Day: December 13, 2021

“2009” by Mac Miller is Poetry

On By Clark T.In PoetryLeave a comment

Mac Miller is a 21st century rap artist who sadly passed away in the year 2018 by a tragic drug overdose. The song “2009” starts off with a wonderful piano solo that really sets the mood for the song as a whole. The song then transitions into Miller himself who comes in with a very soft tone of voice. Mac has always been known for his well thought out rhyme schemes and he shows that here in this song as well.

The song starts with the chorus that is repeated many times throughout.

“I don’t need to lie no more
Nowadays all I do is shine, take a breath and ease my mind, and
She don’t cry no more
She tell me that I get her high ’cause an angel’s s’posed to fly, and
I ain’t askin’ “Why?” no more
Oh, no, I take it if it’s mine, I don’t stay inside the lines
It ain’t 2009 no more
Yeah, I know what’s behind that door“

These lines here specifically hit hard to the listener and to Mac himself. They represent his past times and what he had to go through in that specific year which was 2009. Mac battled many things including depression that was fueled by a deadly drug addiction, as well as relationship issues that were also prominent in the ideas for his songs.

This song specifically I think can really fit into that category of poetry. The song throughout has a rheme scheme representing that as of a poem and flows like a poem as well.

” Nowadays all I do is shine, take a breath and ease my mind, and
She don’t cry no more”

These specific lines really show Mac Miller’s ability to use a certain flow and his descriptive langue to show his troubles with his relationships and how he is coping with them and as well as how he is doing in the moment of the song.

Verse 1 also features some extremely powerful lines that if read out loud you would assume is poetry.

“Now every day I wake up and breathe
I don’t have it all but that’s all right with me
Take it nice and easy, took a flight to see me
Send you back home with a light that’s beamin’
The whole team ’bout to figure it out
We ice cold, that’s what winter about
And sometimes, sometimes I wish I took a simpler route
Instead of havin’ demons that’s as big as my house, mhmm
Have a ball with a dribble and bounce”

Here, Mac Miller uses an aaaabbbbb rhyme scheme that also features a metaphor. Using this scheme and combing it with a metaphor helps the reader better understand how Mac is feeling mentally at this state in this song (at this state in his life). Mac’s lines here also show his thankfulness for just the fact that he was here and living at this point in time, even though he may not have everything in life.

Verse 2 also illuminates some very powerful lines

“You don’t ever gotta worry
Even when it’s 7:30 and the time is runnin’ low
When your heart get cold
See what’s behind all them unturned stones
And I’m a pro when it come to my job
But really I’m just tryna start believin’ in God
Now when it gets hard
I don’t panic, I don’t sound the alarm”

Once again, Mac uses rhyming to emphasize the significance of woman in his life. Mac also shows his newfound relation and hopefulness that he can now make God significant in his life. Comparing praying to God and sounding the alarm creates a powerful metaphor and really shows how much god means to him and how he feels safe to have him.

This song truly represents poetry. It lines not only represent things much bigger than the words on the page like poetry, but also has a form and rhyme scheme like an actual poem. Mac Miller is an artist and with his use of words, he could easily have written an award-winning poem if he were still here today.

No Role Modelz

On By THOMAS SIn Poetry3 Comments

“No Role Modelz” is a song written by J. Cole, featured on his album 2014 Forest Hills Drive.

No Role Modelz

J. Cole portrays multiple themes is this song, and I am going to focus on two of them.

The first theme that I am going to focus on is the one of lack of male role models. J. Cole immediately addresses this by saying,

“First things first: rest in peace Uncle Phil

for real

you the only father that I ever knew”

This is an allusion to a TV show called “Fresh Prince of Bellaire”, in which a character named Uncle Phil looks after a young boy for the large duration of his childhood due to him not having a father figure. J. Cole immediately addressing Uncle Phil shows the importance to him of a male figure who stepped up as a parental figure. The line “you the only father that I ever knew” implies that he did not have a male parental figure growing up, and the fact that he relied on a TV show to gain a positive male influence shows the lack of a male parental figure in his life, and how important it is to have one.

He shows his belief on how important it is to have a male parental figure when he says “I get my b**** pregnant I’ma be a better you.” His desire to be an outstanding Dad for his child displays his belief in importance of a strong Dad in a boy’s life.

J. Cole develops another theme by attacking the people in Hollywood, specifically woman. He develops a theme that some women are good individuals and respectable, but that most aren’t, and that is takes a smart man to decipher and decide between the two. While the theme and the way he portrays it is definitely condescending towards women, he also talks about how men, including himself, play into this role and make it possible for women who he morally attacks to be prosperous.

The main chorus of this song demonstrates this perfectly,

“Don’t save her, she don’t wanna be saved.

Don’t save her, she don’t wanna be saved.

Don’t save her, she don’t wanna be saved.

Don’t save her, she don’t wanna be saved.”

The repetition shows how he believes the majority of woman do not deserve to be “saved” in Hollywood.

J. Cole tells a story about an encounter he has with a woman in Hollywood that he believes to be morally poor.

“Out in Hollywood bringin’ back five or six hoes

F*** ’em then we kick ’em to the do’, n****, you know how it go

She deserved that, she a bird, it’s a bird trap

You think if I didn’t rap she would flirt back?

Takin’ off her skirt, let her wear my shirt, ‘fore she leave

‘I’ma need my shirt back'”

In this excerpt he dehumanizes the women he had a sexual experience by calling them birds in order to enforce that idea that the majority of women in Hollywood do not deserve the type of respect you would give to an ordinary person. It is clear he believes they are only talking to him because he is famous, and want to attach themselves to him, which he symbolizes him preventing by taking his shirt back.

In this excerpt J. Cole shows how he feels “these type” of women should be treated, but then shows how men feed into this role and make it possible. In another sexual encounter with a women,

“Last night I was gettin’ my feet rubbed by the baddest b****

Not Trina but I swear to God, this b****’ll make you call your girl up

And tell her, ‘Hey, what’s good?

Sorry I’m never comin’ home, I’ma stay for good'”.

This experience shows how he plays into the role that allows morally poor women to thrive by choosing a girl that he finds extremely attractive over a girl that has a good personality. This shows that attractiveness can take a women very far in the lifestyle that he lives, because famous men like him prioritize it so much.

We All Need a Burning Pile

On By SAMUEL LUBINUSIn PoetryLeave a comment

“Burning Pile” is a song by Mother Mother and was on the album “O My Heart”. The song is about how us as people go through struggles all the time and sometimes we fell as though we are drowning in a pile of shame and anxiety that has been pushed onto us by the world. However, we can all prosper if we throw all of our problems into a theoretical burning pile.

Throughout the entirety of the song, the band describes different scenarios in which the main character of the song is describing that things that they do and how they believe that they are a horrible person for doing them.

All my money been a long time spent

On my drugs, on my rent

On my saving philosophy

It goes, one in the bank, and the rest for me

Mother Mother, “Burning Pile” O My Heart

Immediately after each of the stanzas where it talks about the shame, the song then switches the tone and says how there is hope for the main character and all they need to do is throw them in a burning pile and they will start to be happy.

all my troubles on a burning pile

All lit up and I start to smile

Mother Mother, “Burning Pile” O My Heart

The song gives the reader a feeling of hope. That even though things seem bleak, we all still have the ability to be happy and at peace with ourselves. All we need to do is throw our problems at a burning pile and forget about them.