The Cure
by DEV
I can't remember where I found this track, so I apologize but I do think it warrants a listen, especially if you like rap. Now, before we start, I am not even going to fool you into thinking I'm some kind of expert on rap. I have some on my iPod and I'm familiar with old-school stuff but, make no mistakes, I do feel horribly under-qualified to write about it. That being said, I would like to think I know a good rap when I hear it. As I've said before, a well-written rap should be distinguishable from poetry only in that, when spoken, the rhythm and flow of the words becomes paramount. Like with poetry, rhyming is nice but it's not a must, and unexpected rhymes throughout --like start-spark and parade-grave in "The Cure"-- that hints at phonetic similarity provides a smoother connection between lines rather than using a word just because it has the right ending.
This song laments the devolution of the rap genre--positing that it has become more about the money and less about the art -- which I've noticed is becoming a recurring theme, especially among new artists. The merit of this underlying theme,along with the perceived hints that public education is meant to contain creativity, is up for debate. DEV also didn't use any cuss words in this rap, which always impresses me. It's not that I'm against cussing -- my family will tell you have the most irreverently foul mouth possible -- I just feel that if you really have something important to say, you don't need them to get your point across. Besides, it gives The Man a reason to censor you, which, make no mistake, they are hoping to do. Personally, I think overall the lyrics come off as very intelligent, but that's something you can decide for yourself. Just as a Note: This artist is not well-known so if you search for him on Google, you are going to get a lot of hits for Dev from Far East Movement--even the last.fm page is confused. Putting the name in all caps won't help and neither will putting in keywords like "rapper" and "the cure." This, as you can imagine, was very frustrating so we're lucky to have video and an image this week.
Now, if you'll excuse me, I have strange men in my house--they're here to texture my walls. Wow...that sounded more like a sexual innuendo than I had planned.
This song laments the devolution of the rap genre--positing that it has become more about the money and less about the art -- which I've noticed is becoming a recurring theme, especially among new artists. The merit of this underlying theme,along with the perceived hints that public education is meant to contain creativity, is up for debate. DEV also didn't use any cuss words in this rap, which always impresses me. It's not that I'm against cussing -- my family will tell you have the most irreverently foul mouth possible -- I just feel that if you really have something important to say, you don't need them to get your point across. Besides, it gives The Man a reason to censor you, which, make no mistake, they are hoping to do. Personally, I think overall the lyrics come off as very intelligent, but that's something you can decide for yourself. Just as a Note: This artist is not well-known so if you search for him on Google, you are going to get a lot of hits for Dev from Far East Movement--even the last.fm page is confused. Putting the name in all caps won't help and neither will putting in keywords like "rapper" and "the cure." This, as you can imagine, was very frustrating so we're lucky to have video and an image this week.
Now, if you'll excuse me, I have strange men in my house--they're here to texture my walls. Wow...that sounded more like a sexual innuendo than I had planned.
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