I over-analyzed dumb lyrics

#hiphop #travisscott

A big thank you to Professor Arran Stibbe for putting up with me!

Travis Scott (‘UTOPIA, ‘Astroworld’), Playboi Carti (‘Whole Lotta Red’, ‘Sky’) and Yeat (‘2093’, ‘Up 2 Me’). What do those three hip-hop stars have in common? They are all rappers who, at one point or another, have been criticised and clowned for their lyrics.

Whether it’s Travis Scott’s proclamation of ‘stroke my cactus’ on ‘Through the late night’, Yeat’s made-up words found on tracks like ‘If we being real’, ‘Breathe’ and ‘Money so big’, or Playboi Carti’s repetitive adlibs on songs like ‘FE!N’, ‘CARNIVAL’ and ‘Magnolia’; they, amongst other rappers in the ‘new generation’, seem to have made themselves easy targets for ridicule.

But, in my mind, a lot of this criticism stems from a lack of understanding. For example, Ken Carson (‘Overseas’, ‘ss’, ‘Fighting My Demons’) was mocked relentlessly when, on the song ‘i need u’ (‘A Great Chaos’), he claimed that its possible to spend money on, well, money. People laughed at him for what they assumed was an oversight on his part, however, when you think about it, Ken was obviously referring to making investments, i.e. spending money to make money.

Now, aside from that one example, I can think of dozens of instances where rappers have been misunderstood and, as a result, teased. But, as far as I can tell, no one is doing anything about it and many rappers continue to be tormented to this day for ‘dumb lyrics’ that, in my opinion, are actually incredibly smart.

Which is why, in this video, I’m headed over to genius.com (lyric genius) to use my skills in over-analysis and prove that these ‘bad lyricists’ are actually geniuses!

First, I started with ‘My Eyes’ rapper Travis Scott, and looked at a lyric from ‘Never Catch Me’ (‘Rodeo’) that seemingly centres around potty humour. Once I had proven the hidden intellect that lies beyond most critics’ comprehension, I moved on to Yeat – who is no stranger to this channel. But rather than translating his lyrics again, I instead highlighted the social commentary he was making on ‘Jus Wokeup’ (‘4L’).

Feeling confident in my newfound over-analysis abilities, I took on my biggest challenge yet: Jack Harlow (‘Lovin On Me’, ‘First Class’, ‘Industry Baby’). Although there was a slight sense of sarcasm in my annotation of ‘Churchill Downs’, feat Drake, I think I did a pretty good job of masking my distain for the lyric in question.

Whatever the case, I made sure that the next two rappers on my list, Gunna (‘one of wun’, ‘on one tonight’, ‘prada dem’) and Playboi Carti (‘2024’, ‘backr00ms’, ‘H00DBYAIR’) were easier to praise. But then came NAV (‘Lemonade’, feat Don Toliver, ‘Tap’, ‘Champion’), Baby Keem (‘leavemealone’, ‘family ties’, ‘The Melodic Blue’) and Ty Dolla $ign (‘VULTURES 1’, ‘BURN’, ‘Or Nah’).

And, as the lyrics became funnier and more ridiculous, so did my annotations. But had I completely lost sight of the task at hand? Had I forgotten the very reason for starting this genius-annotating journey? Was my over-analysis all for nothing? You’ll have to watch to find out.

If you, by the time you’re reading this, have already watched the video, then I hope you enjoyed it!

Music used in this video…

2pm -    • 2 PM  

Eine Kleine Nachtmusik - Cover -    • Mozart - Eine Kleine Nachtmusik [DOVE...  

Travis Scott - I know - Piano Cover -    • Travis Scott - I KNOW ? (PIANO COVER)  

Yeat - Swerved It - Piano Cover -    • [beautiful piece] Yeat Swerved it pia...  

Playboi Carti - Over - Piano Cover -    • Over - Playboi Carti (Piano Cover)  

Travis Scott - Yosemite - Guitar Cover -    • Travis Scott Yosemite Guitar Loop Cover  

Grass Skirt Chase - Spongebob

Comet Observatory 3 - Super Mario Galaxy

Ken Carson - Jennifer’s Body - Piano Cover -    • Ken Carson - Jennifer's Body But It's...  

Yeat - On Tha Line - Piano Cover -    • [request] YEAT ON THA LINE PIANO TUTO...  

Ty Dolla $ign - Zaddy - Instrumental Cover -    • Zaddy (Cover Instrumental) [In the St...