The Mind of Mubarak: June 2018

For me, the best music are those whose lyrics strike a train of thought. Rap music generally does that for me. I'm not much of an R&B fan. I don't see the point in listening to people's love lives and heartbreaks all day. I hate Heavy Metal & Rock. I don't know what the hell they are constantly screaming about. I'll listen to some Dancehall music here and there. Country music is generally the most uninspiring genre ever created. All their music, voices, sounds, subject matter and production sound the same. That's really dreary and unexciting. So of course I'm here to discuss some rap.

My favorite rap/music artist is NAS. He recently dropped his self-titled 11th studio album called "NASIR". I have been anticipating this album for about a year now. It finally dropped on the 16th of June and I got the chance to listen. Every record off the seven-song album was really good but one record caught my attention immediately. This was track 6, titled - ADAM and EVE. In the last verse of this 3-verse song, he rapped:

"What comes first...peace or the paper?

Before I had a piece of paper, peace was in my favor.

Before I started to eat at the table ,it had leaches and traitors.

Cut the fat from the meat, extract the weak, bon appetit, no bacon".

He then goes on to say:

"These clowns got false crowns, fictional kings.

You broke my heart Fredo, You brought this thing of ours down to a fable.

Be advised my guys are dying, enterprising at a boss's table"

I was so intrigued by this Fredo line because it struck a cord. Fredo is a character in The Godfather. The Godfather is a trilogy that critics have acclaimed - the best Mafia/Mob/Gangsta movie and novel of all time. If you haven't seen it, I recommend it. It has some of the best life lessons you'll ever learn on screen. To keep things short. The Godfather, Vito Corleone, was the head of a Mob, who at his old age chose the youngest of his sons, Michael Corleone, to succeed him as Godfather of the Mobs. Michael's older brother was Fredo Corleone. Fredo eventually cut a secret deal with a rival mob for some business that would see him get a large kickback so he could be his 'own man' and garnish respect as he felt he was being side-stepped in the Corleone family business. Little did he know that the rival mob only used him to get closer to The Godfather so they could assassinate him. The attempt on the Godfather's life was unsuccessful and the Corleones eventually found out that the leak in their organization was Fredo, their own brother. The infamous words "I KNOW IT WAS YOU FREDO. YOU BROKE MY HEART" was a scintillating scene in the novel/movie when The Godfather approached Fredo about his betrayal. This is in accordance with the fact that Fredo put his entire family and their organization in jeopardy because of jealousy, false sense of independence, and the urge to also be looked at as a Don, just as Nas raps in his song "YOU BROUGHT THIS THING OF OURS DOWN TO A FABLE". ....... "BE ADVISED MY GUYS ARE DYING ENTERPRISING AT A BOSS'S TABLE". Poetry or rap metaphors is subjective so my perspective of the verse may differ from others. To me, "enterprising at a boss's table" means having a different agenda contrary to what the laid down agenda is. For example, as a coach of a team, you have a game plan heading into a game which the team has to believe in and execute. Once individuals start "enterprising at your table", that means they have their own agenda in mind different from the team's goal, which will eventually cost the team. Usually, this stems from jealousy, selfishness and a lack of perspective. That's why Nas says "Be advised my guys are dying". Meaning it'll eventually lead to your (our) demise.

So many times we've seen money, misguided independence, and insecurity destroy friendships, businesses, families, relationships and teams. One has to comprehend that there's always one person in a group who is more likely to be the face of, the leader of, the most successful of, the most liked of, and most respected of. As long the group is successful, that should be good enough for the other member(s). But often than not, everybody wants to have a taste of leadership, nobody wants to take orders, everybody wants the fame and just as much respect. A seed is sown in ones head and everyone starts enterprising at the boss's table, which eventually leads to lack of focus, individualism and a miserable end to an otherwise successful franchise. Few years ago, I was introduced to a great book called "THE 48 LAWS OF POWER". The 1st Law was "NEVER OUTSHINE THE MASTER". I won't bore you with the details but do pick up that book. Its a great read. It directly relates to the topic on discussion which even made the aforementioned lyrics more incredible.

To end this. Everybody has to play a part. There always has to be a leader. A leader should be respected irrespective of age, family history, physical attributes, or financial position. Jealousy and envy should be consciously put in check. Always move off of strategy and NOT emotion. Emotion will only sway your judgement and lead you astray. As long as the group/family/team/organization is successful, your part is important even if it flies under the radar. Usually, that's what actually holds down the fort.

Shout-out to NAS for these thought-provoking bars. See how a poetic line can ignite a discussion? Now you know why I rock with him heavily.

PS: DON'T BE FREDO..........he eventually got murdered for his betrayal

Thanks for reading y'all..............Peace ✌✌