Aim: How do we express ourselves in hip hop songs?
Summary: Students explore lyrics and messages as they learn ways to create their own hip hop songs.
Materials: Musical Explorers online audio
Standards: GA: ESGMK-2.CR.1, ESGMK-2.CR.2, ESGMK-2.PR.1, ESGMK-2.RE.1, ESGMK-2.RE.2, ESGMK-2.CN.1,ESGMK-2.CN.2 SC: GM.CR.NL-AH.1, GM.CR.NL-AH.2, GM.PR.NL-AH.3, GM.RE.NL-AH.6, GM.RE.NL-AH.7, GM.CN.NL-AH.8, GM.CN.NL-AH.9
Vocabulary: cypher, flow, freestyle, MC, message, producer
Learn About Songwriting in Hip Hop
Not only is AJ a performer, he is also a composer. In this song the producer, Charles Singleton (DJ Carlito Baby), helped AJ create the sound of the beats and pattern of the song in the recording studio. They used music technology like a sound board and loops to create the unique sounds in the original song “Look Good, Feel Good.”
There are many places hip hop artists find inspiration: current events, personal feelings, ideas from other traditions or music, and samples (pieces of other songs), to name a few. AJ’s inspiration for “Look Good, Feel Good” arose from a connection he felt with a particular instrument–the snare drums–which provided him with a guide for the rest of the song. To hear more about AJ’s songwriting process, watch his video below.
Where Did Hip Hop Get Its Name?
There are many different explanations for how hip hop got its name. Merriam-Webster dictionary says:
- According to one explanation, the term pairs the hip that means “trendy” or “fashionable” with the leaping movement hop.
- According to another, a member of the pioneering rap group Grandmaster Flash and the Furious Five was teasing a friend who was going into the army, repeating the hip/hop/hip/hop his friend would soon be marching to and then vocally playing off that. In a way, this later was incorporated into other songs and eventually gave the music its name.
- What do you think is ‘hip’ and fashionable right now?
- Make a list to use for freestyle activity in the creative extension.
Sing “Look Good, Feel Good”
- Listen to “Look Good, Feel Good” Track 4.3.
Track 4.3 – “Look Good, Feel Good” Song
- Sing along to the hook of “Look Good, Feel Good” using Track 4.4.
- Like many hip hop songs, the lyrics of “Look Good, Feel Good” have a message—something that the musicians want you to learn or think deeply about.
- This is an original hip-hop song that AJ wrote. What do you think the message of the song is?
Track 4.4 – “Look Good, Feel Good” Hook
- Read aloud lyrics from the song, and discuss how those lyrics communicate AJ’s message. Listen again to “Look Good, Feel Good,” Track 4.3.
“Look Good, Feel Good”
Hook
I live good, I eat good
I laugh good, I dress good
I smell good, I feel good
I look good, I look good
I’m good, I’m good, I’m good
(x2)
Hey Good mornin’, speak what’s important
Soul of the city, I can hear the “oh lord” in
Watch them, when they hear them drums
Thrill ladies on the porch know you want one
Lotta good times, place amazin’
Dressed up clean, ain’t no occasion
Home is the vibe, way you feel that pride
A lot of good lookin people, “you ain’t never lied”
Good, we got to be, don’t lie to me
Southern philosophy flow go through me
I’m posing, blessed, chosen, special
Look up in the mirror, let the stress go (woo)
New cologne smell so good
Outfit killin’, why, I look good?
Shoot, I know my worth, know what comes first
Put my name all over the earth now (hey)
(Hook x2)
Feel good, yeah it’s alright…
When we were young, had to be home before street lights
On a hot summer night it’s the feel of the people
So good don’t let the memories leave you
Low country boil, oyster roastin’
Chill, don’t wanna hear commotion (no)
Put the music on, it’s a time, what’s up now?
