It’s C-H-I-L-D to the ISH Man
My favourite Gambino verses
This Sunday I’m going to see Childish Gambino. What better way to prep for it than to list my favourite ‘Bino verses?
Freaks and Geeks Verse Two
Favourite Line: Chillin’ with my n-words, say it like a white kid/Yes your booty’s big as hers, say it to my white bitch/So she don’t get embarrassed, my dick is made of carrots/Bunnies want it to be fed and I meant honeys, of forget it
“Freaks and Geeks” was the first song I learned front to back by Childish. It’s a fun song and sets up themes that he focuses on in his future songs: girls, money, and race. The second verse stands out for me because it’s filled with one-liners and choosing a favourite line was difficult because everything ties together like one long punch line.
Hero Verse Three
Favourite Line: They said me rappin’ would be like MJ and baseball/But that would make me MJ, so motherfuck all of y’all
There are plenty of ‘Bino lines where people debate if he’s joking or being serious and to a greater extent if he’s serious with rap. He addresses this directly in the third verse and declares that he’s trying to make Illmatic instead of Eddie Murphy’s Delirious. He proclaims that he’s not going to stop because he’s worked too hard already to lie down.
Bonfire Verse One
Favourite Line: Okay, it’s Childish Gambino, homegirl drop it like the NASDAQ/Move white girls like there’s coke up my ass crack/Move black girls cause, man, fuck it, I’ll do either/I love pussy, I love bitches, dude, I should be runnin’ PETA
The first single off of Gambino’s first studio album Camp feels familiar to his earlier work but with better production and more streamlined. He cuts out the fat and let’s his sharp wit shine through with each line.
Heart Beat Verse Three
Favourite Line: Ayo, fuck this/Are we dating? Are we fucking?/Are we best friends? Are we something? In between that?/I wish we never fucked, and I mean that/But not really, you say the nastiest shit in bed and it’s fuckin’ awesome
The second single off of Camp Gambino proves that he’s to stay and should be taken seriously. The song is about The One, and being able to be with them. It paints a story about sleeping with people you don’t love while still having the one you do love in your life in some capacity. The last lines sum up the song perfectly.
Pound Cake Freestyle Verse One
Favourite Line: So nerdy but the flow wordy/Brain-freezin’ with the flow slurpee/Ice cold but you know I burn cash like I had herpes/Not true, but I’m that dirty
Gambino free stylin’ over Drake’s “Pound Cake”? Can we get another slice please?
Life: the biggest troll Verse Two
Favourite Line: Never forget this feeling, never gonna reach a million/Eventually all my followers realize they don’t need a leader/Stay on your own shit, fuck what these clones think/Just remember that you the shit, but act like it don’t stink/We were childish but had to grow up
The last song on Because the Internet paired with the screen play corresponds to the credits and shows how The Boy reflects Gambino. He slows his flow down only picking up intensity as he becomes more passionate.
That Power Outro
Favourite Line: This isn’t a story about how girls are evil or how love is bad, this is a story about how I learned something and I’m not saying this thing is true or not, I’m just saying it’s what I learned. I told you something. It was just for you and you told everybody. So I learned cut out the middle man, make it all for everybody, always. Everybody can’t turn around and tell everybody, everybody already knows, I told them. But this means there isn’t a place in my life for you or someone like you. Is it sad? Sure. But it’s a sadness I chose. I wish I could say this was a story about how I got on the bus a boy and got off a man more cynical, hardened, and mature and shit. But that’s not true. The truth is I got on the bus a boy. And I never got off the bus. I still haven’t…
The final track on Camp ends with an extended Spoken Word piece where Gambino ties up the album’s summer camp theme. In it he manages to tell a story most people can relate to while still speaking on themes in his other songs: girls, relationships, and class.
