ENGL 1101 - Fall 2020 - Hip-Hop Reader - PEASE

The Video “Welcome To The Rodeo” by lil skies, starts on a road where a rose is on the side of the road and a bus come by and the rose turns to black. The rose turning to black symbolizing major change, and there’s a bus going down road as well, but the attention is still on the rose. The rose changing from red to black symbolized that a major change is about to come. The video has a vintage look to it, symbolizing that the old skies is in the past and that a new one is coming. The beat starts when lil skies bodyguard knocks on the door, the bodyguard is following him around symbolizing he is getting famous and he always needs one to follow him around. When lil skies comes out the bus he starts going over to a girl with roses over her head, and then goes to flashbacks from a different music video. Where the girl hurt skies and broke his trust and now, he doesn’t want nothing to do with her.     

(this is the rose dying on the road symbolizing the old skies is gone)

So, he keeps walking and the camera angle is following him the whole time, showing there’s no cuts in the video at all. There are people in the video from skies past that either helped or hurt in along the ways, and when skies leave their scene of the video, they start following him. Symbolizing that they want him now that’s has blown up and got famous. Lil skies says “now im eatin steak and shrimp, bitch, I aint eatin sloppy joe” he’s saying that he isn’t eating like he used to because he’s blowing up and getting him a fan base. Hints the people following him after he leave their scene. Another scene there a bunch of people coming up to skies wanting a picture and all hinting toward the fact that he’s getting famous.

(this was the only "fan" lil skies took a picture with in the whole video)

                   There’s another scene where skies and like 3 of his friends were rolling dice, basically saying that how he used to get his money like in the song he also said, “long night I used to sold drugs just to hit the studio” He’s saying that he had to do a lot to make money to go to the studio and record music. Skies says something in his song that really stuck out to me. He says, “I got tattoos on my face, I use that shit as motivation I could never get a job, so for my dream I dedicated” this line really sticks out to me, because he’s motivated to this dream so he got tattoos on his face so he can’t get a job now. He also says in his song, “for a second lost myself, I was too busy gettin’ faded” hints to back what I was saying before he’s dedicated to this dream and wants to get good at his craft.                           

(this scene is all of the fan behind skies symbolizing he's popping off)

          One scene in the video skies walks into a room, and closes the door and the camera zooms in on his bodyguard, and the beat gets really muffled. Symbolizing he was performing the song inside to people and you could hear it from outside and the bodyguard was blocking the door so nobody could get in. Towards the end of the video, All the people in the video that skies saw in the video. All met up in  a place and jumping up and down vibing to the music, and skies standing in front of them looking at the camera. Symbolizing that Skies fan base is growing and growing. At the very end of the video skies drives off in a nice sports car representing that he has money and all, but this was a really good video showing how skies is motivated to his dream and talking about his come up.

(this is his album cover)

Figurative language is commonly used in the song lyrics of any genre. Hip Hop is one of the most popular genres that I found uses it. Artists use figurative language to get their points across. In many songs, you can really hear and listen to them use figurative language. NF, also known as Nathan Feuerstein, is often referred to as a Christian rapper, but he prefers to describe himself as “a Christian who is a rapper”. NF’s “real” songs and lyrics allow him to separate himself from the crowd in the hip-hop genre. While some of his music has deeper meanings than others, “Intro III” is one of his deeper and more analytical songs. In the song “Intro III”, the lyrics verbalize the internal conflict between him and his fear, as well as his fight to bury it. He uses figurative language in this song to help listeners like us to get a better understanding of his problem. 

The figurative language in this song gets us in the mind of NF, and how he thinks and solves his problems. In the first verse it says, “I don't really wanna talk about it! Well, that's too bad now, Nate Shut Up!”. A lot of people can relate to what he is talking about in this verse. There are people in the world who struggle with doing things because of the voice that is always telling them no. This is nothing new for NF. He’s been struggling with his fear ever since his mom died at a young age. All his life NF has been struggling with fear. Another verse in the song is “'Cause I thought you had me in prison this whole time, but I'm the one holdin' the keys”. The meaning behind this verse is he’s saying that his fear isn’t going to beat him. He is going to bury it.

