rough draft

                                Lucki(you called me)

The opioid crisis is one that, unfortunately, too many people can relate to. Whether it be them, a friend, or a close family member, it is a topic that hits close to home with many Americans. And its been then way since the early 90’s. “The number of opioid prescriptions dispensed by doctors steadily increased from 112 million prescriptions in 1992 to a peak of 282 million in 2012, according to the market research firm IMS Health”(CNN). A lot of people blame the music that the younger generation is listening to nowadays, as a main culprit in this epidemic. This is due to the various references to drugs that a majority of rap artists use. Such an influence spans outside the “hood”, especially today. Kids from a suburban neighborhood, or kids who didn’t necessarily grow up in a bad neighborhood, might be listening to the same artist that a kid living in the Bronx, or in the projects is listening to. And both are hearing the same words as each other. People love to give the argument that drugs are being depicted in a false manner, that drugs are being glorified. But, not all rappers are built the same.

Lucki (formerly known as Lucki Eck$), is a rapper from Chicago. I personally have been a fan of Lucki for a few years now, but his music is starting to “blow up” for the lack of a better term. Like a lot of artists today, he is known for his references to controlled substances. Now, I can you rolled your eyes, but its not in the way you might think. Lucki talks about the dark side of the pills he takes, the drink he sips, how its all killing him slowly. And he knows it. But he’s in the hands of the drug, and seems to have little to no control of his needs. Lucki also talks about his personal problems with depression. About how he uses drugs to “block out” all of the bad things that are going on in his life. The drugs help him forget. I think the point Lucki is trying to make is that all of these people around him are fake, “smiling when they losing”. But, even though people call him an addict, and label him as one, he is more genuine than most. This is because Lucki expresses his raw emotions, what life, and drugs, and depression, and withdrawal are doing to him, how its affecting Him. He may conceal his depression, but doesn’t ignore that fact that it still exists. ((Lucki reminds us that turning to drugs for helps may help short term, but controls your life in the long run.))

The time is 12:35 am. I am returning home from work, hands aching. The blisters on my hands remind me of the work I put in during my shift. I’m listening to my music, as I usually do. I pause my music, just for a second-and the stark contrast of the dead silence makes me remember where I am. The  faint smell of beer permeates the cart, most likely coming from the homeless man sleeping on the far opposite end. I know this because a bunch of malt liquor seemed to have tipped over. I periodically shift from side to side, swaying along with the train as it makes its way through its destined path. I am watching all of the building pass by. Most of the window lights are off, but equally as much are on, burning midnight oil. Listening to Lucki, I feel like I am not so alone in my thoughts, Even though no one is there, I am not alone. I am more accepting of who I am.

 

Rough Draft

It’s my first day back to college and I’m on my first of two trains. I am seated at the corner of the train as usual looking at the dirty floor awkwardly trying not to make eye contact with anyone. I worry about class as bad outcomes rush through my head. I am afraid. Suddenly, the song changes in the random Spotify playlist that I am listening to. Through my headphones I hear a female voice sing powerfully to me “Fear you don’t own me…” It is the perfect and most comforting song during my situation. It is “The Breakup Song” by Francesca Battistelli. I find peace while listening and gain control of my situation as I command fear to leave.

When I tell people about “The Breakup Song” most people assume that it’s some sappy love song about a harsh breakup. I was kind of surprised myself when I first read the title. The song isn’t about breaking up with a loved one at all, but rather a hated one; fear. Fear is one of our worst enemies. It prevents us from meeting our full potential and gets in our way of success and happiness. Francesca Battistelli has picked a great topic to write a song about. Everyone can relate to it and many can be encouraged to overcome their fears.

The first line in the chorus on its own sets a powerful tone and encourages the listener to take control of their lives. “Fear you don’t own me” shows that Francesca is speaking to fear itself and is putting it in its place. I believe that she’s telling fear that it can no longer control her life. She sets a good example for her fans that follow in her footsteps. They too are encouraged by her words and strive to defeat fear. When I first heard the song myself it provided me with the strength that I needed to overcome my obstacles and do what I once was not able to do. I was afraid to go to college because of my fear of not being good enough due to my past school experiences. When I heard the powerful words “Fear you don’t own me” it provided me with a wider perspective. I am not alone; even very successful people experience fear sometimes. You shouldn’t allow it to control you and throw you around.

Towards the end of the song, Francesca asks the listener to “Sing along with me” and “Sing fear, you don’t own me”. She helps them to break up with fair by telling fear itself that it doesn’t own them. She sings “If you don’t know how to say it Sing along with me”. While we are distressed and don’t know what to say or do, she guides us to ending the unhealthy relationship that we have with fear.

A music video was created for “The Breakup Song”. While watching the video I noticed Francesca Battistelli writing a note in a brief clip. When I paused the video, I saw what was written on the note. She was writing the lyrics to the song. This leads me to believe that the song itself is a letter to fear. It is both a break up and goodbye letter to fear. Towards the end of the video, Francesca is seen packing a bag with a telephone, scale, top 100 list and a goodbye letter. I believe that she is packing fear’s bags and demanding it to leave. She is sending away all of her personal fears that have troubled her throughout her life.

