Author Archive: cms597

K.O.D

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Analysis of the K.O.D Album

Background:

Before J. Cole dropped his new album K.O.D he released a tweet leaving his fans intrigued and excited; I am one of them.

Jermaine Lamarr Cole, also known as J. Cole was born on January 28, 1985. Growing up, Cole’s life wasn’t easy. He and his family lived in a trailer in North Carolina where making ends meet was a daily challenge. After his mother’s second marriage had come to an end, she became a crack addict with her new boyfriend. When J. Cole was a teenager, he worked many part-time jobs and later ended up receiving a degree in communications after attending St John’s University in 2007.  It was Cole’s song “Lights Please” from his second mixtape, The Warm Up in 2009 that caught Mark Pitts attention. Although Jay Z did not want to listen to it, Pitts had an influence over him which later lead to J. Cole being signed to Roc Nation[1].

Influences on the K.O.D Album

Throughout the album J. Cole talks about different types of drugs in each song. In “Motiv8” he talks about success, in “ATM” he talks about money, and in “Once An Addict” he talks about his mother’s alcoholism[2].

The Album Name K.O.D has several meanings to it, one being “Kids On Drugs.”. Cole talks about how commercials on the television are constantly asking “are you okay?” and then recommended a type of drug to help you with your issue whether its anxiety, muscle pain, etc. Besides medicated drugs, there are also recreational drugs including pills, weed, alcohol. There are even more types of drugs beyond this that can be addicting like money, and love. The message from all of this is that growing up, everyone will experience at least one type of addiction.

Another meaning is “King OverDosed.” Cole explores how people are affected by overdosing on the drug they take and how the person can feel like they are on the top of the world, like a king.

Lastly, the last interpretation is “Kill Our Demons.” This is one of J. Cole’s goal, it’s a place he hopes everyone can eventually get to. In order to be at peace with ourselves we need to get all the negative energy our which includes killing our addictions. This album comes across as the primary meaning being about drugs, which partially it is. But it’s about how the drugs can affect us and can put us in a negative mental state that affects our daily lives[3].

Analysis of three songs

  1. “1985”
  2. “KOD”
  3. “Window Pain”

“1985”

The purpose of this song is the analyze how you impact the world by what you say and do whether you are a famous icon or regular person. This is evident in Cole’s lyrics stating, “You havin’ fun and I respect that / But have you ever thought about your impact?” This is the rap game in itself is constantly evolving and changing to what pops and sells[4].

I chose this piece because it’s one of my personal favourite songs, because he talks about how there are mumble rappers dissing him, when in reality Cole doesn’t just follow to trend of trap drums but rather digs deep into the meanings of his music and how he portrays himself. The tempo of this song remains fairly constant with a noticeable backbeat, adding in different instruments as the song goes along. The focus of this song is not necessarily having diverse dynamics but is more message focused and just listening to what J. Cole is saying[5].

“K.O.D”

In this piece of music, it talks about all the different kinds of drugs and why you should not take them based on how they can negatively affect your life. He names off a selection of drugs but makes sure to state that love is the strongest drug displaying that why you chose to use a drug comes from multiple different reasons[4].

This song is also the name of the album which is why it is so powerful because it covers the mentioned topics above including, Kids On Drugs. One instrument that catches my attention right away is the small little bell that ties all the other instruments together. It is small but adds uniqueness in the music. The instruments are constantly changing with random sound effects being added in depending on what the lyrics state. You notice that in this song when Cole is rapping fast, all the extra instruments disappear so you can bring your attention to the lyrics. You see this again at the very end when they are listing off drugs and the music is low but sets the tone to how the artist wanted you to feel.

“Window Pain”

This song paints a clear picture of what it was like for Cole growing up having to watch gangs and drugs in his hometown. It talks about the violence not only he had to experience, but this little girl he met that watched her cousin get shot in the head. Although this sounds harsh and direct, that’s what the lifestyle was like for J. Cole. This song is not only discussing the violence, but the real message is to be grateful. Cole wants to teach us in this song that we need to appreciate the ones in our life and that when we lose our self, there is a way back[4].

I picked this song as one to analyze because in my opinion the message is so strong and the overall song dynamics is exciting to listen to. This song is intriguing right when it begins because of the little girl talking at the beginning. When the song starts of it sounds like horror music, which makes sense because J. Coles childhood wasn’t all sunshine. The beat eventually picks up creating a catchy vibe but leaving the screeching intro music in allowing the listener to feel J. Coles pain.

 

Sources:

  1. “J. Cole Biography.” Biography. Accessed August 10, 2018. https://www.biography.com/people/j-cole-5152017.
  2. Kyle Eustice. “J. Cole Speaks: 15 “KOD” Revelations Uncovered.” HipHopDX. April 25, 2018. https://hiphopdx.com/editorials/id.4056/title.j-cole-speaks-15-kod-revelations-uncovered#.
  3. Vincent. “An overview of J. Cole’s new album: K.O.D.” E97. April 16,2018. http://est1997.com/music/overview-j-coles-new-album-k-o-d/.
  4. Andres Tardio. “Choose Wisely: 12 Lessons From J. Cole’s New Album ‘KOD’.” Cassius. April 20, 2018. https://cassiuslife.com/59977/lessons-from-j-cole-kod/.

