J-Bo - Kumbaya

Topic: Rap
Rap developed as a verbal form within African-American popular culture, and, after the success of Straight out of Compton in 1988, [1] within the music industry. [2] As previous posts have shown, [3] it evolved from individuals making random comments, to a verse-chorus format that introduced some thematic unity, to Grandmaster Flash’s "The Message," which imposed unity on the verses as well.

Ice-T added narrative techniques in "Cop Killer" in 1992. [4] Instead of describing his own experience, he put himself inside the head of someone like Rodney King, who was beaten by Los Angeles policemen in 1991. When people criticized him for his asocial views, he was able to say

"All I’m doing on this record is playing a character I invented who’s fed up with police abuse. He’s not the average person who just figured out after the Rodney King incident that police brutality exists. This particular character has seen it too long and he loses it and goes on a rampage." [5]

J-Bo took on the persona of a killer in his 2014 version of "Kumbaya." The first-person verses primarily were threats to a woman, interspersed with a chorus that began

"Kumbaya kumbaya
Chop a head on wise
Since somebody died
Kumbaya kumbaya
Now they’re wearing black"

and ended with repetitions of "kumbaya." The second iteration of the chorus added "oh my God, oh my God."

J-Bo clearly enunciated his words in the verses in a deep voice that was accompanied by a synthetic rhythm. A synthesizer was added on the chorus. There the male voice may have been electronically altered, since it was higher, faster, and harder to understand.

The two kumbaya’s were spoken in a monotone with each syllable given the same duration, but a slight emphasis on the last. The second repetition was lower than the first. Perhaps the slightly menacing delivery was the entire meaning of the reference.

Performers
Vocal Soloist: J-Bo

Vocal Group: other voices made occasional comments in the background.

Instrumental Accompaniment: synthesizer
Rhythm Accompaniment: electronic

Credits
None given

Notes on Lyrics
Language: English
Pronunciation: koom bi AH

Vocabulary
Pronoun: I
Term for Deity: God
Special Terms: street language

Basic Form: verse-chorus
Verse Repetition Pattern: three repetitions of chorus
Ending: none

Notes on Music
Opening Phrase: own
Tempo: moderate
Basic Structure: ABABAB
Singing Style: chanted

Notes on Performers
Jeffrey Ray Grigsby grew up in Decatur, Georgia, in the years after the white town had turned Black with the expansion of Atlanta in the 1960s. [6] He and Sean Paul Joseph began performing together when they were in middle school. They began recording as the Youngbloodz in 1999, and had their greatest success with an album produced by Lil Jon [7] in 2003. By then they were known as J-Bo and Sean P. [8]

Sometime after their bus was stopped in 2006 for expired plates and everyone was arrested for possession of marijuana and concealed weapons, the two went their separate ways. The driver was later the one charged, [9] but they were the ones whose reputations were tarnished, not with fans, but with booking agents and record distributers.

Availability
MP3: Only the Strong Survive. 26 November 2014.

End Notes
1. N.W.A. Straight Outta Compton. Ruthless Records SL 57102. 1988. (Discogs’ entry for album)

2. Wikipedia. "N.W.A."

3. See posts for three previous entries posted 22 March 2018, 24 March 2018, and 26 March 2018.

4. Body Count. Body Count. Warner Brothers Records 9 26878-2. 30 March 1992. (Discogs’ entry for album)

5. Ice-T [Tracy Morrow]. Quoted by Chuck Philips. "‘Arnold Schwarzenegger blew away dozens of cops as the Terminator. But I don't hear anybody complaining’: A Q & A with Ice-T about rock, race and the ‘Cop Killer’ furor." Los Angeles Times website. 19 July 1992.

6. Wikipedia. "Decatur, Georgia."
7. For more on Lil Jon, see post for 22 March 2018.
8. Wikipedia. "YoungBloodZ."
9. Wikipedia, YoungBloodZ.