Asides from hip-hop, I like writing short stories and my thoughts down in general. But one day I decided that, since some hip-hop pieces do tell stories in themselves, why not try to see how they can be told in the form of prose? So I chose a track to base a story on, and that track is Broken Window by Rhyme Asylum in their album Solitary Confinement, (I wrote an article about this piece before) and here is their track:
What is great about doing something like this (and which I will do more of in the future) is that because of the nature of hip-hop, there is not a lot of detail compared to that of prose and so you are left to your own imagination as you add detail. It is as if the track has provided the story and a basic skeleton, and I was left to add the flesh of it all. For example, there was no detail regarding how Dr Dean Emmett in the track was arrested, so this is what I did “Three loud knocks penetrated the silence of Dr Emmet’s one bedroom apartment. He jumped from his bed and glanced at the time; 4 in the morning, who could it be?”
Once could actually add their own spin to the whole thing. I made this piece sound like a classical Halloween scary story just by adding a little ending: “It was said that on the night of the Doctor’s death violent noises were heard in the air ducts and the institution’s alarm was set off for no explainable reason.”
The character or characters within the track were not given much of a back story, and it is really fun when you are given a character and you come up with how they ended up in a certain situation (it is harder than it sounds!). “Having gained a degree of Psychology from the University of Durham and working for a counselling agency in London, one could tell that he was well off. Still ambitious at the age of forty three; he would have had a bright future ahead of him.”
Funnily enough, the reason I chose the University of Durham was actually because one of my Chemistry/Physics teachers at school (who was very intelligent and cool) actually went there. Anyway, without further ado, here is the story itself: http://hayatli7.deviantart.com/#/d3fi3wi
I look forward to writing more things like this, actually I am working on one now inspired by Immortal Technique’s Dance with the Devil. I hope that it will come out nicely.
Before I begin, I want to post a link to a motivational hiphop track in light of the fact that I have just not been feeling motivated as of late:
I want to sit down and type out what I believe brought me into this little subculture. A subculture that is not very well known to my family, and one that, five years ago, I would never believe to be a part of at any point of my life.
This is myself!
I remember at one time being very (Islamically) religious. My brother was almost like a religious teacher; he taught me how to pray, gave me advice and I took his interpretations as my own. One of these interpretations of everyday living was that music is sinful without question. Whether this still runs true with him I do not know, but I followed it with all my heart. Hearing music back then, especially commercial music, with no knowledge of underground hip-hop or anything meaningful only added to my convictions that music was “useless”. Islam is mostly a non-materialist religion, it frowns upon everything that supposes the utmost importance of material gains, and unfortunately the only impressions of music I got back then were materialistic.
My mind was closed up a little. I believed in one true way that was so specific that I was afraid of change in any way of thinking, yet something about Philosophy attracted me, so I took it up in my A-levels and it loosened my mind up a bit. But what opened my mind to hip-hop was an even prior to that. My other brother pointed me to Immortal Technique’s Dance with the Devil saying that it was “interesting” but he waved it off later. But when I listened I got hooked with the whole story. I was struck with the meaningfulness, the insight and the poetic language…and I entered hip-hop. The track gave me hope that there is Music out there that was meaningful after all, this happened when I was around sixteen years old.
I listened and explored the genre a while. One day, a friend of mine who also got into the hip-hop scene just said a general comment to me, “hey Ziyad, you used to write poems, why not try writing some lyrics?”. I was plunged back into memory when I would wrote rhyming couplets for fun and enter some small competitions; that ranged from around the age of twelve to fifteen. And I realised and also punched myself in the head for it: of course! These tracks I listen to are poetry! So I got back into writing, I pulled out my pen and pad…and I hope that I won’t put them down for a while.
My Islamic Arab heritage gave me a huge respect for poetry, and blessed with that notion I surged forward into lyricism.
