Lose Yourself
Eminem
Look, if you had one shot, or one opportunity
To seize everything you ever wanted-One moment
Would you capture it or just let it slip?
Yo, His palms are sweaty, knees weak, arms are heavy
There's vomit on his sweater already, mom's spaghetti
He's nervous, but on the surface he looks calm and ready
To drop bombs, but he keeps on forgetting
What he wrote down, the whole crowd grows so loud
He opens his mouth, but the words won't come out
He's chokin, how everybody's jokin now
The clock's run out, time's up over, bloah!
Snap back to reality, Oh there goes gravity
Oh, there goes Rabbit, he choked
He's so mad, but he won't give up that easy
No, he won't have it , he knows his whole back city's ropes
It don't matter, he's dope
He knows that, but he's broke
He's so stagnant that he knows
When he goes back to his mobile home, that's when it's
Back to the lab again yo
This whole rhapsody
He better go capture this moment and hope it don't pass on him
[Chorus:]
You better lose yourself in the music, the moment
You want it, you better never let it go
You only get one shot, do not miss your chance to blow
This opportunity comes once in a lifetime yo,
You better lose yourself in the music, the moment
You want it, you better never let it go
You only get one shot, do not miss your chance to blow
This opportunity comes once in a lifetime you better,
His soul's escaping, through this hole that it's gaping
This world is mine for the taking
Make me king, as we move toward a, new world order
A normal life is borin, but superstardom's close to post mortem
It only grows harder, only grows hotter
He blows us all over these girls is all on him
Coast to coast shows, he's known as the globetrotter
Lonely roads, God only knows
He's grown farther from home, he's no father
He goes home and barely knows his own daughter
But hold your nose cause here goes the cold water
These girls don't want him no mo, he's cold product
They moved on to the next schmoe who flows
He nose dove and sold nada
So the soap opera is told and unfolds
I suppose its old partner, but the beat goes on
Da da dum da dum da da da da
[Chorus:]
You better lose yourself in the music, the moment
You want it, you better never let it go
You only get one shot, do not miss your chance to blow
This opportunity comes once in a lifetime yo,
You better lose yourself in the music, the moment
You want it, you better never let it go
You only get one shot, do not miss your chance to blow
This opportunity comes once in a lifetime you better,
No more games, I'ma change what you call rage
Tear this roof off like two dogs caged
I was playin in the beginnin, the mood all changed
I been chewed up and spit out and booed off stage
But I kept rhymin and stepwritin the next cypher
Best believe somebody's payin the pied piper
All the pain inside amplified by the fact
That I can't get by with my 9 to 5
And I can't provide the right type of life for my family
Cause man, these food stamps don't buy diapers
And it's no movie, there's no Makai Pfeiffer, this is my life
And these times are so hard and it's getting even harder
Tryin to feed and water my seed, plus
Teeter-totter caught up between being a father and a prima donna
Baby mama drama's screamin on and
Too much for me to wanna
Stay in one spot, another day of monotony
Has gotten me to the point, I'm like a snail
I've got to formulate a plot or end up in jail or shot
Success is my only option, failure's not
Mom, I love you, but this trailer's got to go
I cannot grow old in Salem's lot
So here I go is my shot.
Feet fail me not this may be the only opportunity that I got
[Chorus:]
You better lose yourself in the music, the moment
You want it, you better never let it go
You only get one shot, do not miss your chance to blow
This opportunity comes once in a lifetime yo
You better lose yourself in the music, the moment
You want it, you better never let it go
You only get one shot, do not miss your chance to blow
This opportunity comes once in a lifetime you better,
You can do anything you set your mind to, man
The History of Rap and Hip Hop Music
By Kurt Howard
The origin of hip-hop can be traced back as far as the ancient tribes in Africa. Rap has been
compared with the chants, drumbeats and foot-stomping African tribes performed before wars, the
births of babies, and the deaths of kings and elders. Historians have reached further back than the
accepted origins of hip-hop. It was born as we know it today in the Bronx, cradled and nurtured by
the youth in the low-income areas of New York City.
Fast-forward from the tribes of Africa to the ghettos of Kingston, Jamaica in the late sixties. The
impoverished of Kingston gathered together in groups to form DJ conglomerates. They spun roots
and culture records and communicated with the audience over the music. At the time, the DJ’s
comments weren’t as important as the quality of the sound system and its ability to get the crowd
moving. Kool Herc grew up in this community before he moved to the Bronx.
During the late sixties, reggae wasn’t popular with New Yorkers. As a DJ, Kool Herc spun rhythm
and blues records to please his party crowd. But, he had to add his personal touch. During the
breaks, Herc began to speak to his audience as he had learned to do in Jamaica. He called out, the
audience responded, and then he pumped the volume back up on the record. This call and
response technique was nothing new to this community who’d been reared in Baptist and Methodist
churches where call and response was a technique used by the speakers to get the congregation
involved. Historians compare it to the call and response performed by Jazz musicians and was very
much a part of the culture of Jazz music during the renaissance in Harlem.
Herc’s DJ style caught on. His party’s grew in popularity. He began to buy multiple copies of the
same albums. When he performed his duties as a DJ, he extended the breaks by using multiple
copies of the same records. He chatted, as it is called in dance hall, with his audience for longer
and longer periods.
Others copied Herc’s style. Soon a friendly battle ensued between New York DJs. They all learned
the technique of using break beats. Herc stepped up the game by giving shout-outs to people who
were in attendance at the parties and coming up with his signature call and response. Other DJs
responded by rhyming with their words when they spoke to the audience. More and more DJs used
two and four line rhymes and anecdotes to get their audiences involved and hyped at these parties.
One day, Herc passed the microphone over to two of his friends. He took care of the turn table and
allowed his buddies to keep the crowd hyped with chants, rhymes and anecdotes while he
extended the breaks of different songs indefinitely. This was the birth of rap as we know it.
Hip-hop has evolved from the days of the basement showdowns to big business in the music
industry. In the seventies and eighties, the pioneers and innovators of the rap record was the DJ.
He was the guy who used his turntable to create fresh sounds with old records. Then, he became
the guy who mixed these familiar breaks with synthesizers to produce completely new beats. Not
much has changed in that aspect of hip-hop. The guy who creates the beat is still the heart of the
track. Now, we call him the producer. Even though some DJs work as producers as well as DJs
(quite a few start out as DJs before they become producers), today’s title “DJ” doesn’t carry the
same connotative meaning it did in the eighties. Today’s hip-hop producer performs the same tasks
as the eighty’s DJ.
http://ezinearticles.com/?The-History-of-Rap-and-Hip-Hop-Music&id=350795
Let’s “Rap” it up:
1. Where is the origin of rap?
2. Who made rap popular? Where?
3. The call and response of rap is similar to what other genre of music?
4. Who were considered to be the pioneers and innovators of rap music during
the 70s and 80s?
5. What is the technical name of rappers today (the guy who creates the beat)?
6. Look at the song “Lose Yourself” by Eminem. After reading through the
lyrics, come up with a list of THREE characteristics to describe the rap genre.
1.
2.
3.
7. Using the above list as your guide, create a short rap about any topic. The rap
must be have a minimum of 10 lines.