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Wyclef escaped poverty through his music; rather than dream of fame and fortune, he “woke up” and took it. This line is also a nod to the fact that the Enya song sampled to make this track appeared on the soundtrack of the Stephen King film Sleepwalkers.
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The Supreme Team were a drug gang who operated out of the South Jamaica projects in Queens, of which Fat Cat was an influential part. The group’s leader was Kenneth “Supreme” McGriff
It is rumored that the shooting of 50 Cent was ordered by McGriff after the song “Ghetto Qu'ran” came out; apparently 50’s naming of high level gang members didn’t sit too well
Don't you forget about little old me King Chip (Ft. 6th Sense & Naledge) – Dear Hip-Hop
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What is this?
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This is a taunt by Lupe, telling the audience to catch up to his metaphors, and also extending the metaphor seen throughout Verse 1 as “Catch Up” and “Ketchup” can be made into homonyms.
'Cause y’all raps ain’t got no vertebrae Kanye West (Ft. Beyoncé, Big Sean & Charlie Wilson) – See Me Now
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But, you see, the sad thing fuckin' with her is
Is the chick ain't even have brains, dummy like a bitch J. Cole – Lights Please
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In a clever play on words, J. Cole finds it ironic that his girl (let’s call her Amy) gives great oral sex (“brain”), but can barely think for herself
The whole phrase is a reference to the 1970’s musical and movie The Wiz, which was an urbanized re-telling of The Wizard of Oz, featuring an entirely African-American cast (the movie version had, among others, Michael Jackson and Diana Ross). In both versions, a scarecrow asks a powerful wizard for a brain because he feels incomplete without it, much like J. Cole thinks Amy is incomplete without smarts.
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#Wordplay!
Both the phrases “Nasty Nasdaq” and “Dow Jones” are financial puns on Nas' full name, Nasir Jones. On Illmatic, Nas refers to himself as “Nasty Nas” a bunch of times.
Nas is mocking 50 Cent’s thirst for money with these two financial references, and is suggesting he takes a bow for the man with more integrity.
Before Nas released “Hip Hop Is Dead”, Nas said in an interview that his next album would be called “NASDAQ Dow Jones”.
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Nas' ex-wife, Kelis, had a hit single named Milkshake. Look out for Nas' cameo as chef!
This is a response to 50 Cents line in “Piggy Bank”:
Anyone who thought Kelis was hot (note: everybody) got trapped in Nas' “slaughterhouse”, also known as his “notepad”, where they would be subsequently ripped apart. It was just a set-up for her to bring everyone in, not that she slept around.
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In homage to Huey Lewis' awful song “The Heart of Rock & Roll”.
Wayne personifies hip-hop and claims that he’s the beating heart of the organism; the center of and the leader of hip-hop as a genre and also what’s keeping it alive.
If Rap was a human or living being, Wayne would be the heart pumping blood or, for the sake of the personification, music through the veins or minds of the listeners.
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Cole can’t imagine how a father could see his child’s face, then leave for another woman. Especially as his real dad did that.
There are quite a few websites out there which will help find your deadbeat parent; think about THAT before you run away
Here, Cole is talking about the responsibilities of individuals. He is presenting the “deadbeat” father concept, referring to people who come into the rap game (or any game, be it politics, societal, etc) trying to change things up for the better, but fall for the ‘pu$$y’ (money) and end up producing (givin' birth) some bullshit material that gives rap (again, it doesn’t have to be rap) a bad image (often, rap is ignorantly associated with criminal activity, the thug life, and not creative/positive thinking). “Go start another family” just means to leave, or walk out of the whole mess left behind. Maybe he is sneak dissin' rappers who come in to the rap scene for a profit, leave a mess of ignorant and money idolizing adolescents (or just people), and go start something else (a label, or something else that will bring in a profit..more pu$$y).
Cole doesn’t understand how he can look in his child’s face – knowing that’s his responcibility as well as a piece of himself, and still just leave him because he wasn’t ready for a son, then later on in life start a family with another woman – and raise those kids as if they are the kids he wanted and his first son was not.