I want to thank my brother for being there, my other one for pointing out the direction to hip-hop (he probably did it unintentionally and he still doesn’t know!) and my friend for pushing me there. :)
In my first post ever (second paragraph) I mentioned briefly the role of the beat with every track, and that is being used as a guide for the rhythmic flow of the artist. But that is not all. The beat, being a musical piece, can be used to set the mood and to add to the emotional impact of a set of lyrics. One of the best examples I can think of when it comes to mood is Rhyme Asylum‘s Broken Window from their album Solitary Confinement. When I first heard it I was engrossed in what was said and very powerful imagery formed in my mind. Here is the video, followed by the lyrics:
[Verse 1: Psiklone]
My name is Dean Emit, victim of a serious mistake Diagnosed as clinically insane Sectioned, imprisoned and detained The last thing I remember I was being physically restrained First sensed something was amiss Noticing the other inmates had cuts across their wrists My trust in the nurses hesitated Instantly ceased taking medication [Waiting] They segregated selective mental patients I once caught a glimpse of the room where they’d take them Reasons why remain undisclosed A hundred volts straight to the victim’s frontal lobes Disguised as medical tests Vulnerable people were being sentenced to death [This is beyond madness] I had to escape Spent night and day racking my brain Insomniac, but I had no solid plan One day in group therapy, eventually lost my rag [Is this some kind of sick joke?] Next thing I knew, a doctor pushed me straight through a window Awoke later in my bed, as my mind cleared A pain in my side sparking the idea Tied up without side effects Shook loose the undetected shard of glass from behind my vest Heart pounding inside my chest Managed to slice my restraints, fell down beside my bed Stood up, pulled off the ceiling’s iron mesh Climbed the winding vent entangled in spider webs Exited down a flight of steps Ditched my hospital gown so the dogs won’t find the scent Felt the cold wind on my face Blinded by the moonlight, my mental prison escape
[Verse 2: Possessed]
His name was Doctor Emit institutionalised For committing the most unusual crimes Torturing patients numerous times ‘Till one escaped, brought the truth to the light Losing his mind but kept it top secret Unnecessary methods of shock treatment No waiting list kept going till the power died Or the patient did, which ever came first He was a slave to his hunger within Tied them up sewed razors under their skin Eyes void of emotion When asked why he did it, he just said the voices had spoken Insane, locked in a cell Dementia in control of all knowledge of self Day to day he’d yell about the crimes Like he didn’t do them and they’re still taking place Swimming in the depths of depression Volatile, living on the edge of aggression Never did get a confession (Flipped out) during a routine group therapy session When asked “are you scared of the past?” He jumped up by the window put his chair through the glass Demented look in his face Guards took him away put him to bed fully restrained Didn’t bother drugging him up The next morning they walked in and saw him covered in blood Should’ve known from behaviour patterns That this was a suicide waiting to happen Life he came to hate with a passion Shard to the wrist, fatal attraction Examining the evil deed There it was on the floor the jagged killer that didn’t flee the scene Broken Window
[4 x Outro] Window to the soul, broken Now his ghost is out in the open
The first thing I noticed when I clicked play for the first time ever, was the beat and that is because it is the first thing that plays (duh!). The melancholy mood it sets really reflects the subject of the track and works with it very well. The slow piano rhythm accommodates the slower more dramatic flow of the artists in this, which is very good for suspense.
“A hundred volts straight to the victim’s frontal lobes” When the artist says this particular line, a very special feature of story telling is revealed. When you are recounting your own experiences or that of someone else, you do not say it in a monotone voice, but in an emotional tone that reflects the mood of the experience itself. This becomes very very clear with this line when he uses one of fear and sheer surprise.
“Vulnerable people were being sentenced to death [This is beyond madness] I had to escape Spent night and day racking my brain Insomniac, but I had no solid plan One day in group therapy, eventually lost my rag” Events unfold in rapid succession which in this case gives the effect of something building up into a climax.
“A pain in my side sparking the idea” He says this line with genuine surprise and epiphany, you can almost see a light bulb shining above his head there, which is great. He is experiencing this, he isn’t retelling the experiences of someone else.
“Shook loose the undetected shard of glass from behind my vest Heart pounding inside my chest Managed to slice my restraints, fell down beside my bed Stood up, pulled off the ceiling’s iron mesh Climbed the winding vent entangled in spider webs” From the first line in this section the beat, and the artists voice, really pick up. He uses a lot of active verbs to make it an active section, so all of this combined makes for a very suspenseful piece.
“Blinded by the moonlight, my mental prison escape” The way he finishes of the verse by saying this line is immense! Psiklone literally kills this verse; amazing work.
