Music Theory
November 3rd, 2014
Cash Rules Everything Around Me
I never listen to rap music. I have only heard, in passing, rap music that is mainstream and on the radio. From that little exposure, I have developed the opinion that it is often too centered on materialism. For the purpose of this assignment, I researched the best rap songs of all time. I found “C.R.E.A.M.” by Wu Tang Clan on many of those lists.
While I did not enjoy the melody as much as I had hoped, the lyrics captivated me—ensuring me that Wu Tang Clan would also dislike plenty of contemporary rap music that glorifies violence and “drug dealing just to get by” (as Kanye West might say). The song is like an ode to the dangers of greed or perhaps a ballad concerning the story of a young man desperate for money to survive. The boy would rob others in order to secure cash, but ended up spending most of it on drugs anyway. He thinks the drugs give him what he wants, but realizes that his emptiness is an endless abyss. The lyrics demonstrate how the “gangster/thug” life is brutal and unforgiving. He asks himself why he chose to start smoking a substance that he calls “sess.” He supposes the intoxicant makes him less depressed, but admits shortly thereafter that he is still just as depressed. The young man commits crime—hurts others—in order to escape his disadvantaged circumstances, yet that very lifestyle leads only to incarceration.
I figured I had rap’s subject-matter pegged, but I was surprised to discover that these lyrics resonated with me. Rap is basically spoken poetry to a beat, so perhaps I should read rap lyrics more often. Who knows? Maybe one day I will appreciate the rhythm and melody too.
