Struggles of a Rapid Ascension to Fame Rap star G-Eazy, born Gerald Earl Gillum, may only be twenty seven years old but he has played on the same stage as legends such as Jimi Hendrix and the Beatles to U2 and John Denver to Prince and Macklemore and many more. Coming off his sophomore album, When It’s Dark Out released December 4th, 2015, his career is reaching new levels of popularity which isn’t all it’s cut out to be. This album, which featured his triple platinum single “Me, Myself & I” featuring Bebe Rexha, brings a spotlight to tragedies in his past and the “rollercoaster that was the past two years”, said Gerald in an interview with billboard.com’s Adelle Platon. His most popular song, “Me, Myself, & I” released on October 14th, 2015, was released as the lead single for his upcoming album, When It’s Dark Out. “Me, Myself, & I” is in a moderato tempo and in a c-minor key, a common key and tempo among the hip-hop genre. In “Me Myself and I” by G-Eazy, Gerald comes to terms with the aspects of being famous and forever in the spotlight, which he wanted but didn’t realize everything else that came with it. He does this through his thought out lyrics and his use of artistic discretion in the music video that he released shortly after the song. Within his music video, G-Eazy begins by being driven back home by his foreign girlfriend, a status symbol of superstar lifestyle, and when he gets home he is thrown a surprise party for his birthday. Just before the beginning of
That’s what I want my album to resemble”. “It reflects on everything I’ve been through in my life, you know what I’m saying? It shows who I am today. It tells the story of me being a sixteen, seventeen year old young man from Chicago, growing up in a poverty stricken neighborhood to me doing everything that I’m doing now”. Said G Herbo among (Humble Beast) release
‘Lose Yourself’ by Eminem is about being famous in the music industry with the difficulty of pressure that occur in the music industry for popularity. Eminem uses dynamics and instrumentals to stay in a constant rhythm after verse one with repetition of the chorus. ‘…You only get one shot, do not miss your chance to blow, this opportunity comes once in a lifetime.’ The listeners are able to gather the truth about the music career and become more aware of what the composer feels when getting on the music stage to sing.
The first lyric captures the life that Eminem had. He didn’t have anything growing up and he wanted to change that for
While most rappers establish their credibility by boasting about their wealth and position in their lyrics, “The Way I Am” makes it clear that this rapper refuses to change his lifestyle to conform to the expectations set for rappers. Although, like most rappers, he does take an autobiographical stance in this song, he is more specific and honest in his lyrics than the majority of rappers. He reveals details about his family by claiming he often feels like his father because he “hate[s] to be bothered.” While the majority of rappers might replace a personal detail like this for one that describes their materialistic gains, Eminem ensures that his audience sees fame from an honest perspective. He provides another brief example of a personal problem he has had with fans approaching him while he’s with his family. With lines expressing these sentiments, he gives the impression that he doesn’t care about his fans’ opinions. He criticizes his fans for disturbing him, claiming that he doesn’t owe them anything. This criticism serves the purpose of establishing authority through his lack of interest. Due to the aggressive indifference his lyrics express, the interpreter will likely assume the rapper has the authority to devalue others’ opinions. The intent of the song is not to prove that he is worthy of praise, fame, or glory. On the contrary, the lyrics as a
Gambino possesses an Obligatory God Complex; while many rappers, such as the aforementioned West see themselves as the undisputed greatest, Gambino seems to proclaim himself as the greatest merely because he feels he must. This is evident with “Why does every black actor gotta rap some/I don’t know, all I know is I’m the best one” from “Bonfire”. His issues also stem greatly from his childhood, addressed in “Outside”. His past is very different from those of many of his colleagues, due to a stable home life economically and emotionally. Many in his community “think that when you leave the hood you look down on them”, and his cousin serves as the embodiment of those who agree. As a result, Gambino constantly seeks approval from his cousin, arguing that “The truth is we still struggle on a different
However, the taboo nature of N.W.A's music was the most important factor of its mass appeal. Media coverage compensated for N.W.A's lack of airplay and their album eventually went double platinum.[16] One month after Straight Outta Compton, Eazy-E's solo debut Eazy-Duz-It was released. The album was dominated by Eazy's persona—MC Ren was the only guest rapper—but behind the scenes it was a group effort. Music was handled by Dr. Dre and DJ Yella; the lyrics were largely written by MC Ren, with contributions from Ice Cube and The D.O.C. The album was another double platinum success for Ruthless[17] (in addition to girl group J.J. Fad in 1988 and singer Michel'le in 1989). 1989 saw the re-issue of N.W.A and the Posse and Straight Outta Compton on CD, and the release of The D.O.C.'s No One Can Do It Better. His album was essentially a collaboration with Dr. Dre and notably free of "gangsta rap" content, however including the N.W.A posse cut "The Grand Finalé." It would become another #1 album for the record label.
