5 Hip-Hop Songs: Lord Knows…
Last week’s theme: Songs about hip-hop

Today’s pick of tracks are either about expressions of faith, or the song has very heavy religious undertones. Because I’m mostly familiar with American English speaking hip-hop, they’ll mostly be of a Christian flavor, but that’s not to say that there aren’t songs about other religions. Check out Noisey’s excellent series for example which explores the intersection of faith, political dynamics and hip-hop culture in Israel and Palestine, but straight from Israel itself. Also if interested in this topic from an academic perspective, Rice University has a course on Hip-Hop & Religion on edX.
Let’s get to it:
- “The Light” f/ Jeremih — Big Sean (2017)
Have the tissue box nearby if you’re an emotional type when you watch this video. I thought about saving this video for a future blog post more on police brutality, but also feel it’s as much a song about hope and faith.
2. “Heaven or Hell” — Kendrick Lamar (2010)
Ok, I have been critical of Kendrick a little (as in I think he’s overrated), but this song is just a joy to listen to. Powerful ending for the ‘heaven’ verse where his voice fades out, but the track keeps playing for a good minute allowing the listener to imagine their own version of heaven.
3. “Jesus Walks” — Kanye West (2004)
Self-explanatory.
4. “Oh My God” — Sticky Fingaz
This is from the album Autobiography of Kirk Jones, which is an album that’s a really an audio movie where every rapper is a character in a story that runs through the whole album. In this song, Sticky Fingaz’ character is reaching the end of the road, and is lashing out in frustration at ‘God’ who then responds…
I’ll blog about other songs from this album and the similar album-movie Prince Paul’s Prince Among Thieves eventually.
5. “Angels” — Chance The Rapper (2016)
Not really into Chance (from Chicago I prefer the drill style), but this song is good vibes.
🎶 na-na Wear your halo like a hat, that’s like the latest fashion 🎶 /I got angels all around me, they keep me surrounded na-na….
