Track Review: "I'm A Nigga" by Anthony Hamilton
Friday, January 26, 2007
A lot of times in today's music landscape, a new artist is hyped to the point of media saturation, he or she's name is everywhere, when you turn on the TV to a music channel there always seems to be an attractive VJ asking him whether he's single or not, or what he or she's inspiration to do music was, rumors of a multimillion dollar marketing push seem to be on everybodie's lips and it is confirmed in a music publication that he or she'salbum in fact will be produced entirely by Timbaland
Anthony Hamilton is not one of these people.
Anthony Hamilton is a nigga.
He drives this point with pride and with enough soul to make you think James Brown will be an afterthought once Hamilton's album drops. The new single that is blazing radio stations all around the world is one that comes with a title as inflammatory as it is fascinating: "I'm A Nigga". Beginning with squelchy, warbling synth lines that hark back to the days of mid nineties G-Funk, Hamilton croons softly while letting the beat swallow the listener into deep thought about just what Hamilton might be so passionate about. String's reminiscent of circa 1997 Rza swirl about, finally culminating into a maelstrom of sound that Hamilton envelops with verve and his silky smooth baritone. His message is made clear immediately when the Questlove-esque drums hit, and the staccato bassline underscores his passionate declaration of niggadom. The lyrics are a beauty on to themselves, with complex metaphors about life as a nigga delivered beautifully throughout his song.
Here's one example of such a metaphor:
Its like a bird in a cage/where a man has shit
Shit all over the bird/and shit
its like there's shit all up on my shit
thats what its like/to be a nigga
Such earth shattering metaphorical power has not been heard since Lennon's heyday and this example is one that would rival any song in the famous beatle's catalogue. Near the end of the song, the beat seems to catch a second wind as it launches into a sonic experience that could only be described as Mid-Eighties Oingo Boingo-esque.
With this climactic ending, being a nigga is solidified as an important facet in Mr. Hamilton's life, and we can all state with confidence that Anthony Hamilton is in fact, a Nigga.