Now we start with Possessed, who plays a different character
“His name was Doctor Emit institutionalised For committing the most unusual crimes” Having a name is very important, as it gives a point of reference. And if you pay attention you will realize that this is a major twist in the form of a radically different perspective on things.
“No waiting list kept going till the power died Or the patient did, which ever came first” The way this was executed was good because it is something you just expect to hear in a horror/scary story. I could imagine someone sitting by a fire and saying this line.
“Tied them up sewed razors under their skin Eyes void of emotion When asked why he did it, he just said the voices had spoken Insane, locked in a cell Dementia in control of all knowledge of self Day to day he’d yell about the crimes Like he didn’t do them and they’re still taking place” Here he is making connections with what the first character was saying but from a different perspective (see lines 6 – 14). The second and third lines in this section are creepy as hell!
“He jumped up by the window put his chair through the glass” This is what really happened when Psiklone’s character said a doctor pushed him through a window. Crazy eh?
“Didn’t bother drugging him up” The beat once again picks up from this point to create an increase in suspense up to the climax:
“Should’ve known from behaviour patterns That this was a suicide waiting to happen” So Psiklone’s character commits suicide, so what was going on from his perspective when he was running through the field with the moonlight on his face? We get the answer at the very end:
“Examining the evil deed There it was on the floor the jagged killer that didn’t flee the scene Broken Window”
[4 x Outro] Window to the soul, broken Now his ghost is out in the open“
This piece is interesting because it brings two parallel perspectives side by side, yet it doesn’t say for definite which one is right and the other is wrong. Rhyme Asylum seem to have a recurring theme of madness/insanity in their tracks and the theme here was put to good use when they put perspectives under question. But as well as that, I think this made an awesome horror story!
Another track from Rhyme Asylum called Life Support from their album Solitary Confinement. This time it features the three main artists of this UK group; Possessed, Psiklone and Skirmish. This track is primarily about the hip hop culture itself and the group’s position within it.
Here is the video followed by lyrics:
[Verse 1: Skirmish]
It’s funny how I fell in love from my first ‘yo’ Blood, sweat, tears in every verse wrote With every word spoke But I’l do this music if I earn dough or I was dirt broke [‘Lyrical Exercise’] But people respect the grind more than they respect the rhymes We make sure the names of all the heads that died Will always be kept alive And [‘How long will they mourn me?’] – Everyday until the end of time Look at the legacy they left behind And [‘One Love’] to the lyricists that still exist Coz I couldn’t picture this [‘It was all a dream’] before it was thoughts I’d see When I close my eyes and fall asleep but now I’m living it This rapping shit ain’t a passing phase Cos the habit is hard to break I can’t escape
[Verse 2: Psiklone]
I put my soul in every rhyme that I write ['Big L Rest In Peace'] – cos [‘Ripping mics is the light of my life'] Been fed up and my stomach is cramped The scene has practically vanished but my hunger is back Classics are haphazard All I see is backpackers, wack rappers, black adders and backstabbers As if that matters When we’re out laying the ground breaking foundations like jack hammers Miss ripping ciphers and open mics It’s a lifestyle – we rock our clothes oversized Inspired as an adolescent By Roc Raida on cross faders scratching battle weapons It’s my passion – banging the beats From DJs to B-boys and the graff on the streets [This is hip-hop] music’s inner vision Bringing you back to ‘boom bap’ fused with super-lyricism
[Verse 3: Possessed]
Still a fan of this shit far from marital bliss But I’ma stick with it till I’m carried by six What happened to Em what happened to Bis? Will I be the next rapper to slip [Crazy] No better way of expressing myself See there’s Hip-Hop, then there’s everything else We go against the grain change the game (And we) pave the way while you stay the same So pay homage The difference is we give to this Hip-Hop shit not take from it Every word in the pad every verse every track Work ‘till the verge of collapse Never, turning my back my life is Hip-Hop Live breathe spit bleed and die for Hip-Hop How much time is left? Hip-Hops not dead, its dying, and this here is its final breath
First up is Skirmish, I thought he was black from the way he sounded but it turned out he was mixed race! Anyway I digress, let’s start looking:
“But I’l do this music if I earn dough or I was dirt broke” This phrase, or adaptations of it, is used a lot by all kinds of artists, from painters to musicians, to signify that they are passionate about what they do. They don’t care if they earn “dough” (money) or not, they do what they do because they love it in and of itself. This strays far from the mainstream which focuses on what audiences want to hear and what will sell as opposed to the Artists true emotions.
