Music Poetry!

Chum

Earl Sweatshirt truly is the Shakespeare of our generation and we see this through his song “Chum” in the Doris album. The song is pretty deep but he seems to be talking about his family life and how it has turned him into the person he is today.

Something sinister to it, pendulum swinging slow
A degenerate moving through the city with criminals

He is using quite ingenious wordplay in the above lines. In physics, a pendulums motion is said to be “degenerate” as friction increasingly slows it down. However, the word “degenerate” can also mean an immoral or corrupt person. Earl is describing the pendulums motion as similar to himself, as well as saying he was a moral person who is becoming more corrupted with time

When he says

Get up off the pavement, brush the dirt up off my psyche
Psyche, psyche

This indicates that his troubles are more complex now, involving his psyche rather than just lewd under-age drinking. The line “pendulum swinging slower, degenerate moving” in connection with the slowed down vocals in the words psyche, might mean that Earl’s degeneracy is slowing down with his age as he brushes the dirt off of his dirty psyche. He’s still inclined as a young adult to do stupid things, but he’s starting to slow down.

Cartoons and Cereal

Throughout Hip-Hop history, Poetry has always been intertwined with experiences and lyrical metaphors to help express and convey an emotion, thus expanding and bring together communities between people through, childhood experiences, love, and mental health. Kendrick Lamar is considerably a more recent hip-hop icon that conveys his poetry with his experiences of drugs, love, hate, loneliness and his childhood home. In his song "Cartoons and Cereal" released in 2012, he emphasizes the parallels of addiction and youth. He focused on the power of idolizing cartoons and being youthful with the power of addiction, when growing up you are exposed to new things. These "adult things" that he was exposed to while growing up; he wasn't shielded by them by parental figures.

[Intro]

I wanna hit line drives…
Wanna lose weight and keep eating...
For you...
Hey, whats up doc

As the song continues, we learn Kendrick grew up around his best friends, his A1 that he went way back with- especially to the reference to sandboxes having a double meaning because its literal and figurative because sandboxes are a symbol of youth and innocent “the Good ‘ol days”, back when life was good and all about fun. And, he continues to say because of their background, being youth his 'brother' was holding a handgun due to gang affiliations and his 'sister' giving birth, due to the systematic oppression of young Black women because used and having their innocence taken away due to lack of information on abstinence and education, it shows the poverty of their neighborhood and their "Worlds"

[Bridge]

Now I was raised in a sandbox, next to you and her
You was holding the handgun, she was giving birth
To a baby boy to be just like you, I-I wonder what's that worth

The ideology of Black boys not having no worth in our society, as just being gang affiliated and targets for police brutality- to be a black Boy to Kendrick means their life doesn’t hold much value because they barely make it to adulthood anyway. So,what’s the real value to Black lives?

I-I wonder if you ever knew that you was a role model to me first
The next day I-I woke up in the morning, seen you on the news
Looked in the mirror, then realized that I-I-I had something to prove

This is shown that, Black boys,look up to Black men peep how they were taught to continuous feed into the cycle of seeing themselves on TV in a negative light, Kendrick says to he will be different by proving that he is different, all of this while growing up while exposed to these factors that will shape his perspectives on his value of his life and others around him

You told me "Don't be like me, just finish watching cartoons"
Which is funny now cause all I see is Wile E. Coyote's in the room

The coyotes symbolize the future obstacles of gangs, and vivid imagination as being a child seeing ‘villains’ try to conquer and win against the innocent and heroes, Kendrick tries to be the hero and still remain good and focused on trying to grow up while being prematurely exposed explicitly by teen pregnancy and gang violence and being targeted because he is a Black male in Compton. I'd argue his song is poetry because it lays a foundation of a experiences that Kendrick feels and convey to make people feel some way about his story through things all humans go through; coming of age.

What Do They Call Me?