Kids gather round, tryin’ to show what they got now
Crack a smile at night feelin’ right
Hit the river, lady on my arm, still hold on
Cobblestones, lot of history there, feel good really nothing compares
(Nah nah nah) feel the drum, come get some
Parade in the street, good time, we ain’t never done
Just a feel that’s deep in the bones look good
That’s how I was born, that’s how I was born
(Hook x2)
I feel good!
(x4)
Explore MCing in “Look Good, Feel Good”
- In the song “Look Good, Feel Good,” the beat is made from samples of different instruments: snare drum, kickdrum, organ, and trumpet. The hook of the song fits together with the rhythmic layers that the instruments are creating. Flow is the way an MC’s lyrics fit with the beat underneath.
- How do the lyrics help to tell John Henry’s story?
- Sometimes a music producer helps create the songs’ sounds and structure. MCs often encourage audiences to move to the music with a call and response chant.
- Using the instrumentals track, Track 4.5, demonstrate the role of the MC using the example below.
Track 4.5 – “Look Good, Feel Good” Instrumental
- Ask for student volunteers to take on the role of MC. Once they have tried the example above, ask them to come up with their own personal call and response. Try prompts related to different themes (e.g., names, food, sports).
- Explore MCing with teaching artist Shanna below.
Learn About AJ’s MC Name: Port SAVant
AJ chose Port SAVant as his MC name because a savant is a very talented, distinguished person in a particular field. In this case, AJ is a hip hop “SAVant.” The first three letters (SAV) are capitalized as a tribute to his hometown Savannah, Georgia which is a port city filled with a rich African American history. As a creative “port,” connecting people to culture is a primary focus for AJ’s hip hop music. AJ also paints pictures of hope with good times and truth; not only in Savannah but for port cities and people around the world.
Perform a Collective Freestyle
- In hip hop, the meaning of the term freestyle has evolved over time. Originally, a freestyle was a verse that was literally “free of style”—it had no particular structure but was just an opportunity to show off one’s lyrical skill. Today, it is most often defined as an improvisational verse performed on the spot by an artist. Hip hop artists can often refer to people and things in their immediate surroundings as they are creating their freestyle.
- Select a general topic that students can generate multiple ideas about (e.g., favorite foods), or refer back to the list of what is hip and fashionable from earlier in the lesson.
- You can either listen to the instrumentals track, Track 4.5, or have the class create a rhythm using body percussion.
Track 4.5 – “Look Good, Feel Good” Instrumental
- Have each student speak a word in rhythm, generating a “word wall” of the terms that students have created.
- With the unifying theme in mind, have students contribute to create a simple hook to go with the beat through group brainstorming.
- Have students create a short freestyle verse to be performed either in groups or individually. It does not need to have any particular form or even rhyme.
- Perform the new verses with the hook. Have students form a cypher, which is a collective circle that is commonly formed during a freestyle to promote community around the artist who is performing.
- For an added challenge, allow individual students to come up with verses on the spot, keeping the same beat. The hook that the class created can be performed as students switch off to perform their verse.
Creative Extension: Write Your Own Important Message Lyrics
As a poet and composer, AJ finds specific inspiration for his words everywhere; including his family, friends and his home city of Savannah. In “Look Good, Feel Good” he talks about the “thrill ladies” who are unique to Savannah as they sell ice treats on hot days and the regional foods “low country boils” and “oyster roasts.” As a class, discuss specific ideas that are unique to a student’s family, school, or city. Using SG 31, write a poem using these inspirational ideas.
- Where else in our daily lives can we find inspiration?
Literacy Link: The Roots of Rap
Written in lyrical rhythm by award-winning author and poet Carole Boston Weatherford, The Roots of Rap beautifully illustrates how hip hop is a language spoken the whole world ‘round.
Musical Word Wall
Add cypher, flow, freestyle, MC, message, and producer to the Musical Word Wall.
PDF Downloads
Audio Tracks
Track 4.5 – “Look Good, Feel Good” Instrumental
Track 4.4 – “Look Good, Feel Good” Hook
Track 4.3 – “Look Good, Feel Good” Song
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