Complete Motherfuckin' Freedom
Okay, I've made a couple of attempts to make this post about TV writing when really I want to talk about music, there is no logical segue, it seems so...
Jumping right in, I've been into punk my whole life. Have enjoyed a life-long crush on Ian Mackaye. Found Bob Mould to be a lyrical lyricist, I probably quote him a little too much in my Facebook status updates. And, "This Band Could Be Your Life" rates highest on my list of favorite books.
So, no one was more surprised at how much I embraced rap than I was.
See, I moved to Washington D.C. when I was 14, I was a pierced, Manic Panic'd, ripped everything, asshole -- I fell in immediate love with Commander Salamandar in Georgetown, and I wanted Anarchy in the U.K. (still do, but for different reasons now). Sorry Mom and Dad for past me.
ANYWAY
It was in D.C. that I met my then best friend Shannon. We were an unlikely duo, as she was more gangsta. I introduced her to punk. She introduced me to rap. I stuck with the rap, she hated the punk. But we both loved scary movies and stealing our parents' beer, so we became besties.
Within two years, I had to move again, to Utah, where I went to a Catholic High School. All the public schools seemed to have heavy Mormon influences, and my Sikh mother felt Catholicism was the lesser evil. I'm not sure she was right, but this post isn't about religion. When I got there, I was still punk. Neither Shannon nor my parents could get it out of me. But, I couldn't stop listening to rap. I mean, Ice-T was infuckingcredible. And the back and forth on Too $hort's, "Don't Fight The Feelin'" was inspired. And "I Ain't Tha One" by Ice Cube, well, I could so relate (how, I'm not sure, since bitches wasn't takin' me for my money).
I like to pride myself on bringing rap to my very whitebread Catholic high school, and fucking up those kids more than they would've been on their own. Yes, moms and dads, I was a bad influence on your kids. With a little help from Dr. Dre!
ANYWAY
This is a long round-about way of getting to Eminem. But, hey, I'm verbose and it's my blog, so...
I've liked mainstream rap -- hell, I still do Salt 'n' Pepa at Karaoke. Run DMC is on constant rotation in my iTunes. And, well, I'll always loved the Beastie Boys. But, Eminem. I never really knew what to do with him. I mean, my sister adored him for fuck's sake. My little sister. Just by adding the "little" should explain why it wasn't cool for me to like him.
But then 8 MILE came out. I went begrudgingly, not wanting to give this punk ass whiny bitch any of my time or money. I guess I did know what to make of him. But after 8 MILE, my attitude changed. He wasn't whiny. He was scrappy. He was inventive. He was amazing. And his lyrics... well, who the hell doesn't love "Lose Yourself?" It's about as mainstream as it gets. The theme's totally relatable. The writing is stellar. The rhythm is insane. It's probably my favorite song.
Oh, here we go, here's where we relate it to writing: I listened to "Lose Yourself" on the way to my first ever meeting. I really felt I only had one shot, one opportunity. I blared that shit and sang along. I probably looked insane at 9 AM. I also ended up going into the meeting with the mindset that I only had one shot and one opportunity and this was it. Which means, I was beyond nervous, put way too much pressure on myself, and ended up not getting the job. Now I listen to classical on my way to meetings.
ANYWAY...
So, I listened to RELAPSE, Eminem's last album. Eh. Not great. And I chalked him up to a One-Life-Changing Song Wonder. And I kinda forgot about him. Well, I guess the guy went into seclusion after (during? Before?) his addiction to Oxy or something. And I guess one of his D12 brethren, his best friend, Proof, got killed. And I guess life kinda got hard for him for a couple of years there.
Most folks wouldn't come out of hiding. Hell, with my year, I'm having kinda a hard time of it myself. Which might explain this post and my newest love. That love is,
RECOVERY by Eminem. The entire fucking album is like song after song of updated "Lose Yourself"s. It is seriously the most infuckingspiring album I've ever heard. Ever. Its lyrics are... fuck I wish I could write that well. I mean, this kid BLEEDS all over these songs.
I got busted crying today, YES CRYING, as I was at a stop light listening to "No Love." Busted by the guy in the car next to me. I think he's listened to the album. He smiled at me, like he understood. Like everytime he writes, he thinks of a verse from the song. Like I do. He looked at me like the song changed his life, too.*
NO LOVE
Eminem (Feat. Lil Wayne)
"I'm alive again, more alive than I have been, in my whole entire life I can/ see these people's ears perk up as I begin/ to spaz with the pen, I'm a little bit sicker than, most shit's finna' to get thick again/ they say the competition is stiff, but I get a hard dick from this shit, now stick it in/ I ain't never givin' in again, caution to the wind complete freedom."
That's what I've got. Complete freedom. And I can't wait to finish this script... or you know, spaz with the MacBook Pro.
What? I never claimed to be Eminem, Though, I do got me some bitches and ho's. Cuz' I be gangsta like dat.
