William Buckholz - Understand Rap: Explanations of Confusing Rap Lyrics that You & Your Grandma Can Understand

ID LIKE TO THANK R. A. Montgomery and Edward Packard for making reading books enjoyable; the producers of the television show In Living Color for initially exposing me to rap music; MC Hammer for putting his heart into Too Legit to Quit; Pro Set for releasing Yo! MTV Raps trading cards; Michael Nankin and David Wechter for the movie Midnight Madness; Chris, Ryan, and Craig from wE=MCs2 for some inspirational studio and freestyle sessions; everyone who ever helped me with, contributed to, or visited UnderstandRap.com for their support; Abrams books for believing in and publishing this book; my friend Jon for convincing me it would be a good idea to spend a couple hours in the spring of 1998 watching the movie House Party and writing down every slang term we heard and didnt understand; Tom, John, and Dan for being great friends and helping to shape my sense of humor; Mom and Dad for their unconditional love and support; and my Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.

Rap songs are renowned for their double entendres, clever turns of phrase, and general ingenuity, so things dont always make sense on the first (or fourth) listen. Enter UNDERSTAND RAP, a useful pop-cultural reference volume, based on the website of the same name, that explains all the confusing lyrics and terms used in rap songs via language that even your elderly relations can understand.

WILLIAM BUCKHOLZ is a technical writer living in Seattle, WA.

FOR MORE INFORMATION VISIT
WWW.UNDERSTANDRAP.COM

UNDER STAND RAP is a work of music scholarship that attempts to creatively translate interesting and confusing rap lyrics into language those unfamiliar with rap culture and slang can understand.

While at times humorous because of the contrast between the artists language and the language of the author, the intention of this book is not to poke fun at rap music. Rather, it is to highlight some of the more creative artists and lyrics in the genre today and to bring a basic understanding of concepts and themes in rap music to the attention of an audience who may not otherwise be exposed to these lyrics or give them a second thought. It is not the intention of the author to glorify drug use, violence, crime, or sexual promiscuity, even if such themes or concepts are analyzed in this book. It should also be noted that guests often appear on other artists albums and therefore the artist or artists listed beneath a lyric may not be the artist who authored or recited the lyric. Each explanation presented for a lyric in this book represents one of many possible interpretations of these musical works of art, and they are not meant to be taken as fact or to represent the artists points of view in any way whatsoever. Any inaccuracies in the lyrics are unintentional. If used or implied, the first person point of view does not necessarily reflect the views of the artist and is used purely for illustrative purposes. Please support all the artists referenced in this book by purchasing and listening to their albums.

LYRIC FROM SONG: LOLLIPOP (REMIX) ON ALBUM: THA CARTER III (ITUNES BONUS TRACK) BY ARTIST: LIL WAYNE

I am so wealthy that people might mistakenly refer to me by the name of a large multinational computer manufacturer whose integrated circuits are commonly referred to by the same name that I and others use for money.

LYRIC FROM SONG: WHATEVER YOU LIKE ON ALBUM: PAPER TRAIL BY ARTIST: T.I.

I carry such large amounts of cash around with me that a wallet would quickly wear out as it would be stretched beyond the capacity to hold the currency for which it was designed. A common alternative to the wallet, the money clip, is pushed beyond its mechanical limit as well. Therefore, a large rubber band will be employed, as it can expand with increased capacity.

LYRIC FROM SONG: STUNTIN LIKE MY DADDY ON ALBUM: LIKE FATHER, LIKE SON BY ARTIST: BIRDMAN AND LIL WAYNE

One of the names for money is the same as the dessert that is eaten in celebration of another year a human has lived. While no one would observe an annually occurring day 365 times a year, each day is equally joyous to me because of the income that is constantly flowing in, and is therefore worthy of celebration.

LYRIC FROM SONG: WEED & MONEY ON ALBUM: GHETTO D BY ARTIST: MASTER P

There are some risks when it comes to the pursuit of financial success in the rap industry, just as contestants on 1980s television game show Press Your Luck risked losing all their money at the hands of a creepy red cartoon character.

LYRIC FROM SONG: FOREVER BY ARTIST: DRAKE ON ALBUM: MORE THAN A GAME (SOUNDTRACK)

It is possible that you could have so much money that there would be nowhere practical to store it all and eventually every room of your house would be filled with paper currency. Anyone who stopped by to visit you in this virtual ocean of money would have as much trouble finding you as an animated talking cartoon fish father had finding his animated talking cartoon fish son.

LYRIC FROM SONG: HE TRIED TO PLAY ME ON ALBUM: KILLA SEASON BY ARTIST: CAMRON

It is funny that you are using a vast network of computers in order to find the most affordable items as you research bargains and compare the costs associated with shopping at various stores, while other people simply purchase whatever they want immediately upon seeing it and without regard for cost.

LYRIC FROM SONG: KINDA LIKE A BIG DEAL ON ALBUM: TIL THE CASKET DROPS BY ARTIST: CLIPSE

One must believe God is looking favorably upon oneself to be able to frivolously spend $100,000 without worrying about how their bank account balance will be affected during a time when most of the population is struggling financially due to an economic crisis.

LYRIC FROM SONG: FEEL ME ON ALBUM: THA CARTER II BY ARTIST: LIL WAYNE

It is possible that while skipping school, rather than going to the mall, watching a movie, or socializing with friends, one could be engaging in lucrative activities, such as drug dealing, that might yield amounts of money much greater than the average students allowance or summer job.

LYRIC FROM SONG: THEY DONT KNOW ON ALBUM: