 Author Felicia Pride finds unexpected inspiration within the lyrics of hip-hop
By Toccara Castleman As a student of hip-hop's school of thought, author Felicia Pride pays homage to her "teacher" in her book, The Message: 100 Life Lessons from Hip-Hop's Greatest Songs (Thunder's Mouth, 2007). Pride breaks the typical narrative mold by using short essays (each titled after a hip-hop song) to describe the influence that a particular song had on her life. Throughout this innovative text, Pride proves that hip-hop is more than just catchy verses laid over tight beats-if you listen hard enough, you can also find kernels of wisdom as you bob your head.
"Proceed"
Artist: The Roots
From: Do You Want More?!!!??! (1995)
THERE ARE DAYS when I wake up and I'm tempted to disown this writing career, get a job, and coast. There are days when I wake up so tired of all the prime-time drama called My Life that it's as if I didn't sleep at all. There are days when I crave an indefinite commercial break where all I'm required to do is breathe.
"Proceed" is a subtle motivational song without hype. In one word, The Roots captured the solution to my desire to quit. Over the group's mellow-my-man sound, Black Thought and Malik B. discuss their musical journey. Black Thought rhymes that he received his record contract in 1993, and more than a decade later, even when he feels like blinking himself away, he continues to "rock the mic."
I like that word, proceed. It has its own internal drill sergeant. It implies forward movement. A journey where you don't look back. Progression and continuity. Proceed....
Change, drama, and weariness are all inevitable, but survival of the fittest is as much about perseverance as it is about one's ability to compete. My writing life and I resemble an old married couple. We do that keep-on-keepin'-on dance where we shuffle forward with both feet. We proceed.
Along the way, the hope is that you smarten up, become wiser to the journey. With each day, I learn more about my writing life. Its likes, dislikes, temperaments. I try to be flexible and understanding. Just as a partner should.
Excerpted from The Message: 100 Life Lessons from Hip-Hop's Greatest Songs by Felicia Pride. Available now where books are sold. More at feliciapride.com.
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