Like Francesca, we should send our fears out the door as well. If she didn’t get rid of fear it would have held her back from her goals. She might not have been able to perform in front of millions and would not have written this song. Many like me would not have heard “The Breakup Song” and built up the courage to disown fear and succeed. I would probably not have made it to class that day if I hadn’t heard this song.

 

Song here

ROUGH DRAFT DUE FOR TUESDAY, APRIL 30

Hey, everyone. Our spring break is already drawing to a close! I’ve graded and commented on everyone’s revisions.  The reason it takes me so long, by the way, is that I spend about 30 minutes per paper to make comments. I suggest you read those comments– because I grade you on whether or not you keep doing the same things over and over! You will find these in the “comments” section under your revision.

Your rough drafts for paper three are due for Tuesday’s class. YOU MUST BRING A PAPER COPY TO CLASS!  IF YOU DO NOT HAVE A COPY OF YOUR ESSAY YOU WILL BE COUNTED ABSENT (because 99% of what we’re doing on Tuesday is working on these!) Many people had a hard time following directions for this essay and missed points for things like not having images, etc… Please read the instructions for Essay Three under “UNITS” at the top of this page.

Hope you had a great break!

Quote unit 3

There are many different stories about just how Vincent Van Gogh went insane and cut his ear off in the process. A lot of them seem to put Van Gogh to be the one blame because he either had a mental breakdown and chased a friend or he was doing it as proof of his love for someone. While researching online I came apron an article “Starry Night: Meaning of the Vincent Van Gogh Landscape Painting” speaking of his famous art work The Starry Night, the article touched very lightly on the topic , but I found it interesting because it states how famous that particular story is. The author states “The story of Van Gogh cutting off his ear after a fight with his friend, the French artist Paul Gauguin, is one of the most popular anecdotes in art history, and supposedly occurred in winter 1888, the year before the painting of Starry Night and not long before Van Gogh’s death in 1890.”(K Shabi). As true as that statement is I believe that it’s silly to claim that the fight story is how Van Gogh cut his ear off, instead I think they should have elaborated on the many different ways it supposedly happened. A couple different stories are that Paul and Van Gogh who were known to be roommates were fencing one day and in a freak accident Paul accidentally cut of Vincent’s ear “lobe”they concoct the story that Vincent did it to himself to save Paul the humiliation of an arrest. In another move known story, Vincent falls in to one of his manic attacks and goes after Paul with a razor blade, Paul escapes and somewhere along the lines Van Gogh cuts his whole ear off and leaves to hand it to the owner of the brothel that he frequents . As interesting as K Shabi’ quote I think it lacks important information of such a famous event, with so many different speculative stories I think they could have expanded fleshed out and taught the readers about just how unstable Vincent was by the stories.

 

 

https://legomenon.com/starry-night-meaning-of-vincent-van-gogh-painting.html

song quote

The song I pick was “Im not racist” by Joyner Lucas. I don’t have pity for you black niggas, that’s the way I feel Screamin’ “Black Lives Matter” All the black guys rather be deadbeats than pay your bills Yellin’ “nigga this” and “nigga that” Call everybody “nigga” and get a nigga mad As soon as I say “nigga” then everyone react And wanna swing at me and call me racist ’cause I ain’t black. Joyner talks states that he is not a racist but then talks how he is frustrated about if a white man say something then it would but other black can say it to each other with out it being a problem.  Joyner Lucas then have a black guy explain what he has to go through when it comes to racism like getting stop by the cops for no reason and the different treatment in certain places and situations.

Unit 3: Quote

             If you give back to the community should you look out for a reward? “On Ebro in the Morning, DJ Peter Rosenberg called the video into question explicitly, arguing that Drake’s charity seemed to serve him a little too much, which didn’t line up with their shared tenets of Judaism”, (Lily Puckett) which seems like Drake gave back to the community just to be in the spotlight. I disagree with DJ Peter Rosenberg because Drake could of easily spend the money on a fancy music video with expensive cars, clothes, and jewelry like every other rapper. But he wanted to spread joy and happiness to his fans by giving to people who don’t really have that much. I think DJ Peter Rosenberg feels that way because rappers in this generation are prone to show off the diamonds in their chains, watches, and the grills in their mouth instead of spreading positivity and giving for a change. When people see someone they know giving back and doing something for the community that brings positivity they feel offended because they know that’s the right thing to do but they waited  on someone else to make the first move. When Drake was ether taking people shopping or giving someone money for their college tuition you could see the sincerity in his eyes and the tears of joy in his fans. It doesn’t matter the way you give back but it matters how you do it. For example, Drake meets everyone in person to give them the money in their hand with a big hug which shows his real character because he could of easily donated the money and be free of the hassle.

