The market's down like 60 stories
And some don’t end the way they should

from Frank Ocean (Ft. Earl Sweatshirt) – Super Rich Kids Lyrics on Rap Genius

Meaning

Could this be an example of the rarest of literary devices used in rap, the triple entendre?

Frank’s use of the words “market” and “stories” have at least two, if not three different interpretations

  1. “Stories” referring to the height of the building he is falling from
  2. “Stories” as in the life stories of Frank, himself, as well as other kids and parents from the upper-middle class whose lives have spun off thei desired course
  3. The “market” could refer to the stock market and its subsequent crashes over the past few years. (Or for a more literal explanation, street vendors and their markets are common in major cities)

This is a graph of the 2007-2008 stock market crash:

When the stock market crashed (it fell AT LEASTTT 60 stories), many people who had seemingly valuable investments lost a great deal of money. Many of them lost the ability to live the luxurious lifestyle that they had previously enjoyed. Their investments didn’t turn out the way they “should have” based on earlier predictions.

Additionally, this is likely an allusion to the stock market crash that kickstarted the great depression. Its rumored that after the 1929 stock market crash, numerous investors and stock brokers jumped out of windows and off of ledges of their buildings to their deaths.

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