San Francisco

I always hate how white people talk to dogs like they are babies I’m sure they think we are dicks

This video is processing – it'll appear automatically when it's done.

People are always comparing me to Eminem, Asher Roth, Mac Miller or Macklemore. Although I respect what (some) of those guys do, I feel like my writing style is much different. My biggest influences are MF DOOM, Kanye West, Talib Kweli, Mos Def, Lupe Fiasco, Nas, Blu & Rakim. (sidenote – if you compare me to Atmosphere, I won’t be insulted at all).

This video is processing – it'll appear automatically when it's done.

What is this?

The Genius annotation is the work of the Genius Editorial project. Our editors and contributors collaborate to create the most interesting and informative explanation of any line of text. It’s also a work in progress, so leave a suggestion if this or any annotation is missing something.

To learn more about participating in the Genius Editorial project, check out the contributor guidelines.

Loading...

Emphasis on “trying”

This video is processing – it'll appear automatically when it's done.

Unreviewed Annotation 1 Contributor ?

What is this?

The Genius annotation is the work of the Genius Editorial project. Our editors and contributors collaborate to create the most interesting and informative explanation of any line of text. It’s also a work in progress, so leave a suggestion if this or any annotation is missing something.

To learn more about participating in the Genius Editorial project, check out the contributor guidelines.

Loading...

He is exaggeratedly describing the vividness of the green diamonds in his necklace

This video is processing – it'll appear automatically when it's done.

What is this?

The Genius annotation is the work of the Genius Editorial project. Our editors and contributors collaborate to create the most interesting and informative explanation of any line of text. It’s also a work in progress, so leave a suggestion if this or any annotation is missing something.

To learn more about participating in the Genius Editorial project, check out the contributor guidelines.

Loading...

Ab is comparing himself to other members of TDE.

  • He has the lyrical ability of Kendrick, without the ‘good kid’ moniker and more of an evil streak (represented by the acid)

  • He has the swag of Schoolboy Q, but also possesses the poetic talent of a famous black poet like Langston Hughes. (Also Schoolboy’s nickname and twitter handle is Groovy Q, so Ab plays with the double meaning of groove as a space between two things)

  • He has the grittiness of Jay Rock, but is still proper enough to be a member of the Rockefeller family, as he didn’t have as rough a chilhood as Rock. He plays on signing to Roc-a-Fella records here, claiming that he would still be a dope rapper even with that background. Even here his wordplay shines since Jay Rock shares the same name with Roc-a-fella records head hauncho and Soul’s idol/rival, Jay-Z (who also has a dash in his name!).

Overall, TDE members are always fucking around with each other, but this is a hilarious set of comparisons.

This video is processing – it'll appear automatically when it's done.

Unreviewed Annotation 1 Contributor ?

What is this?

The Genius annotation is the work of the Genius Editorial project. Our editors and contributors collaborate to create the most interesting and informative explanation of any line of text. It’s also a work in progress, so leave a suggestion if this or any annotation is missing something.

To learn more about participating in the Genius Editorial project, check out the contributor guidelines.

Loading...

lmao. best part is riff is a genius when it comes to off the top stream of conscious lyrics, but there is so much INTENT behind every line. He either is the most profound man of all time or is going back and thinking of hilarious meanings. Either way THANKYOURIFFRAFF

This video is processing – it'll appear automatically when it's done.

Unreviewed Annotation 1 Contributor ?

What is this?

The Genius annotation is the work of the Genius Editorial project. Our editors and contributors collaborate to create the most interesting and informative explanation of any line of text. It’s also a work in progress, so leave a suggestion if this or any annotation is missing something.

To learn more about participating in the Genius Editorial project, check out the contributor guidelines.

Loading...

O shit! Obama historically pwns Romney’s political agenda

Obama mocks Romney’s fear of Russian people, saying his foreign policies are mimicking the 1980s, during the Cold War and “red scare.”
Obama is referring to the years before the civil rights movement when he says the social policies of the 1950’s, criticizing Romney’s general association with inequality
*The 1920’s were the years preceding the Great Depression, showing that if Romney were president, we will be lead to another economic catastrophe

This video is processing – it'll appear automatically when it's done.

What is this?

The Genius annotation is the work of the Genius Editorial project. Our editors and contributors collaborate to create the most interesting and informative explanation of any line of text. It’s also a work in progress, so leave a suggestion if this or any annotation is missing something.

To learn more about participating in the Genius Editorial project, check out the contributor guidelines.

Loading...

Kendrick poetically justifies why his writing is vital to hip-hop. To explain this, he sneaks 4 literary mechanisms into the inner-workings of his rhymes (punctuation, letter, margin, metaphor):

  • “make sure my punctuation is curved”, i.e. a comma, which is curved, instead of a period, which would signify a full stop. i.e. Kendrick doesn’t stop!

  • His use of “letter” not only emphasizes that each and every character he writes is truthful, but it also refers to the fact that each verse of the song is structured as a letter, as evidenced by his sign-off and the postscripts.

  • Kendrick “lives his life in the margin”, which is literally the small blank space at the end of the lines he writes. Metaphorically he lives his life in the periphery outside the masses.

  • “Proof,” as in proofread. One often writes in the margin of the page when he or she is proofreading. But also, a mathematical ‘proof’ to show the answer and conclusion to your equation. Looks like Kendrick’s equation here is sound…

This video is processing – it'll appear automatically when it's done.

Why does every dance song (I see you Pitbull) have the theme of living it up and getting drunk cuz there might not be a tomorrow? wack ass played out concept nahimsayin

This video is processing – it'll appear automatically when it's done.

What is this?

The Genius annotation is the work of the Genius Editorial project. Our editors and contributors collaborate to create the most interesting and informative explanation of any line of text. It’s also a work in progress, so leave a suggestion if this or any annotation is missing something.

To learn more about participating in the Genius Editorial project, check out the contributor guidelines.

Loading...

Lupe, using a range of double entendres (reeds/reads, Aloe/eyes low, token/toking) explains the process of getting high without any weed involved. Essentially he is saying that he can achieve a form of highness without needing any drugs (Lupe is a muslim and does not smoke)

He’s essentially following his ‘seeds of thoughts’. He’s walking on ice so he is not touching any weeds. Therefore, the seeds that he is walking on, are seeds of thought.

This video is processing – it'll appear automatically when it's done.