewind".In "Rewind" Nas sings the song in a backwards tone.Instead of starting from the beginning of what he did in the day he decides to start from the end.Such as in the first verse the beginning words are "the bullet goes back into the gun".This is a very interesting song.

In "Rewind" it tells a story about the day of Nas in an unusual way.So in the correct order it all starts off with Nas getting a call about this guy that his friends and him need to kill,"Ay yo son,ay yo son,you hear me, you hear me?Listen man this dude right on the block,right now,man.I found him right now,I see him right now!Lets kill him" is what the call sounded like.So Nas at this time was drinking vodka and hanging out with this girl.Then the phone would ring again and it was his friend named "jungle" he told him that the "Block your on enemies the" which is the enemies on your block and then said "Outside right we"or in other words we right outside.Nas grabbed his gun that was fully loaded.Here is when Nas then goes down to meet his friends who were in a van and they were listening to AC/DC and Stevie.

At this point Nas and his friends start to smoke "weed"."Jungle",Nas' friend says something crazy like "Go he there"or there he goes.The guy that they have been trying to kill is finally seen walking down the street with his arm around his girl.Nas opens the door to the caravan that hes in.He then takes out the gun from his hip.While the guy is now screamin "Shoot dont please" or in the correct order please dont shoot.The bullet comes out of the gun and into the guys chest.This is where the story ends.

This song is interesting and somewhat confusing because it is sung in the complete opposite direction that I have analyzed for you.So instead of the ending of the man getting shot he gets shot before anything else happens.Although Nas concentrated on making the entire song in a rewind motion he also still uses poetic terms in there too.Such as the entire song is a narrative song because hes telling the listeners a story.It also has imagery in there because you can actually picture whats happening by the use of Nas' words.Such as when he says "the bullet goes back into the gun".In "Rewind" by Nas there are many poetic terms and interesting views.This is a good song to listen to and try to put together what he is saying in the correct order.

Friday, October 24, 2008

Wu Tang song& analysis



Wu-Tang Clan widget by 6L & AM
Wu-Tang Clan is a rap group that emerged in the year 1993 in Staten Island.This group is made up of nine MC's who make music about vicious violence,and welcomed warped humor. "Tearz" one of thier songs shows some examples of how most of the time when something is going right,there is always wrong that follows.Such as in the chorus the lyrics are "After laughter,comes tears".In this case they are right.Talking about their day Wu Tang sings "we was laughing at all the girls that passed".But then it quickly changes to "(Hey Rakeem!)What?(Your brother got shot!)".This is a perfect example of "after laughter ,comes tears"because you really cant get put down worse than what he did.The second example shown is when they are at a party and his friend Moe has a little too much fun with two different girls.The first girl"Thelma"was when "he came out laughing with glory".But the song goes on ,and he continues to say "with Stephanie,like a whammy,he pressed his luck,Aint nuttin wrong but he got caught with H.I.V".Moe was laughing at first but once again someone has to cry and that's exactly what happened in this situation."No life to live,doc says "two more years," so now he suffers since he had his fun.
As most songs do "Tearz" describes two separate stories that have to do with problems in their life.The first example is when the guys little brother gets shot.He then goes on to describe the scene and puts an image in your head.For instance when he says "I ran frantically,then dropped down to his feet ,I saw blood all over,the hot concrete".Sadly this song goes on to show how he feels by saying "its always the good ones that have to die,I taught him ,all the bees and birds." Here they state that he feels really bad because he used to work down by the corner and his brother got shot by the same kind of people that he used to hang with.Now he wishes he could tell him he loved him.The next example i have that shows a problem in someones life is in verse two.Here they begin to talk about his friend Moe who slept with a girl "Stephanie" and then "he pressed his luck".Moe ends up catching "H.I.V" and now he only has "two more years " to live his life to the fullest for the mistake that he made.This song shows the problems that these two people had to face and go through as a challenge.
My last analysis about this song is that you should always be aware of what your doing and make sure its the right thing to do.As explained in the above paragraphs both of the situations that happen are things they had to go through because it wasn't right and they made mistakes.Such as in verse one where the boy gets shot.The little brother runs into a "crazy gunner" and gets stopped by him.The gunner then says "check it for the bag and the dough" to the other guys he was with.But the little brother says "No!!". This might have been the wrong thing to say.As much as he earned respect and stayed strong he ended up dying for something that he could've given the bag and money up and walk away with his life.My last example about this song and how they could've done the right thing is when Moe didn't "practice safe sex". If Moe did so he still could've been living instead of being put with a deadline to his life of two years.
To conclude "Tearz" by Wu Tang Clan shows a lot in the song.Not only does it tell you a story,but it also can make you think about different situations in life and what to do.This song has a point of view,imagery,and ironic views."Tearz" is a good song that can bring out many meanings.

