J cole neighbors think im sellng dope
He uses the example of Trayvon Martin as a example of how a black man’s life can easily be taken away due to stereotyping and prejudice. He uses his experience as a means to talk about how systemic racism transcends socio economic status and that this racism is both powerful and dangerous. Cole, as usual, provides profound social commentary and touches on larger issues by sharing his own experiences while interweaving it with what is going on in the world today. The close-text analysis clearly helps to comprehend the message of the story. Only time they see us we be on the news, in chains, damn” Just a couple neighbors that assume we slang He feels shaken to the core by this encounter and tries to come to terms with everything by saying the following: Lastly, in the third verse, Cole talks about how the event affected him. He cites Trayvon Martin, a unarmed 17 year-old black male who was brutally shot by a neighborhood watchman, as an example of this (Genius, 2016). Cole furthers this by saying the racism he experiences has the potential to end his life. He, although quite successful, is still a black man and feels that he isn’t exempt from experiencing racism. This verse shows that Cole blames the situation entirely on racism. He insinuates that the act was fueled by nothing more than plain ignorance and blatant racism towards him. The second verse is where Cole really targets the act of what happened to him and delves deep into the larger picture of why all of this happened.
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It is because of this, as the reader, they can gather that Cole is indeed not doing any of the following things he is accused of. It helps to reinforce the idea that Cole’s neighbors are suspicious of Cole and stereotype him hard to the point in which he has the authorities called on him.
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This line is repeated throughout the song, especially through the hook. “I guess the neighbors think I’m selling dope.” In order to draw the meaning I will analyze the lyrics.
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Close Textual Analysis (CTA) refers to an interpretive practice, the aim of which is to explain how texts operate to produce meaning, effect persuasion, and activate convictions in public contexts.” (Kuypers, 2016). It was found that Cole was not selling drugs. He narrates the story of when a SWAT team raided his house, nicknamed the “Sheltah”, because his neighbors had informed authorities that he was supposedly selling narcotics. The song has themes that touch on race and the perception of African Americans in society. Cole reminisces about an incident that happened at a North Carolina house he rented. By looking at Cole’s music through a rhetorical lens using close textual analysis and the personas, one can observe that Cole uses makes various arguments in his music that touch on themes of racism, self-love, desire, and fame.
J cole neighbors think im sellng dope pro#
The themes he touches on within his music are very much pro black and the issues regarding African American people. He gained popular notoriety through various mixtapes and songs. Cole, is American hip-hop artist from North Carolina.