The Rap

Album: Caught Up (1974)
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Songfacts®:

  • On the Caught Up album, Millie Jackson sings the first side from the perspective of a woman who is having an affair with a married man, and the second side is from the perspective of the wife. "The Rap" is from the side of the mistress, who explains why she likes being with a married man (all the sex without the laundry). Where did Jackson get her insights on this kind of relationship? In a Songfacts interview with Millie Jackson, she explained: "I've had a few married men in my life, but the songs weren't about them. It just gave me a reflection of what it's like."
  • Most of this song is spoken; kind of an extended interlude. Early in her career, Jackson started doing rap interludes to get the attention of the audience. They were so popular that she incorporated many of them into her songs. This song played to one of Jackson's strengths, which is poetry. Her poems become the lyrics for her songs, and she relies on collaborators to write the music.
  • Jackson recorded Caught Up in Alabama with the Muscle Shoals Rhythm Section. As the producer, she gave the musicians direction. Said Jackson: "They followed me, really. And then Brad (Shapiro) musically told them what to do to get what I wanted. Most of the time I would be singing the melody, and the bass player would pick up the bass. Now, the guitar player would have to deal with me and where I'm going, and Brad would take the bass player where he needs to go. The keyboard player would listen to me."

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