Childish Gambino

Woebot

Well-known member
ok this guy might not be cool - and in fact i couldn't find anything else good by him (which was a very weird experience - everything else seems "indie")

BUT - believe the hype - this is pretty amazing. just the fact that he's not wearing a shirt - makes him look a bit fat and somehow like a seventies funk idol is great

 

Corpsey

bandz ahoy
There's a good article about him in a recent New Yorker. He seems like an interesting character.

https://www.google.co.uk/amp/s/www.newyorker.com/magazine/2018/03/05/donald-glover-cant-save-you/amp

This is America video is pretty brilliant. It's an interesting case of the song being indivisible from the video, because without the video the song doesn't really get the message across.

But what's the message?

He has 21 Savage and Young Thug doing adlibs for the song, which is intriguing, too - if you read the New Yorker article, he isn't dismissive of trap music at all, which is sort of how this video might be read - a nerd rapper taking the piss out of Migos et al.

OTOH maybe the way to read it is that the uplifting gospel music doesn't reflect the violent reality of being black in America like trap does. Or as you refer to Woebot maybe it's both - the schizophrenic experience of being black in America today.

I was reminded of Danny Brown's Lie 4, which satirises materialist rap, only that's a better song.
 

Woebot

Well-known member
This is America video is pretty brilliant. It's an interesting case of the song being indivisible from the video, because without the video the song doesn't really get the message across.

absolutely. it's not simply a song. it's a video. but [in fairness] it is kinda there in the sonics too no?

what's the message? well it definitely reminded me of my recent experiences in america. that hair trigger divide between "sunny normality" and - (without the quotation marks) - the viciously bleak. and captures the paranoia. segregation of realities.
 

Corpsey

bandz ahoy
As mad as Kanye's gone lately, ppl saying Donald Glover is the genius Kanye wishes he was is a bit rich cos I can't imagine Childish Gambino existing without Kanye's precedent.
 

CrowleyHead

Well-known member
It's really bad.

I mean it works if you have a disregard for the actual value of the rappers he uses as props and signifiers, and it works if it appeals to your sense of moral righteousness against racism and the subjugation of black people for the purposes of media and the objectification of observance and what have you but you can just draw those conclusions without explication sometimes.

It's a very bad song. It embarasses me to see people lavish him with attention considering 6 years ago he was a juvenile monger of rape jokes. Not in the Tyler, The Creator "I'm really into serial killer perspectives" way but just really crude misogyny for the sake of saying wacky shit and an exaggerated "GETTIT GETTIT?" defense shield, only for him to revamp himself because of an entertaining show and a hokey Funkadelic rip-off album last year.

https://www.spin.com/2018/05/donald-glover-this-is-america-review/

This was really good by comparison.
 

droid

Well-known member
Regardless of Glover’s intended statements in his video, it does what a lot of celebrated black art is doing: portraying violence against black people as entertainment for white people.

Hmm... so its like a rap/race Cannibal Holocaust?
 

version

Well-known member
His show on FX, Atlanta, is great, but I've never been too fussed about his music. That Redbone tune where he played about with Bootsy Collins was pretty catchy, but other than that he doesn't do much for me as a musician. The vid for This is America is pretty good, but the song itself isn't anything special.
 

Corpsey

bandz ahoy
Struggling to find the XXXtentacion video where he lunches a little white boy. Presume it's been expunged.
 

sadmanbarty

Well-known member
ironically enough, crowley's post is in keeping with the aesthetic of the whole thing. the dissensus choir was just having a nice sing song and he mows them down with an automatic weapon.
 

Leo

Well-known member
His show on FX, Atlanta, is great...

it's actually the best fucking thing on american TV, been meaning to post on it here. every season is great, this season is weird/dark but still great.

did i mention it's great?
 

Corpsey

bandz ahoy
ironically enough, crowley's post is in keeping with the aesthetic of the whole thing. the dissensus choir was just having a nice sing song and he mows them down with an automatic weapon.

I knew Crowley would hate it, somehow.

I thought I'd hate it too tbh cos I hate nerd rappers appropriating trap for their own purposes but I enjoyed the video. The song is nothing without the video. I do like the Jaws baseline though
 

Woebot

Well-known member
I mean it works if you have a disregard for the actual value of the rappers he uses as props and signifiers

As I mentioned - I couldn't find anything else that was good by him - or similar.

And it's not "proper" Hip-Hop really is it? It's Pop music. One has to get one's head round that. It's a little like "Papa was a rolling stone" in many regards.

But as for being an abuse of signifiers? Lol. You're saying this black man is not allowed to use the work of other black men to make a point about racial injustice.

It's very similar to MIA in many regards but for me the key difference is the point he is making is absolutely 100% valid. It's not like he's dipping into subcultures to make some fragrant pot-pourri.

Amazing track. Seismic video (even if that has approached something of a consensus).

Postscript: It's the failing of Trap that it hasn't been able to produce something of this cultural power.
 
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luka

Well-known member
i dont think i do hate it. ive been loftily avoiding forming an opinion actually.

crowleys is a twitter take formed under an impossible (and distorting) weight of opinions.
it's hard to get heard out there.
 
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