“Music oft hath such a charm, To make bad good and good provoke to harm.” -William Shakespeare (Measure For Measure, 4.1.14)

Of Fiddles and Flutes

Everyone was given a fiddle and a flute,
but only a few learned to play.
They practiced with bellowed bows and whimsical wands,
and learnt more of their incredible instrument’s ways.

‘The Pipers‘, they called them.
They played their tunes without causing affright,
Until their fingers bled on through the scorching afternoons
and later, froze by the bitter cold nights.

They persisted still, without peril or pause,
humming to their ‘divine’ tune.
And the more the others listened,
the more they seemed subdued.

The Pipers radiated a certain charm,
a delusional melancholic delight;
that infatuated even the most nefarious Cobras
and could give the bravest of Lions, the fright.

They can scout others of their kind,
in a moment’s notice, straight off the bat.
Gaze in their eye’s while they play;
and you”ll be enraptured,
before the drop of a hat.
– Lycanlover

That was a poem on the power of persuasion that music, in general seems to possess. Music can be used to motivate and stimulate or depress depending on the varying individuality of people and their circumstances. It honestly doesn’t matter which genre you choose to listen to. I think all music, even the mainstream pop stuff is still music. Sure, it may not be you’re preferred flavor but hey, to each his/her own right? That’s exactly why I’m not mad at Justin Bieber or Nicki Minaj. Sure i’ll be honest, i’m not their biggest fans. However, I’ve seen enough of their older work on you tube, way before they got famous; to know exactly how talented they really are. Like most mainstream artists they’re just doing what the producers and label records from the music industry tell them to . Why? Why would anyone go through all the trouble of writing music with no altruistic or morally enhancing purpose? Why make it just for the sake of putting some lyrics that don’t make any sense whatsoever; with a catchy beat to create this chimera that today’s generation calls music?

The answer is simple really. The music industry is a Business. Like almost every other business out there , they are out to make a Profit and thus sustain the corporation and induce company growth, so on and so forth.Well it’s fine if they want to make a few bucks. Everyone’s got to make a living somehow right. Survival of the fittest and all that. But why not put out something extravagant? Especially today, when we’ve taken huge technological strides and  have a whole plenitude of electric instruments and digital sound editing systems that our previous generations lacked. We should in essence, be making music that is superbly amplified by our technological advancement.

Sadly, It’s not just lacking content and resourcefulness but has stepped onto a platform of elevated sexuality. Compare album covers or music videos from a few decades ago. There was always some presence of sexually explicit content but the proportions of it’s presence has increased tenfold. One might claim that it’s just how technology has shaped the societal laws that govern today’s generation, it looks like there’s more naughty stuff because there’s so much availability today and people in the media talk about it more, we have more studies on it and more overall access to it. Personally, I beg to differ. Sex sells, no doubt. But now days it’s being sold to a much more younger and vulnerable age group of people and is overtly marketed and targeting these groups with constant explicit content ; all in the name of profit? That goes against my code of ethics, Because 20 years ago, your children wouldn’t have access to watching a video of a half naked lady( She who shall not be named) singing about S&M on MTV (Remember back when they actually played music and not reality shows?).

Even if all of that wasn’t enough, we’ve been taught to poke fun or disregard other genres of music that differ from our own preferences. It’s always Rock V.S. Rap or Country V.S. Trance . It’s always a competition to see which one is better when in reality all genres are unique and have their own flavor to bring to the table.Granted, a little ‘sibling’ rivalry is healthy and promotes growth. Again, everything in moderation. Excess of it, leads to disparity, division and hatred between subcultures.

There are a lot of stereotypical images of Rap and Hip-Hop in general. Thug life , young money cash money, the hood, gangsters, Cadillacs and the objectification of women to name a few. But is that all what Rhythm and Poetry boils down to?

It’s a form of artistic expression to me, where one can share a bit of their own soul through poetry, that too backed by a beat in the background along with the clever play of lyrics and rhymes make each one a stunning and unique masterpiece. Many Rap songs are often misunderstood because the artist’s use of  double entendres ( sentences that can have more than one meaning) and most fail to recognize the true underlying message being conveyed. Not all Rap is crap. Although You will probably have to put in effort to sieve through the heaps of stereotypical versions to get true authentic Rap. Then again, this is just my 2 cents based on my definition of what authentic Rap is, your definition might be different and that’s okay too. 

