“You Got Me” by The Roots
It’s no secret that rappers just can’t make good love songs…lol. This is probably because the topic requires a willingness to “open up” and display a certain degree of vulnerability which to be fair, doesn’t always mix with the tough-guy personas out there. That being said, The Roots aren’t your average hiphop group and Black Thought, isn’t your average MC.
The “Grammy” awarded for “You Got Me” perhaps represents the only moment in the sun for a group that has always in my opinion, been grossly underrated. Their use of live instrumentation has always set them apart from the rest of the hip hop world, but the potency of Black Thought on the mic has kept them respected by their peers as a true hip hop entity and not some “alternative hiphop band”.
Here, Questlove’s stellar drumwork is accompanied by an infectious guitar loop as the backdrop to Black Thought’s narrative and Erykah Badu’s loving reassurances.
Perfect.
Title: You Got Me
Artist: The Roots
Album: Things Fall Apart, 1999
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“Green Grass” by Cibelle
“Lay your head where my heart used to be, Hold the earth above me, Lay down in the green grass, Remember when you loved me
Come closer don’t be shy, Stand beneath a rainy sky, The moon is over the rise, Think of me as a train goes by
Clear the thistles and brambles, Whistle ‘Didn’t He Ramble’, Now there’s a bubble of me, And it’s floating in thee
Stand in the shade of me, Things are now made of me, The weather vane will say, It smells like rain today
God took the stars and he tossed them, Can’t tell the birds from the blossoms
You’ll never be free of me, He’ll make a tree from me, Don’t say good bye to me, Describe the sky to me
And if the sky falls, mark my words, We’ll catch mocking birds
Lay your head where my heart used to be, Hold the earth above me, Lay down in the green grass
Remember when you loved me, Remember when you loved me, Remember when you loved me”
Lyricism…..
Title: Green Grass
Artist: Cibelle
Album: The Shine of Electric Dried Leaves, 2006
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Irrigation Dam – North of Segou – “Office du Niger”
This dam on the Niger river is used to stabilize water flow for agricultural and irrigation purposes in the “Office du Niger” region. This region is located between Bamako and Mopti and is the country’s most agriculturally productive area with it’s soil fertility and significant annual rainfall. Although irrigation is practiced in this region, the water is used mainly for rice production while cotton is grown as a rainfed crop.
I took this picture while working on a rice project in february 2009.
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Ke Macina – Region of Segou – Central Mali
Interesting fishing technique…
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Ssidy is what my friends call me. I was born in Senegal of Malian parents (hence my Mali nationality). I grew up all over the place…Bamako, London, Accra, Cape Town, before I went to college in Miami and finally got a job in Sydney where I’ve been living since August 2008.
When I’m not working on The Timbuktu Project, or as a financial analyst (full-time), you can usually catch me somewhere on a football pitch or involved in anything music related. Music is everything to me. Whatever mood I am in, there is always a song that captures the moment perfectly. Anyone who has spent more than 10 minutes around me will probably attest to this: I listen to all types of stuff.....possibly because no single genre holds enough songs to quench that musical thirst of mine... 