Neeighbors J Cole Analysis

Kendrick Lamar took the music industry by storm last year after his release of his sophomore album To Pimp A Butterfly. Immediately, the album quickly became critically acclaimed and resulted in multiple awards such as winning four grammys this past winter. The album goes deep into Kendrick’s personal struggles as new found celebrity, while also touching on subjects surrounding the black community. For this paper I took a look at the standout song off the album Institutionalized, that deals with the internal struggle people go through in life because of the barriers of thinking they are imprisoned to in their lives. Along with this, the song also has elements that tie

For our group presentation, we chose topics in music that audibly engross the black community through vocal or instrumental sounds, which reflect conditions of black life. There are many facets of Black lives heard through music. Although there are countless themes throughout music that engages the black community, the central themes we focused on were relationships, sex, spirit and soul, rebellion, and transcendence. The various albums used throughout the semester just scratched the surface of how artist use music to speak to the meaning and condition of black life. During the semester, there were readings that corresponded to the albums we studied in class. These readings elucidated the themes we used in our presentation. In my personal

The artist talk that I ended up going to was Teju Cole. Teju was born in Kalamazoo, Michigan, to Nigerian parents, and is the oldest of four children. He shortly moved back to Nigeria but returned to the states for college. He is an American writer, photographer, and art historian. I’ve been to a few artist talks before and I really like how he approached it. A few photographers that I’ve seen in the past will usually just pull up some of the photos they’ve taken and talk about them. Teju however, would tell a story from one of his books and then present a photo. I found this very interesting because as he was telling the story I would try and picture it in my head. Sometimes the photo he would show would similar to what I was thinking but

Whiteness as the modus operandi becomes a central place of questioning that music and specifically Hip Hop and Rap help put into question. Questioning of Whiteness through these genres of music help reveal the co-constitutive nature of music and ideology. My goals within this paper are not an attempt to explore musicality or the power of music; rather, I am interested in how ideology becomes constituted within lyrics and what they reveal about the intersections of identity, authenticity, Whiteness, and race. Within these intersections is where we are able to see meaning be negotiated, and through communication we are able to explore how different meanings get constituted as hegemonic. Nakayama and Krizek offer us a starting point for

Robert Coles defines the word “document” in the eighteenth century as a word that “conveys the act of furnishing such evidence” (Coles, 19). Throughout centuries, the word document expanded from just being on paper to photographs and films. As the word expands, it makes the movie or story have a feeling of authenticity and realistic for its readers. Robert Coles does a good job explaining the difficulty for writers. Writers have difficulty with separating the view of the subject whether it is from their own view or the observers they are writing about. Coles gives the audience examples of authors’ work and gives insight onto their own struggles. The work he writes about gives us information that anyone can take a picture, writing, and recordings

They present topics of love and love lost as well as present music techniques such as echoing and harmonizing to present the listener with a soulful experience that allows the listener to deeply reflect on the music. Today, the music has taken a turn to mimic that of hip-hop and pop music. This change presents a greater variety of musical themes in R&B and has presented a more lubricious representation of the music that is represented by topics of sex and the desire for sex. This change in the music is a depiction of the change in the urban culture in which R&B is based. The culture, like that of the music, has changed to represent a new time in which the desire for a woman is stronger than the desire to be in love with a woman. Additionally, it is due to this change that the desire for soul in R&B has diminished in popularity. The urban culture doesn’t represent a desire for soulful uplifting, but desires music that promotes their desire to dance, do drugs, and engage in healthy sex. This results in the music’s reduction in the depth of the music and the feelings of the music, and a rise in music that makes you want to get up and move. This change represents the current day diaspora of African Americans. This is represented in the belief that the music no longer displays the desire for love and longer-term happiness and now represents the desire for short-term happiness, fun, and the avoidance of topics that present feelings of loss or sadness. Instead, the music today represents the avoidance of love and the hardships that come with it because with everything else felt by urban African Americans, the hardships of love have now become undesirable. It is in this way that the change of R&B represents not only a change in culture for the US as a whole, but also the change in the diaspora that is felt by African

Family has always been one of the cornerstones of society that allow it to thrive overall through the communities in which they share commonalities whether it is goals, activities, or caring about one another. In contemporary sociology, the term “family” represents a social group in which the members are connected by some type of tie, whether it is legal, biological, or emotional circumstances, or even a blend of the three. Although it’s been shown by sociological research that family isn’t considered to be the center of many American’s lives, Americans still believe family is very significant. “Song Cry” showcases how family has a major influence on the music artist, albeit not in the way we would expect it to be.

