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Another homophone – Mufasa was a lion from Disney’s The Lion King, but this girl is constantly lyin' to him. This line was taken from his Coachella freestyle and was paraphrased by Ab-Soul.
Gambino went on to play Simba in Disney’s 2019 Lion King remake.
And that pushed me off the beaten trail Shad – Progress (Part 1: American Pie , Part 2: The Future is Here)
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Shad’s mind is very speedy if it is on par with Jamaican Olympic champion sprinter and “World’s Fastest Man” title holder Usain Bolt’s footspeed.
His swift mind has pushed him away from the atypical rapper image and made him one of the more popular and successful but still “underground” rappers.
Traded her for a foreign car, kept in storage, parked
Til the tires got deflated, no air, like Jordin Sparks Shad – Progress (Part 1: American Pie , Part 2: The Future is Here)
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He used to drive a Firebird Trans Am car, but he needed money so he trapped it for a cheaper foreign car.
He kept the new foreign car off the road which resulted in the tires losing air and becoming flat.
Shad makes a reference to the hit song “No Air” by singer Jordin Sparks.
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The society is led to believe in a lot of things that are nonexistent or hope to see something that surely won’t happen. The world is full of ignorant and miseducated people.
This line is also a possible reference to Laureyn Hill’s debut album The Miseducation od Lauryn Hill, since Shad mentioned her in the first verse of the song.
There were flashes of massive plane and stock crashes
Flower baskets and caskets Shad – Progress (Part 1: American Pie , Part 2: The Future is Here)
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Don McLean’s “American Pie” speaks about “the day the music died” as a reference to the day that famous musicians Buddy Holly, Ritchie Valens and “The Big Bopper” died in a plane crash.
This day that Shad is speaking of is a new day, one that has ties to the new generation and world. It was a series of recent events such as the 9/11 attacks and the 2008 Financial Crisis.
Flower baskets and caskets are the typical things you would find at a funeral, so this is a reference to the fact that there were a lot of dead people as a consequence of these events.
I ain't even mad you ain't a star yet" Shad – He Say She Say
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Referencing all the Star Trek wordplay from the first verse. But this girl doesn’t even know the difference between Star Wars, which is an epic space opera franchise, and Star Trek. Hey pal, let this girl go. She’s obviously not worth it.
Almost all of the Star Trek references from the first verse were pointing out that he believes she’s only with him because she hopes that he can become a star some day. Plus, the show title contains the word “star” in it, of course. That’s why she wants him to stop talking about that show and making references to it. Because she doesn’t even care if he’s a star or not — she’s more concerned with his lack of maturity and that’s the real reason she’s getting on his case. However, that word, “yet”, denotes that perhaps she is secretly waiting for stardom.
Baby I don't care that you're lyrical Shad – He Say She Say
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He responds sarcastically but she wants him to actually listen. And she tells him that sh doesn’t even care that he’s a great rapper, because that’s not important to her. She just wants to see him be a more mature guy.
The enemy isn't the flesh and blood thugs and cynics
We fighting fear and pride for the love within us Shad (Ft. Lights) – Remember to Remember
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There is no enemy greater than ourselves, and our biggest challenge is to overcome the fear and hate to find the love inside.
This is also a reference to Ephesians 6:12 from the Holy Bible:
For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms.
See I was always taught to act my age and not my genre
And I'm just a product of the way that I was brought up Shad – Thank You
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Hip-Hop is typically known and associated with violence, but he does not define himself by his genre. He was taught the values of honesty and honour which separates him from many rappers.
Also, Shad is paying homage to Common Sense whom he mentioned as his inspiration, in the second verse. More specifically, this is an allusion to the following lines from Common’s track “Book of Life,”:
I may not be the darkest, brother
But I was always told to act my age, not my color
While Common is talking about skin color, Shad is expanding on it by saying genre.
For all the IOU's no consonance
Yeah my whole crew they gave me confidence
My few confidants, out to all my friends Shad – Thank You
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Circumference is the length around a circle. This is referring to his circle of friends that surround him. Shad is giving shout outs to his friends and family for supporting him when he needed it, because they were the ones who made him confident in what he was doing and helped him make it. IOU (I owe you) is something one would grant as something of a loan to someone. While this is typically monetary, it can be taken to other levels as well, such as emotional support.
Note the wordplay with “consonants” and “consonance”. “I” “O” and “U” are all vowels, unlike most of the other English letters, which are consonants. Also, “confidence” and “confidants” are obviously homophones too.
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