"Four Women" is written and recorded by the artist Nina Simone from her album Wild Is the Wind. The song was recorded in 1965 and released in 1966. This song is about the depictions of four women with different skin tones and stereotypes. The women depicted in this song are based off of real women. The song also dates back to the slave era where these stereotypes originated. The speakers in this song are four different African American females. The audience are African American women who relate to the descriptions and stereotypes in this song. T

he main use of imagery really brings out the poetic side of the song by creating a stereotypical picture of each women. The use of imagery and first person throughout the whole song also communicates experience for those who actually live with these descriptions and stereotypes. The lyrics of the song would be divided into four stanzas, one for each woman depicted. The first line in each stanza starts out with a woman stating, "My skin is..." to kick off the description of that woman. The women would go on to describe themselves including, "My hair is long", "My manner is tough", and "My hips invite you" Each stanza is directed to a specific type of woman, creates a specific image for them, and conveys a specific experience that they can possibly relate to which will pull in the African American female audience. They will feel like the song is written about them because, poetically, it is written about them. The song written and sang in first person adds on to the personal feel of the it.

Even if some African American females have not experienced these stereotypes, they can feel the experience of those who have because the first person supports the song being for all African American women. The stanzas end with the question, "What do they call me", "they", meaning those who create and believe in the stereotypes, followed by the names, "Aunt Sarah", "Saffronia", "Sweet Thing", and "Peaches". The names in the song add an emotional dimension to the song by providing an unwanted symbol from those who branded them with it to the women who "fit the description". There is a personal connection with those names and the description behind them to the women who represent them making the audience feel emotionally attached to the song. A song with the capability to be directed to people with the use imagery and first person, communicating experiences, and creating an emotional dimension should be considered a fantastic poem.

She Reminds Me of a West Side Story

Song: "Maria Maria"
Artist: Carlos Santana
Album: Supernatural

My all time favorite song is one called "Maria Maria" off of Carlos Santana's album Supernatural. It tells the story of a girl named Maria, and her attempt to escape the life she's living. To me, this song embodies poetry in the best sense of the word.

I said a la favella los colores,
the streets are getting hotter.
There is no water to put out the fire.
Ni gota de esperanza.

When the parts in Spanish are translated, the stanza states that "If rain were a metaphor for hope, not a drop of it could be found." This line adds to the situation that Maria is in, and how badly she wants to try and escape it. The singer also claims that Maria reminds them of a "West Side story." The beauty in this metaphor is that, while a person obviously can't be a story, they are able to be compared to something all listeners can picture.

I have been reading and writing poetry almost every day after school for the past few weeks, and something I have realized is that poetry can be many things. It's main purpose is to find a way to rearrange words, so that one person's experience becomes a metaphor for another person's life. A song like "Maria Maria" isn't one that everyone may relate to personally, we may not all know a Maria, but we are still able to picture her along with her pain, and her story. Not to mention, Carlos Santana is pretty legendary himself.

Music Poetry- "Higher" by The Score

I believe “Higher” by The Score (Edan and Eddie), part of their Atlas album, is true poetry. It was written after moving to LA to pursue their music career, leaving their friends, family, and most of their belongings behind. As they faced challenges in this new world, The Score found their songs could provide the same sense of reassurance and confidence for others that they needed themselves.

Thus, this song (and many of their others) is intended to be empowering. It details the character's ability to overcome the struggles he faces, which inspires listeners to do the same. Edan explains, “... writing universally anthemic, relatable choruses and melodies that just – we want people to feel uplifted…” (atwoodmagazine).

They achieve this through the use of multidimensional lyrics. For example, in the phrase “All my life I have been fighting,” The Score uses fighting to illustrate multiple struggles. It could indicate literally fist-fighting to reach the top, but also demonstrate emotional or psychological perseverance. Moreover, the fighting may not only be against others, it could symbolize pushing himself to improve. Another example of multidimensional language is when they sing "They try to keep me down but I just get higher.” This could mean an obstacle that he must physically overcome, such as being tackled in football, but it also could symbolize stereotypes that confine citizens to certain standards, and exceeding expectations. This is similarly conveyed in the line "Think it's time I break my chains." He could mean literal chains from people holding him back, or breaking past expectations of what people assume. These chains could be literal or societal or even emotional weights.

Altogether, while the song illustrates one man's struggle, the overarching theme should be carried on to our own lives. We should use this determination as an example, whether trying to get a "higher" test score, a "higher" promotion, or simply "higher" confidence in oneself. 

Rico Has a Dark Story

Rico Story by Speaker Knockerz is a single which speaks of an anecdote, and more ignores the music aspect in order to portray the incident in the song. Although Speaker Knockerz is a relatively unknown artist, Rico Story 1, 2, and 3 are very popular songs. Rico Story one is about a man who doesn't have much money and is driven into crime, but later sees that his girlfriend and accomplice ends up rating him out and putting him in jail. He later gets out through some dirty work and while he's out, he encounters his child's mother, who is also the same woman who put him in jail... and that's where Rico Story 2 starts. Throughout the song, Speaker Kockerz rhymes the last word of the sentence with the word in the previous line.

