Britain's Beastie Boy

See I reckon you're about an 8 or a 9,
Maybe even 9 and a half in four beers time.
That blue top shop top you've got on IS nice,
Bit too much fake tan though - but yeah you score high.

But there's just one little thing that's really really,
Really really annoying me about you you see,
Yeah yeah like i said you are really fit
But my gosh don't you just know it

-Mike Skinner (The Streets)

I can't figure it out. I have listened to The Streets album over and over in my car for about three weeks now. And I have no idea why. The beat is manufactured, I don't understand half of what he says, and the lyrics are really bad. In fact, they aren't lyrics, really. It's basically a story that is told over a beat. Sometimes I wonder if he even hears the beat.

So what is it? What makes me keep listening to a song about waiting at a club for a girl, or about this guy hitting on a girl, or another one about him complaining about his girl? It's not his lyrical diversity, that's for sure. Maybe it's some inner desire to understand the blue-collar rebellious youth of Birmingham, England. Maybe it's my perverse interested in seeing how far rap can travel from its original roots. Or maybe, being a white dude, I'm just displaying Wes Welker Syndrome (cheering for the only white guy in a situation where he is the minority [it never happens, so we try to celebrate our newfound underdog-ness]). You ever watch the track events at the Olympics, and see the single white guy standing at the starting blocks for the 100m finals? You just look down and shake your head, don't you. We appreciate your effort dude, but we all know what's gonna happen. 5th? Nobody blames you.

I digress.

So it took me three weeks of listening to this seemingly ill-communicating Birmingham 'lad' to realize that I liked about him. I liked his honesty.

I liked that he said exactly what he was thinking. I liked how he told his stories in HIS vernacular. And I liked how, in his own way of being so specific and pigeon-holed, he painted a clear vivid picture with most of his songs. Some are rubbish, don't get me wrong. But he said what he wanted to say, he said it in his own way, and he didn't let a little thing like, for example an overabundance of musical talent, get in his way.

If you want musical talent, listen to Outkast, the Roots, Mos Def, hell even Kanye. But Rap, like almost all music, acts as a venue of expression, and Mike Skinner expresses himself flawlessly, and it appears that a lot of people identify with that.

I'll leave you with a sample, and then two more that I like. I'll try to mix it up and be obscure, so don't expect 50 Cent.

I actually like how this music video is different from the original song lyrics that take place in club


Bad-ass BMX-ing mixed with Australian rap... Can it get any better?


And Mos Def, sans cue cards.