When I didn’t understand certain slang or phrases, I did what any intuitive Rap fan would do- Search for the meaning of the lyrics on Rap Genius (click to open). It’s a site that basically explains the lines of songs. Because lyrics of a song can mean different things to different people, Rap Genius allows members to post their own rendition of what they interpret as the meaning the artist was trying to convey and eventually, people vote to decide which version is the most accurate and can be most universally applied; all while staying course to the artist’s original derivative intent.

In my personal experience, I’ve always had the lyrical part down, it was a skill I developed through a lot of practice and a lot of scrunched up paper balls while burning the midnight oil. I thought to myself and said “How hard can this be?”. Eventually, my friend and myself decided to give Rap a chance and test the waters. 

Congratulations reader! You made it this far and you’re still awake ! And reading, I might add. This is good. I love your Can’t stop, Won’t stop attitude. 

 I’ve  included the lyrics below.
Please note: The following song contains foul language.   Brace yourselves!

Lyrics

Intro

R-Square Productions. RJ-Ryder with R-Knee

Is this a daydream? or a damn nightmare…

Verse 1

He was fated to be created
then degraded and crushed
under numbers the statistics stated.

They tell us only the rich can make it,
and then degraded and crushed
a mental curse,
he’s part of the percent that breaks it,
a little work?
take any of his problems and face’em!
a little hurt?
a pill, a bottle, swallow it and make shit.
That can never be described as basic.
Guess what ? He’s got a dream? He’s gonna f**kin chase it!
F**k the haters and the overall wait for it. 
He’s on that see him coming, get out out of his way shit.
That tomorrow ain’t coming, gotta get it done today; shit!
Sad kid here had a dream too,
not about fancy houses or a pimped out Subaru.
He just wants to keep it real and be like me and you.
Join the renaissance kid,
don’t act a fool!

Chorus:

Dreams , are not what they mean to be,
they are planned just to fulfill a fantasy.
Dreams are not for you kid,
This is the real world,
welcome to reality !

Dreamer, fast asleep, escaping, reality.
Hey dreamer! Better wake up!
Join the slaves with me…

Verse 2

Who said I’m down ? I’m not
I’m high up. I’m smiling.
Look at my face,
You can see me shining.
Let the showers pour, got remorse no more;
and I thought it was the end of life, huh? yea!
You tell me I’m crazy,
but what’s lost is no more.
Imaginary powerful chains,
clinked and was leaving marks of pain.
Thought it was laid out from the get go,
but I’m up for the show, yo.
Best believe they try to tell me that,
everything has it’s good n bad, as I said,
I ain’t really sad. Care and patience,
with which we go with every step.

We’re at the end of the tunnel, Gosh I’m seeking for the light,
no regrets.
Just like you told me,
every day, every night,
I believed you would try to do
what was right.
Just like you told me,
everyday, every night,
I put up with the fight.

Verse 3

He looks over his shoulder,
sees fake friends getting colder.
8 years since he talked to them,
shit, he’s getting older.
The burden he carries 
starting to feel like a f**king boulder;
been trapped since birth.
Trapped in the hurt,
of the struggle on the Earth.
With a foolishly indecisive life
without any perks,
confused and cursed;
asking himself, what a f**kin dollar bill’s really worth?

He spits this, only because he cares.
You may feel free to ignore him,
but if you choose to stop n stare,
then you better Listen to the shit that he says !
( You better listen to him son)

They’re rich,
but their hearts broke and hurt.
They’re getting comfy on pillows of gold,
but in the end,
we all gotta sleep in the dirt.

Chorus:

They say : Dreams , are not what they mean to be,

they are planned just to fulfill a fantasy.

Dreams are not for you kid,

This is the real world,

welcome to reality !

Dreamer, fast asleep, escaping, reality. Hey dreamer! Join the slaves with me…