He told her, baby, let's go rob a f*cking bank
she said, okay and then they filled the gas tank
Pulled up to the bank, he parked on the side
He got out the car, she said, I'll stay inside
Put his mask on, load his four-four
Prayed to God and then he opened the door...

By using the use of ABAB rhyme it takes a regular story of someone's life and gives a catchy tone that brings out the "song sound" of the narrative. Along with the music in the background, the rhyme introduced in the song deceives the reader into listening to it as a song rather than a regular story. The overall sound of the song is deceiving because it is a story that is catchy like a song, which works together to build a wonderful piece of music.

Take Me Home, Music Poetry

It’s hard to say poetry is just one “thing”. To boil such a complex art form into one unit would
be impossible. It is not, however, impossible to say one thing is poetry. Take, for example, John
Denver’s “Take Me Home, Country Roads.” Each word carries weight. The song has multiple
meanings. It is truly poetry. The speaker is an adult, who, after a long hiatus, hears the call of
West Virginia, their home. The occasion is not clearly established, but one can infer that the piece occurs during a moment’s nostalgia, as established by the reminiscent, romantic language. The piece seeks to convey the irresistible pull of being, for a moment, caught by the echoes of home. It helps one understand what it’s like to be far from where you grew up and remember the familiarity of
where you once were. The nostalgic tone is set immediately:

Almost heaven, West Virginia
West Virginia is established as a utopia within the narrator’s memories. As they put it,

All my memories, gather round her
The pull of West Virginia is literally occuring on the surface. The text tells the story of a West Virginian away from home. The double meaning, however, exists as a commentary of the nature of “home” itself. West Virginia is not simply a place, it’s an idea. The West Virginia described is not a literal West Virginia. The piece does not occur within West Virginia. As the narrator describes it, “West Virginia” is a manifestation of safety and familiarity.

I hear her voice in the morning hour she calls me
Radio reminds me of my home far away
Driving down the road I get a feeling
That I should have been home yesterday, yesterday

Her(West Virginia) calls to the narrator. The starry sky and misty moonshine are memories. The “calls”, are nostalgia. At its core, “Take Me Home, Country Roads,” is a song about home. Its words carry multiple meaning, as a poem’s should. It conveys the need for home in addition to an engaging story about someone far from West Virginia. A year from now, most of my peers and I will be far from home. We will yearn for the warmth of youth. Oak Park will become our West Virginia. And I’m definitely gonna crank this.

"High as Hope": Album or Anthology?

Florence + the Machine's most recent album "High as Hope" is the first album she has created since she took to sobriety. In an interview with The New York Times, she said her new album "created a creative bravery" and in an act of vulnerability, she "made a step away from the metaphoric."

According to Laurence Perrine, author of Sound and Sense: An Introduction to Poetry, a true poet uses language resources and "the materials of life" to create a poem. Throughout Florence Welch's 2018 release, she draws on past experiences to inspire her lyrics. Most notably in her song "The End of Love"

The first experience she reflects on is the telling of a potentially spurious story about her family's history:

We were a family pulled from the flood
You tore the floorboards up
And let the river rush in
Not wash away, wash away

In an interview with Belfast Telegraph, she recalls how her great-great-grandfather, a sailor, saved her family from a flood by pulling up the floorboards in the house so the water would rush through and wouldn't wash the house away. When writing the chorus, she considered the symbolic value of extreme weather and decided the story symbolizes the impact the past has on the future and the weight of cleaning up the past's destruction.

She goes on to write about her grandmother's suicide in the song's second verse:

In a moment of joy and fury I threw myself
From the balcony like my grandmother so many years before me

These lines bank directly on "the materials of life" and employ simile as a language resource. She compares her present condition to that of her grandmother when she fell. Furthermore, Welch illuminates a pattern in the way the women in her family love, each having learned from her mother, a "trickle-down" that is comparable to the succession of the feeling of tragedy following her grandmother's death.

