Branches Book

BRANCHES

first few lines point to materialism and greed. He sings about girls wanting Nikes and a check, then sings about a different kind of greed, one that comes from the need for drugs. He takes a moment to pay a tribute to A$AP Rocky, a rapper he admires, and young rapper Pimp C who lost his life in 2007. He ends the verse about martyr Trayvon Martin, with a morbid lyric, “that n***a look just like me.” He’s reflecting on Martin’s murder in that moment, and the affects it has on him and the Black community. It is about their everyday lives, and the feat of existing, which is a strong and depressing statement. Trayvon Martin would be 22 today, and Blonde is filled with feelings and stories about love, ideologies, and loss that Martin will never have a chance to experience, and it also realizes the fear many people have. “Nikes” digresses and ends with a feeling of love for someone special, however filled with envy and over-protection. Although the melody is sweet, the lyrics are telling a story that is more realistic to what love is. There is no fairytale in Ocean’s depiction of love, instead it is filled with struggle, jealousy, sex, and affection. When releasing Blonde , he posted on his tumblr, ‘“I wrote a story in the middle—It’s called ‘Godspeed.’ It's basically a reimagined part of my boyhood. Boys do cry, but I don't think I shed a tear for a good chunk of my teenage years. It's surprisingly my favorite part of life so far. Surprising, to me, because the current phase is what I was asking the cosmos for when I was a kid. Maybe that part had its rough stretches too, but in my rearview mirror it's getting small enough to convince myself it was all good. And really though... It's still all good.’” The lyrics point to someone important in his life, and similar to “Nikes,” it is not a perfect love. Sweeter than his other lyrics, this story is about learning to let go, similar to “Close To You.” It is about this everlasting love that everyone can relate to, the feeling of letting someone go for a greater future, but knowing they will always be there for each other. They will always be a greater piece to their puzzle called life. It’s about figuring out what the best road is to take, while making sacrifices.

“There’s just some magic in truth and honesty and openness.”

Truthful Most recently Ocean was criticized by the producer and writer for the Grammys, Ken Ehrlich and David Wild, about Ocean’s 2013 performance at their award show. This started when Ocean declined to submit his 2016 music for consideration. Ehrlich and Wild decided it was because ‘“Ocean was ‘rigid’ about his idea,”’ talking about his 2013 performance, which they

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