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Step Up Lyrics
Watch as the room rocks
Mentally moonwalk
Mixed media slang
Banging in your boom box verbal violence
Lyrical stylist
In a time when rock hip hop rhymes are childish
You can’t tempt me with rhymes that are empty
Rapping to a beat doesn’t make you an emcee
With your lack of skill and facility
You’re killing me
And a DJ in the group just for credibility
I heard that some of you are getting help with your rhymes
You’re not an emcee if someone else writes your lines
And rapping over rock doesn’t make you a pioneer
Cause rock and hip hop have collaborated for years
But now they’re getting randomly mixed and matched up
All after a fast buck and all the tracks suck
So how does it stack up? None of it’s real
You want to be an emcee you’ve got to study the skill
Who can rock a rhyme like this?
Bring it to you every time like this? [2x]
Step, step up, step, step up
So you pick up a pen and write yourself a new identity
But mentally you don’t have the hip hop energy
With a tendency to make up stories
Sounding like the only hip hop you’ve heard is top 40
And your record company is completely missing it
All the kids are dissing it for not being legitimate
So in a battle you can't hack it
React with whack shit
And get smacked with verbal back flips
Get your ass kicked by fabulous battle catalysts
It's taken decades for emcees to establish this
You’re new to hip hop and welcome if your serious
But not on the mic
Leave that to the experienced
(Using the waves of sound the true master paralyzes his opponents, leaving him
vulnerable to attack)
[Chorus (2x)]
(After years of pain staking research by the world's leading sound scientists, we
here at the sound institute have invented a reliable audio weapons system. Actual
movement of musical sound in space used to carefully attack and neutralize the
cellular structure of the human body, and the question must be asked.)
[Chorus (2x)]
Its fairly easy to see how this song differs from other songs calling out rappers "enemies"
First off consider
Mixed media slang Banging in your boom box verbal violence Lyrical stylist In a time when rock hip hop rhymes are childish
He isnt dissing rappers, he is dissing the media culture, in the same way that American Idiot does. Verbal violence means that the hip hop culture is contributing to America's violence problem because rappers are "childish" and dont understand what rap is all about.
All after a fast buck and all the tracks suck So how does it stack up? None of it’s real You want to be an emcee you’ve got to study the skill
All of these manufactured hits, fake artist collaborations and bad mash ups are just a quick money grab and they take away from emcees who really try to enhance their art.
So you pick up a pen and write yourself a new identity But mentally you don’t have the hip hop energy
Pretty obvious, you cant just wake up and decide to be a rapper, you have to really be willing to work for it.
With a tendency to make up stories Sounding like the only hip hop you’ve heard is top 40 And your record company is completely missing it All the kids are dissing it for not being legitimate
People know the difference between real rap and manufactured hits, even if the media doesnt.
So in a battle you can't hack it React with whack shit And get smacked with verbal back flips Get your ass kicked by fabulous battle catalysts It's taken decades for emcees to establish this You’re new to hip hop and welcome if your serious But not on the mic Leave that to the experienced
The tradition of hip hop, (open mics, rap battles) is being taken down by people who go straight to a big label record deal. If you want to be a rapper: earn it. If you arent willing to work: step down.
This is another song that is similar to High Voltage...except that in Step Up Mike goes into detail about emcees and lyricists. In this song Mike tells about how you cant just rhyme without talent and expect to be called an artist. In the lyrics "And rapping over rock doesn’t make you a pioneer Cause rock and hip hop have collaborated for years" he explains how rap rock isnt new...its more like an evolution. I think really the main point is that if you dont have the skills to be a real emcee or artist then back off...but if you have what it takes then "Step Up" to the mic.
talent.... all i have to say is talent...
This, obviously, is a song written to explain the difference between talent and "childish hip hop ryhmes." I don't mean to be stereotypical, but it seems that everyone wants to be a raper, but like Mike says, "You want to be an emcee you’ve got to study the skill." I don't think most rappers understand the concept of vibe of rock and hip hop Linkin Park is talking about. So, basically, I think Mike is trying to say is if you think you have real skill, then you should step up, and show what you've got.
Days of the New really has a good point explaining about rock hip hop. I totally agree.
this is just a great LP song, they really put all those fake bands in their place.
this song is great. i heard it first at their concert in memphis. everyone rocked out to it. it was awesome. rock steady-gabby ;-)
I heard that this was a bash against Limp Bizkit... any thoughts about that?
This song tells the difference between true and inner talent and stupid rhymes that are just noise. This is, like, dedicated to all wannabes who don't have skill. Maybe Mike is saying that you have to write your own stuff and you're supposed to be able to rhyme along with it to be a real pioneer. Mike is also telling the dreamers to study this skill hard and when they're ready, they should step up to the mic and show the world their talent.
I don't think LP was "bashing" anyone, nor do i think they ever would, 'cause that's not what they're about.