We then see allusion and connotation at play in the song's bridge:

And Joshua came down from the mountain
With a tablet in his hands
Told me that he loved me, yeah
And then ghosted me again

This stanza alludes to a passage in the Old Testament in which Moses receives the Ten Commandments. Then, Welch plays with the 21st-century connotation of the term "ghosted" referring to when a person's love-interest suddenly ceases communication without explanation. With this idea introduced, the tablet she references may have a more modern implication as an electronic device.

Despite making reference to specific events and stories, Florence Welch's song is still accessible to her audience. She creates a foundation that is personally significant but also encourages the listener to contribute their own experiences to the text, thus through the application of their imagination, senses, and emotions the song "enlighten[s] and move[s]" the listener.

You Are Appreciated

The song that I chose is called Dear Mama, by Tupac Shakur. It's a song from his album, Me Against the World. This is actually one of the most special, touching, heartfelt songs I've ever came across in life. This song is about the indescribable love that he has for his mother. And even though they had their struggles, she was the one who made sure his needs were met. Tupac Shakur really sets the mood with the way he describes certain events. 

In the first verse, for example, 

I shed tears with my baby sister, over the years
We was poorer than the other little kids

Those lines really make me feel the sadness and the struggle that I'm sure they went through together. 

I would also say that Shakur uses imagery. He gave me the ability to form that mental picture in my head of things that he's obviously experienced in the past. 

In the first verse, he says 

I reminisce on the stress I caused, it was hell
Huggin' on my mama from a jail cell

That can surely make you picture him and his mother, together in the jail facility. 

Then in the second verse, he goes on to say

I moved out and started really hangin'
I needed money of my own, so I started slangin'
I aint guilty, 'cause even though I sell rocks
It feels good to put money in your mailbox
I love payin' rent when the rent is due
I hope you got the diamond necklace that I sent to you

The different devices that he uses are really just amazing, and this song is a perfect example of pure poetry. 

Dear Mama




  

Imagine There's No Poetry

The song "Imagine", by John Lennon is one of the most beautiful, awe inspiring, and the most successful single of his career. Released in the middle of the Vietnam War in 1971, he was just as much a visionary as a songwriter. The song itself is short and simple, but the simplicity is what allows each word to carry so much weight. Lennon asks his listeners to just imagine; to imagine a place where we live in peace and unity.

According to Perrine, poetry should broaden or deepen the reader's experiences. He also states that poetry should allow the reader to gain a better understanding or new perspective on the world. "Imagine" broadens the reader's understanding of the world by asking them to imagine a reality that many could not fathom.

Lennon starts the song with the first line:

        Imagine there's no heaven
        It's easy if you try

He mentions religion multiple times in the song. His belief was that people claiming that "my God is better than your God" was the cause for a lot of unrest and violence in the world. Many people live their lives in order to get into heaven or to avoid hell. But what if there was no other place after death, and we had to pay our debts in this life. People would have to focus on the present. How would that change individuals behaviors towards others?

In the start of the second verse he sings: 

        Imagine there's no countries
        It isn't hard to do

Countries, boundaries, and claims for land have caused multiple wars in present day and throughout the history of the earth. What if there was only one big country for everyone? There would be no "developed" or "undeveloped" countries. There would also be more camaraderie, as people would not be divided into sections.

The final line states: 

        Imagine no possessions
        I wonder if you can

Many people can imagine no heaven or no countries, but having no possessions is scary for many people. To be able to give up material goods, things we are accustomed to and many things we love, is not an easy feat. But if we were able to, would it make the world a more equal place?

Some could argue that Lennon's words are more relevant today than they were 30 years ago. Will we ever be able to achieve the goal of world peace? Right now, I'm not sure any of us can really imagine it.

Reminiscing

Famous R&B and soul singer Frank Ocean is known to tell stories through his songs, which is exactly what he does in one of most popular songs, Think Bout You. In this song, Ocean reminisces about his ex-lover, while trying to remain strong. Ocean displays this poetry through song, as he believes that a music is the best way to deliver an effective story while keeping the attention of the audience.

Ocean's calm song begins with him describing his attitude before and after his love, stating

              A tornado flew around my room before I came
              Excuse the mess it made is usually doesn't rain in
              Southern California, much like Arizona
              My eyes don't shed tears, but boy, they pour when

He begins comparing the state of his room to his life. Before he met his lover, his life was a mess and out of order, but his significant other fixed that. When his lover left, it brought him to tears, which he uses the dry weather of California and Arizona to express that these tears are rare for him, but in this case, it's a hard downpour.

