Failure - Lupe Fiasco (unfinished)

Lupe Fiasco, real name Wasalu Muhammud Jaco, can be considered a prince of the modern hip-hop royal court.  Introduced to the world by none other than Jay-Z, Fiasco has changed his approach from the 'thug-life; get high; Money-Over-Everything' rappers of todays modern scene to a more graceful and educated form of lyricism.  Fiasco (who is a devout muslim) uses his words to preach tolerance and social justice, and has thus been donned a leader of the 'conscious rap' movement, which advocates anti-profanity, intellectualism and social consciousness.

In the song Failure, off the album 'The Cool', Lupe shows off his talent for witty lyricism, double (sometimes triple) entendres and clever punchlines.   Almost every line in his poetry has a double meaning or hidden message. The piece samples a track by Idris Muhammad called 'Could This Be Heaven', which was released in 1977.

Lupe received critical acclaim for this piece, having broken a 'record' for the most triple entendres in a single song.

Here is a line by line analysis of his words: (analysis in red)

It's mean, so just
Now let me put the streets down like steam rollers

Lupe starts off with a construction theme about tearing down the streets to rebuild them as his empire.  He embellishes this theme throughout the song

With the cats that push 40 ounces through the hood

Comparing drug dealers to 40 oz beer sales

Like king cobra, see me sling soda

King Cobra is a beer that comes in a 40 oz bottle

Cause the extra four in the split is mix

the drugs in this analogy is cut with 4 oz of something else

(It's really 36)

40 - 4 = 36 ; suggesting that there is really only 36 oz. of real booze in the 40 oz.
much like drugs are cut

Used to buy toasters and clips

What drug dealers buy with their profits (toasters are guns and clips are bullet clips)

You can tighten your circle or boa constrict

Another snake reference (King Cobra)

While you was lightin' your purple I was over the scripts


Lupe is a devote religious man; he states he was studying while others were smoking marijuana

See, I couldn't walk the walk


Couldn't really talk the talk


Had to get my talk to properly explain my walk


He needed to be able to explain his actions poetically, lyrically (and man, did he learn how!)

Cause this lack in talk had my walk lookin' off


Now I'm over the limp


At a younger age Lupe could not 'walk-the-walk' or 'talk-the-talk'

Watch how they mugs drop when they see my Verbals able


(that's the Usual)

Reference to 1995 film 'The Usual Suspects', in which the main character, who walks with a limp, goes by the name Verbal

Later in the film Verbal drops his mug in slow motion and looses his limp (hence the previous lines)

When I was po' I was low,

When Lupe was poor he owned Polo shirts

Now me and my chops cop purple label

Now he is rich so he rocks that Ralph Lauren


It's Ralph Lauren on the rap noreat?



Nigg*s brown-nose, they are like alf to him

Alf had a brown nose....duh.


Runners and interscopers not as styled as him


Please don't interscope


It's gonna be a whole lotta IV-ing and respiratin'


If I lean out this window with Irene


Nigg*s as tall as Yao Ming

Will LUP emperor 


It's the foundation, I-beams and the antennas


It's so sears-ious every time I write my john hancock

Sears tower verses the John Hancock building


Like, you could damn near see Detroit (I see you)


Nigg*s is scared of heights (see you)


This is saran wrap and aluminum foil


Some potpourri a little machine oil


I stack my paper and throw off my cents


This is top flo', better look out below


Pennys from heaven is the same as a semi from the sect


And I reign supreme



(reign; rain)

Turn your umbrellas upside down


Did you even catch the change in theme?

This is were Lupe shows his real genius.  At this point the lyrics have changed from the 'construction/ 

building blocks' theme to a 'skyscraper empire' theme.  During the first verse Lupe has climbed out of 

the streets and now sits on the top floor, raining (reigning) pennies (change in theme) down on what he 

has built.


(this is gangsta)


Lupe to the F to the I to the A to the S to the C to the O


From the west side of the C to the H to the I CA to the G to the O


(this is gansta, man)


This is gansta, man


Lupe Fiasco; from the west side of Chicago


Verse 2



And them nigg*s ain't watch


Known from him regime, gangsta lean


Hats on tilt like his sneakers ain't drop out the vending machine


You gotta put more money in


And I shake nigg*s up everytime I drop a bar


It's horse in the Porsche, bricks in the box 


Like more money them every time I cop a car


You see I'm a roller, right?


So it might be a rover, right?


But every time I drop a 'r' get off the streets


It's over, aight?



drop the 'r' from rover = over

Better being ahead like overnight


Like rollers, right, she the chauffeur, right?