Wednesday, October 1, 2008

Tupac lyrics& Analysis



2 Pac widget by 6L & AM

Tupac Shakur is a very well known rapper who passed on September 13th 1996 from being shot to death.But before this action he was a very inspirational rapper when it came to his words in the songs that he made.So to prove this to you I will analyze his song "Changes".In this song he has many point of views and imagery.Tupac Shakur's "Changes" is explaining racism, the life that he lives and how hes got to get money,and he tries to get the point through that people need to make a change.
In "Changes"by Tupac he explains the racism in the song very well.The first example would be when he says that "Cops give a damn about a negro?Pull the trigger,kill a n****,he's a hero".This shows that Tupac believes that the cops don't care about the African Americans and that really it would be one less person for them to deal with if one was to die.Another example that makes it really clear would be when he says"All I see is racist faces.Misplaced hate makes disgrace for races we under".In this quote he's saying the hate that people have makes that race look like they're bad people when really their not.The last example that shows the racism in the song that Tupac goes through is when he says"We ain't ready to see a black President,uhh.It ain't a secret don't conceal the fact...the penitentiary's packed,and its filled with blacks".At this point Tupac is saying that race is such a big deal that there wont be a black president because of all the people being racist.He also says that the jails are filled with "blacks".What Tupac is trying to say here is that the cops wont do much when its a white person causing a crime but the blacks get treated differently from that.Tupac Shakur has many examples of the racism in this song.
In "Changes" Tupac also describes how he has to go through everyday life trying to get money and just live.An example of this would be when Tupac states"I made a G today,but you made it in a sleazy way,Sellin crack to the kids ,I gotta get paid".This shows that people had to sell crack to get money to feed themselves at this time.But even Tupac believes its a bad way to get the money because he had to sell it to some kids.Another example that I have would be when Tupac says "Wake up in the morning and i ask myself ,Is life worth living?Should I blast myself?I'm tired of bein poor and even worse I'm black".Here he is trying to get the point through that being an African American is hard and hes living as a poor man that really cant get a job just because the color of his skin.Tupac actually asks himself if his life is worth living which shows you that he does have it hard.
Lastly to analyze this song by Tupac the most talked about subject that he brings up is how these people need to make a change in their lives to progress into a better life.A very good example stated would be"I wonder what it takes to make this one better place...lets erase the wasted.Take the evil out the people,they'll be acting right".Here at this point Tupac answer his own question of, what does it take to make this a better place to live?He believes that if there was no evil in people there would be a better environment.The most important piece that hes says for changes in life would be when he states that "It's time for us as a people to start makin' some changes.Lets change the way we eat,lets change the way we live and lets change the way we treat each other.You see the old way wasn't working so its on us to do what we gotta do to survive".At this point of the song its really the main piece because it explains the way that Tupac Shakur feels.Also it backs up the title if the song "Changes".He lists the changes that people should make in order for them to survive and make a difference in their lives.
To conclude this analysis Tupac Shakur is a rapper who explained his life and what he had to go through in his life through writing his songs.Out of all his songs this was one of the best well known that he created and made the most sense to people.Not only did this song make sense but it also got people thinking and were able to relate in some ways.This is what made "Changes" such a good song."Changes"by Tupace Shakur is a well described song that shows racism,life and money,and how to make changes.

Tuesday, September 16, 2008

Public Enemy Biography




"911 is a Joke"lyrics



Lyrics


Lyrics to "911 is a Joke " analysis:

Public Enemy a rap group that makes their music off of social problems explain their feelings in the song "911 is a Joke".A very good amount of people believed that this song is true about the police force.There are good situations that would explain why they feel this way.Public Enemy believes that the police are no good,selfish,and a joke.
Public Enemy raps about the police being a no good force.There are many situations that can follow this opinion.The first example would be when they start singing "Now I dialed 911 a long time ago,Don't you see how late they're reactin".This explains how they feel that they are no good because right off the back they start of with that line.Which states that 911 is always late.Another example that can be used would be "If your life is on the line they you're dead today".This just plainly shows if your in a situation where you could die then you probably will.If the police take that long then it shows that they really are no good and are pointless.
Public Enemy also writes about how the police are selfish.Examples that you could fall back on would be when they say "They don't care `cause they stay paid anyway".In this line they explain that the cops really don't care about you and don't need to rush because no matter what happens they are still getting money.Another line that can also be used is "Thinkin' you are first when your really are tenth,You better wake up and smell the real flavor".This line is explaining how you are never the first one they go for.Matter of fact the way they say it shows that even when the cops themselves come before you in an emergency.
The last thing that Public Enemy mentions the most in "911 is a Joke" is how they're a joke.For the first example would be "I call a cab 'cause a cab will come quicker"/This makes the police a joke because cabs take a long time to arrive which means if they rather call a cab the police take extremely long.The next example is "was a joke 'cause they always jokin',They the token to your life when its croakin".This line clearly shows that Public Enemy believes that 911 is a joke.
To conclude this analysis to "911 is a joke"by Public Enemy they truly dislike the police.Just the song title itself shows it,but when you go farther and look at the song it completes the questions that you would have in your head.Public Enemy has stated their opinion about the police but there are many people that disagree and think otherwise.What do you think?


Timeline:
*1982-Public Enemy formed
*1987-had a live show in London &Yo!Bum Rush the Show was released on Def Jam Records
*1989-spent time preparing 3rd album
*1990-released "Welcome to the terrordome"
*1992-band began to lose momentum as they toured 2nd leg of U2's 200 TV Tour &Flavor Flav was repeatedly in trouble w/the law
*1993-Public Enemy was an hiatus as Flavor attempted to wean himself off drugs
*1994-Flavor Flav returned in the summer
*1995-Chuck D retired Public Enemy from touring as severed ties w/Def Jam
*1996-released 1st debut album "The Autobiography of Mistachuck"
*1997-Chuck D published autobiography in the fall & also reassembled original Bomb Squad & began work on 3 albums
*1998-Public Enemy kicked off their major comeback w/their soundtrack to Spike Lee's "He Got Game"
*1999-"Revolverlution"was finally released in stores
*2005-CD/DVD combo "It Takes a Nation" appeared & the new album "New Whirl Odor"
*2006-"Beats and Place"appeared also