Moving on the pre-chorus and the chorus, Ocean sings

              I'm thinkin' 'bout you(Ooh no, no, no)
              I've been thinkin' 'bout you( You know, know know)
              I've been thinkin' 'bout you, do you think about me still?
              Do ya, do ya?

              Or do you not think so far ahead?
              Cause I've been thinkin' 'bout forever, ooh
              Or do you not think so far ahead?
              Cause I've been thinkin' 'bout forever, ooh

In these two stanza's, Ocean conveys irony by using simple language to describe a pretty complex situation between him and his significant other. The repetition of certain words and lines emphasizes that he's constantly thinking about this person and the state of their relationship, wondering if they're doing the same.

It's possible that Ocean is stating lies to suppress his sorrows, when he mentions in his second verse

              No, I don't like you, I just thought you were cool enough to kick it
              Got a beach house I could sell you in Idaho
              Since you think I don't love you, I just thought you were cute
              That's why I kissed you
              Got a fighter jet, I don't get to fly it though, I'm lying down

There could be multiple lies in the verse, such as him saying that he really didn't like this person, his mentioning of owning a beach house, kissing them just because he thought they were cute, and owning a fighter jet. All of these could potentially just be him masking his feelings. The verse quickly transitions from fibs to "I'm lying down" and then into the chorus, highlighting that he can't kid himself with these lies, and that he's really reminiscing about this person.

Overall, Franks comparisons, simply irony, and statements through false claims reflect his complicated and lingering feelings for this mysterious lover.

On a side note, I'd like to say that I never mentioned the word "she" or "her" in describing Ocean's lover, because there were speculations that this song might've been about another guy, but I'm not sure.

Edge of Town

The Australian indie pop band, Middle Kids, released their debut album, Lost Friends, in May 2018. The most prominent track to come out of the album, by far, is "Edge of Town". "Edge of Town" is a story about being lost in the struggle of trying to gain control of one’s life. At first the speaker is dissatisfied with the lack of agency. The speaker's opinion evolves throughout the course of the song and they eventually find freedom in the unpredictability of life.  Middle Kids use various poetic devices, including personification and symbolism, in order to further the message of the song.

The first verse employs personification to illustrate the unrest the speaker feels in their life. For example,

When the streets are talking, yeah, they call my name

When the speaker says the streets "call my name", it shows the listener that the speaker want to leave wherever they are. The streets call to the speaker, making them want to go on a journey to find some type of answer to a problem they are having with the life they are living currently. During the chorus of the song the speaker loses control completely. 

I got all muddled up and journeyed to the edge of town
And then the road cracked open, sucked me in, and I went down
Now standing face to face with the king of the underground

The speaker is talking about the journey they are taking to get to the edge of town when the "road cracked open". The breaking apart of the street symbolizes any semblance of control the speaker used to have dissolving; the speaker "went down" and succumbed to the lack of control. The speaker does not try to fight the fall, but merely accepts being in the "underground". 

"Surprise Me"

"Surprise Me" appears on Mahalia's EP Seasons. This song displays poetic elements through its ability to convey an experience through the use of song.

The song tell the tale of a long-distance relationship, and how this relationship eventually suffers. The song begins with the lyrics:

       I'm waking up and you just fell asleep
       It's funny cause you think I'm meant to be
       Used to this
       If you only know what you are to me
       You'd understand why this hard
       I'm new to this

These lines indicate that the speaker is in a long distance relationship and it is difficult to navigate over a distance. By specifically targeting aspects of a long distance relationship (e.g. being awake at different times), the audience is able to visualize better what it would be like to be in a long distance relationship. The direct language helps the audience understand clearly how the speaker feels, and gives the lyrics a frankness--as if the musician were speaking directly to them.

The speaker continues to reference specific elements of the relationship that are difficult with lines such as "You say 'don't wanna live your life through photos'", and "You say 'don't want to live your life through phone calls'". These two statements are from the perspective of the speaker's partner, and indicate that they are also experiencing difficulties with the trouble of a long distance relationship. As these are all things they have said to the speaker, it adds an extra layer of tension; the speaker's partner is deciding that they no longer find the relationship worth pursuing due to the literal distance between them. This helps the audience understand how a relationship can decay.