Metaphor plays a big part in this song. In one of the last verses on the song Nate says,” You’ll spend the rest of your life in my backyard or back of my mind, depends how you see it.” Nate likes to consider his mind as a mansion. He's saying that he’s putting the fear in the back of his mind where he can’t think about it, but he isn’t using like or as. When he says spend the rest of your life in my backyard, he is talking about the back of his mind. He also tells his fear that he doesn’t want to be controlled by it anymore. Nate has a song called “Mansion” talking about his mind and how he sees his mind as a mansion. Another verse is "Is it me or the fear talkin'? Ha! What a dumb question!” Nate, in this verse, is having trouble knowing who’s talking, if it's him or his fear. The onomatopoeia used shows that fear can’t physically talk, but it has a powerful hold on a person’s words or actions. This verse is relatable to a lot of people. 

Nate likes to consider himself as the voice for all the kids who are afraid to say things. Nate has a unique way of wording things in his songs that gets people to listen. Another verse in Nates song is, “You and I had it all mapped out in the basement Cryin' in your room like a baby”. Nate likes to say his fear got him where is now. All his music is based on stuff that has happened in his life. He always talks about how he’s scared to let people in, and his fear is a motif throughout his music. In this verse, NF uses a simile in order to show the trauma and despair that his fear has caused him. Another verse in the song is,” Let's pack our bags and go back to Gladwin now.” NF personifies the fear throughout the song. By personifying his fear, not only does it make for a more interesting song, but it also allows the reader to truly understand the monster that his fear is. By personifying the fear, it also allows NF to write the lyrics as if there is a constant verbal battle between NF and his fear. In this verse NF refers to the fact that Michigan is where he grew up. His fear is saying that, if Nate goes back to where it all started, it will get him ready for his third album. 

NF mainly uses imagery in order to allow listeners to truly understand the deeper meaning behind the song. We get to imagine what he is saying when he says it. In this verse of the song it says,” You don't like the prison I built you? Yeah, you wanna know what the funny thing is? You keep on talkin' to me like a stranger, but we've been together since you were a kid”. This is what makes Nate stand out from everyone. None of the new age rappers like to talk about their struggle. They like to talk about their money, clothes, cars, and girls. NF likes to talk about stuff people can actually relate to. 

In conclusion, Nate likes to use a lot of figurative language in his music, more imagery than anything else. This makes his songs so we can listen and see what he’s talking about. There is also the use of metaphors, personification, and many other rhetorical devices. Nate should get more credit for his lyrics and the meaning behind them. Overall, the figurative language NF uses allows listeners to gain a deeper understanding of his situation, despite whether they can directly relate to it or not. 

Rap… every time you turn on a rap song, all you hear them talk about is drugs, sex, and fighting. Song after song has proven that, and that’s what people’s kids nowadays are listening to and filling their minds with. NF doesn’t fall into this category; when NF raps, he talks about real things and real problems that he faces in his life. That is what sets NF apart from every other rapper nowadays. NF doesn’t like to curse or mention drugs, sex, and fighting. That’s why a lot of people don’t listen to NF because nowadays, people have this “perfect” rap idea in their minds with the drugs, sex, and fighting, and if you don’t rap about it then people aren’t going to listen to it. The rap community likes to listen to people like Da Baby, NBA YoungBoy, and people whose music just has a good rhythm to it and no meaning behind the lyrics. NF’s music makes you think, and not a lot of people like to think. 

Rap Culture Now Vs Old Rap Culture

Rap… every time you turn on a rap song, it seems like all you hear the rapper talk about is drugs, sex, and/or fighting. Song after song has proven that. This is the music that people’s kids nowadays are listening to and filling their minds with. Most of the rappers now don't even seem to rap about things that really matter. It’s like they are scared to talk about the authentic things, and rap about lyrics that mean something. I’m not saying that their music can’t be good. It has a good sound and rhythm, but music has a different meaning once you can relate to the lyrics. While most people say they like when the lyrics mean something, they are out here listening to people like Da Baby, NBA YoungBoy and other vulgar rappers who seem to only rap about things like drugs, sex, alcohol, or fighting. These are the rap “leaders” nowadays. While the real rappers, typically the older ones, don't fall into the modern-day rap category and can barely get a number #1 hit on the radio.

