Noname - Harmony Jones
Answer:
“Rainforest” is very poetic, using a mixture of repetition, metaphors and tone shifts to criticize systems of power like capitalism and police control. She uses the repetition of the chorus to highlight a contradiction. When she says, “How you make excuses for billionaires, you broke on the bus?” (Rainforest), she highlights the contradiction of working class individuals supporting the very systems that contribute to their economic instabilities. In the lyrics “How you get closer to love?” and “I just wanna dance tonight” (Rainforest), she’s questioning how to find love and meaning in a broken system and she repeats the desire to dance, which symbolizes escape. She also uses the metaphor of a “rainforest cries” to suggest that the exploitation of the environment for profit under capitalism causes harm, where “everybody dies a little,” emphasizing that this destruction affects all forms of life. Noname also used metaphor and personification to make systems feel real and harmful. “My shoulder blades are shattered wings” represents a loss of freedom, implying that oppressive systems limit people’s ability to escape their conditions. She critiques the elite of the capitalist society by saying, “Made the world anti-Black, then divided the class” (Rainforest”), reflecting how those in power intentionally create racial divisions and class inequality to maintain control and reinforce systemic injustice.
In “Song 33,” Noname shifts to a sharp and urgent style that directly addresses state violence and police brutality. She starts off much more aggressive saying, “I saw a demon on my shoulder, it's lookin' like patriarchy/Like scrubbin' blood off the ceiling and bleachin' another carpet” (Song 33), with the first line representing the ever present gender roles and the second line representing the normalized violence against women. The rest of the verse goes into the murder/rape of activist Oluwatoyin “Toyin” Salau to anchor her critique in the limited defence of women, specifically women of color. The chorus of, “One girl missin', another one go missin’” (Song 33), highlights how these disappearances become routine and overlooked. The next verse focuses on how people are worried about the wrong things saying, “He really 'bout to write about me when the world is in smokes?” which is a jab towards J. Cole, who thought creating a response to Noname was more important than people literally dying. Her line of, “George was beggin' for his mother, saying he couldn't breathe” (Song 33), alludes to the murder of George Floyd, connecting racial injustice and police brutality to her critique of systemic oppression. Noname uses the last verse to criticize performative activism, arguing that media and individuals often shift focus away from urgent issues like violence, policing, and the murders of trans women, instead of addressing the root causes of injustice.
Work Cited:
Noname. “Rainforest.” Genius, 26 February 2021, https://genius.com/Noname-rainforest-lyrics.
Noname. “Song 33.” Genius, 18 June 2020, https://genius.com/Noname-song-33-lyrics.
Noname. "Rainforest." Youtube, 8 November 2023, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4a9mXpKn924&list=RD4a9mXpKn924&start_radio=1
Noname. "Song 33." Youtube, 8 November 2023, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XZDLtB0a6ck&list=RDXZDLtB0a6ck&start_radio=1
I have never listened to Noname before, but I enjoyed listening to her music and reading your post. You did a very good job of answering your analytical question. "Rainforest" is a song talking on very heavy topics, but it speaks ono trying to find joy admist all the struggle within these topics. "Song 33" also speaks on topics like violence against black women and is more direct focusing on action. I think adding to your argument that "Rainforest" has more poetic language while "Song 33" is more confrontational and direct with their lyrical styles. The repetitive style of her lyrics allows the listeners to think more deeply on the tone and main arguments in her song. You could also write why she changes styles, how the urgency of violence requires a more direct voice. "Song 33" uses real life situations and sharper lyrics to add a sense of urgency. I think just making your point about contrast and talking about your examples anf how they help criticize power would help improve you agrument but very good job!
ReplyDeleteWork Cited:
Noname. “Rainforest.” Genius, 26 February 2021, https://genius.com/Noname-rainforest-lyrics.
Noname. “Song 33.” Genius, 18 June 2020, https://genius.com/Noname-song-33-lyrics.
Hi Harmony, Noname uses different lyrical techniques in "Rainforest" and "Song 33." In "Rainforest," she uses a more poetic lyrical style. Her lines include “How you make excuses for billionaires, you broke on the bus?” and “I just wanna dance tonight.” These lines are intended to highlight the flaws of capitalism and Noname’s desire to escape the world's injustice.
ReplyDeleteOn the other hand, Noname uses a more direct and pressing lyrical style in "Song 33." Her lines include “George was beggin’ for his mother, saying he couldn’t breathe,” which refers to a real incident of violence. Her lines also include “one girl missin’, another one go missin’,” which points out the injustice of the world. Noname also raps about distractions from the real issues at hand, including J. Cole. The style of "Rainforest" is contemplative, while the style of "Song 33" is pressing.