*He may have been laughing at me, because I'm pretty sure I looked like the female version of Michael Bolton from Office Space.
Jumping right in, I've been into punk my whole life. Have enjoyed a life-long crush on Ian Mackaye. Found Bob Mould to be a lyrical lyricist, I probably quote him a little too much in my Facebook status updates. And, "This Band Could Be Your Life" rates highest on my list of favorite books.
So, no one was more surprised at how much I embraced rap than I was.
See, I moved to Washington D.C. when I was 14, I was a pierced, Manic Panic'd, ripped everything, asshole -- I fell in immediate love with Commander Salamandar in Georgetown, and I wanted Anarchy in the U.K. (still do, but for different reasons now). Sorry Mom and Dad for past me.
ANYWAY
It was in D.C. that I met my then best friend Shannon. We were an unlikely duo, as she was more gangsta. I introduced her to punk. She introduced me to rap. I stuck with the rap, she hated the punk. But we both loved scary movies and stealing our parents' beer, so we became besties.
Within two years, I had to move again, to Utah, where I went to a Catholic High School. All the public schools seemed to have heavy Mormon influences, and my Sikh mother felt Catholicism was the lesser evil. I'm not sure she was right, but this post isn't about religion. When I got there, I was still punk. Neither Shannon nor my parents could get it out of me. But, I couldn't stop listening to rap. I mean, Ice-T was infuckingcredible. And the back and forth on Too $hort's, "Don't Fight The Feelin'" was inspired. And "I Ain't Tha One" by Ice Cube, well, I could so relate (how, I'm not sure, since bitches wasn't takin' me for my money).
I like to pride myself on bringing rap to my very whitebread Catholic high school, and fucking up those kids more than they would've been on their own. Yes, moms and dads, I was a bad influence on your kids. With a little help from Dr. Dre!
ANYWAY
This is a long round-about way of getting to Eminem. But, hey, I'm verbose and it's my blog, so...
I've liked mainstream rap -- hell, I still do Salt 'n' Pepa at Karaoke. Run DMC is on constant rotation in my iTunes. And, well, I'll always loved the Beastie Boys. But, Eminem. I never really knew what to do with him. I mean, my sister adored him for fuck's sake. My little sister. Just by adding the "little" should explain why it wasn't cool for me to like him.
But then 8 MILE came out. I went begrudgingly, not wanting to give this punk ass whiny bitch any of my time or money. I guess I did know what to make of him. But after 8 MILE, my attitude changed. He wasn't whiny. He was scrappy. He was inventive. He was amazing. And his lyrics... well, who the hell doesn't love "Lose Yourself?" It's about as mainstream as it gets. The theme's totally relatable. The writing is stellar. The rhythm is insane. It's probably my favorite song.
Oh, here we go, here's where we relate it to writing: I listened to "Lose Yourself" on the way to my first ever meeting. I really felt I only had one shot, one opportunity. I blared that shit and sang along. I probably looked insane at 9 AM. I also ended up going into the meeting with the mindset that I only had one shot and one opportunity and this was it. Which means, I was beyond nervous, put way too much pressure on myself, and ended up not getting the job. Now I listen to classical on my way to meetings.
ANYWAY...
So, I listened to RELAPSE, Eminem's last album. Eh. Not great. And I chalked him up to a One-Life-Changing Song Wonder. And I kinda forgot about him. Well, I guess the guy went into seclusion after (during? Before?) his addiction to Oxy or something. And I guess one of his D12 brethren, his best friend, Proof, got killed. And I guess life kinda got hard for him for a couple of years there.
Most folks wouldn't come out of hiding. Hell, with my year, I'm having kinda a hard time of it myself. Which might explain this post and my newest love. That love is,
RECOVERY by Eminem. The entire fucking album is like song after song of updated "Lose Yourself"s. It is seriously the most infuckingspiring album I've ever heard. Ever. Its lyrics are... fuck I wish I could write that well. I mean, this kid BLEEDS all over these songs.
I got busted crying today, YES CRYING, as I was at a stop light listening to "No Love." Busted by the guy in the car next to me. I think he's listened to the album. He smiled at me, like he understood. Like everytime he writes, he thinks of a verse from the song. Like I do. He looked at me like the song changed his life, too.*
NO LOVE
Eminem (Feat. Lil Wayne)
"I'm alive again, more alive than I have been, in my whole entire life I can/ see these people's ears perk up as I begin/ to spaz with the pen, I'm a little bit sicker than, most shit's finna' to get thick again/ they say the competition is stiff, but I get a hard dick from this shit, now stick it in/ I ain't never givin' in again, caution to the wind complete freedom."
That's what I've got. Complete freedom. And I can't wait to finish this script... or you know, spaz with the MacBook Pro.
What? I never claimed to be Eminem, Though, I do got me some bitches and ho's. Cuz' I be gangsta like dat.
*He may have been laughing at me, because I'm pretty sure I looked like the female version of Michael Bolton from Office Space.
posted by BooM @ 2:38 PM
2 comments
