Superstar Uplisters

[creede]

"Superstar" by Lupe Fiasco
Reviewed by: Josh Meares
Note: We focus on reviewing songs, and therefore cannot comment on the appropriateness of the album in its entirety. Please use your best judgment whenever purchasing or listening to music.


The Artist
Lupe Fiasco is a young rapper from the west side of Chicago. Fiasco was born Wasalu Muhammad Jaco to a strong Muslim family. He still holds to the faith of his youth, and many of his songs are colored by his beliefs. Fiasco proved that his counter-cultural morality could make it in mainstream music by winning his first Grammy for "Daydreamin' " (with Jill Scott) in 2008. This award followed nominations for three Grammys last year.

The Single
"The Cool" is FIasco's second album. It's a concept album; Fiasco tells the story of what people say it is to be cool. Fiasco reveals some of the moral failings of the rap culture by rapping about what happens when people believe that things like sex, money, cars, and violence are cool. "The Cool" features the hit song "Superstar," as well as several other solid tracks like "Dumb it Down", "Paris, Tokyo," and "The Coolest." Most of the songs on this album have lyrics with complex meanings and a positive moral message. However, Fiasco's music also contains explicit lyrics and adult themes.


The Song
Lupe Fiasco could be called the thinking man's rapper. His lyricism and rhyming ability are superb. His songs are stories, and they unfold with deeper meaning every time you listen to them. "Superstar" features Matthew Santos, and Santos' voice complements the sound of this track well. The song tells the story of Lupe's newfound wealth and popularity. Unlike most young stars, he seems to be deeply distrustful of these things and the baggage they bring with them.

Lyric: "A fresh, cool young Lu / Trying to cash his microphone check, 2, 1, 2 / Wanna believe my own hype, but it's too untrue"

In a lot of ways, life is a big popularity contest. Whether you are a rap star or a football star or a class clown, you're going to find yourself part of some kind of group. Those people are either going to be true friends or not. Fiasco is looking at his life and seeing all these new friends are treating him like something he's not. Fiasco has chosen not to accept the lie.

He shows a certain amount of humility in a section of the song where he raps about why he can't get into a club.

Lyric: "I'm too uncouth / Unschooled to the rules / And too gumshoe / Too much of a newcomer / And too uncool"

But even though he seems to keep a realistic perception of himself, Fiasco is not immune to the allure of fame.

Lyric: "Cuz even with all of that / Most of us don't want it [fame] to fade / We want it to braid / Meaning we want it to grow / Meaning we want it to stay"

I like the fact that Lupe Fiasco raps openly about the problems of popularity while still admitting that he wants to be famous. Can we be as honest with ourselves? Let's face it, we live in a culture where people think that being famous means you're better than others. No wonder so many people want to be famous.

But let's define fame for what it really is. Fame is having people who don't really know you (or care about you) tell people that they like you. Fame is when you have friends that are not really your friends. Fame, or popularity, is not what we are told to seek after as Christians. In fact, Jesus tells us to expect people to dislike us.

“If the world hates you, be aware that it hated me first. If you belonged to the world, the world would love you as its own. However, because you do not belong to the world, but I chose you out of the world, for this reason the world hates you." (John 15:18-20)

The truth is, if you are living a Christian life, you are probably not going to be popular. Christianity is too counter-cultural, too different for it to be popular. As Christians, we lead lives that imitate Christ, and Jesus Christ ended up dying on a cross.

Are you famous or popular? Do you want to be? Fiasco rejects the baggage that comes with fame, showing that he is a wise young man. But as Christians, we shouldn't just reject the baggage, we reject the pursuit of fame. Remember what Paul says about Christians when you consider who you are and what you want to be.

"Not many were wise by human standards, not many were powerful, not many were born to a privileged position. But God chose what the world thinks foolish to shame the wise, and God chose what the world thinks weak to shame the strong. God chose what is low and despised in the world, what is regarded as nothing, to set aside what is regarded as something," (1 Corinthians 1:26-28)

http://www.planetwisdom.com/music/reviews/lupefiasco_superstar.php

[Suppressed Sound Link]






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