Eminem Going Through Changes Analysis

There are two ways that popular songs portray drugs there are the songs that glorify them and tell the story of the “party-life” and others tell the “after-story” that tell of the addiction, of hitting rock-bottom, of how it can ruin your life. More and more of the popular songs are pro-drugs and pro-“party-life” or they are slyly double sided such as Eminem’s Drug Ballad, songs that tend to be lesser known or less popular tell the story of the addiction, about hitting rock-bottom, and of recovery such as D.L. Downer A.K.A. James Williams’ Suga Boom Boom (Chasing Dragons). Drug Ballad, was released on May 23, 2000 in the album The Marshall Mathers LP (www.sing365.com). Suga Boom Boom (Chasing Dragons) was written and sung by D. L. Downer a.k.a. James Williams and his 16-year-old niece Laleazy was produced as a single by MajorEpic music label and was released on October 26, 2014. Both of these songs are within the rap and hip-hop genres. When analyzing and comparing and contrasting these two songs we need to consider why one is more popular than the other, why and how has drugs become such a prevalent problem, why are drugs portrayed differently, and how can we help those that are addicted and keep others from becoming addicted themselves.

The song implements on the hardships a mother will face for the growth of their son because love is what keeps them going. The love a mother will have for her son means that even though they don’t have a father figure around to show them how to grow up, they will always have their mothers to teach them the way of life through a woman’s perspective. In the song, “Dear Mama”, Tupac mentions, “For a woman it ain’t easy trying to raise a man, you always was committed” and he is able to foreshadow the hardships his mother had to face while Tupac was growing up without a father. At the age of seventeen Tupac, was always caught up in drama with his mom. Since Tupac was young he got involved into the hustle and was left in the streets where he basically had to risk he life every day. He never realized that being pushed into the streets would make him think about his mother or even worry about her. Tupac reflects upon the behavior he had during the time and how much stress he would add on his mother’s shoulders, but little did he know that his mother would be there for him regardless. Tupac Shakur’s mom was committed to his son and no matter the troubles he caused and faced she would be there for him to either help him out or at least hear him when he was not feeling good. She was a single mother on welfare, but she always tried

Millions of people in the world listen to music for all different reasons. Most people all over the world listen to different genres of music in order to relax, but not too many people pay attention to the actual lyrics of a song. If you listen to the lyrics of a song you will realize that many songs have important messages or themes to them. An example of this is the lyrics of the song “Changes” by Tupac Shakur. If you listen to this song, you will realize that Tupac raps about not only the problems that African Americans face from society, but also the struggles that poor people in society have to endure and overcome. Many

Another era in popular music that illustrates the tie that draws drugs and pop music together is in the modern day hip-hop subcultures. Historically, the main drug that has commonly been associated with hip-hop is marijuana. Today, however, hip-hop has been changed as well as the drugs that are being rapped about in hip-hop songs. There have been movements, such as the Bay Area centered “hyphy” movement and the Los Angeles centered jerk movement, within the genre of hip hop that are influenced by the drug MDMA, known on the streets as ecstasy. With lyrics that reference the drug and describe the actions of those that are under the influence it, these

‘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.

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

Christopher Brian “Chris” Bridges or better known as Ludacris is one of the first and most influential “Dirty South” rappers coming from Atlanta, Georgia. Known for his fast, wild, and comedic flow, Ludacris earned his name and continues to make music to match his name. Coming from Def Jam Records and co-founder of the record label Disturbing Tha Peace, one of Ludacris’ most famous song is his “Southern Hospitality” that made it to the Billboard Hot 100 after coming out in the year 2000. This song is full of catchy alliterations and uses imagery to take the listener on a wild wide to the south, explaining the struggle of the streets and giving credit to slave culture. However, Ludacris doesn't forget to mention his successful ways and how he

The song ¨Changes” is written and performed by Tupac Shakur who was born June 16, 1971 and was shot down September 13, 1996. Tupac was quite successful and was known to be a gangsta rapper as well as a poetic rapper at the same time. Changes seeks the best out of both these worlds and addresses the issue of poverty and poor treatment by police that the African American community face often on a day to day basis.

After this experience all of his friends and family told him that his opportunity is over, and to give up his dreams of becoming a successful rapper. He knew he has his chance and he blew it, but he never gave up. A few months later he gets another opportunity to rap in front of a crowd. He knew he had to seize the chance, and to prove everyone wrong. The song comes on, and it describes how he’s feeling before he goes on stage. He uses sentences like, “his palms are sweaty, knees weak, arms are heavy. He’s nervous, but on the surface he looks calm and ready to drop bombs…” He is telling himself that if he blows this, his dream is over, and that “you only get one shot so do not miss your chance to blow, because this opportunity once in a lifetime”. When he finally goes on stage, he’s feeling nervous, but he’s so ambitious to get what he wants, that he starts to rap like no one has ever heard. The crowd was astonished, and knew that his rap was the best they’ve ever listened to, which kick started his career as a rapper. The song starts out with a piano playing, and then the piano stops, and very fast music comes in, and the rap starts right away. The rapping is intense, because when you’re hungry to achieve something you have to act intense about it.

Even though critics are very quick to point out the vehement and intense lyrics of some Hip-Hop artists, they are ultimately missing the point of their message. Similar to other different forms of music, Hip-Hop and rap cannot be understood unless it is studied and analyzed

Except for a dream, and a fucking rap magazine…Idolize they favorite rappers…till they sit and they cry at night wishing they’d die. Till they throw on a rap record and they sit, and they vibe. We’re nothing to you, but we’re the fucking shit in they eyes”. Eminem uses his lyrics to set this mode and emotionally grasp the attention of those who idolize

In my opinion, Kendrick Lamar, an award-winning rapper and songwriter, has one of the best abilities to describe his distressed and abused lifestyle in Compton, California. He is not your original cliché artist who does not speak about anything meaningful. Kendrick, also known as K. Dot, is one of the most well known and most respected rappers in this era. Not only does he speak about his gloomy past, but he also speaks about his fortunate future. His ability to give detailed representations of his struggles and his story telling allows me to, metaphorically, enter the mind of Kendrick Lamar.

Barack Obama said, “Change will not come if we wait for some other person or some other time. We are the ones we've been waiting for. We are the change that we seek.” “Change” by Tupac Shakur talks about change is hard because people stereotype. Although, change is a difficult thing to do, one can change lifestyle if they wanted it to.

Marshall Bruce Mathers a.k.a. Eminem. Born October 17, 1972, grew up in Kansas City. From there he began his career as an individual white rapper. Not many white people are able to succeed in the rap industry, but Eminem has proved everyone wrong. He is now one of the most talked about persons on the earth. His lyrics offend some people, this sparks controversy and censorship. His lyrics containing things such as drugs, alcohol, death, homosexuals, sex and suicide. In some of his songs he includes lyrical

Marshall Mathers, better known as Eminem, is recognized for his work as a rap artist who is able to connect with his audience through humor and rhythmically dicey lyrics. Eminem’s “My Name Is” music video is able signify whiteness and rearticulate race with the use intertextual editing techniques that parody common representations of whiteness. Eminem is using his “My Name Is” video as an approach to solidify his style of rapping and thus create new political and cultural authenticities that entice questions of race representation in the 1990’s and beyond. (Kajikawa).