212 (song)
| 212 | |
|---|---|
 |
|
| Azealia Banks featuring Lazy Jay | |
| publication | December 6, 2011 |
| length | 3:26 |
| Genre (s) | Hip house , rap |
| Author (s) | Azealia Banks • Jef Martens |
| text | Banks |
| music | Martens |
| Label | Polydor |
| album |
1991 Broke with Expensive Taste |
212 ( read: Two-One-Two) is a hip-house song by the American rapper Azealia Banks . It was released as a download on December 6, 2011 and is included on their first EP in 1991 (2012). The song is also part of their debut album Broke with Expensive Taste (2014).
background
212 is a hip house song with rap elements. The backing track of the song is the title Float My Boat by Lazy Jay, on which Banks raps and sings. The title is named after the area code of the Harlem ( New York ) phone code , the Manhattan neighborhood in which Banks grew up.
212 does not have a refrain in the classical sense, and thus does not follow the common structure of a pop song, which is laid out in the form of verse- refrain-verse-refrain- bridge- refrain. The song begins with two stanzas, followed by a bridge, the hookline , a third verse followed by the hookline again.
The text is characterized by the use of many vulgar words, e.g. B. "cunt", "nigga" or "fuck" from. Banks alludes, among other things, to cunnilingus ( Now she wanna lick my plum in the evening , I guess that cunt getting eaten. ), Speaks to the transience of fame ( You got a lot, but you just waste all yours and they'll forget your name soon and won't nobody be to blame but yourself. ) and brags about her skills and sex appeal. In the hookline of the song, she announces that she will overshadow everyone else (literally end her life in the spotlight) as soon as she makes her music available to the public. ( When I premiere, bitches the end of your lives are near. )
Criticism
The reviews of 212 were positive, with critics praising Banks' rap skills in particular. The German MP3 music magazine Tonspion named the song MP3 of the year 2012 and continued to write: "So far, the eloquent rapper has not made her long-awaited debut album, but with her track published online she has set the bar very high for herself." The Guardian gave the song a very positive review, and reviewer Michael Cragg called the song "startling three and a half minutes of attitude" [a sensational three and a half minutes of attitude]. Carrie Battan, who rated the song for Pitchfork , also praised it and wrote: "Banks delivers solid, straightforward flows, [...] top-shelf singing [...] and a smug talk-rap cadence that shuts down potential adversaries." (Banks delivers solid, no-frills flows , […] upper class vocals […] and a smug speech rhythm that leaves no room for competition.) She was surprised by Banks' "unpredictable vocal range".
212 appeared in various music media in the annual top list. The following overview shows the most important ranking lists and the placement of the song there:
| editor | space |
|---|---|
| Guardian | 2 |
| Pitchfork | 9 |
| New Musical Express | 18th |
Music video
A related music video was released on September 12, 2011. The black and white video was shot by Vincent Tsang and shows Banks dancing in front of a brick wall and close-ups of her face while she raps and sings. The video also shows the Canadian artists Lunice and Jacques Greene. The video has now been viewed more than 150 million times on the YouTube video platform .
Charts
| Charts | Top ranking | Weeks |
|---|---|---|
| Chart placements | ||
 United Kingdom (OCC)
|
12 (40 weeks) | 40 |
Web links
Individual evidence
- ^ Azealia Banks - 212. | RapGenius
- ↑ Tonspion - The Best Free Downloads 2012. Tonspion.de
- ↑ Carrie Battan: Azealia Banks: "212" - Tracks. Pitchfork
- ↑ The Best Songs Of 2011 The Guardian
- ↑ Staff List: The Top 100 Tracks Of 2011 | Features pitchfork
- ↑ 50 Best Tracks Of 2011 New Musical Express
- ^ David Fischer: Music Video: Azealia Banks - 212. Highsnobiety
- ↑ Azelia Banks - 212 ft. Lazy Jay. YouTube ; accessed on March 13, 2018.
- ↑ Chart sources: UK