Levond: Chasing The Bags
Ooooh who lives in a pineapple under the sea?!
LEV-ON-D!
I made a status online once that was highlighting the first time I heard a triplet cadence. It was not the Migos. It wasn’t even 3-6 Mafia. It was from SpongeBob. And to this day it’s one of the most sought after theme songs.
I am a fine arts teacher. If I go “ARE YA READY KIDS?!” In a pirate voice… we’re singing the whole song. One of the reasons for this is the trip-el-et cadence (see triplet). A cadence that emphasizes words differently than if you are in common 4/4 with regular 1/4 notes. So instead of:
I like BATS (snare on 2) but I hate CATS (snare on 4)
I like (those) bats but I hate (them) cats
The first example is 7 syllables, with either a dotted 1/8th at the end for CATS, or an 1/8th rest.
The second example is 9 syllables. The extra syllables that are added make the rapper/singer have to utilize a triplet cadence to fit them within the measure. If we tried to rap 9 syllables as straight 1/8th notes, we would be bleeding into the next measure. The triplet cadence is popular because it is pleasing to the ear and smooove as a baby’s bottom when done correctly. Then rappers who rap fast can utilize the triplet cadence to fit measures consecutively without having to rap in 16th notes, and can still fit 10-12 syllables into one measure using triplet 1/8th notes. My favorite country ballad of all time is “El Paso” by Marty Robins…
“Out in the west Texas town of El Paso”
These 11 syllables would sound so different and the song would have been much less impactful had it not been delivered in triplets.
This is the initial part of Levond’s song that stands out. The hook “I got the bags, I got the gun” repeated with variations of the rhyming words leads you to want to consume this song more and more. I also like how the hook is produced. It’s laid back but it’s also prominent enough to stick out with the processing added.
Of all the verses, my favorite is the last one. It goes into a melodic inflection that ends the song, making a full circle of emotions.
A critique I have would be to tighten up the flow in the first couple verses, and work on inflecting some of the bars more prominently. I appreciate the way the words were rhymed, and have encouraged Levond to continue to develop his sound with the rhyme schemes he’s coming up with.
Here at PRD we are excited to follow Levond and see his progress!
Check him out in a custom playlist we made for him 👇🏼
https://open.spotify.com/playlist/6uqKRUnkjhzVf2FhpFgW4x?si=0xhlKhKZQf-VRgY-UE-Skw&pi=u-yE8wFhMVRXa0
