JME and the 2015 PokéRap
“Everybody thinks to MC tough / your lyrics must be about negative stuff” – JME
I love hip-hop. It’s a genre with colourful characters who cover a number of hilarious topics. The subject matter is what keeps me coming back. Whenever a new rapper emerges on the scene; they often feel obligated to answer certain character questions about themselves.
It’s rare to find a rapper who goes against type. JME is one such artist, the Tottenham-based MC/producer, largely shies away from the Money, Cash, Hoes side of hip hop. He prefers to discuss the more important things in life, like Pokémon cards.
According to the virgins over at Bulbapedia, in 2016 there are 721 different Pokémon, from seven generations of video games. To illustrate the vastness of the universe these days, here’s someone rapping all 721 in nine minutes. Kudos if you can make it to the end.
Just for fun here’s what the starter Pokémon look like on the latest games, Pokémon X and Y.
You might think that hip-hop and Pocket Monsters don’t mix, but you would be wrong. Rap Genius lets you measure the frequency certain words appear in rap songs over time.
As you can see, Pokémon references in rap are at an all-time high. Of all words used in 2016 hip-hop, 0.00036% of these are “Pokemon”. Of course this pales in comparison to more familiar words in the rap lexicon.
This is where JME comes in, he is one of few established rappers who has dedicated an entire song to Pokémon.
Here’s a breakdown of typical JME topics.
But I roll with couple pescetarians, Vegans and vegetarians<br> An’ a few rastafarians<br> Man don’t wanna see no dead meat on their plate like some barbarians
― Jme – No You Ain’t
Integrity alert.
JME fucking loves Pokémon. Here are his framed Charizards Pokémon Cards, he got them by trading a gold vinyl version of his latest album.
I am of course, using mockery to cover my burning jealousy.
Smiling ear to ear, revving hard<br> Like he’s just got a Dark Charizard
― Jme – Game
The pinnacle of this Pokémon Stannery was his 2015 song “The Very Best”. A two minute love letter to Pocket Monsters with a beat, heavily sampling the classic first season theme tune.
Quick aside, I recently learned there is a three minute version of the original featuring the fabled second verse and a excellent J-Rock guitar solo. There’s so much cheese I went into a lactose induced coma.
Too bad JME can’t listen to it, because he’s vegan and shit.
Listen to those dramatic vocals about destiny. It almost brings a tear to the eye. It’s so damn inspiring.
Back to JME’s PokéRap, let the first line set the tone. A line so good he felt the need to tweet it to the world.
Shiny charizard for life
— Jme (@JmeBBK) July 23, 2015
Officially, the least impressive boast in hip-hop since Canibus said:
“The Very Best” is a pretty good song with a great sample loop and JME has some interesting things to say. It is more than just a list of Pokemon references.
I’ve never heard Mewtwo being referenced in such a threatening manner before.
That’s why we love JME, he’s a humble dude who enjoys the simple things in life. He likes rapping and playing Xbox. He stays in his lane and writes songs about Pokémon.
It’s only right we close things out with the original PokéRap. JME is good, but you can’t beat someone rhyming all 151 pocket monsters in one catchy song.
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