Year-round Yuletide oddities
420 Stoner Metal gets repetitive in their metallic/experimental production “Christmas No. 666,” but it’s all hell all the time.
The boredom of it all inspires “666 Christmas 666 (Endless Summer),” a downbeat pop dirge from Hot Gossip.
Everlast warns of the mark of the beast 666 in the righteously angry rap “Speak No Evil.” Satan bad. Jesus good. Got it? (If not, try the message backwards on the link below.)
Time to get weird. “Xmas off the A689” from Faithful Johannes tells the tale of a traveller’s spinout in a whiteout and his slow submission to exposure stuck in his car for the holidays. The A689 is a stretch of UK roadway from Carlisle in Cumbria, to Hartlepool in County Durham. This is near Scotland touching on about the only ski-center in England. So, less merry and more brrr.
More playful rap from isthatfr0st (ft. Ham Sandwich, 954mari, Ty Wild & more) about playing the game in “How the Camogod Scammed Christmas.” Among the fun’n’stuff someone Just switched lil timmy’s 3070 for a 710 which looks to be jacking some kid’s decent graphics card outta his video gaming computer system and leaving him with crap. ‘Tis the season.
Hollywood Undead claim to have a tough ‘hood in “Christmas in Hollywood.” Some kid even steals from the 7/11. Also, booze, sex, adult oppression. Hanukkah shows up, too. Rapping white boys. Amiright?
Bob Rivers sneaks in a 7/11 ref in his overproduced ‘Oz’ parody “The Magical Kingdom of Claus.” It’s a sketch, but the number is noted in song, so let’s play. (This is historical, kids, so you’ll have to look up some of the cultural signifiers.)
So the ghetto in ATW’s “Merry Ghetto Christmas” is the poor neighborhoods of Houston. So 713 is the sign off (referencing the Area Code) after wandering through allusions to drugs, guns, sex, and Disney. Poetical rap.
Shaq, the Intellectual has more soul and respect for his “Christmas Dancer” (a country girl from the 713). Love song!
In some weird rough draft rehearsal (aight ima use that in a rap in the future) WOJ realizes at 7:23 that it’s “6 Days Till’ Christmas.” Conversational dropping with an odd R+B backdrop, at least there are no f-bombs.
Apostle’s “143” is a mad love song, but as it seems unrequited, he’s driven mad. She’s to meet up with him for Xmas at 6 to 8, but at 9 he figures she’s got other things (men) to do. Had to look up the title, and the letter counts of I and LOVE and YOU is a shorthand thing to text now. But, did you know, there’s lots of other four-letter words?
Still picking up on that ghetto code… so i hafta look 762 full metal jacket from “SAINTED! ON ICE” by saint judah x big brain (@orondeus). Turns out, along with the Aston Martin Vanquish, it’s a fine gift. It’s ammo. So, could be, one is for his friends, and the other’s for his enemies–in the face.
Chance the Rapper and Jeremih try to keep Christmas real by sweet singing about Jesus, then slipping in some rap about the troubles of the world–you should Christmas out those bad times for those put upon! Chance ends “Joy” with the shout-out: I’m on my 773 love, probably a reference to a Chicago phone code (made famous in the hit “Jeremih Loves 773” which also includes the other Chi-town area code 779).
Kanye got together with Cam’ron, Jim Jones, Vado, Cyhi Da Prynce, Pusha-T, Musiq Soulchild, Teyana Taylor, and Big Sean and freestyled all about the fun and chaos of “Christmas in Harlem.” It’s all about women and dollars with a touch of family. Cyhi admits he won’t be home for the family though, as he’s more than 800 miles away. I do love the Teyana Taylor recurring verse, and that–apart from an N-word or two, the casual obscenity is not in this holiday celebration.