So I keep her sober


She don't get fed-ex like overnight


I am dole the might


All that gas can't help, but Solar might


So just call on son (sun)


Drop a 's' pick up a 'o', you know (u no) , put it all on one (uno)


Then brace yourself like overbite


For that quiet nigg* that relocated down south


Comin' back to floss, nigg* get your molars right


Fix your grill


No plaque but a whole lotta cheese


This the drill, mr. Chill gave me the green light 


Like yo the knife


So ima force my will like the force I will


Of course you will


Take my time but wait behind only pertains to that Porsche grill


It's snakes in the hood, gotta watch for that cobra bite


Let me see, there's snakes in the hood


A bird, a horse behind the grill 


Some gator on the seat and a fox behind the wheel


No it's not noah's ark (ark), It's just a flower's start 


This is Lupe to the F to the I to the A to the S to the C to the O


From the West side of the C to the H to the I CA to the G to the O

Verse 3



For achiever, my procedures proceed at all cost


With no breather


I'm all walk, rain, snow, a fever


I'm all coughs, comin after your teacher


I'm on the ball like FIFA, Feva, Lupe, Diche, 


Long live the leaders


I remember I ain't have sneakers, it was welfare


Comin' up for air like whales there


Fila's, but now I'm well here 


I'm Shamu with twelve pair 


And nigg*s wanna take me back to zero like tear, fair


Well, my scale's clear


Your 'see' world is Braille here


I'm Bumpy Johnson, I stick to the streets


Keep my dawgs out in front of me 


See what I'm sayin'? and I push keys wonderfully

Watch The Throne Tour Review

Kanye and Jay-Z

by Chris Chhoeun

“You are now watching the throne!”

All night, these words bellowed through Mohegan Sun Arena. Jay-Z and Kanye West, arguably the two biggest rappers in the industry today, refer to themselves as rap royalty and on November 18 in Uncasville CT, the duo put on the type of show that only kings could produce.

The two truly are the top dogs at what they do. From the start, they showed how they are masterminds when it comes to sampling other artists in their own music.

Take Michael Jackson’s “P.Y.T (Pretty Young Thing)”, for instance. The DJs played a short of it, which led into Kanye’s “Good Life”. The song “D.A.N.C.E” originally written by Justice proceeded before Jay-Z broke into “On to the Next One.” Mind-melting.

While waiting for the show to begin, the audience was serenaded with soul and Motown tunes from the 1970s; tracks that Jay-Z and Kanye handpicked themselves.

Appropriately, the music of Al Green, Smokey Robinson and Marvin Gaye were featured here. Both rappers have said this music was very influential to them early on, and it was right that this music would set the stage for their performance.

A whole two hours after the doors had first opened, the lights went out, and West took the main stage and Jay-Z appeared the back of the arena.

The openers, “H.A.M” and “Who Gon Stop Me” featured both on top of cube-like platforms that slowly raised them several feet above the concert floor. Separated by the length of the entire arena and a sea of screaming fans, Hova and Ye furiously spat verses at each other for two tracks before finally backing down.

Leading into the next track, a recording of Otis Redding belting out “Try a Little Tenderness” entertained the crowd while larger-than-life sized American flag slowly dropped on the main stage.

Jay-Z along side with Kanye burst onto the main stage together for the first time of the night to perform the soulful “Otis”. A second grand entrance.  Blazes of fire shot out of the stage on the downbeat of each bar as the two went head-to-head in front of a sold out crowd.

Dull moments were hard to be found during this particular show, for each rapper took turns in performing the biggest hits from each of their catalogs.

After a few more songs from Watch the Throne, Kanye took the stage solo, reviving old singles from earlier in his storied career. He relentlessly blasted through “Flashing Lights”, “Can’t Tell Me Nothing” and “Jesus Walks”.

“Hard Knock Life”, “Izzo”, “Empire State of Mind” and “Dirt Off Your Shoulders” were all hits from the Jiggaman’s repertoire.

Despite being long-time friends and working together since Jay-Z’s 2001 release “The Blueprint”, stylistically the two are very different. Jay’s huge stage presence and over-zeal mixed with Kanye’s highly emotional and energetic character combined for the perfect one-two punch.

All senses were engaged during this show. It wasn’t all showgirls and flashing lights; a big highlight coming when Kanye, atop a Rihanna-red cube rising 30 feet above the ground, sang an auto-tuned “Heartless” and “Runaway”.

