Corner cutting (extended edition)

Mostly inappropriate,
socially dope but bogus wit
a side of champagne for ya dumb brain
got no problems except dealin with pain
dealin and administration
waiting for my turn
yeah i'm real fuckin' patient
nothin' to do, but think about you
you might as well quit dancin'
and tell me somethin' cruel
or maybe somethin' cool
or maybe somethin' else
statistically irrelevant,
i try and tell myself
now i'm waitin' on wealth
and i'll be waitin' in a few
got red money for days but
what the fuck can i do
just a man on a mission
a plan on which im pissin
a stand that im takin'
a dream i'm mistakin'
my misfortunes are wakin'
me up from my dreams
like tellin' me to get real
life ain't what it seems
to be
or maybe just not what it seems to me
it seems to me that this shit's obscene
but ey, it's free
you could take it you could leave it
don't matter to me
just another soul
who don't want it anymore
and yeah i hit the floor
live it up a little bit
make myself look like an ass
try and donald glover it
a white black nerd
who get down a little bit
like its cool to piss yourself
where the fuck is billy at
dumbass in a philly cap
in the place that we get silly at
nah it's really that
i ain't got time for ya'll
motha fuckas gotta ball
8-5 at the mall
got so much money that i don't know what to do with
so many problems that i don't know how to deal with
like how i ain't got money yet i still sit here and say shit
this rhyme's a funky thought, just somethin' for you to play with
and you know you don't rap, so i know you can't say shit
but when may hits, you'll be out there lickin my pay slips
look it up on ya bracelet
see what that fuckin play meant
these words are just my chess pieces
i need an X to play with
see damn son i got it
this flow inside my noggin
you're readin this and noddin
tryin' to think of what i've thoughten
and yeah i'm makin' words up
and yeah i got my courage up
and yeah i've got a surplus
of bullshit i can serve ya
but damn i hope you like me
my lyrics and my typing
my ranting and my writing
my bullshit and insighting
can't say i'm bottled lightning
but yeah i'm throttled, fighting
striving for the top of
whatever mountain i'm climbing
don't let me get you off track
and bring this classic shit back
to something that is in tact
and not a fuckin' train rack
i mean a fuckin' trainwreck
im groggy yo, my brain's wet
i'm soggy 'cause my brain's wet
i'm ballin' with no paycheck
just cuz i ain't got paid yet
don't mean that i don't got bread
throw some butter on that Wonder
after i toast it way black
that's burnt, get it?
the metaphor's dyspeptic
my flow is straight up septic
my breath smells straight like pickles
and my brain is always hectic
i am a frantic freewrite
with no aim and no guide
it's so plain, it's so nice
i'm so plane, i'm so high
i'm not though, chicago,
sealevel, el lago
here i go, espanol
this shit's too much to handle
if you don't like what i say
click any link and go away
i promise you this shit i made
was instant like the package say
and instinct like it's what i say
if you ask me to write a rhyme
so please don't write a complaint
i wish i had a refrain
some relief
some nice peace
where i could make this rhyme lead
where i could make this rhyme go
it's fuckin' silly, I know
i'm sorry bout my swearin,
mainly only to my parents
cuz everyone else who reads this
already know that we're friends
i'm hatin' on my blog,
i'm hatin' on myself
i guess this makes it pity rap
which means that i can go to hell
but yo i know you're tired as fuck
of readin' shit like this that sucks,
so i'm about to cut it off,
like a corner of a street
but i can't even cut off shit,
cuz' i don't even have a beat
so i guess i'll just stop writin' words
and hope you'll like in your head what you've heard.

random freestyle inspired by Kanye and Jay-Z. I just picked up Watch the Throne, and as someone with thoughts, I feel obligated to shine my light on the superduo's album.

Kanye West and Jay-Z have different styles. If you pick up their own work, you will hear much different brands of hip-hop. West tones down his evil creative genius, Jay-Z opens up, as it just feels like he's trying on Kanye's vision for size. It's a happy medium. It's a play album. This album is a hip-hop slumber party. Jay's stayin' at Ye's house! I picture them in one piece pajamas, eating pizza and playing Grand Theft Auto IV. It's a one player game, they can't both play simultaneously, but they naturally trade off missions and keep each other engaged.

Presenting this album to you is a crazy awesome amalgam of producers, spearheaded by Kanye. Kanye only made one song (Otis) by himself, but had a part in all but 3 songs of the original album. Swizz Beats put together beats for two of the songs, which makes me pretty happy. It's interesting to see how the different styles present themselves in a cohesive album, with Kanye making sure to be the unifying overseer of the tracks.

My tally has Kanye leading off 7 songs and Jay-Z dropping the first verse on 5 of them, and I'd say that's a pretty accurate depiction of how much of Kanye's fingerprints are on this compared to Jay-Z's. These guys rap like D-Wade and King James play basketball. Different styles, but both involve lots of scoring. They trade off being the guy and occasionally work together for a supreme highlight.

I can't pick a favorite song. Of the 12 tracks, 12 are full-blown songs. 12 of them have potential to be best and I like 12 of them. There is no outstanding winner to me after my first (and a halfth) listen. Favorite beats are "No Church in the Wild," "That's My Bitch," "Welcome to the Jungle," "Murder to Excellence" and "Why I Love You." There's no Power or Empire State of Mind from the album to tower over the rest, and I like that. Because I feel like these 12 songs and I have a long way to go yet.

Despite occasional overindulgence (see Beyonce on Lift Off) and no real home run song, a stylistic compromise, and the unfortunate lack of exceeded perfection, this album is fun. Can't wait to buy a physical copy tomorrow. 


--Eliot Sill