The speaker's partner is not the only one unsatisfied with the distance between them. The speaker states:

       I fell asleep and you're just waking up
       I've had enough of always waiting up
       For you

This indicates that she is also feeling pressured by the relationship. However, it seems that a lot of the responsibility to continue the relationship is being put on her, as she is the one staying up late to talk to him, and the lyrics referenced in the beginning indicate that her partner is not willing to stay up late to speak with her. This is an added level of stress to their relationship as one person is putting in all of the work while the other becomes unwilling to do anything, causing tension. This helps the audience understand and feel for the speaker. They can now visualize the situation and empathize with it.

This song does an excellent job of conveying an experience through words, and for this reason it may be considered poetry.

The New Shakespeare: Music

When assigned the assignment to analyze a song for it's poetic lyrics, I honestly thought it would be a piece of cake. After scrolling through my playlists, I struggled a bit to find a song that was both meaningful and coherent, as well as awesome. I finally hit the jackpot when I came upon "Timmy's Prayer" by Sampha, off his debut album Process. Sampha begins the song with his chorus,

If ever you're listening
If heaven's a prison
Then I am your prisoner

Sampha seems to be addressing a past love of his, someone he wishes he still had. His use of an oxymoron represents the variety of feelings he felt during his time with this girl. He as mixed emotions, sometimes seeing his relationship as heavenly, and sometimes seeing it as a prison. Despite this, he goes on to say he's a "prisoner," symbolizing his devotion and willingness to suffer for this person.  After mentioning his inability to get this girl back, he starts getting very emotional and deep. He expresses his sorrow when he says,

My vital organs are beating through
My rib cage opened, my heart ballooned
I, I've lost another one

His choice of diction here paints a graphic image in the listeners mind, one that shows the struggle he is going through. It's not just any ordinary person he lost, but someone who he loved for his life. He now feels devastated and lost. What makes it worse, Sampha realizes, is the contrast between his old life and new life.  He says

Sunshine and blue skies, yes I recall
But now there's a darker blue
The sun sinks and you're not there 

Without his lover, he now feels lonely and without any support. They used to be "blue skies," representing happiness and love. Now, the skies are darker, representing sadness and loneliness. The contrast is so significant and it's all because of this one girl. Lastly, in his last verse, Sampha returns to the prison motif. This time, he changes the words a bit, saying

I wish that I listened when I was in prison
Now I'm a visitor
I came to the gates but you turned me away

This time, Sampha is flashing back to when he was in the relationship, referring to it as prison. He regrets not listening and being a "prisoner." Because of this, he's now a visitor with no connection or relationship with the girl. He's now on the outside, just like a visitor in a prison. Sampha's hopeless feelings about this girl are finally confirmed when he approaches "the gates," referring to heaven and thus his ex-girlfriend. Unfortunately, she turns him away, and he repeats one more time the chorus of the song. Although it's a sad and emotional song, the lyrics are able to come to life because of Sampha's diction, use of symbolism, and other poetic strategies. The listener is able to feel the heartfelt message he is singing to the fullest.

It's a Sign of the Times We Live In

Harry Style's song called "Sign of the Times" is one of his most popular songs on his self-titled album. In an interview, Styles revealed that t's about a mother who recently gave birth and is told that her baby will be fine, but she will die. It is a slow paced song that talks about avoiding emotion during periods of grief and hardship.

The song starts out with the lines:

Just stop your crying, it's a sign of the times
Welcome to the final show
Hope you're wearing your best clothes
You can't bribe the door on your way to the sky
You look pretty good down here
But you ain't really good

The "final show" represents facing the harsh realities of death. He also says "hope you're wearing your best clothes" to signal an upcoming funeral where the dead are buried in their best outfits. The line "You can't bribe the door on your way to the sky" suggests that this person cannot go through the gates of Heaven. Your life has to speak for itself and be "good" even if "you look pretty good down here." I think that this is a comment on how people focus on their appearance and how they look to other people, rather than whether or not they are "really good." People should be morally good and happy with their lives rather than bottling up all of their emotions just to appear good. 

He continues the song with: 

We never learn, we been here before
Why are we always stuck and running from
The bullets? The bullets?
We never learn, we been here before
Why are we always stuck and running from
The bullets? The bullets?

I think that the "bullets" represent people's inner pain and emotion that they aren't willing to share with anyone. He expresses a feeling of being stuck because "we are always...running from" our emotional trauma. If we don't deal with our pain, we will be stuck in the pain and will never get over it. He says that we can never outrun our pain if we don't learn that we should take the time to deal with it, even if it means that our appearance to other people will be ruined by an image of unhappiness. 

