By Ryan Ross
Artist: Lupe Fiasco
Song: The Cool
Album: Lupe Fiasco’s Food and Liquor
Mood: Worn down, stressed out.
I had one hell of a weekend. When you’re as broke as I am, you don’t get the opportunity to go out as often as you might like, so you’re forced to make the best of the chances you get to do so. So when two of my friends had their wedding this past Sunday (and congratulations are again in order to Ben and Katie), I jumped at the opportunity to take a little trip to Virginia, figuring I’d be able to see a lot of old friends without spending too much of my hard-earned money. One speeding ticket, an extremely costly rental, and putting gas in said rental (an SUV) later, I’m faced with the realization that I again have no money for the next two weeks and will be surviving on a diet of Totino’s pizza and macaroni and cheese. Don’t get me wrong, the trip was worth it, but as soon as I got into the car for the drive back the weight of my financial woes came crashing down on me like the proverbial ton of bricks. Sometimes music is good to lift your spirits and get you back on the right track; other times, it’s the perfect way to wallow in it. So it was only fitting that, as I was driving back, Lupe Fiasco’s “The Cool” came on my iPod.
“The Cool” might be one of Kanye West’s finest efforts as a producer. Never before or since in my opinion has he managed to capture an emotion as completely as he does with this song. The minor key, coupled with a haunting and echoing chant, evokes a feeling of despair in the listener; in fact, I’d go so far as to say it’s positively funereal. Which is perfect for the lyrics that Lupe Fiasco provides, as he tells the tale of a man who died years ago, rises from the grave, and goes back to the ways that got him killed in the first place. There, he’s confronted by two young thugs: “Figured that he wasn’t from there, so they pulled out/And robbed him, with the same gun they shot him with.” But instead of finding a way to change his fate, the subject embraces it: “Put it to his head and said ‘you scared, ain’t ya?’/He said ‘hustler ’til death, no heaven for a gangsta.’”
So the next time things seem hopeless and you want a song that lets you wallow in your own misery, give “The Cool” a listen. It’s the rare, beautiful combination of a beat perfectly matching the tone and intensity of the lyrics. And remember, it could be worse: you could have been killed, resurrected, and killed again. (That’s what I keep telling myself, anyway.)
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