Mural

Album: Tetsuo and Youth (2015)
Play Video

Songfacts®:

  • Over a The Buchanans-produced instrumental, Lupe Fiasco spits heavy rhymes of social commentary for nine minutes barely pausing. Tetsuo & Youth found the Chicago rapper focusing on lyrics, with no rules. "It's my least flawed album out of everything I've done," Lupe explained during an interview with DJ Skee. "I'm at the state in my career when I'm not going to get played on the radio - I really gotta go out of the box and do some crazy collaboration to get Lupe Fiasco on the radio, so that's not gonna happen. I'm not the beloved MC that people are checking for and standing in line for."

    "I'm not gonna have none of that word of mouth, I'm not gonna have that radio, pop... I'm not 'finna be on TV, I'm not 'finna have any of those looks, so we just finna go hard," he added, confidently. "I'll just do what I do best, which is lyrics: Lyrics, on top of lyrics, on top of lyrics - and it worked."
  • This samples the song "Chanson d'Un Jour d'Hiver" from French jazz funk outfit Cortex's 1975 album Troupeau Bleu.

Comments

Be the first to comment...

Editor's Picks

Guy Clark

Guy ClarkSongwriter Interviews

Vince Gill, Emmylou Harris and Lyle Lovett are just a few of the artists who have looked to Clark for insightful, intelligent songs.

How "A Rolling Stone Gathers No Moss" Became Rock's Top Proverb

How "A Rolling Stone Gathers No Moss" Became Rock's Top ProverbSong Writing

How a country weeper and a blues number made "rolling stone" the most popular phrase in rock.

Howard Jones

Howard JonesSongwriter Interviews

Howard explains his positive songwriting method and how uplifting songs can carry a deeper message.

Chad Channing (Nirvana, Before Cars)

Chad Channing (Nirvana, Before Cars)Songwriter Interviews

Chad tells tales from his time as drummer for Nirvana, and talks about his group Before Cars.

Ian Anderson: "The delight in making music is that you don't have a formula"

Ian Anderson: "The delight in making music is that you don't have a formula"Songwriter Interviews

Ian talks about his 3 or 4 blatant attempts to write a pop song, and also the ones he most connected with, including "Locomotive Breath."

What Musicians Are Related to Other Musicians?

What Musicians Are Related to Other Musicians?Song Writing

A big list of musical marriages and family relations ranging from the simple to the truly dysfunctional.