I think that "a sign of the times" represents how people repress their feelings in public, only to actually feel their bottled up emotions alone. People care more about their appearances than their actual emotions that they have bottled up. People can go through their entire lives without sharing any of their real feelings, for fear of rejection from society. 

It's a "sign of the times" we live in, that people feel like they have to sustain their happy, beautiful appearance rather than feel their honest emotions and dealing with their pain. 

This song has a deeper meaning that many people don't recognize. Although it is criticized for being sung by a former member of One Direction, I think that it contains an important depth often seen in poetry. It tells a story about a mother who is dying, and what she decides to tell her newborn child about society and how to live. This song shares deep, vulnerable emotions surrounding death and criticizes how society lives. It induces emotions within the listener and shares an intimate experience of love and death, which I think is something that poetry is often accredited for. 

Keep it Esketit, Stupid

The controversial figure Lil Pump has divided the music world into two camps. The first being, Lil Pump is very dumb and makes terrible music and the latter understanding that both those facts are true but are also aware that this is entirely the point of Lil Pump. Throughout the hip-hop criticism world, the popularity of Lil Pump has also exposed an underlying elitism which praises more "lyrical" artists while denying the beauty of other art. However, the persona of Lil Pump established by his music and his online presences create an interesting dichotomy of honesty and excess. Furthermore, Lil Pump's directness sometimes creates a more cutting and interesting message. I believe the obvious lyrical poetry of people such as Kendrick Lamar exemplified in the song untitled 05 is not any more valuable than that of Drug Addicts by Lil Pump. The intricately woven beauty of Kendrick Lamar's word at time feel less like a true experience. Because this raw trueness is the main purpose of poetry as described in  Sound and Sense: an Introduction to Poetry Pump's directness is at times more effective than Lamar's words. 

For example, untitled 05's references to drug use and include: 

                Taaka vodka on the top of my binocular I'm drunk
                How can I make them popular, pop em' when I want                
                See I'm livin' with anxiety, duckin' sobriety
                Drove alone, with a bottle of his own grippin' the handle

Throughout the song, the beautiful lyrics paint a portrait of addiction. And while these lyrics do provide a portrait of a life, I cannot say that this makes me truly feel the intimate and raw experiences that Drug Addicts does. There is always a facade of cleverness which does not discredit its poetic qualities but dilutes it. 

Lil Pump represents a poetic candor which is typically buried under layers of complex diction and techniques. He begins:

              Whole gang full of drug addicts (ooh, chyeah)
              Take a lot of shit, forgot what happened (forgot what happened)
              I ain't gon' lie, I got a habit (ooh, I got a habit)
              Swear to God, you can't be on my status (I swear to God!)
              Start the day off with a pint (yeah, brr-brr!)
              I'ma show you how to live life (yeah, ooh!)
              Take a lot of drugs, don't think twice (wow)
              I do this every day and all night (ooh, ooh!)

The first line "Whole gang full of drug addicts" brings light to communal spiral rather than the introspective nature of drug addictions. We are brought deeper into the darkness of Pump's affliction. He tells the tale of his affliction with a sense of direction and even pride which allows the listener to truly submerge themselves in the experience. His biting honesty is the closest I have felt to understanding the effects of addiction in a person's life and for that reason, it is true poetry. 

He Can Only Hold Her: An Exploration of Lost Lovers

The song "He Can Only Hold Her" off Amy Winehouse's album Back to Black has always captivated me. Mainly because of how Amy was so open and raw about her pain, but also because while listening to the song I can hear a story. The song describes a relationship between a man and and a woman, unnamed and vaguely described. The entire song revolves around the emotions of the two people by describing their thoughts and actions.

         He can only hold her for so long

           The lights are on, but no one's home       
           She's so vacant          
           Her soul is taken          
           He thinks, What's she running from?
           Now, how can he have her heart

           When it got stole?
           So he tries to pacify her
          'Cause what's inside her never dies

This first lines of the song jump into the relationship without introduction, the audience is immediately drawn into another world with these two people.  Yet the descriptions aren't personal, we aren't getting to know each characters personality, we are getting to know them by seeing their interactions and thoughts towards each other. I believe that alone makes it poetry, it uses the method of showing and not telling to reveal an important message. Nothing is sugar coated, the pain is left out in the open for the reader to see and to feel in their own heart.

