"I'm gettin' this shit back on lock"- Gunna
Very great song, love the production. Let's talk about it.
Huge music connoisseur, so when I first heard this song, automatically ADDED to library. I felt like young gunna wunna himself for 2 minutes and 35 seconds. After listening over and over, I understood why it was on replay. Gunna and the producer for this track delve deep into sound production while also following the lyrical story of the song. *I know nothing about the intricate detail of beat production, forgive me* The song starts off slow with a build up, which is what pulled me in to listen. The first lyrics are wild but a funny play on words once you keep listening. Throughout the song, Gunna, reiterates his build up (or rebuilding) of his world...If we look at the social and cultural context of the album drop, the album signifies a sort of 'individualism' is Gunna's artistry. The song not only showcases his "comeback" but tells a story about the how and the things he didn't do to become who he is. "I got rich without doing the nae nae". Gunna is specifying that he did NOT have to do certain things to attain his fame and privilege, a funny articulation of "i ain't have to do that to get here"
Let's go in depth with the phrase "without doing the nae nae". I may be reaching but music is a form of expression, especially, rap and hip-hop, so everything is intentional when you spend hours writing, producing, and curating. In this song, Gunna, is using a form of pathos when articulating his journey from being up, down, and then back UP to relate to his audience. His audience? young adults, probably tuned into social media, pop culture, and black. His use of articulating the concept of performative identify or performative practices into "rich without doing the nae nae" is crazy smart. I'm sure in the spotlight and regular everyday life there are many instances to perform and to be seen for an external value but I think we should ask ourselves to what cost? Do personal ethics, morals, and values matter when performing for the illusionary award of wealth? or is it attainable by also backing yourself and standing on what you believe. Gunna expresses his brazen attitude when he says "fuck what these boys talking about" emphasizing his practice of standing besides himself and ignoring external pressures to align with societal norms. This concludes the theme of the song as it finishes off with a "I got it back on lock without compromising, so I deserve the fruits of my labor" vibe. The story teller, artist, rapper a.k.a Gunna, is sharing to the audience that what he and (you) have is well deserved after building it all up from the ground again regardless of external circumstances and how his fruits are a privilege earned and he's docked.
Showcasing this essence of "gettin this shit back on lock". I'd like to say he knows his audience very well and any listener can relate to a point in their life where they're "getting this shit back on lock".
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