My Interview

Friday Feature

So it’s no secret that music is what keeps me going. Over the course of this blog, I’ve written about my love of 4/6 time, 3/8 time and all the beats in between.

When I’m feeling like I’m in a funk, or when my creativity starts to wane a bit, I seek out new tunes. Listening to the genius of someone else usually gives me the kick in the ass I need to get back on track and attack my edits or revisions with zeal and fervor. 

As of late, I’ve been totally diggin’ this dude. Sick skills – lyrics that are on point, beats that match, and most importantly, a message that needs to be conveyed. He’s not just flowing about bitches and hoes (though there are some tracks about that on his albums) … rather, he’s approaching social issues like race and drug use in a progressive, fresh, and entirely unique way.

My favorite Rittz track right now is this one. On it, he tackles everything from his beginnings, how his family felt about him pursuing a rap career,

Yelawolf discovering him, and his hair. He offers this response to his name: “It’s obvious that I got named after the cracker/because I’m white, please next subject,” and with regard to trying to break out in the music scene in Atlanta he raps, “If you ain’t make the type of shit they play inside the club/then the strippers don’t dance and the radio don’t play you.” In simple language that’s clear to understand, this track not only addresses Rittz’s ethnicity, but also the fact that the music industry as a whole (and hip-hop specifically) isn’t about having a good message, but about what sells. He ends the track by saying, “Everybody’s asking all this shit about me/wondering where I came from/questioning my surroundings/and the same motherfuckers that dap me be the haters that used to doubt me.” Powerful words right there.

Props, Rittz, for making tracks that not only sound good, but mean something too. We need more lyricists like you.