Much like in movies, music is also the soundtrack to life. We listen to music to put us in a better mood, to help us relax in stressful times, or to make any party a lot more fun.
Singers, musicians, bands, and songwriters create every song with a purpose. Everything from each lyric to each instrumental note is meant to convey a specific meaning to the listener.
While some people might think otherwise, hip hop songs also carry heavyweight. Rappers often draw from their own life experiences to make music that acts as their own form of therapy.
Music would not be as powerful or meaningful without the use of metaphor and other forms of figurative language. To explain heavy topics or controversial issues to listeners, lyric writers have to consider the words that will help them understand.
A popular comparison that hip hop artists make is between gambling with dice games and their own lives. So many listeners know what rolling the dice symbolizes that this is an easy comparison to make.
Luck, chance, and risk are all commonly tied to a game of dice as well as the game of life. Over the years that hip hop has been popular, so many songs have referred to dice games to help listeners understand their meaning.
“Let Me Roll” by Scarface (1993)
In his song “Let Me Roll”, Scarface includes a few lines of verse that make reference to rolling the dice and placing bets.
This song talks about hanging out with friends, smoking marijuana and playing games of dice together. Hip hop culture in the 90s focused a lot on marijuana because of its popularity at the time.
Scarface’s lyrics make reference to playing craps as a way to pass the time. Craps is one of the most popular dice games in the casino, and might just be the only casino dice game most players are familiar with.
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Using craps in his lyrics as a game that he and his friends played probably gave listeners a good idea of a fun way to gamble. He raps about losing some change to a game of craps but not caring because it was a fun pastime while smoking.
“Street Cinema” by Sporty Thievz (1998)
A few years after Scarface discussed playing craps and smoking pot, Sporty Thievz brought up a similar idea.
While they don’t talk specifically about craps, they do make the point that life is truly uncertain by comparing their actions to rolling a pair of dice.
The lyrics seem to talk about committing a crime and engaging in other risky behavior. The part of the song that references playing dice conveys that, no matter what they do, it’s always a gamble. They’ll never know what the result might be until they do it.
Listeners understand what gambling means in terms of playing in a casino as well as just taking a chance in other aspects of life. Gambling is often associated with money, making this the perfect comparison to a song about a robbery.
“Nellyville” by Nelly (2002)
By 2002, Nelly was dreaming up his own ideal land in “Nellyville”. His dreamscape features everyone having the wealth they want and all the material items they could imagine!
In “Nellyville”, he claims that there would not be a lottery because “the dice gon’ do what the dice gon’ do”, according to Nelly.
This lyric shows how a game of dice relies mostly on chance rather than luck, just like life. Everything happens for one reason or another by chance.
Nelly also uses the comparison to playing dice to bring in the idea of karma. In “Nellyville”, whatever you put into the world you will get back from it.
Many of the dreams in “Nellyville” are opposite of what happens in a predominantly black community, like drugs and shootings. According to I Am Hip Hop magazine, racial profiling still takes place whether it is intended or not.
Hip hop artists, who are predominantly African American, use their lyrics to address this issue and use analogies to dice games to talk about their luck like Nelly does.
“Outta Control” by 50 Cent (2005)
50 Cent made an impact on his listeners in 2005 with his song “Outta Control”. In this song, he talks about his success and his ability to have a great time because of it.
Towards the beginning of the song, 50 Cent raps about success being his drug and says he is high on life. Because of his success, he feels “lucky enough to bet it all on the dice”.
50 Cent uses the comparison to rolling dice and being lucky to how he has been so successful as an artist.
People love gambling, though it takes money to be able to bet money. Since he is successful, he has the means to bet it all and is in the right, positive state of mind to bet effectively!
“Go Girl” by Pitbull (2007)
Pitbull really seems to love the ladies in his 2007 song “Go Girl”. A popular theme connected to gambling is often clubbing and dancing, which Pitbull isn’t afraid to bring up in his lyrics.
Pitbull uses the lyrics “shake dem dice and roll ‘em” to reference her dance moves. He is bringing the dancing scene he created all together by also talking about rolling the dice.
People often say they are rolling the dice on love when they start a new relationship. This is a relevant point to make in this song too because he is expressing his interest in a woman.
By talking about an experience at a club and using a reference to a dice game, Pitbull captures the essence of the gambling nature of relationships.
Seeing how hip hop music evolves through the years is intriguing, especially in the way that the comparisons to dice games have changed. Even still, the theme of gambling and taking chances has always been important to hip hop artists.
Rishma
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