This is a really cool video by Bomani D’mite Armah, the song is called Read a Book.
When i first saw this rap i thought it was just some amateur wack youtube vid… but after watching it a couple times I have realized it’s GREAT. There is more to the rap than just the lines being shouted in your face…

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This is what it means to me:

Read a book: This segment is talking about the media and how it brainwashes. An awesome representation is when the video shows some glam-thugs loading guns watching a stupid rap video… then transition to a person — the public — strapped to a chair robot chicken style. I think it is trying to illustrate how the ridiculous messages from media manifest themselves into society. The lyrics say “not a sports page, not a magazine” because all of it encompases the bullshit spin of mainstream media.

Raise your kids: Pretty straight forward don’t you think? I like how they show the jack ass dad in the club.. dancing with a hoochie, then his kid is thrown in his face… the ironic part is that the kid looks like the dad, he is dancing just like the dad and i think it’s hinting that if you don’t raise your kids right then you’re facilitating a circle of *losing* that you could have prevented by raising your god damn kid.

Your body needs water: So why not drink it? You need that shit! Going out drinking is pretty fun, I can admit that, but how about when you party to the point that you are throwing up? From an detached point of view/perspective… how Fucked up is that? You put so much of something into your body that you end up puking it? Same applies to whatever other stuff you might do… why poison yourself?

Buy some land: This is probably my favorite part of the video and I will probably sound repetitive but I think this really follows along the same lines as the Read a Book lyrics as the video shows a guy on a mountain with a rim in his hand. I think this is trying to show how people worship materialistic things that mean absolutely nothing… but more importantly it shows a guy who thinks he is the absolute shit because of his cool rim. Is this not branding/marketing hype yet again? Why did my Lacoste shirt that cost $50 more than my $9.99 old navy shirt shrink after a few washes? Who cares, I have that bad ass fucking alligator on my chest still right?

It all means nothing. It’s like Apple fanboyism, Axe body spray, Disorono (on the Rocks), Crocs, Hummers, and Chanel. People are trained to think of something as important by marketing and artificial anxieties created by advertising and remedied by product… and will blow their hard earned money which actually equates to their life. I mean after all; money = time = your life, right?

Anyways, back to the point, I think this part means invest yourself into something worth more than it’s face value.

Brush your teeth/Wear deodorant/It’s called speed stick: I can see two different points of view on this one. The first is the most obvious, take care of yourself. You need to be aware of yourself and how you impact others. This thought ascends beyond personal hygiene and into the realm of just thinking about others!?

The other point of view, which might be a little more on point, parallels the media/spin theme. The first part shows the guy trying to talk to a girl and she passes out from his filthy breath. The next shows the character walking down the street stinking it up and causing all kinds of reactions with the surrounding environment. He then smashes his piggy bank, and buys some deodorant. This kinda-sorta sounds like what i mentioned above.

Through marketing and media he learns that his hygiene is inferior — an anxiety/riff is instilled. It’s called speed stick might mean there is a product to fill the riff and mend the anxiety. Finally you dish out your money and buy something… i mean consume.

I like how at the author puts himself back into the vid as the role of store clerk. He wanted to go platinum right?