There are some things about the lyrics to this song that I still don't fully grasp.



Don't worry about my name, it's 2 long 2 remember
I could tell u now but we'd be here 'till next September

Ok, so the name is a symbol and the story behind
it is long and complicated. But why would it take until
next SEPTEMBER and not NOVEMBER or DECEMBER or
even OCTOBER since they all rhyme with REMEMBER??

Leads me to believe that next september has some
kind of meaning to it.



Three four, three four, ninety nine
She's the new hero 'cause she's so divine
Unaffected by the system she'd rather die
Than write a rap 4 some big booty heifer getting by

Obviously a reference to Poet 99

Aspire 2 be higher I admire so I fire

fire up a blunt, or fire off some staff or musicians?

'Cause it's flyer 2 be hungry than phat
Take it from this sista y'all take it from that
It's flyer 2 be hungry than phat
The ride up front is better when u've been in the back
That's a fact

Struggle is better than just getting it for free, right?
or is this about anal lovin'?




Forty, forty five
Snake's alive
Say one thing, do another, it's time
We chill on that, nah I don't need a gat
I'd rather see yourself checking ass up 2 bat 4 another swing
Anybody can sing

WHAT?

The first lines are reference to WWII, but what about the rest?


There's more 2 genius than the word my sister anything I would bring
Or would u rather dine alone?
If u change your mind u can reach me on your video phone
It's a dime as in dollars and that's my 2 bloody cents
This ain't about this that what where or how
This is about the freaks doing everything they wanna do

Sixty seven, sixty seven
Freaks dance like they in heaven
DJ don't stop the music
DJ don't stop the music
Fill us with the dope track, lick us, twist us, roll us in your mouth

1967-The Twist?

Light us up and take a hit
Light us up and take a hit
Suck us till we're dry
And when we're looking like a roach hit the lights

a reference to drug use in the 60's?

SEPTEMBER :
Well Prince had once posted on the old LOVE4OneAnother propaganda site that the original end of the year was September and the months of October, November and December were not included in the calanders used during Jesus's time. They where simply cold dead months. Romans later filled in those months with names corresponding to what Prince referred to as "fake" gods.
So, in Prince's eyes (and in keeping with what is historical accuracy) the Christ was born sometime in September.

Of course, I'm not sure if Prince has since reveresed his view on this, as one of the last spritual songs was "last december".

Of course in referece to "NOW", I'm assuming that he chose September becuase it rymed with remember.

IT'S FLYER TO BE HUNGRY THAN PHAT:
is saying "It's flyer to be HUMBLE than PHAT". Meaning dignaty is always better than flashiness.

Ofcourse, you're comment about Prince eluding to "back door loving" amuzes me. I've often thought that Prince was trying to "out" himself in many of his lyrics. It's pervasive in his earlier work, and to some extent not totally toned down in his new work.
I think prince very much enjoys a good penis here or there but is very closeted about it.

Overall though, I realize that his extreme and uncontrollable obsession with vaginas is much more prevelent in his work.

For example in "NOW", he says light us up and take a hit. What he's really saying is that "we" are just big vaginas, and you should just break out the lighter and smoke some big smoking vaginas.

..
[This message was edited Fri Aug 13 5:53:35 2004 by AsianBomb777]

"Anal-yze".

IstenSzek said:

I've always heard it like this:

Aspire 2 be higher I admire so I fire
'Cause it's flyer 2 be hungry than phat

... taking the meaning to be that he'd actually fire someone because he thinks they could benefit from going hungry. And that always sounded rather ruthless to me, but he has often stated in interviews how he likes people who come to him "looking hungry" - apparently he takes it as a sign that they are so hungry, they're eager to do anything - even submitting themselves to his control. The opposite situation - them being phat (fat/overweight/not hungry) - being that they'd feel equal and want a say. So Prince fires them because he wants to be the one in control.

IstenSzek said:

You wish.

I take it, it's about appreciation. Like, if you've lived in a borderhouse for five years, having to share a bath and a kitchen with other people, I can assure you that getting your own apartment with your own bath and your own kitchen is ORGASM and you appreciate having your own place so much more for the rest of your life.

I assume, Prince starting out poor, he's just saying that his ride to the top is one that he appreciates more because he remembers what it was like being poor.
[This message was edited Fri Aug 13 6:32:46 2004 by scififilmnerd]

AsianBomb777 said:

Im pretty sure he says "hungry". That's also what it says in the lyrics printed in the CD cover.

And I think it means "It's better to be hungry than fat" - see my previous post.
[This message was edited Fri Aug 13 6:35:23 2004 by scififilmnerd]

IstenSzek said:

Naah, I don't think this part of the lyric has any meaning beyond a request for the DJ to get the "us" on the dance floor high on music and keep throwing hits at them until they've danced themselves dry of energy in the disco lights, after which the house lights can be turned back on.

see below
[This message was edited Fri Aug 13 7:06:06 2004 by skywalker]

skywalker said:

[This message was edited Fri Aug 13 7:07:09 2004 by skywalker]

I don't think there's any special meaning to September, he probably just picked a month that rhymed with remember. If he'd put November or December, you'd still be saying you think there's a meaning to it - in the end, he had to pick one.



He could mean he's metaphorically lighting a fire under people to force them to raise their performance. Or he could mean he feels he has to fire members of his band to make room for other musicians he admires so that he keeps himself motivated. Which we all know is what he actually does.



It's better to be inspired and motivated than rest on your laurels. The word 'phat' meaning 'fat, bloated' but also phat as in the street slang for thinking you're the coolest.



You appreciate things more when you've had to struggle from a lowly position. In my mind I have the image of kids forced to sit outside on the trailer of a truck rather than the best seats in the front cabin.



Snake's alive is a bingo call, though it actually refers to 55!

Weirdly, a gat has too meanings. One is a gansters pistol. So Prince could be saying he doesn't need to threaten us with a gun to get his point across. The other is a Generalized Algebraic Translator - so he could be saying he doesn't need a translator to get his point across. It's awfully clever if he knew both meanings.



Prince makes the analogy of a his music having the euphoric feeling of dope. A two-fold meaning for roach - as in the butt of a dope cigarette, but also as in 'cockroach', as in when they come out at night in your kitchen and you turn on the light and surprise them. So it can also be read as an attack on his record company, they are using him until there's nothing more they can get out of him - then they switch on the lights like you do at the end of a party or concert, meaning the relationship is over that sudden and the band is left looking foolish.

Oh, and most of the numbers are not years, he's just counting numbers, 1, 2...3, 4...4, 0, 4, 5... 6, 7 okay the zero in 40 is out of place, but apart from that...

AsianBomb777 said:

Nope, I'd get your ears syringed if I were you!
Check out the lyrics in the liner notes - "flyer to be hungry than phat", which is actually a pretty good pun for our little fella.
[This message was edited Fri Aug 13 9:00:57 2004 by gsh]

i think all the questions were answered, except that I would add that "the ride up front" part seems like a direct reference to Rosa Parks, and how African Americans used to have to sit in the back of the bus (though Metalorange hinted at that).

I love these "anyalyze lyrics" threads. We need an entire forum dedicated to 'em.

skywalker said:

I have to side with IstenSzek on this one. The "she" is referring to is Poet 99 who gave some poetry-readings at the Park around that time.