“But people respect the grind more than they respect the rhymes” Many people stopped caring about the values of what the rhymes and lyrics say, and instead focus on the beat while in reality a lot of work goes into these rhymes.
“And [‘One Love’] to the lyricists that still exist” The word still implies that not many lyricists are left. And maybe that is true in the mainstream where most “artists” have songs written for them or write songs just for mass appeal.
“This rapping shit ain’t a passing phase Cos the habit is hard to break I can’t escape” “It’s just a phase” says Mum, when her child walks in wearing dark clothes with dyed hair and an array of piercings. Skirmish says that hip-hop is much more complex, it is a habit for him. Forget phase, its a way of life!
Next up is Psiklone, and I have to say I love the dude. His voice is crazy deep and powerful, and it is an instrument (yes I will call it that) that he knows how to use. I too have a deep voice, which is why I listen to him a lot especially to try and learn a thing or two.
“I put my soul in every rhyme that I write ['Big L Rest In Peace'] – cos [‘Ripping mics is the light of my life']“ Big L is an underground artist in the USA, he was very influential but now he has passed away. Putting this sample in the track is a mark of respect. Simple as. Ripping mics, and that is certainly what Psiklone does, is basically pouring your heart out when you rap, so its not always chill out and laid back. That fits in well with “I put my soul in every rhyme that I write“.
“The scene has practically vanished but my hunger is back Classics are haphazard All I see is backpackers, wack rappers, black adders and backstabbers As if that matters When we’re out laying the ground breaking foundations like jack hammers” I can actually physically see the flow in this part, it’s beautiful! The scene is the hip-hop scene, the golden era being in the 90′s and now it is filled with “backpackers, wack rappers, black adders and backstabbers” But you see, Rhyme Asylum’s flow and of course their word play has been a major revolution in hip-hop. I only found one group that rap similar to them and that is Unusual suspects. They have indeed broken foundations with their jack hammers of awesomeness!
“Miss ripping ciphers and open mics It’s a lifestyle – we rock our clothes oversized Inspired as an adolescent By Roc Raida on cross faders scratching battle weapons” Here is the reference again, that Hip-hop is a lifestyle that can even be reflected through what you wear. Roc Raida (R.I.P) was a well known DJ, I will check out his music soon. And that is another thing I love about Hip-hop, they refer to something you know nothing about so you have to look it up and use your own curiosity to teach yourself. A track that does that is a good track!
“It’s my passion – banging the beats From DJs to B-boys and the graff on the streets [This is hip-hop] music’s inner vision Bringing you back to ‘boom bap’ fused with super-lyricism” Remember the four parts to hip-hop culture? MCing (rapping) DJ’ing, Break dancing and Graffiti art (Let us make it five parts, I was corrected by a good friend and apparently beat boxing is another section of it too! The more you know). There ya have it right there . “Boom bap” is the classical type of hip hop beat and not the overly techno/synth stuff you hear today. A boom bap beat goes like this: boom bap
boom boom boom bap I know that it doesn’t make sense, so watch this vid to see what I mean, pay attention to the drums! And that is another thing that I learned the meaning of thanks to Rhyme Asylum
Possessed is next, and he is one of the best MCs I have ever listened to. His flow is sick, not good…sick. Genius word play and rhymes is the sweetest icing on the most savoury cake for me.
“Still a fan of this shit far from marital bliss But I’ma stick with it till I’m carried by six” Do you know what I mean? Carried by six meaning the day of his death of course. Far from marital bliss? Bliss is not a word to use for us men haha
“What happened to Em what happened to Bis? Will I be the next rapper to slip [Crazy]“ Em is referring to Eminem I think. And he is right,what the hell happened to the dude? Well according to Possessed he “slipped”, and by that it probably means that he signed with a major record label and is now screwed as an artist.
