Honest Expression by Binary Star
Here's what I did for class today. Analyse a song which I like. Check it.
The track that I would like to share about is called 'Honest Expression'. This track is by a Hip Hop duo called Binary Star which consists of One Be Lo & Senim Silla.
They are highly respected in the underground Hip Hop community primarily because of their style, humblness and last but not least 'realness' when it comes to their music. All the songs that they do are what they really feel and want to express, not what the media or mainstream music audience want to hear.
The track starts off with an extract from Bruce Lee's infamous interview from the Pierre Berton Show, which was aired in 1971.
"Ultimately, martial art means honestly expressing yourself...
It is easy for me to put on a show and be cocky,
or I could show you some really fancy movement...
But to express oneself honestly, not lying to oneself,
and to express myslef honestly...
Now that, my friend is very hard to do."
Bruce Lee shares his thoughts on expressing himself through martial arts, which can be applied with all other forms of expression. He can choose to do fancy moves and flips to please the audience but when he does so, he is not being true to himself because he is not expressing what he really wants to express through Martial Arts. As applied to Binary Star, they can choose to drop songs that appeal the mainstream music audience and make lots of money but they aren't doing so because if they do, they would not be being true to themselves. I see this as a choice between Fame & Fortune and Being honest & true to oneself.
Below are the lyrics that follows after the Bruce Lee extract.
Like sands through the hourglass, so are the days of our lives /
And for that live moment we thrive /
Awakenings, as we make the dead come alive /
Rise and walk my son /
Come into the light /
Inside the dark we illuminate mics /
Give knowledge to mediocre /
The will to neanderthal /
Filter to the the small /
Digital to analog /
We steady advancin' /
Rhyme enhancin' /
Simple minds can't keep up with this /
In the verses above, Binary Star makes use of methapors to express their views.
"Awakenings, as we make the dead come alive" - By the dead, they are referring to the ignorant and misled. They raise them from the dead (ignorant, misled) and give them life (knowledge).
"Rise and walk my son / Come into the light" - Inviting people to step into the world of True Hip Hop.
"Inside the dark we illuminate mics / Give knowledge to mediocre / The will to neanderthal / Filter to the the small / Digital to analog" - When they drop their rhymes on the microphones, the mics illuminate because they're real and thats why they shine. Their rhymes drop knowledge to the average and normal, lettin' them learn and understand. From digital to analog, they're going back to the roots of Hip Hop. From evolution and back to where it began.
"Steady advancin', rhyme enhancin', simple minds can't keep up with this." - They're advancin' though they're going back and through this they are enhancing their rhymes. Simple minds can't keep up with this, 'nuff said.
The next bunch of verses that follows...
Senim Silla does this part :
Dig - I'ma put it on the table /
I ain't a thug nigga and playa, I ain't playful /
I'm just Senim Silla, man without label /
Standin' on my own to you tryin' to stay stable /
Speakin' what I know to only what I'm able /
I ain't the kinda guy who carry on for dough /
The material cat who walk around for show /
I'm just your everyday, merry way joe on the go /
While others go with the flow /
I ain't never been the one to follow trend, I do my own bit /
Can't keep up with the joneses, I'm on my own sh*t /
I don't care what you drink /
What you stress, how you dress or where you got the link /
I ain't impressed /
These lames run around like mice in a maze /
Tryin' to get up on cheese, its just a rat race /
Wanna change times' schemes to make man worship things /
Over the supreme being, or stop, fill up? /
Should I join the hypocrites? /
Or side with the suckas by choice /
It makes no difference that y'all product of environment /
It's just coincidence /
The world's a violent place baby, there ain't no more innocence /
Or civil men or penatence, just Ignorance! /
Cats don't know right from wrong /
They mimic shit they see on TV or hear in a song /
What that tell you they on? /
A sucka act up every minute /
The righteous live on but the the niggas are infinite /
One Be Lo :
I ain't hardcore, I don't pack a 9 millimeter /
Most of y'all gangster rappers ain't hardcore neither /
Whoever get mad then I'm talkin 'bout you /
Claim you fear no man but never walk without crew /
Where I'm from, your reputation don't mean jack /
So what you pack gats and you sell fiend's crack /
You ain't big time, my man /
You ain't no different from the next cat in my neigberhood who did time /
Rhyme after rhyme it's the same topic /
What make you think you hardcore cuz you was raised in the projects /
Broke ass finally got a hundred in your pocket /
Now you on the mic spittin' money's no object /
What you say is bullcrap /
If you wasn't with your crew and wasn't drunk off the brew /
Would you still pull gats? /
You need to stop frontin' /
Or you're headed for self destruction /
Yeah, today's topic is self-destruction /
I ain't talkin 'bout the KRS-One discussion /
I'm talkin 'bout the one too many ignorant suckas /
Lyin' on the mic to my sistas and brothas /
Everytime you listen to the radio, all you hear is nonsense /
They never play the bomb sh*t /
Everything that glitters ain't gold /
And every gold record don't glitter that's for damn sure /
The verses above are referring to most Gangster Rappers who rhyme about murder, sex, drugs and guns, which real Hip Hop ain't about. One Be Lo disses them about putting up a tough front to the audience. Because they aren't being honest with themselves and are in self-denial, they are destroying themselves (self-destruction). He refers to these people as the "Ignorant suckas". The last 2 verses he's expressing that just because you're well-known superstar (glitters) representing a genre does not mean that you are the best or realest (gold) that genre has to offer.
