DRAKE?!

Okay, since I dedicated this blog to my best friend and my favorite lover, the great Drake, I might as well talk about the man a little. First of all I wanna introduce him, Aubrey “Drake” Graham is a Grammy-Award winning, platinum-selling recording artist. His dad is African American and his mom is Jewish. When he was young he often spent his summers in Memphis with his father. He acted in a popular TV show Degrassi. And ever since that embarrassing acting experience, he has been in the music game. As The New York Times Jon Caramanica writes, “So it’s gone with Drake, hip-hop’s current center of gravity, his success a reminder of so many of the victories hip-hop has won in the last couple of decades: the right to be decadent, sure, but also the right to reimagine any style of music, the right to be emotionally complicated, the right to be unusual. He confounds expectations. He raps about soft things, sings about hard things. Thanks to his versatility, he is the glue that binds together all of urban radio.” Drake means a lot to a lot of people. He means a lot to me. I'll give brief descriptions of a few songs that really get to me:

Look What You've Done - This song is about a woman Drake loves, not in the romantic sense but with deep caring commitment. He says that he worries about her health, and that he is thankful for everything she has done for him. At the end of the song is a loving voice mail from the woman. For me the imagery that starts the song is the most memorable part of it, because it describes how hard being there for one other can be, in a real way.

Cameras / Good Ones Go Interlude - This song has a collage of interpretations. It opens with hype for the team, then becomes a message to a woman, saying that the girl he's with "look like a star, but only on camera, look like we in love but only on camera." The second verse describes the woman who looks like a star on camera.

Marvins Room - This song is probably the best Drake song ever. Drake sings about wanting to call a woman to tell "Fuck that nigga that you love so bad, I know you still think about the times we've had." The song for me reveals the harsh truths of loving someone who's love belongs to another.

Connect - This song is about a couple different things. The first is pride of his city, the second is a woman and their relationships. Part of the hook goes "Same city, same friends if you're looking for me", which I really like because it shows loyalty and love. The second verse is about the woman and its very empowering. "She just wanna run around the city and make memories, That she can barely remember, And I'd allow her, talk about pussy power.She just wanna run over my feelin's, Like she drinkin' and drivin' in an 18 wheeler. And I'd allow her, talk about pussy power She used to say "You can be whoever you want, even yourself". Yeah, I show up knowin' exactly who I was and never leave as myself. But when it falls apart, I'm always still down, To pick a million tiny little pieces off the ground, Cause you would learn to love people and use things, And not the other way around."

Wednesday Night Interlude - This song is a collaboration with PARTYNEXTDOOR about being lonely. I would say its just very well put together and emotionally stirring.

Hope you in enjoyed. Sincerely Drake

EARL P.2

I Don't Like Shit I Don't Go Outside, Earl Sweatshirt's second full album, dropped in March this year. For me this music was really very easy to connect to. I understand the voice Earl is portraying in his music. In this album he raps a lot about being depressed and feeling in distress. As a young teenager full of angst, I can relate to that. My favorite songs off this album are Mantra, Grief, Grown Ups, and AM // Radio. Grief was the most popular track. Its about feeling lethargic, cynical, and depressed. Its pretty pessimistic, but it also contains some pretty good advice. The last bar of the song goes "I just want my mind and time in tact, When they both gone you can't buy 'em back." Those words make me rethink how I use my time, and it makes me want to be more productive. AM // Radio is probably my absolute favorite off the album, because even though it shares the mood of the rest of the album, the beat and style make the song unique. The song has a very mellow feel, with a sort of calm tone, even though Earl is rapping about some semi extreme things.

I can't wait for Earl to come up with something new, I really love, understand and appreciate his music. Way to go man.
Sincerely Drake

EARL

Alright, lets talk about Earl.
Earl Sweatshirt is one of my absolute favorite American rappers. He is a member of Odd Future, a Los Angeles based hip hop collective. In his younger years as a rapper, his mother sent him to Somoa, a boarding school, because he had been getting into trouble. He is currently 21. (TURN UP!) Oh, and he skates which is always cool.

Now lets talk about his music. He has two full albums published, lets take them one at a time. His first album, Doris, which was put out in 2013, was a huge success for Earl, because it was widely praised. It featured Frank Ocean, and Tyler the Creator, (who are also both members of Odd Future). Both of those names will probably resurface during the life of this blog. 

My favorite tracks from Doris are Whoa, Molasses, Pre, Chum, and Sunday, which has a very special place in my heart. Sunday, to me is about a relationship, and I find it meaningful because it describes a very real situation, and feelings through a voice so straight forward, it almost sounds harsh. You can tell real love and pain inspired that song, and real love and pain was put into making it. The music video for Whoa is one of the funniest, featuring Tyler, in this crazy abandoned trailer and the over grown, litter infested area around in. At one point in the video Earl is laying down on a pool float, in a dirty puddle of rain water gathered at the base of a smooth cement bowl shaped structure, and Tyler and some other skaters are circling him on skateboards and bikes. Its worth checking out. I'll tell you more about Earl and his second album, I Don't Like Shit, I Don't Go Outside in my next post!

Sunday - Earl Sweatshirt Lyrics: http://genius.com/Earl-sweatshirt-sunday-lyrics

Whoa - Earl Sweatshirt Music Video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=anRkutaPS9w

Sincerely Drake.

It Ain't Drake

Dear Internet,
I have a confession. I am not actually Drake. I am a sixteen year-old girl in high school. And Drake, if you are reading this, first of all I love you. Second, I hope you do not mind me using your name symbolically to express my love of your music and the music of others.
To my other readers, you can expect this to be a relatively opinionated blog that praises, recommends and analyzes music, particularly rap. I am a lover, of music like any other, and this will be my space to truely express that.
Sincerely Drake
 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0KCWqnldEag