Hi Harmony! Before reading your blog and listening to Noname, I did not know her as an artist. Yet, I am obsessed now! The shift in her lyrical style in "Rainforest" and "Song 33" is really interesting to me. Although they seem a bit different, she is still able to capture constant oppression and how it feels explosive. In the song "Rainforest," her tone is reflective, and it has a lot of layers to it. It feels as if she is walking through the experience of racism and the emotional weight and torture of living through it. I think the line, "How you make excuses for billionaires, you broke on the bus?” (“Rainforest”), is so interesting, but instead of a direct attack, it seems like a genuine question to society, it forces people who are listening to think about this complex topic. The line, “I just wanna dance tonight” (“Rainforest”) contrast with the seriousness of the song, to me its a cry for freedom, "dancing" being the ability to live without these hardships/ I agree with what you said, that it reads a sense of wanting to escape, while knowing that you cannot fully detach from injustice.
ReplyDeleteIn "Song 33," it feels immediate and urgent. The line, “I saw a demon on my shoulder, it’s lookin’ like patriarchy” (“Song 33”) is a great personification of oppression in a way that feels like something you cannot ignore because it is continuously poking at you. She repeats, “One girl missin’, another one go missin’” (“Song 33”). It is almost haunting, that use of repetition emphasizes how normalized violence against women has become. This song uses direct examples of real world issues and tragedies to make a powerful stance. Great work!
Works Cited
https://genius.com/Noname-rainforest-lyrics.
Noname. “Song 33.” Genius, 18 June 2020, https://genius.com/Noname-song-33-lyrics.
Hey Harmony, After listening to each song provided, I found a few lyrical differences used in each song to criticize systems of power and injustice. In "Song 33," it says, "I saw a demon on my shoulder, it's lookin like patriarchy/ Like scrubbin' blood off the ceiling and bleachin' another carpet." The artist has a strong and straight forward poetic tone, using imagery and metaphor to create a clear idea of the mistreatment of women and how it is often covered up. The song also says, "One girl missin', another one go missin'/ One girl missin'," this shows how common it is for girls to go missing and how often it isn't taken as serious as it should.
ReplyDeleteIn "Rainforest", the tone in the lyrics seem more structured like a poem. The artist also uses constant repetition and metaphors to put emphasis on the corrupt systems of power. For example, she says, "How you lemonade all your sadness when you openin' up?/ How you make excuses for billionaires, you broke on the bus?" This shows her use of repetition and contradiction to put emphasis on how people often support the same people and systems that contribute to their economic struggles.
Work Cited:
Noname. “Rainforest.” Genius, 26 February 2021, https://genius.com/Noname-rainforest-lyrics.
Noname. “Song 33.” Genius, 18 June 2020, https://genius.com/Noname-song-33-lyrics.
Noname. "Rainforest." Youtube, 8 November 2023, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4a9mXpKn924&list=RD4a9mXpKn924&start_radio=1
Noname. "Song 33." Youtube, 8 November 2023, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XZDLtB0a6ck&list=RDXZDLtB0a6ck&start_radio=1
Hi Harmony! I think you did a very good analysis of these works. I think that you could add to the answer to your question. For the first song she says, "Cause every bladed grass of earth, we don't actually own" (Rainforest). In this lyric, she is referring to the injustice that is present because of the bounty that is present in the world and she owns none of it. She is trying to portray that there is so much to be shared but her people don't get to own anything. This helps to answer the question because she is using another piece of imagery to showcase the injustice that is prevalent. In "Song 33," you can see her answering this question once again, "It's trans women bein' murdered and this is all he can offer?" (Song 33). In this verse, Noname is trying to use her voice once again to showcase brutality that is clear. Instead of clapping back and arguing against the person that bashed her name, she used her voice to shocase brutality in the world.
ReplyDeleteWorks Cited
Noname. “Rainforest.” Genius, 26 February 2021, https://genius.com/Noname-rainforest-lyrics.
Noname. “Song 33.” Genius, 18 June 2020, https://genius.com/Noname-song-33-lyrics.
Hey Harmony! This was really well written. I have never listened to Noname before but I really enjoyed listening to these songs. One suggestion I would make would be to add the very beginning, "Oh, I have ambitions, dreams" because it then adds to the next measure of aggressiveness with the demon on her shoulder by the act of putting chains on her (Song 33). This has more from the Rainforest song as it shows the oxymoron of leaders creating "anti-black" groups to create inequality for their own gain. As far as I understand equality is actually meant to create create division and inequality. I absolutely love that line "I just wanna dance tonight," moreover, I loved the fact that you tied it to idea of being free (Rainforest). Dancing honestly is an act of expressing oneself without any chains tied to their ankles. One more thing I love about her songs is the point of her having a really soft voice whilst talking about some real world struggles! Overall, you did really well with this and I loved your analyzations of her lyrics.
