Search - Dead Prez :: Rbg: Revolutionary But Gangsta

My J-O-B is Just Like a Plantation

TastyBabySyndrome | "Daddy Dagon's Daycare" - Proud Sponsor of the Lit | 02/12/2005

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Social (and, in some ideological fashions, extreme socialist) statements are something I appreciate when it comes to music, and something I consume and keep consuming because I figure it encourages people to express their angst with the way things are and to demand change. In a way it's a form of social rebel, giving money to promote a message of "each one, teach one," and what could be better than spitting in the face of the mainstream media and saying that they can keep the doggy treats they call music to themselves? That's why I still buy specific types of rap despite the lull it's had in creativity, and its one of the reasons I keep consuming Dead Prez.



With Let's Get Free, Dead Prez expressed the situational violence that's promoted by judicial blindness and economic disparity, and their later releases they've continued to spit in the face of "the system." That makes them something interesting in the "rap game," and one that doesn't suffer from all the archetypal degeneration that constantly pulls rap down and makes it a beast without a pulse. I like the fact that its rather violent in the structure of its themes, saying that it won't promote a flag that enslaved its people, and that it has a point to becoming a "soldier." I like the talks about the social imperatives birthed by not having money, what working for minimum wage is and how being a number on a W-4 form and spending your life in someone's uniform is slavery redefined, and how society needs to be refashioned. The methods prescribed are hard, too, and a type of radical self-expression that tries to call attention to the things this type of system can breed. "If you'll gonna ball, play the game like it should be played. Can you dribble a grenade to save your life? Then you'll never be free." That's extreme remodeling of an oppressive machine, to be sure, and one that says that freedom is severely lacking.



I have to note that this album is an acquired taste and isn't as easily accessible as Let's Get Free was, but it still has something to say. The message herein is more radical than earlier ones that were promoted, and I have to say that I like that trend. Songs like "D.O.W.N" and "Hell Yeah (Pimp the System)" got me right off the bat, with messages about making money by using any system available and spitting in the face of the same system that promoted slavery. Its rare to find such blatant messages talking about ripping the system with theft and violence that isn't citizen-on-citizen, but that's a lot of the theme herein. And I like what "W-4" had to say on institutional organization, "Walk Like a Warrior" because it spoke bluntly about what change really means, and "I Have a Dream, Too" because of its message about the police and how the tables can be turned really quickly if rights continue to be trotted upon.



I honestly hope the words in works like these aren't wasted within the "bumpin," and that people actually listen to what's being said because the message is a powerful one. It says that society can be horror depending on where you live in the social strata, and that we own and aren't owned.

Know yourself and know your enemy.



"

Hmm

Enlightened | 04/25/2004

(3 out of 5 stars)

"I saw DPZ in September at Harvard University and they were bangin. They a capella'd verses from their forthcoming album and I was stoked. But in truth, I've been perplexed by recent releases. The rundown:Let's Get Free: dynamite, straight up hiphop with mild rock/soul influences.
Turn off the Radio: this was a fun mixtape release, had some dope beats and foreshadowed their RBG phase.
Get Free or Die Trying: Even for a mixtape, this was seriously lacking. Hardly any straight up hip hop, lots of really wack beats. And that's what RBG: The Album is. Lacking. This album has been awaited since their debut in 2000. Checking their website periodically, I learned that their "new album" would have a plethora of guests, such as Eryka Badu. Where the hell is she on this album? My point is, this LP sounds like it was rushed, perhaps by DPZ or perhaps by their label. "Hell Yeah" appears three times, each time being virutally identical to the last, and "Radio Freq" is the exact same song that appeared on "Turn off the Radio" This is pretty much just a gangster rap album that takes advantage of DPZ's political past to justify its gangsterness. While "Let's Get Free" was all about political theory, RBG is very primitive in its content and delivery. RBG is written everywhere, and its meaning is butchered by putting all sorts of acronyms in the liner notes (RAPPERS BE GASSED, REAL BIG GUNS). Way to make the revolutionary ideas a big corporate novelty.I don't know where they're going. I am still down with DPZ but I think a lot of factors made this record weak. It's still a "3 star" record but I was expecting something fantastic."

Working All My Life, But Ain't Got Nothing To Show

Enlightened | Atlanta Georgia | 07/27/2004

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Dead Prez released their 2nd Full length album earlier this year entitled RBG (Red Black & Green), and to me it's just as good as Let's Get Free. On here it's a lot of crying about how it's different from Let's Get Free but fail to understand that that album was released 4 or 5 years ago. Of course they have changed. But anyway this album bumps well. The lyrics are on point and the production is RBG. Walk Like A Warrior feat. Erykah Badu & Krayzie Bone is a straight up classic, a song about having to hold your own in the streets and not being afraid to die for what you believe in. Standing your ground on your beliefs. I Have a Dream Too, a song about overthrowing the crooked police departments and stopping Police Brutalilty. DOWN is a song about being loyal to whoever you love whether it be a friend, family member, wife etc. Giving ya folk ya last dollars so they can eat, sacrificing your health to help them is DOWN. W-4 is in my opinion the best song on the album. No matter who you are you have experienced filling out that application, having to go to work at a bs job and not getting the proper pay, or getting destroyed by taxes being taken outta that check. You already know what it is. Nearly every song is top caliber. 50 In The Clip is a song about getting strong enough to survive the revolution...just like the army...ain't no weaklings around in body, heart, or soul...whoever has the biggest guns wins the war. And that's The Truth. Don't Forget Where U Goin is an inspirational track to the youngsters. Twenty is a story about how a twenty sack gets into the USA and compares being sold as a slave with being sold as a twenty sack. IT's actually pretty interesting. Overall this a pretty great album. If you don't understand this album then you aren't yet ready for the revolution. 4.5 stars."