12 Mar 18: Deja Vu - B. Keyz

Song: Deja Vu

Artist: B.Keyz (formerly Blaque Keyz)

Album: HeistBox

Notable Lyric: "Fast forward, the saga continues // Years later at a venue, with other friend dudes // Where I spotted your face like Hindus"

B. Keyz (formerly known as Blaque Keyz) is an artist I came across on my Jon Bellion journey and was instantly engaged with his word play, flow, and overall lyricism.

His album, HeistBox, is full of songs where the punchlines are so clever that you don't even realise them the first, second, or third time. I'm sure others have also had this experience when they've heard a new word which is the missing piece of the puzzle in a song's lyric followed by that "ooooh" moment of realisation.

The reason I chose this song was because of the rhyming scheme. This post is heavily inspired by the video from Vox called Rappping, Deconstructed: The Best Rhymers Of All Time which I've watched countless times. I spent a bit of time going through the first two verses of the song in a similar way; highlighting the repeating vowel sounds and rhyming pattern.

For the sake of keeping the post easily digestible, do you remember English class at school when you did poetry? More specifically, when you went through Shakespeare's sonnets line-by-line highlighting the rhyming scheme, syllable-stresses in Limericks, or even those free-verse poems that just confused everyone? Just for the first verse focus on:

1) the repeated long "A" sound used twice in every line (as opposed to a short "A" in words like Apple)

2) how the rhyming scheme is a stress on the "A" followed by a lighter second syllable (it, less, with, -ment)

https://open.spotify.com/track/1VRMmPRtroPDpmQEzHQHOf?si=pxnVEaV4SLa-t3Mihb7ACw

This a story of familiar faces and new places Started back in the days when I was rockin' a case with- With no laces, mouth filled with the braces Couldn't even dress, my whole style was tasteless Was so basic, but somehow I embraced it I saw you in the hall but wasn't able to say shit Too busy thinking 'bout how I would cover my bases I let you roll by without a partner to skate with Pardon my lateness, I was caught up in the matrix Fighting my patience, now I'm staring in amazement Glaze over my face from watching your cake switch With every pace, I'm tryna taste it Just face it [...]

The theme continues in the second verse but I'm going to let you figure it out yourself ;). Just to throw some more praise on it, to put the whole song into a story just adds credibility to B. Keyz's rapping ability. Take note.

This is merely one example of the many cases in which the intelligence of these artists can go under the radar of the people who aren't listening carefully. Next time try and pick out the rhyming scheme, half-line rhymes, alliteration, assonance, syllable stress, or run on-sentences.

(Throwing "ey" or "swag" at the end of every line that wouldn't rhyme without it doesn't count)