“No better way of expressing myself See there’s Hip-Hop, then there’s everything else We go against the grain change the game (And we) pave the way while you stay the same So pay homage The difference is we give to this Hip-Hop shit not take from it” Hip-hop lyricism, like any other form of literature is an art. So Possessed hits it on the nail when he brings self expression into the formula. That is what art is! And the game that they change? It is what is hip-hop is about. Forget the bling bling, the chauvinism and all those half naked women, forget the drugs and “thug life” shit…this is Underground!
“Never, turning my back my life is Hip-Hop Live breathe spit bleed and die for Hip-Hop How much time is left? Hip-Hops not dead, its dying, and this here is its final breath” See the passion there eh? Die for hip-hop, that is hardcore stuff. And people have heard “hip-hop is dead” but no it is not. It is dying, and Rhyme Asylum is (among others) it’s final breath. Hip Hop is on life support, but in my opinion Underground is growing and mainstream is collapsing.
Two elements of hip hop that I mentioned before were rhyming and the use of metaphors. There is another poetic tool that artists may use, and that is aliteration; Using words that start with the same letter consecutively to create a poetic effect.
One track that employs this technique really well is The N-word from Rhyme Asylum’s album Solitary Confinement. Although Hip hop was born in the USA, the UK now has a significant base of artists and Rhyme Asylum is but one of them. The group consists mainly of Posessed, Psiklone and Skirmish as members, but this particular track only features Posessed. Here is the video and also the lyrics:
I’m negative nether world native
Nirvana nemesis, put necks in nooses not necklaces
Navigate Nebuchadnezzar ship
Neo, so shots from nickel-plated knives never hit
Ninth gate novelist
Necromancer, raise Napoleon from my necropolis
Non-descript nameless nomad
The nightmare referred to in Nostradamus’s notepads
(Nexus) no nationality
Play noughts and crosses, as I knock nails in the Nazarene
Naturally there’s no one nicer than me
As I nap my zees are rotated ninety degrees
Sunk navy deeper than Neptune
Neutralize your next of kin, neighbours, nieces and nephews
A nocturnal ninja network
Notice I never needed to say the notorious ‘N Word’
[Chorus]
‘N Word’ never need to say it
Don’t believe it, then rewind it and replay it
Nefarious, neurotic narrator
I’m not naughty (Nah) I’m nasty by nature
‘N Word’ never need to say it
Don’t believe it, then rewind it and replay it
Nefarious, neurotic narrator
I’m not naughty (Nah) I’m nasty by nature
At first listen it may be non-sensical, just a bunch of rhyming words starting with the same letter that doesn’t tell us anything. But after the artists display of quite amazing flow with the beat as well as clever rhymes; at the end of the entire display in the first verse he says
“Notice I never needed to say the notorious ‘N Word’” And it all becomes clear. The word he is referring to is of course “nigga/nigger” (which I do not condone the use of in anyway) that is used extensively by the rap industry as well as underground artists. Although it is used to refer to people, it is still controversial as it was used to describe black people as property in the age of slavery. A white slave master would say “I want this nigger, he looks healthy” for example. It is argued that the continued use of this word in the rap industry is why it still exists in everyday language. The artist however goes against this and shows that, in an entire impressive piece of flow and rhyming, he did not have to use that word or any swear word for that matter.
Another very clever line is “As I nap my zees are rotated ninety degrees”. If the letter Z is turned 90 degrees what do you get? That’s right, the letter N!
“Sunk navy deeper than Neptune” Neptune is the Roman God of the sea who commands it and everything in it.
“Non-descript nameless nomad” These words begin with N and also describe something of non-identity, they are almost synonymous.
“The nightmare referred to in Nostradamus’s notepads” Nostradamus was a poet and some believe a prophetic figure who predicted future events such as the second World War.
“Navigate Nebuchadnezzar ship” Nebuchadnezzar was an emperor of the Babylonian civilization (modern day Iraq).
“Play noughts and crosses as I knock nails in the Nazarene”. Nazarene is a term to describe someone from the village of Nazareth. And one of the only notable people who is from Nazareth is Jesus Christ. I see some potential anti-religious references here, as Jesus was nailed to the cross as the Christians claim.
And that is all that I can draw from this piece, but I guess the central message is the futility of the N word and its uselessness. As I say again, showing amazing flow, clever rhymes a wide range of vocabulary and knowledge of historical characters all beginning with N without actually using the N-word anywhere.
I hope this has been helpful to any who read this!
