Monday, October 29, 2007

Song lyrics - Lisbeth Cervantes

Jay-Z – 99 Problems
Jay-Z by far one of my favorite rappers! When he raps I can understand where he’s coming from even though he is a man and I am a woman, anger has no gender. One of the reasons why I look up to him is because he has a very strong mind set and he is a visionary, he goes with his instincts, and is very sharp. He has the ability to rap without writing anything on paper; he just flows on the mic and comes out with a genius song.
One of my favorite songs he’s done is from his supposedly last album (which was later not), Fade to Black. That album is pure genius. There is a song on there called “99 Problems” where he talks about the issues he has with the rap industry, being black, and beef he has with other people. Part of the song explains how he almost got caught with drugs in the trunk of his car when he was pulled over by a cop for speeding, the cop then starts to profile him:

“…and I heard "Son do you know why I'm stopping you for?"
Cause I'm young and I'm black and my hats real low
Do I look like a mind reader sir, I don't know
Am I under arrest or should I guess some mo?
"Well you was doing fifty five in a fifty four"
"License and registration and step out of the car"
"Are you carrying a weapon on you I know alot of you are"
I ain't stepping out of shit all my papers legit
"Do you mind if I look round the car a little bit?"
Well my glove compartment is locked so is the trunk and the back
And I know my rights so you gon' need a warrent for that
"Aren't you sharp as a tack are some type of lawyer or something?"
"Or somebody important or something?"
Nah I ain't pass the bar but I know a little bit
Enough that you won't illegally search my shit
"Well see how smart you are when the K-9's come"
I got 99 problems but a bitch ain't one
Hit me”

I think these lyrics fall under the concept of resistance to domination, as stated in chapter 3. According to the text book, resistance to domination is defined as any action on the part of the oppressed individual to lessen the constraints placed on them by those in power. Jay-Z is expressing his resistance to domination when he talks to back to the cop telling him how he knows his rights and that if the cop wants check his car he’s going to need a warrant for that.

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