The song is a critique of the music industry's shift towards superficiality, lack of originality, and disregard for genuine artistic expression, as well as the practice of taking samples or incorporating parts of other songs without permission from the original artist. It marks it as a lack of creativity and the swift nature to exploit the work of others for personal gain. The song argues that true music comes from the heart and soul of the artist, and when that human factor is absent, the music becomes shallow and unfulfilling. A notion that is even more relevant in the modern-day.
A prime example is 1990's "Ice Ice Baby" by Vanilla Ice, which took hook samples and the bassline of the 1981 song "Under Pressure" by Queen and David Bowie, who did not receive credit or royalties for the sample. Vanilla Ice said that although his pioneer status forced him to "take the heat for a lot of people" for his music's use of samples, the criticism he received over sample use allowed sampling to become acceptable in mainstream hip hop. The legal battle was possibly the inspiration for this song.
The song is a critique of the music industry's shift towards superficiality, lack of originality, and disregard for genuine artistic expression, as well as the practice of taking samples or incorporating parts of other songs without permission from the original artist. It marks it as a lack of creativity and the swift nature to exploit the work of others for personal gain. The song argues that true music comes from the heart and soul of the artist, and when that human factor is absent, the music becomes shallow and unfulfilling. A notion that is even more relevant in the modern-day.
A prime example is 1990's "Ice Ice Baby" by Vanilla Ice, which took hook samples and the bassline of the 1981 song "Under Pressure" by Queen and David Bowie, who did not receive credit or royalties for the sample. Vanilla Ice said that although his pioneer status forced him to "take the heat for a lot of people" for his music's use of samples, the criticism he received over sample use allowed sampling to become acceptable in mainstream hip hop. The legal battle was possibly the inspiration for this song.