In the article “The Flip Side of Internet Fame“, author Jessica Bennet argues that while posting things online can get you a quick rise to fame, these embarrassing things do stick with you for a lifetime. Bennet wrote, “ In 2002, Ghyslain Raza, a Canadian teen filmed himself acting out a fight scene from ‘Star Wars’. Using a makeshift light saber, Ghyslains’s awkward performance marked him as ‘internet famous’. Jessica stated that for over a year the video was kept on a school shelf at Raza’s schools’s Tv studio;however, in 2003 one student discovered the video , digitized it and posted it online, and that's when Raza’s nightmare began.
After the group’s first track heats-up on the local airwaves, Jerry Heller (Paul Giamatti) approaches Eazy E about taking N.W.A’s label, Ruthless Records, to a high plateau of success – inevitably leading to a wildly successful, yet crazed tour. Along the way, the abusive tendencies of the police fuel the lyrics that launch N.W.A into the stratosphere – in terms of popularity and
lifestyle, a lifestyle heavily influenced by and involved with drugs. From songs like Breakfast (Trap God), a song with lyrics “I smoke weed for breakfast / I drink lean for breakfast / I take mollies, I take xannies, I can’t eat no breakfast” (Genius, Breakfast) , and Lemonade, with lyrics “I'm moving slow cause codeine syrup's in my lemonade / I'm standing in the shade and I'm selling lemonade”. (Genius, Lemonade) After his release from Prison 3 years later, Gucci left behind his drug induced lifestyle and turned his life around to better himself, his career, and the people around him.
There is little question that he came from the streets, but this had been a growing comparison among the correlation of hip hop and the crack generation. “Not only did black teenagers in similar situations relate to what Eazy was talking about, but white suburban kids fantasized about being in his situation” (Eriewine).
When faced with the decision of which pop song really stood out to me during my youth and adolescent years, the song “Lose Yourself” by Eminem immediately came across my mind. From listening to this song during soccer game warm ups, to quietly being indulged in my own headphones while studying for high school exams, this song was like no other in my ITunes library. On top of its amazing use of musical elements, I especially love this song because of its connection to certain socio historical factors and the pure raw meaning behind its lyrics. Although the reaction to this song was quite mixed, and stirred a lot controversy, it was the most defining rap song of the early 2000s. While sitting at my seat pondering about this piece, it brought
Believe it or not, on January 1st of 1962, the group known as The Beatles flunked their audition at Decca Records in London, England. The label’s executive, Dick Rowe, brushed them off like they were nothing. He simply stated that “guitar groups are on the way out.” Little did Rowe know, The Beatles would soon conquer modern society and alter the course of pop and rock music. There have been no other entertainers in the history of music that has been so popular, influential, or as groundbreaking as The Beatles. In the early 1960’s, their popularity was often called “Beatlemania,” as thousands of screaming fans would crowd their concerts and sing-along with the Fab Four. They sold over 600 million albums internationally and had 20 Number One hit singles – a Billboard record that has yet to be broken. The band took over the entertainment media with music videos and films, but also influenced sociocultural, political, and fashion movements throughout the sixties and seventies. From experimenting with several different genres to incorporating classical elements into their melodies, The Beatles still reigns as one of the most creative and successful bands several decades later. Today, fifty years later, The Beatles and their music are still engraved in the hearts of many.
He even shows what type of person he is and how conservative he is about about his personal life and the celebrity lifestyle. To represent his levels of consciousness and further explain the meaning of the song, there is a scene in the music video that how deep his mental state is. While everyone is singing happy birthday to him at this surprise birthday party, it cuts to this bathroom where there are three versions of G-Eazy. The bathroom itself represents the part of his mind where his Ego, Superego, and Id reside. One version of him is depressed and frustrated with the lifestyle he chose which seems to be the surface of his consciousness (Ego) because of the fact that it’s his current feelings and state of mind.
Many people have dreams of being a part of the music industry and becoming successful musicians, but do not seem to do the research necessary to make the dream come true. The music industry is a branch of the entertainment industry and is where music, whether it is recordings or performances, is distributed and sold to the public. One of the problems is that people do not realize the risks that come with being a part of the music industry and being a musician. There are many factors that come into play when deciding to pursue a career in the music industry. Factors would include having noteworthy knowledge of music, originality, publicity, and business entitlement.
However, in the song “Me, Myself and I” by G-Eazy, also known as Gerald Earl Gillum, which is a hip hop and rap song about the privacy of celebrities and how some emotions can ruin their success. This song is shown through the critical lenses psychological criticism which deals with the literature expression of his personality, state of mind and his emotions. Gerald is telling other people that even though he is famous, sometimes he needs is his own privacy to think about himself, his thoughts, and to stay away from the world he is in now. He also says that he does not need any fake friends that do not believe in him, he only needs himself which he can get through everything. Throughout his song he is telling everyone that you can get away