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Rap Genius Lines of the Week From Rakim, Don Trip, Lil Wayne, Kendrick Lamar

Posted Sep 7th 2012 2:35PM by BoomBox Staff
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Rap Genius is supplying The BoomBox with the top lyrics from the week and serving a meaning behind the raps in the process. This week finds us celebrating the release of Lil Wayne's Dedication 4 mixtape. Hip-hop fans held their breath to see if we were going to get the Weezy of Dedication 2 (effortlessly clever, confident and inventive) or the syruped-out, Auto-Tuned singing of the nearly unlistenable Dedication 3. Luckily, at first glance, it seems like the former is the case. Wayne appears to have put his skateboard down long enough to rap well, and longtime fans are extremely grateful.

In addition to Wayne, plenty of other stuff happened this week. Don Trip played kids' games with his money, Kendrick Lamar blew our minds for about the 763rd time this year, Joell Ortiz made another in his long string of great dirty jokes, and the God Rakim gives us a blast from the past.

5. "Another song in my archive, I'm 'bout to blow like a bald tire/ Balling out with my brother and 'em, we get to the money and dogpile" -- Don Trip, "Prolly" Lyrics

We included this line mostly for its use of the word "dogpile," which reminds us of the started-out-as-touch-but-turned-to-tackle football games of our youth -- particularly that really muddy one, the aftermath of which took weeks to clean up. Sorry, Mom!

4. "The president of poetry is what I am/ You could call me Kid Wiz or call me Rakim," -- Rakim, "Wyndance" Lyrics

This lyric is not strictly new. It's from a 1985 battle at Wyndanch high school in Long Island, N.Y. The recording has been around for years, but Gudtyme and DJ Rob Swift remixed it and fixed up the sound, and this historical document of Rakim and a young Biz Markie doing their thing is now actually fun to listen to. The R is so young at the time, 17, that he hadn't even decided on his rap name yet, switching back and forth between his now-known moniker and "Kid Wizard." It's doubtful that the kids in the audience had any idea that their classmate rapping in the lunchroom really would become the "president of poetry" only a few years later.

3. "So nah, I don't want the drama/ I just met Tawana/ And there's no way her mouth could become my baby momma," -- Joell Ortiz, "Feel So Good" Lyrics

Ortiz is nowhere near as prolific with the oral sex punchlines as his sometimes-groupmate Crooked I, who is the undisputed king of such jokes. However, Mr. Yaowa can still come up (no pun intended) with great ones when he needs to, as here.

2. "No lie, I'm getting paid and fucking bitches/ The Feds on me, gotta switch plates/ In the streets, we call that 'washing dishes,'" -- Lil Wayne, "I Don't Lie" Lyrics

Mr. I-can't-make-an-appointment's return to form is, as mentioned above, extremely welcome and long overdue. This is one of a ton of great lines on D4, and the pun on "plates" is one of those that is so fantastic that you can't imagine why it wasn't used before. Welcome back, Weezy!

1. "I gotta spend one summer in Tijuana with Tia and Tia's mama/ Breakfast in bed is head with plenty carne asada," -- Kendrick Lamar, "100" Lyrics

Kendrick bodies yet another verse on this song, from Big Sean's new mixtape. While his verse as a whole deals with why he's not voting -- and throws in the legacy of civil rights activism and the concept of divine wrath just as, you know, little side notes -- he also makes time for this incredible wordplay. The smoothness and style with which he rhymes "Tijuana" and "Tia's momma" has to be heard to be believed.

Hot Songs of the Week
Big Sean – "How It Feel " Lyrics
Kid Cudi – "King Wizard " Lyrics
Mac Miller – "Planecarboat " Lyrics
Red Hot Chili Peppers – "Magpies on Fire " Lyrics
Kanye West – "Mercy " Lyrics
Major Lazer – "Get Free " Lyrics
Kanye West – "Clique" Lyrics

Songs on Lil Wayne's Dedication 4 Mixtape
Lil Wayne – "So Dedicated " Lyrics
Lil Wayne – "Amen " Lyrics
Lil Wayne – "Burn " Lyrics
Lil Wayne – "Cashed Out " Lyrics
Lil Wayne – "I Don't Like " Lyrics
Lil Wayne – "Green Ranger " Lyrics
Lil Wayne – "Mercy " Lyrics
Lil Wayne – "No Lie " Remix Lyrics
Lil Wayne – "No Worries " Lyrics
Lil Wayne – "Same Damn Tune " Lyrics

Rap Genius Lines of the Week

Watch "Lil' Wayne Quitting Music For Skateboarding"