                                                                         NF is one of the rappers who doesn’t fall into this category; when NF raps, he talks about real things and real problems that he faces in his life. In one of NF’s songs he raps about how he was into all of the things that make a song blow up like drugs, sex, and fighting. He says, “Did it for a while wasn't into all the cussin' Tried to find who I was, bein' everything I wasn't, real life, yeah!”. By saying this he shows us that what sets him apart is that what he raps about is real life situations. NF doesn’t curse or talk too vulgar in his songs, but they have real life stories and more relatable lyrics. That’s why a lot of people don’t listen to him because they now have this “perfect” idea of rap in their minds with the drugs, sex, and fighting. It’s almost as if you don’t rap about those things then people aren’t going to listen to it. The rap community likes to listen to people like Da Baby, NBA YoungBoy, and people whose music just has a good rhythm to it and no meaning behind the lyrics. 

                                                                                 NF’s music makes you think, and not a lot of people like to do that. It’s like people are scared to address their problems, and that’s why NF still hasn't even gotten close to being categorized with rappers who follow the modern-day rapping patterns. In the song “Grindin” NF says ”You put me inside a room full of rappers, come back in five minutes I'ma be the only one still alive, with a note on my chest saying that I did it!” NF says this because if he starts rapping about his life, he would shock the mumble rappers. NF has an album called “The Search," and not a single song from that album blew up like a Da Baby song or an NBA Young Boy song did. Even if Da Baby or NBA YoungBoy did drop a song where they talked about real world problems, or something that I feel makes a difference, it most likely won’t blow up like a song about drugs, sex, money, or fighting does. It seems like our generation cares more about flexing than they do about the substance of the material.

                                                                                                                                                                   NF isn’t the only rapper who talks about important issues. Polo G is another artist similar to NF. He made a song called “I Know”. In this song, he speaks about his experiences growing up. This includes how his aunt molested him and many other personal situations that he went through. He says in his song,” Trauma got me fucked up, so I'm mentally unstable I got wrapped up in my emotions, now I'm tangled” Although it was a difficult topic to talk about, he understood that this style of rapping could possibly help someone else who went through similar situations, so he talked about it anyways. That’s another thing that sets Polo G apart from the rest of the community because he isn’t scared to admit that he’s messed up in the head. Even though Polo G does have some song where he raps about drugs and etc. He still falls under the real side of rap.  

                                                                                                          The style in which Polo G raps could be described as a mixture of the old rap style and the modern rap style. Although Polo G sometimes raps about sex, drugs, and fighting, he incorporates a meaning behind the lyrics as well that describe what he’s gone through and what he can do to solve it. When he raps about the real side of himself, the song typically does not flourish as much as his modern-day rap songs. He made a song called “Martin and Gina” recently and this song did better than the song “I Know” where he raps about real things. In the song “Martin and Gina” it's says, ”Girl, I can't wait 'til I get home to fuck the shit out of you.” This song has blown up on Tik Tok for just that one verse.  Even though Polo G did rap this song he stills falls under the category of “real rappers”. I think the rap community doesn’t like to think about their problems when they are listening to music. Even though it's good sometimes to think about those problems. It would be good to see the lyrics actually mean something, like back when rap just started and songs were basically stories being told. Maybe one day it will go back to where lyrics with meaning are more mainstream, and what people want to hear.

                                                     In conclusion, rap nowadays has drifted off from the real problems. The sex, drugs, and violence have become a normal for everyone. Nobody is worried about people's feelings or how people are doing. Hopefully there will be more songs that discuss real problems in the future and they will get more attention so rap music will go back to old rap culture.

Citations:

https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-album-reviews/nfs-the-search-is-a-one-note-depression-symphony-872720/

https://theconversation.com/mumble-rap-cultural-laziness-or-a-true-reflection-of-contemporary-times-85550

https://www.britannica.com/art/rap