Josephine Baker

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Getting to know…

Josephine Baker was born on June 3, 1906, in St Louis, Missouri. As usual, just another baby born not knowing who or what she could become. In her early years, she experienced abuse, poverty and by the time she was in her teens she was living on the streets, with no food but what was in the bins. When she moved out at age 14, her new job leads her to a new husband only to be divorced at age 15 and then remarried again. Later on in her life, she became one of the best exotic dancers[1].

Breakthroughs for Black Performers

At the age of 19, Josephine was asked to join an all-black performance in Paris where the city was in a jazz crave. African American musicians and performers were being mesmerized by the French people. In one of her performances, she and her partner wore nothing but a couple of feathers which got the crowd excited, particularly the men. Baker loved Paris because in the United States, African Americans were discriminated in society, whereas in Paris she felt nothing but welcomed. When WWII broke out, she helped smuggle refugees and performed benefit concerts to keep the troops amused. After the war, she went back to Paris and continued to perform finally making it on television. Following her marriage to Jo Bouillon, she decided to restore a castle and village named Les Milandes, where she spent a ton of money with hopes to create it into a tourist target. After that, she went back to the United States to stand up against American racism by declining to entertain any segregated crowds. This was a huge breakthrough creating May 20thas Josephine Baker Day[2].

Feminism

During her century, several women didn’t have a say in anything. Although the Civil Rights movement was allowed all people in public places, and the ability to vote, Black women were still forced to work as domestic workers, cook, or maids. These women should not have to experience and less respect in public places or their own atmosphere. When Baker resumed to the United States she came to the realization that there was still a tremendous lack of respect that wasn’t being given to all people. Even with all of her Successes, she was not being treated equally. Black women were working, taking care of their family, while also fighting for their equality. Aside from everything, happiness needed to be a priority[3]. When Josephine passed away at age 68, twenty thousand people were standing down the streets in Paris to see the procession. Baker was the first American women ever to be buried in France with military honors. This shows how much of an impact she had on earth, and that her fight for equality and rights have made a difference in the world[4].

The Charleston

This is a dance connected with jazz that was created in the 1920s. This dance came from the song “The Charleston” which was composed by James P. Johnson. This dance is significant because people performed it by themselves which made it unique compared to the other dances of the 1910s. Josephine Baker contributed to The Charleston being wildly popular because she did the dance in 1926 at the Folies Bergère. It kept growing in popularity starting in a two-act musical comedy and eventually opening up on Broadway[5].

Shown in this video, the two ladies are dancing the Charleston. Growing up dancing my whole life, I have for sure done this move almost every year in our jazz routines. I found that you can even use it in different genres such as hip-hop if you change the groove while keeping the right footwork. It is a catchy dance/song, and it is widely known even in today’s society.

WWII

Not only did Josephine help smuggle immigrants, but when she had realized security wasn’t checking her bag thoroughly because of her fame, she started to sneak all different kinds of things in and out of the country. On her sheet music, she had invisible ink filled with different types of messages. Sometimes, she even snuck photos of German military installations by sticking them into her underwear[6]. At the end of the war, Josephine Baker was awarded the Legion of Honour and Military Cross. This proved how dedicated she was, but she kept going after this, by taking part in a charity gala for the victims of the war[7].

To sum it up, Josephine Baker spent her life helping out and doing what she believed in. Although she felt the United States still needed much more change to reach fairness, I believe her going back there and fighting for her rights still played a major role in their society and Europe’s. It is proven how incredible of a woman she is throughout this blog between her performances, her strong beliefs, and her being honored by the military at her funeral. She was an incredibly brave woman who knew what she wanted and strived for it. When I first researched her name, the first thing that came up was that she was an exotic dancer. But after researching deeper, it is clear how much she impacted everyone around her.

  1. Joanne Griffith. “Josephine Baker: From exotic dancer to activist.” BBC. December 31, 2014. http://www.bbc.com/culture/story/20141222-from-exotic-dancer-to-activist.
  2. BHS. “Josephine Baker.” BlackHistoryNow. August 17, 2011. http://blackhistorynow.com/josephine-baker/.
  3. Heidi Williamson. “What Josephine Baker Teaches Us About Women’s Enduring Legacy Within The Civil Rights Movement.” Think Progress. August 28, 2013. https://thinkprogress.org/what-josephine-baker-teaches-us-about-womens-enduring-legacy-within-the-civil-rights-movement-2b4a95b666fd/.
  4. “Josephine Baker Biography.” Biography. Accessed July 18, 2018. https://www.biography.com/people/josephine-baker-9195959.
  5. “Charleston.” A Closer Walk. Accessed July 18, 2018. https://acloserwalknola.com/dances/charleston/.
  6. Ethan Trex. “5 Things You Didn’t Know About Josephine Baker.” Mental Floss. June 3, 2017. http://mentalfloss.com/article/23148/5-things-you-didnt-know-about-josephine-baker.
  7. Amélie. “Josephine Baker.” December 27, 2007. https://myhero.com/Josephine_Baker_INSA_FR_07.