The charisma of them both, particularly Jay-Z, was domineering. Some might view them as overly self-confident, yet this Mohegan Sun crowd simply could get enough as the rappers repeatedly roared, “You are all witnesses of history. You are now watching the throne!”

No opening act. No guest appearances. Not even a full band. There was no need for all of the former. Just two of hip hop’s greatest, in their prime, microphones in hand, storming the stage.

It was the show of the decade. If you’re on the west coast, I highly recommend you catch the second half of the tour.

Jay-Z and the 1%

"I'm not a businessman I'm a business, man."

Jay-Z's words could not ring truer in the face of his recent controversial release, which has critics up in arms.

Its not a new album or music video.  Instead, his new line of t-shirts has drawn a lot of media attention and fan criticism.

The 'Occupy All Streets' T-shirt, which capitalizes on the 'Occupy Wall Street' gathering, was sold on Rocawear's website for $22.  The catch?  All proceeds go straight into Jay-Z's pockets, not to the Occupy movement.  Considering the recent music video 'Otis' portrayed the money-loving rapper ripping apart an almost $400,000 car, many fans and protestors alike have criticized Jay-Z.

The T-shirt was taken off the website, yet Jay-Z has not released a statement about the controversy.

Watch the Throne, Jay-Z and Kanye's recent release, has amazing hits and absolutely crowns these rappers as kings of their industry.  The album, however, comes at a time when the public has little taste for the absurdly wealthy.  Kanye's appearance at the Occupy movement was awkwardly funny.  These kings need to take their crowns off and connect with their fans, before it is too late.

In the words of journalist Mark Whittington, "In effect, the rapper has found a way to commit capitalism by capitalizing on an anti-capitalist movement.  One can do naught but salute Jay-Z.  He is making equal parts money and irony." 

Gambino: No Longer Childish

By Ryan Walsh

It was a hot, sweaty night at the House of Blues, and the air was thicker than the rims of the Ray-Bans that littered the crowd. Funnyman Donald Glover had no jokes for the hipster masses this evening. 

The seriousness with which Childish Gambino took his performance was a sharp contrast to his shenanigans on NBC's Community. His set list was a gradual progression of songs from all phases of his career, highlighting the evolution of his own style. The majority of songs on his Camp tour were from his upcoming album of the same name.

Despite the fact that the majority of Gambino's earlier work did not originally include a full band, Gambino performed his earlier work accompanied by a full band as comfortably as the originals. The presence of live instruments created intriguing reinterpretations of crowd favorites like "Freaks and Geeks". In his homage to Adele's "Rolling in the Deep", Gambino enlisted John Legend to rerecord Adele's original vocals.

Although his time in the rap arena has been relatively short, Gambino's dramatic background transposed well into showmanship. In his song "You See Me", Gambino recited a chain of unrelenting references with a synthesis of stimuli both audio and visual. Against a backdrop of his own lyrics, Gambino assaulted the mic, spewing at a speed comparable to Twista and Busta Rhymes. Gambino is quick to flex his verbal skill to confirm that he is indeed "a black star/ in a black car/ with a black card". 

What separates Gambino, however, from other punchline rappers is his ability to use finesse over the English language to convey lewd messages. Language like "She's an overachiever, cause all she do is suck seed," is infinitly more resonant than a crude oral sex reference.

While Gambino has by no means abandoned his infatuation for whiskey and Asian women, his new album CAMP begins to explore deeper emotional issues. Gambino's style has evolved from reciting a string of cultural witticisms  to using these references to bring an unparalleled sense of realism to his stories. Gambino is definitely not the first rapper to explore teenage struggles and holes in the familial infrastructure, but Camp's untraditional, non-hood approach to these issues are easily accessible to the suburban youth comprising his fanbase.

 In his song "L.E.S.", Gambino illustrates a story about his drug-addicted uncle jeopardizing the safety of his family by stealing drugs. Rather than reveling in drug dealing and being hardened by the street, Gambino recognizes that these are scary issues. Gambino also conveys the emotional stresses of his mother working two jobs to put him through school at NYU. Throughout the myriad of experiences in the song, the listener can't help put identify with these real-word, accessible issues, both hood and not.

Gambino riddles these anecdotes with analogies that tailor to the twentysomethings who bask in Gambino's cultural references. By telling stories we can identify with in a manner we can identify with, Gambino earns his spot as the top rapper for the suburban youth. Let's be honest, I can identify a lot more with E.E. Cummings than doing PCP. Gambino recognizes that.