The significance of music is an everlasting power and an art form of true beauty. In some cases, people underestimate the virtue of music, for it is one the of many prominent factors of why mankind is inevitability intertwined. Connecting people of from all walks of life, music is poetry with it beat making it a language. Personally, I self-medicate through music which contributes to my temporary escapes from this chaotic world, standing as a coping mechanism and a voice for the silent. Although each genre and song tells a story, making some relatable then others, Love Yourz by J. Cole speaks for me when I am unable to speak for myself and to me regardless of what mood I am in.

As of now, we currently are currently living in U.S. society that heavily relies on pop culture and media and we have the statistics and data to prove of that. In fact, we as the viewers, audience member, and listeners of these songs and videos, have to realize if we solely know the true meaning behind them or not. With that in mind, we might not truly understand the real meaning and the message behind these songs, especially when you first hear the song and view the music video the first time. In this essay, I will be inspecting why big-time artists, singers, and writers want to spread the issues of race and politics through their songs, lyrics, and music videos as of this very moment and time.

Music, as we all know, is a simplistic term for a broad spectrum of all of the forms and genres it encompasses. From classic music to ones with enunciated lyrics, from rap music to country music, from Beethoven to Celine Dion - each piece, whether critically intolerable or acclaimed, has shaped the musical movement in some way. This musical movement is an instigator, in my opinion, for the expression of self – it an action that spurs the action of an individual or a group.

Throughout this seminar we have explored the cultural work of music in society as seen through the very capable eyes of women. These commentaries assume a certain knowledge base by these scholars in an attempt to explain what the music means and how specific music generated and achieve their signifying effect. The knower has the responsibility of providing the knowledge and it through their experiences that the knower provides us with a deeper understanding of their music and the relevance of the signifying effect. One such embodiment of this narrative is Lauryn Hill and the groundbreaking work from the “Miseducation of Lauryn Hill.” In this Grammy winning album, we get a glimpse of the artist’s power and control as Hill through her personal

The songs “Crooked Smiles” and “Lost Ones” produced by J. Cole contributes many inspirational messages that would make one stop, look, and question reality itself. They both have similarities that blend well to his own perspectives about humanity. He uses organization towards the different perspectives of women and men. He implies dark and powerful messages on how society has grown to be a rotten apple within, with a beautiful outer sight. A certain type of powerful message that shows society the respect he gives towards a lost one. Cole connects deep metal causes and effects to the type of reality we live till this day. He’s hood enough to be real, yet not ignorant. Being a hip-hop rapper in the industry equals to great power and great opportunity to be an influence or be in influenced. The messages behind his original and lyrical videos give the audience a sense of depth and connection towards the struggles of life. Ever since he was a youngster he has always been influenced towards the struggle and the importance of economic value. He includes the people’s perspectives, gender values, and the guidance on how money is such a reliable object. Cole implies setting, organization towards the characters, the value of life, and sends deep messages to the audience about abortion including how he is different from other rappers in the industry. He also mentions that there is depth in his lyrics, how he has become a role model to many,

Music surrounds us in our everyday lives. We hear it when we are in the car, at work, when we are shopping, at restaurants, at doctor's offices, and many more places. The music serves a purpose other than entertainment at many of these places. Music has the power to influence characterization in people and it’s no secret that it’s a convenience for everyone. Music is used in many ways to enhance and embellish the lives of people. It is meant to be consumed, whether it is by the listener, performer, or composer. It is a way to translate feelings and desires that are sometimes difficult to express using language.

A large part of my interest in music stemmed from my father, an accomplished pianist, and my brother, an accomplished drummer, who both had the opportunity to be lead musicians at many churches. Their tastes in music are a big reason why I like such genre’s as Hip Hop, R&B/Soul, and Jazz. Seeing how my family would analyze the intricate parts that go into making music made me want to understand lyrics, production, and rhyme schemes on a deeper level. An

Music helps define character and allows self expression in a more unique matter. For instance, folk music, this type of music originates in traditional popular culture and is typically of unknown authorship. Most rap artists nowadays write about drugs and making money but others are just using it as a reflection of what’s going on around them. There is a rap artist named J Cole who particularly raps about real life problems and what’s going on around him in the city where he’s from. To people who don’t live in the ghetto or a poverty struck area, living in the “hood” isn’t as bad as it seems, but for people that live there, it’s terrifying real. J Cole takes elements of what’s going on around him, what he grew up around and personal experiences he’s faced. In addition there is a song called Immortal by J Cole which was released on his new album 4 Your Eyez Only. In the song, Jermaine (J Cole) “examines the gravity