ReplyDeleteWork Cited:
Noname. “Rainforest.” Genius, 26 February 2021, https://genius.com/Noname-rainforest-lyrics.
Noname. “Song 33.” Genius, 18 June 2020, https://genius.com/Noname-song-33-lyrics.
Hi Harmony,
ReplyDeleteI agree with your response to the question that "Rainforest" is more poetic while "Song 33" is more truculent. "Rainforest" seems like a poetic rage for those who defend others who do not relate to them, putting them on a higher pedestal. Noname shows this by "How you make excuses for billionaires, you broke on the bus?"(Noname) This shows the criticism of power. Along with that, "Because, because a rainforest cries/Everybody dies a little"(Noname), she uses the rainforest as a way to throw in climate change and brings it back to those who are affected by it, which is everyone.
In "Song 33," Noname shows rage towards injustice. Noname uses quotes like "When it's people in trees?/ When George was begging for his mother, saying he couldn't breathe,"(Noname). They show the injustice by using real-life examples without sugarcoating it. What makes this song truculent is that it was a response to J. Cole. I learned that Noname tweeted something, which was the reasoning for J. Cole to release a song (basically about Noname), and the argument of "Song 33" is that he would rather make a song about a tweet than make a song about all the injustice that was going on in 2020.
Noname is a new artist for me, I haven't heard of her before but she is someone I look forward to adding to my playlist. Noname's lyrics in "Rainforest" are criticizing how people are defending celebrities that don't even know or care about them. "How you make excuses for billionaires, you broke on the bus?" (Rainforest). In "Song 33" the song is more of a callout to J.Cole on how he needs to do better as an activist with a large platform. "It's time to go to work, wow, look at him go. He really 'bout to write about me when the world is in smokes? When it's people in trees? When George was beggin' for his mother, saying he couldn't breathe. You thought to write about me?" (Song 33). The lyrical style changes between the songs from a slower rhythmic melody in "Rainforest" to a slightly more fast and choppy scheme like slam poetry in "Song 33".
ReplyDeleteHi Harmony! I think your analysis was great, you connected a lot things that I would never have thought about. The only criticism I have is that your sentences sometimes don't flow together very well. They sometimes feel like separate thoughts rather than one idea in a paragraph. Moving on to the question, In the song "Rainforest" this line stands out "It's fuck they money, I'ma say it every song, Until the revolution come and all the feds start runnin". Here she is accusing the government of abusing their power to make money. I find this interesting because I wonder what parts of government she is accusing, or does she mean the entire government? Just something to think about. In "song 33" Noname says immediately "Oh, I have ambitions, dreams, But dreams don't come cheap". This isn't a direct attack at a specific power but it is interesting. Maybe she is trying to insinuate here that because of her skin achieving these things is harder for her. However, I think that as a whole society has lost the plot. Most people now unfortunately are forced to work jobs they don't enjoy and have to give up on their dreams. Since the reason is usually material maybe she is trying to talk about how big of a problem money is, and how those who have it typically hold power over the futures of those who don't. For example, in the music industry it is very difficult to be truly successful unless you are signed. The record companies have a lot of money and a lot of power in the industry so if they deny you it can cause a lot of issues. Sorry for my tangent. Hopefully something I said will help you make a useful connection.
ReplyDeleteWorks Cited
Noname. “Rainforest.” Genius, 26 February 2021, https://genius.com/Noname-rainforest-lyrics.
Noname. “Song 33.” Genius, 18 June 2020, https://genius.com/Noname-song-33-lyrics.
Hi, Harmony! I love this artist choice. Noname is an incredible lyricist, and I especially loved her most recent album.
ReplyDeleteBoth songs feature repetition in the chorus, but it is used in very different ways. In the first song, the repeated phrase "and I just wanna dance tonight" could be seen as a segue into a form of escapism ("Rainforest"). In her second song, Noname repeats two variations of the phrase "one girl go missin'", which serves to emphasize her point rather than escape from it ("Song 33"). "Rainforest" also covers a far more abstract and expansive concept than the other song. "Song 33" focuses on several specific instances of injustice and corruption, such as the murder of George Floyd and Oluwatoyin “Toyin” Salau. I also think "Song 33" sounds rooted in frustration, while "Rainforest" is far more analytical, perhaps even somewhat detached.