     Even if she's content in his warmth
      She is plagued with urgency
      Searching kisses
      The man she misses
      The man that he longs to be

As the song progresses, the audience can better piece together information about the characters. The woman is empty inside due to the last man who left her. She continues to search for him in every other man she's with but he can only hold her for so long until she realizes he isn't the man she desires. This story is told through poetry because it sets the reader out on an exploration of lost lovers they do not know, telling the audience their deepest secrets and pain. It's shares a piece of the human condition which I believe poetry does as well.

Can Music be Considered Poetry?

Mac Millers song "Ladders" off of his album Swimming, is a beautiful work of art that can connect with anybody on a personal level. The beat and rhythm of the song can get anyone dancing and singing, and the lyrics provide a deep meaning to struggles in life. The rhyme scheme makes the song easy to sing/rap along to.

The song gets into the struggles of life, and how for a period of time you may be climbing, and going in the right direction, but at some moment you may fall off that ladder. Mac Makes this song very personal to him as he had been struggling with many mental demons, that were more prevalent at times due to his drug and alcohol issues.

The song starts with the chorus...
Know it feels so good right now
But it all come fallin' down
When the night, meet the light
Turn to day

This line really sets up the meaning of the poem, and using the opposites of night and light, to equal day, illuminates how the good and bad can come together to make life as a whole.

When you're on top, 'til the ball drop

This line uses the analogy of the New years eve ball drop to show how at one second you can feel on top of the world, and then the next everything can come crashing down. Mac uses the comparison of high and low to encompass the struggles and beauty of life.

I'm swimmin' a bit, but deeper in thought
Keepin' my head on top of my shoulders

The analogy of swimming and the imagery of drowning are seen in this line, which Mac uses to describe his struggle just trying to keep afloat. The word "deeper" in this line refers to the deep end of the pool where it is harder to stay above the water because the bottom cant keep you up.

I think this album is called swimming, because when your swimming the water is always pushing against you, and making it harder for you to move forward. Mac at this time in his life was struggling to just keep moving forward, and to not let the "water" of life drown him.

Loss of Traditional Meaning and Why that is OK

Romanticism is alive and well, dead (too). At least, in the traditional sense of the movement that delves into the philosophical and distinctly characterized nature of the term, its modern iteration is much less (traditionally) ¨thoughtful¨ as it is (modernly) ¨provoking¨ candy to the mind´s eye. Traditional Romanticism is very much rooted in individual and the emotional catharsis of the individual, almost always in the context or presence of the natural world. This is the basis for the poems and artistic expression that defined the era in American history, and while not what characterizes Romanticism in the present day, it's unfair to say that deviation or adaptation of its meaning to a changing world is a loss of its values entirely.

 Modern romanticism is much less thoughtful than its original form but that is not to say it is any less endearing or ¨valid¨. It may be true that in such a modern world of easily accessed distractions, one doesn't take time to admire the morning lilys that clings to the yard fence, but they receive their dose of the romantic by other means. As the pen and paper are to the 19th century American be the tablet and big screen to the modern one; our sense of the romantic is displayed to us on the big screen. It's seeing long panning shots of a Hawaiin sunset against the admiring waves below that reflect it respectfully that stirs something within us. The entice of seeing the main hero and heroine kissing under a jeweled sky and kindly obtuse moon that warms us as much as the loving projection of emotion before us. It's those moments that flutter the heart with some sense of longing; something that fills with a sense of profound love and reciprocation to the natural world's fruitfulness; it is something that fills us with a sense of nostalgia for something we perhaps never had. It is my belief that this same flutter of the heart, no, of the inner self, that resonates in tune of some provocative and warming display of humanity, nature, and the longing to experience that is the same expression that Transcendental America inspired in the hearts of those in the 19th century.

Are we less creative, more narrow-minded if our sense of wonder and freedom with the natural world is spoon fed to us? I do not think so. Adaptability and individual applicability is something that even the most conservative of Romantics would say is a crucial characteristic of the movement. Romanticism is meant to grasp the reader, the artist, the poet, with the enlightenment of its expression. If we cannot but be shown it on the big screen or television, then so let the romantic spirit live on changing, adapting, and provoking the hearts of those who embrace it.