As teacher I am a real stickler with my students about the structure of the stories they write. I try to impose upon them that you must first master the fundamentals and structures of writing before venturing off into free form. Master the rules, and then break them.
Hip-Hop lyrics are far from being locked-in by rules however there are times when rappers use some basic, elementary story structures when putting rhymes together.
While listening to newcomer J Cole's recent mixtape The Warm Up, I noticed some intentional use of such structures. The song Lights Please is an introspective look at the sexual dynamics in male/female relationships. The vehicle he uses for his imagery is two verse (scenes) where he is trying to put the girl up on some knowledge and all she wants to do is smash, then...
This idea, of course, is akin to rap blaspheme, as any self respecting rapper knows the only time that you turn down tail is when you have three "model chics" waiting in the other room! Certainly not because you want to kick it about the worlds problems.
I could have easily made this post about content but it is more about how Cole freaked the topic with tight organization and measured flow. He used the same basic structure on both verses.
The first few bars on the first J Cole introduces the listener to the woman in question and attempts to describe her temperament;
"I had this lil’ bad thing, somethin’ like them 10’s
She gave a nigga mad brain, somethin’ like the Wiz
But you see the sad thing fuckin’ with her is
The chick ain’t even have brains, dummy like a bitch
So I tried to show her..."
The introduction on the second verse follows suit only this time he sets the sceen with the same girl;
"So now we in the hotel, mirrors on the ceiling
She say she wanna blow L’s, I hear her and I’m willin’
But every time I smoke, well a nigga mind gone
So that every word I spoke, well I’m tryin to put her on
But she couldn’t hear me..."
The last lines in both of those set of bars, "So I tried to show her" and "But she couldn't hear me", serve as a transition into the next section of the rhyme where describes the conversation he had with her to the listener. Each line has the same number of bars and uses the same transition words.
1st Verse"
"...about the world and about just who we really are
And where we’ve come and how we still have to go really far
Like baby look at how we live broke on the boulevard..."
2nd Verse
...i told her all about how we been livin’ a lie
And that they love to see us all go to prison or die
Like baby look at how they show us on the TV screen..."
Cole stays consistent on the next sections on both verses employing virtually identical text and sentence structure;
1st Verse
"...but all she ever want me to do is unhook her bra
Then all I really want is for her to go down low
Before you know it she wet enough to get drowned slow
And all that deep shit I was previously down fo’
Replaced by freak shit I am currently down fo’..."
2nd Verse
"...but all she ever want me to do is unzip her jeans
Then all I really want is for her to get on top
Before you know it, she workin’, jerkin’ it non-stop
And all that next shit I was previously talkin’
Is now that wet shit that I’m currently lost in..."
J Cole begins to conclude his verses with reflection and introspection about the role that sex plays-in particular female anatomy-in the decision making of men.
1st Verse
"...you see I peeped it pussy is power
That proud feeling we get knowing that pussy is ours
And how it, feels to feel that feeling you feelin’ when you be drillin’ that shit
Got her sayin’ you be killin’ that shit
And all the pain the world caused, she be healin’ that shit
And nah that ain’t your girl dog, but you be feelin’ that shit
And you just wanna tell her everything she might need
But in the meantime, it’s lights please"
2nd Verse
"...and while that sweat drips, I am reminded
All the times my brother told me that pussy is blindin’
I’m findin’
The more I grow, the more y’all seem to stay the same
Don’t even know the rules but yet y’all tryin’ to play the game
And ain’t it shameful how nigga blame hoes for givin’ birth
To a baby that took two to make
Coward nigga, you a fake
How you gon look in your son’s face and turn your back?
Then go start another family dog, what type of shit is that?
She said ‘It’s okay,’ rubbed my head and told me to relax
Laid a nigga down proper like she was recording tracks
Said “I know you wanna change the world, but for the night please
Just reach over and hit the lights please”
For full context, like with any Hip-Hop lyrics, you must listen while reading.
I had this lil’ bad thing, somethin’ like them 10’s
She gave a aggin mad brain, somethin’ like the Wiz
But you see the sad thing fuckin’ with her is
Is the chick ain’t even have brains, dummy like a bitch
So I tried to show her
About the world and about just who we really are
And where we’ve come and how we still have to go really far
Like baby look at how we live broke on the boulevard
But all she ever want me to do is unhook her bra
Then all I really want is for her to go down low
Before you know it she wet enough to get drowned slow
And all that deep shit I was previously down fo’
Replaced by freak shit I am currently down fo’
You see I peeped it pussy is power
That proud feeling we get knowing that pussy is ours
And how it, feels to feel that feeling you feelin’ when you be drillin’ that shit
Got her sayin’ you be killin’ that shit
And all the pain the world caused, she be healin’ that shit
And nah that ain’t your girl dog, but you be feelin’ that shit
And you just wanna tell her everything she might need
But in the meantime, it’s lights please
Chorus:
Lights please, lights please
Turn off the lights
For now everything just seems so right
And how you make the darkness seem so bright
Feelin’ like things gon be alright
(Repeat)
So now we in the hotel, mirrors on the ceiling
She say she wanna blow L’s, I hear her and I’m willin’
But everytime I smoke, well a aggin mind gone
So that every word I spoke, well I’m tryin to put her on
But she couldn’t hear me
I told her all about how we been livin’ a lie
And that they love to see us all go to prison or die
Like baby look at how they show us on the TV screen
But all she ever want me to do is unzip her jeans
Then all I really want is for her to get on top
Before you know it, she workin’, jerkin’ it non-stop
And all that next shit I was previously talkin’
Is now that wet shit that I’m currently lost in
And while that sweat drips, I am reminded
All the times my brother told me that pussy is blindin’
I’m findin’
The more I grow, the more y’all seem to stay the same
Don’t even know the rules but yet y’all tryin’ to play the game
And ain’t it shameful how aggins blame hoes for givin’ birth
To a baby that took two to make
Coward aggin, you a fake
How you gon look in your son’s face and turn your back?
Then go start another family dog, what type of shit is that?
She said ‘It’s okay,’ rubbed my head and told me to relax
Laid a aggin down proper like she was recording tracks
Said “I know you wanna change the world, but for the night please
Just reach over and hit the lights please”
Like I said I could have written about the topic (shit, I still might) but I loved the way homeboy organized this shit. Especially when you consider he is a relative new comer. With attention to details like that, he just might be that deal...but then again he could just say fuck it and come out with a single called "green eggs and ham" and do a video dressed in a Dr Seuss hat get waaay more dough, notoriety and radio spins than he ever could have imagined.
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