 

Citation:

https://www.google.com/amp/s/www.thefader.com/2018/02/23/drake-gods-plan-religion-leaders/amp

Flower Road and SOAPSTONE

In the article “Sejeong’s Flower Path is a Much-Needed Healing Song This Season”, Qing wrote “In the present, a grown-up Sejeong goes about her routine alone, dressing and tying her shoelaces by herself, taking her own height (and cheating by tiptoeing), making her own toast. These scenes are processed to emphasize cool colors in comparison to the warmer sepia tones of the scenes of the past. These points of contrast bring out a lingering sense of loneliness that comes with growing up and gaining independence.” In other words, in the music video, the screen was split into two parallels comparing Sejeong (the singer) when she was a child and as grown up. As an audience, you could see how the music video showed Sejeong having her mother do all these things for her but now that she’s growing up she becomes more independent but feels lonely at the same time which is what the warmer colors represent. The scenes from the music video made me sad but touched at the same time because it perfectly described my current situation. Sejeong was raised by her mother alone and the song represented how she only wants good things for her mom and promise to let her only walk on “flower paths”. The song talks about regret and hopefulness which is how I feel towards my mom because she sacrificed so much for me that I hope in the future I will be the one protecting her and walking on the crooked and broken roads for her.

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Song Article

This image requires alt text, but the alt text is currently blank. Either add alt text or mark the image as decorative.In the 2016 summer flick, Suicide Squad, a band of super villains is utilized to go on a suicide mission to save the city that despises them. The song, “Sucker For Pain” from the movie soundtrack that captures the dark overtones of the movie. The song features a collaboration of rappers along with the singers from Imagine Dragons and X Ambassadors. In one of Lil Wayne’s verses of the song, he raps, “Like I chewed a chunk of charcoal. Naked in the North Pole. That’s why my heart cold, full of sorrow, the lost soul.” (Suicide Squad) An online analysis of this verse states, “Lil Wayne says how emotionless he has become towards this society. A chunk of charcoal has no taste or nutritional value. Guess he sees the modern society as a chunk of charcoal-burnt up and black and dirty. And he has become to heartless because of all that.” (JustRandomThings) However, I took the verse to be a holiday reference. Typically, when someone is on Santa’s naughty list they are said to receive a chunk of charcoal in their stocking instead of a gift. This would relate to the main characters being supervillains. Moreover, Lil Wayne references the North Pole which ties into the holiday theme of the verse. Moreover, Lil Wayne mentions being nude in the North Pole as it would be a painful way to die. This ties into other scenarios he mentions which are are elaborate, fanciful, and painful ways to die.

 

Works Cited

 

“Listen to ‘Sucker For Pain’ from Suicide Squad Soundtrack (Lyrics Review).” JustRandomThings, 24 June 2016, justrandomthings.com/2016/06/24/listen-sucker-pain-suicide-squad-soundtrack-lyrics-review/.

 

“Sucker For Pain.” Suicide Squad: The Album Soundtrack, Atlantic.

Quote Analysis

An online review of “The Breakup Song” by Francesca Battistelli states that it is “A song about identity and boldness in Jesus that produces the confidence to shine for Him, live for God, and tell the world the truth about the salvation that is available for all. This is a song with heart and strength”. Even though the song does not mention Jesus or God, I agree with the reviewer’s opinion because of the artist’s background and beliefs. Francesca Battistelli is a popular Christian pop artist who has written other songs such as “Lead Me To The Cross” and “Run To Jesus”. Almost all of her songs showcase her faith which is Christianity. This leads me to believe that even the songs that she doesn’t mention Jesus were inspired by her beliefs. “The Breakup Song” talks about breaking up with fear and fear not being welcome in our lives. In the Bible it states, “For God hath not given us the spirit of fear; but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind” (2 Timothy 1:7, King James Version). This verse makes me think that the song was inspired by this. By getting rid of fear we are pleasing God which is a Christian’s main purpose in life. Francesca would most likely want to please God by breaking up with her fear and living her best life possible.

Thank U, Next Article

Thank U, Next, Ariana Grande’s newest album has gotten a lot of buzz. The album comes after a storm hit her personal life and after 6 months of her last album. A lot of people have been praising this album because of how it was put together in such short notice and it has stayed at #1 on the Billboard charts for weeks. But not everyone agrees that this is a great album. Jonny Coleman from The Hollywood Reporter said, “But, the whole thing feels like a cheap champagne hangover. Sweetener, her previous album, came out less than six months ago. And it’s hard not to read Thank U, Next as a set of leftovers from these same 2018 sessions, or an unnecessary sequel to Sweetener’s shining brightness.” This critic shades Ariana’s comment about making this album with a bottle of Pink Veuve Clicquot by her side. He obviously loved her last album Sweetener since he said it shines brightly but he can’t seem to say the same for this one. Well, I couldn’t disagree more. I definitely don’t believe this was “an unnecessary sequel.” If anything, I believe it was necessary because if you listen very closely to the songs in the album, they each speak of personal things partaking in her life. This was her way of expressing herself and answering everyone’s question of “Is Ariana okay?” I also don’t agree that the songs for Thank U, Next are “leftovers.” The songs and the vibe from both albums are completely different. If any of the songs from Thank U, Next were on Sweetener it wouldn’t make sense because they are two different sounds. Sweetener is a very pop album while Thank U, Next shows her love for R&B. At the end of the day, if I made an album like this while drinking Champagne and have it remain at #1 for weeks, I would be more than proud. Let’s see you do it, Jonny.