Jelly Roll Morton

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Hello My name is Courtney, and I’m a second year Commerce student. For my first post, I will be talking about Jelly Roll Morton.

Jelly Roll Morton was one of the best jazz artists being a songwriter and pianist. He lived on through the years of 1890-1941 sharing his passion for jazz and being an incredibly influential figure to the jazz genre. He was born on October 20, 1890, in New Orleans, Louisiana and was the leader of the Red Hot Peppers in the 1920s. Jelly’s nationality was a mix of African, French, and Spanish, receiving his last name from his stepfather[1] . Everyone who knew Jelly knew that he was cocky, and claimed to have ‘invented’ jazz. Although this is a huge statement to make, it is believed to be partially true. Blues and jazz music is similar in their piano styles, but it was how Jelly put a unique twist by creating the base of the ‘stride’ piano style that made Jazz music stand out [2].

Contributions & Importance

As mentioned before, Jelly Roll Morton played major importance in the jazz genre being one of first jazz’s best composers, creating popular songs like “King Porter Stomp,” “Grandpa’s Spells,” “Wolverine Blues,” and many more. Jelly was an incredible arranger by highlighting different instrumentation, dynamics, and solos. He started playing piano at the age of ten, and performed in Los Angeles from 1918-1922, then transferred to Chicago for the next six years. During this time, his style and brilliance were being brought to light bringing the Red Hot Peppers together which was a major climax in his career[3].

Challenges

Like any musician’s career, Jelly faced challenges. When the jazz craze moved to New York, he of course, decided to follow it. Jelly tended to brag about basically starting the jazz genre, but in New York that only put a damper on his career which led to him not getting the sidemen he was hoping for. Also, with the increase of the Depression, he fell under the radar and began to become less known. The people of New York felt his music was old-fashioned, but that did not mean Jelly was going to become a sideman. With very few appearances the following six years, Jelly was able to make a popular song during the swing era called, “King Porter Stomp” but oddly enough was not well known for creating it. Jelly has had enough of not being in the spotlight, so he decided to make a comeback in New York in the year 1939. He did some band sessions and recorded some songs, but no big hits came from that. In the last few years of his life, he moved to Los Angeles. After his death at age 50, his music because popular again during the New Orleans jazz revivalist movement[3].

Songs

“King Porter Stomp”

This piece of music starts off with a light, bouncy piano creating a happy feeling. Further in the song, the piano tends to build up playing higher notes, resulting in a bit of a climax. At the end of the song the piano is played more abruptly forming the highest climax of this piece with the notes instantly stopping leaving you with a long soft note.

I chose this song because it was one of Jelly’s biggest hits, despite of people not realizing that this piece of music was created by him. It really highlights Jelly’s style of jazz music.

“Grandpa’s Spells”

This song starts off at a high tempo giving you an excited feeling. The rhythm continues on throughout the song never leaving you with a dull moment. The mood of the song really makes you want to get up and dance. About partway through the dynamics change momentarily making you feel intrigued about what is going to happen. This dynamic change continues, and high notes are added making it seem like you’re being chased. While listening to this song I was picturing a black and white film of two people constantly chasing and scaring each other. The constant high tempo and high piano notes give off a very on edge feeling like I was anticipating an incident that could happen.

This was another song that made Jelly popular. He was well known for his cockiness because he knew how talented he was, and I felt his talents were displayed nicely in this piece of music.

 

“Wolverine Blues”

This song starts off bouncy and exciting right away with no ease into the tempo. There are moments where only single notes are being played developing an interesting change, then leading into high pitched piano notes creating the climax of the song. A twist in the song is added when the tone changes and a saxophone begins to play. It gives off a chill feeling while still making you want to groove. Another intriguing way this piece instantly grabs your attention is when the drums are added. The tempo stays upbeat and fast until the end combining all the instruments including the piano, saxophone, and drums.

I felt this piece of music was very different from the other two songs because of the added instruments and the way they sounded together. This portrays Jelly’s style in a different way but his uniqueness is still evident.

Sources

  1. “Jelly Roll Morton Biography.” A&E Television Networks. Accessed July            17,2018. https://www.biography.com/people/jelly-roll-morton-9415945.
  2. “Jelly Roll Morton.” All About Blues Music. Accessed July 17,2018.https://www.allaboutbluesmusic.com/jelly-roll-morton/.
  3. Scott Yanow. “Jelly Roll Morton.” AllMusic. Accessed July 17,2018. https://www.allmusic.com/artist/jelly-roll-morton-mn0000317290/biography.