What follows after One Be Lo's part is a discussion between him and Senim Silla.
Cats got confused somewhere... Confused. /
About what Hip Hop was or what Hip Hop is. /
Its business y'all, you know it. Its big money, that's all these cats are about. /
You know that's bullshit right? /
But dig it to it, dig it to it /
But if you wanna make money though, I gotta break it down. /
You got Hip Hop and you got Hip Pop /
Hip Pop? Yeah, Hip Pop /
Alotta cats went Pop. /
Yes... It used to real Hip Hop. /
You got the Top 40 version of Hip Pop! /
I still got something else I wanna get off my chest... /
The last bunch of verses comes right after the last phrase in the disucssion.
How many cats you know speak the illegit rhyme after rhyme diligent? /
85 percent represent ignorant /
Either you innocent or guilty /
Some of my favorite emcees fell off /
It damn near killed me /
Lookin' at the kids that was true hip-hop /
Nowadays them cats don't even do hip-hop /
Rap got 'em brainwashed with cats that don't last /
And five minutes of fame /
That's when it's a shame /
Seein real emcees tryin' to imitate rappers /
If you ask me they goin' out ass backwards /
Tradin' in respect to push a fat Lex /
Puff rhymin' on the remix, what's next? /
It hurts so bad I wanna smack 'em /
My favorite crew members break up turn around and join wack ones /
This is dedicated to you hip-hop hypocrites /
Drivin wack songs like you don't give a sh*t /
I ain't got nothin' against nobody tryin' to make a decent living /
It ain't the money that's the issue /
Only if that's the reason why these cats are makin' decent music /
That's when I got beef with you /
And I'ma break it you like never /
Go ahead, call me player hater if it make you feel better /
Try to jump my crew if you cats feel foggy /
You need to wake up and smell the damn coffee /
I really like this track because of its truthfulness. Binary Star makes a loud and clear diss to the "ignorant suckas" and backs it up with awesome flow of rhymes. I also really like the way they express their thoughts through metaphors.
Tags : Lyrical, Binary Star, Hip Hop, Bruce Lee, Knowledge, Expression, Metaphors
Yup, thats about it. Thanks for reading.
Done by Tosh (Team 4, E24A)
The track that I would like to share about is called 'Honest Expression'. This track is by a Hip Hop duo called Binary Star which consists of One Be Lo & Senim Silla.
The track starts off with an extract from Bruce Lee's infamous interview from the Pierre Berton Show, which was aired in 1971.
It is easy for me to put on a show and be cocky,
or I could show you some really fancy movement...
But to express oneself honestly, not lying to oneself,
and to express myslef honestly...
Now that, my friend is very hard to do."
Bruce Lee shares his thoughts on expressing himself through martial arts, which can be applied with all other forms of expression. He can choose to do fancy moves and flips to please the audience but when he does so, he is not being true to himself because he is not expressing what he really wants to express through Martial Arts. As applied to Binary Star, they can choose to drop songs that appeal the mainstream music audience and make lots of money but they aren't doing so because if they do, they would not be being true to themselves. I see this as a choice between Fame & Fortune and Being honest & true to oneself.
Below are the lyrics that follows after the Bruce Lee extract.
Like sands through the hourglass, so are the days of our lives /
And for that live moment we thrive /
Awakenings, as we make the dead come alive /
Rise and walk my son /
Come into the light /
Inside the dark we illuminate mics /
Give knowledge to mediocre /
The will to neanderthal /
Filter to the the small /
Digital to analog /
We steady advancin' /
Rhyme enhancin' /
Simple minds can't keep up with this /
In the verses above, Binary Star makes use of methapors to express their views.
"Awakenings, as we make the dead come alive" - By the dead, they are referring to the ignorant and misled. They raise them from the dead (ignorant, misled) and give them life (knowledge).
"Rise and walk my son / Come into the light" - Inviting people to step into the world of True Hip Hop.
"Inside the dark we illuminate mics / Give knowledge to mediocre / The will to neanderthal / Filter to the the small / Digital to analog" - When they drop their rhymes on the microphones, the mics illuminate because they're real and thats why they shine. Their rhymes drop knowledge to the average and normal, lettin' them learn and understand. From digital to analog, they're going back to the roots of Hip Hop. From evolution and back to where it began.
"Steady advancin', rhyme enhancin', simple minds can't keep up with this." - They're advancin' though they're going back and through this they are enhancing their rhymes. Simple minds can't keep up with this, 'nuff said.
The next bunch of verses that follows...
