T.I.A by Knaan
Knaan was born in Somalia and later moved to Toronto, Canada with his family. He comes from a line of artists; his mother having been one Somalia’s most popular singers and his grandfather, a poet. In Somalia, his family lived and struggled through the Somalia Civil War which is ongoing. This rough part of his life would inspire him when the time came for him to release his music.
In the song “T.I.A,” Knaan sings about how rough life in Africa was, and the hard decisions that had to be made all because of the war. The song is actually a bit dark when it portrays Africa as “doomsday.” That is the extent to which Knaan intends to push the idea of how rough life was in Africa. He sings about how Africa lacks wealthy folk like Bill Gates to fund any sort of recovery, so the situation becomes more desperate. To balance out this melancholy outlook, Knaan shows how he has come out a better man. Despite how terrible conditions in Africa were, he made it through and is a stronger man because of his experiences. Ironically, he is also a wealthier man because of his experiences in Somalia.
Flypaper is a single from the album Atlantis: Hymns For Disco by K-OS, a Canadian hip hop artists, songwriter, and producer. In this album, K-OS took a different approach to his music; he experimented with other genres and the product was a great album. So rather than a commentary on the status of hip-hop as found in his two earlier albums, K-OS chose to explore the realm of music without being limited to hip hop and rap only.
The song Flypaper embodies all the qualities of the album because it has a mixture of reggae, rap, hip hop and some R&B. You cannot simply identify it as a particular genre since it has influences from many genres. This is exactly what I love about this song, the fact that it is nothing common. The song has great lyrics too. The lyrics are the heart of K-OS’ music I think. Now there is no direct way of learning what exactly it is that K-OS meant from the entire song, but dissecting some of his verses shows some the ideas. He sings, “I hope someday some things get better, I hope some way our hearts can change the weather.” These lyrics comment on the dire state of humanity. In fact the idea about how disconnected people have become in a more connected world is seen throughout the song. I mean who dares begin a conversation with the person sitting next to you on the bus or metro? Perhaps K-OS is right that the things that made us human such as reaching out, connecting, and helping have decreased in this age of technology.
Olubowale Folarin, better known as Wale, is a relatively new artist from Washington D.C. born to Nigerian parents. “My Sweetie” is a subtle tribute to his roots, acknowledging his heritage. The lyrics are littered with references about growing up with African parents. For example, he sings about having to attend African parties as a child and uses some Nigerian terms whose meaning is of course unknown.
“My Sweetie” is included in playlist because I think I can relate to the story behind the music. Even though I was not raised in the United States, my parents take us to Ugandan parties often. This is their way of ensuring that we do not lose touch with our native culture. And the parties were always joyous occasion as in Wale case where they left an impression on him so that he can commemorate a song to them. Lastly, during what is the musical interlude, Wale repeats the phrase “there’s money on the floor, spray it spray it” multiple times and I think I know its meaning. I once attended a wedding between a Ugandan and a Nigerian and one of the Nigerian customs was to throw money (bills) at the newly wedded couple as they perform the first dance. Tossing bills at the dancers signifies a kind of respect or is acknowledgement of the dancer’s skill. Now here in America, people think of pole dancers and strippers having money tossed at them but obviously that is not the meaning Wale intended.
Gettin’ Ready Rag from Ragtime the Musical
This song carries such deep meaning especially in the black community presented in the show Ragtime. After being exploited and undermined by American society at turn of the 20th century, African-Americans turned to their music for entertainment and as escape from the horrors of reality. Led by the ragtime musician Coalhouse Walker Jr., the African-Americans enjoy themselves singing about Coalhouse pursuing a lover.
Back in high school, I had the honor of performing in a production of Ragtime and the “Getting’ Ready Rag” was one of the highlights of the entire show. The poor and oppressed black ensemble breaks free of societal constraints and has a good time. They showcase not only their talent as dancers but also their spirits as artists. Being African and not African-American, it was difficult for me to understand the African-American condition; the scars from slavery, an unjust system, blatant racism etc. After performing this particular song, I better understand the spirit of an African-American. I understand from where within, African-Americans get the inspiration to produce extraordinary work from music and film to sports. I also understand the despair and hopelessness that many African-American feel to this day as expressed in dropping out of school, carrying on the ghetto mentality etc. Ragtime was the most memorable production I’ve yet to participate in.
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