Senim Silla does this part :
Dig - I'ma put it on the table /
I ain't a thug nigga and playa, I ain't playful /
I'm just Senim Silla, man without label /
Standin' on my own to you tryin' to stay stable /
Speakin' what I know to only what I'm able /
I ain't the kinda guy who carry on for dough /
The material cat who walk around for show /
I'm just your everyday, merry way joe on the go /
While others go with the flow /
I ain't never been the one to follow trend, I do my own bit /
Can't keep up with the joneses, I'm on my own sh*t /
I don't care what you drink /
What you stress, how you dress or where you got the link /
I ain't impressed /
These lames run around like mice in a maze /
Tryin' to get up on cheese, its just a rat race /
Wanna change times' schemes to make man worship things /
Over the supreme being, or stop, fill up? /
Should I join the hypocrites? /
Or side with the suckas by choice /
It makes no difference that y'all product of environment /
It's just coincidence /
The world's a violent place baby, there ain't no more innocence /
Or civil men or penatence, just Ignorance! /
Cats don't know right from wrong /
They mimic shit they see on TV or hear in a song /
What that tell you they on? /
A sucka act up every minute /
The righteous live on but the the niggas are infinite /
One Be Lo :
I ain't hardcore, I don't pack a 9 millimeter /
Most of y'all gangster rappers ain't hardcore neither /
Whoever get mad then I'm talkin 'bout you /
Claim you fear no man but never walk without crew /
Where I'm from, your reputation don't mean jack /
So what you pack gats and you sell fiend's crack /
You ain't big time, my man /
You ain't no different from the next cat in my neigberhood who did time /
Rhyme after rhyme it's the same topic /
What make you think you hardcore cuz you was raised in the projects /
Broke ass finally got a hundred in your pocket /
Now you on the mic spittin' money's no object /
What you say is bullcrap /
If you wasn't with your crew and wasn't drunk off the brew /
Would you still pull gats? /
You need to stop frontin' /
Or you're headed for self destruction /
Yeah, today's topic is self-destruction /
I ain't talkin 'bout the KRS-One discussion /
I'm talkin 'bout the one too many ignorant suckas /
Lyin' on the mic to my sistas and brothas /
Everytime you listen to the radio, all you hear is nonsense /
They never play the bomb sh*t /
Everything that glitters ain't gold /
And every gold record don't glitter that's for damn sure /
The verses above are referring to most Gangster Rappers who rhyme about murder, sex, drugs and guns, which real Hip Hop ain't about. One Be Lo disses them about putting up a tough front to the audience. Because they aren't being honest with themselves and are in self-denial, they are destroying themselves (self-destruction). He refers to these people as the "Ignorant suckas". The last 2 verses he's expressing that just because you're well-known superstar (glitters) representing a genre does not mean that you are the best or realest (gold) that genre has to offer.
What follows after One Be Lo's part is a discussion between him and Senim Silla.
Cats got confused somewhere... Confused. /
About what Hip Hop was or what Hip Hop is. /
Its business y'all, you know it. Its big money, that's all these cats are about. /
You know that's bullshit right? /
But dig it to it, dig it to it /
But if you wanna make money though, I gotta break it down. /
You got Hip Hop and you got Hip Pop /
Hip Pop? Yeah, Hip Pop /
Alotta cats went Pop. /
Yes... It used to real Hip Hop. /
You got the Top 40 version of Hip Pop! /
I still got something else I wanna get off my chest... /
The last bunch of verses comes right after the last phrase in the disucssion.
How many cats you know speak the illegit rhyme after rhyme diligent? /
85 percent represent ignorant /
Either you innocent or guilty /
Some of my favorite emcees fell off /
It damn near killed me /
Lookin' at the kids that was true hip-hop /
Nowadays them cats don't even do hip-hop /
Rap got 'em brainwashed with cats that don't last /
And five minutes of fame /
That's when it's a shame /
Seein real emcees tryin' to imitate rappers /
If you ask me they goin' out ass backwards /
Tradin' in respect to push a fat Lex /
Puff rhymin' on the remix, what's next? /
It hurts so bad I wanna smack 'em /
My favorite crew members break up turn around and join wack ones /
This is dedicated to you hip-hop hypocrites /
Drivin wack songs like you don't give a sh*t /
I ain't got nothin' against nobody tryin' to make a decent living /
It ain't the money that's the issue /
Only if that's the reason why these cats are makin' decent music /
That's when I got beef with you /
And I'ma break it you like never /
Go ahead, call me player hater if it make you feel better /
Try to jump my crew if you cats feel foggy /
You need to wake up and smell the damn coffee /
I really like this track because of its truthfulness. Binary Star makes a loud and clear diss to the "ignorant suckas" and backs it up with awesome flow of rhymes. I also really like the way they express their thoughts through metaphors.
Tags : Lyrical, Binary Star, Hip Hop, Bruce Lee, Knowledge, Expression, Metaphors
Yup, thats about it. Thanks for reading.
Done by Tosh (Team 4, E24A)
posted by Tosh at 1:55 PM
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