As a member of Company Flow, he honed his production skills alongside DJ Mr. Len and Bigg Jus. His unique style helped Company Flow gain critical, then popular success, culminating in 1997 with Funcrusher Plus. Eventual differences between the group & label Rawkus, lead to El-P & Len leaving the label in 2000.
El-P then started his own record label, Definitive Jux. Of the many albums he has helped produce (most on Definitive Jux), the most influential and successful has been Cannibal Ox's album, The Cold Vein (2001). In 2002 he released his debut album, Fantastic Damage, which received critical acclaim. His follow-up, I'll Sleep When You're Dead, hit stores in March of 2007. It featured a wide range of artists, including The Mars Volta, Trent Reznor of Nine Inch Nails, and Cat Power. El-P has also contributed productions and guest raps to albums by DJ Krush, Aesop Rock, Murs, Cage, Mr. Lif, Prefuse 73, Del the Funky Homosapien, Mike Ladd, The High and Mighty, Aceyalone, and Alec Empire on the first Handsome Boy Modeling School album.
Cannibal Ox member Vordul Mega can be heard on "Linda Tripp", El-P's rebuttal to Sole's "Dear Elpee". He was also selected to work on Rage Against the Machine frontman Zach de la Rocha's solo album.
In 2012, El-P released his 3rd solo album, Cancer 4 Cure, on Fat Possum Records. The album was released to general acclaim, aggregating a score of 84 out of 100 on Metacritic.
In 2013, Meline formed rap duo Run the Jewels, with Michael Render (aka Killer Mike).
Sites: Discogs, Wikipedia and SoundCloud.
Intro
El-P Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
뭐, 이미 간판 보고 들어왔겠지만
여긴 하드보일드 카페라고 해요
난 여기 유일한 종업원 씬디구요
여기 마스터나 단골들은 그냥
"씬"이라고 부르기도 하죠
음
사실 난
죽었어요
아니, 당신 시점에선 이제 곧 죽을 예정이겠네?
아마 한 세곡 정도 뒤에?
그러니까 지금 당신은
이미 죽었거나 곧 죽을 예정인
씬의 목소리를 듣고 있는 거죠
이 카페가 어떤 곳이고
여기서 만난 사람들 사연이 어떻고 하는
뭐, 그런 뻔한 얘기가 이제부터 시작되겠죠
뭐, 당연한 거지만
나한텐 별로 즐거운 얘기는 아니에요
근데 뭐
그렇다고 억울하거나 그렇지도 않아요
꾸역꾸역 살아서 이 꼴, 저 꼴 다 보느니
암튼, 당신들한테는 재밌는 얘기가 될 거에요
자 그럼, 즐거운 시간 되길 바래요
난 이만
The lyrics to El-P's song "Intro" invite the listener to a "hard-boiled café" where the singer is the only employee, identified as "Scene D." The singer explains that they are actually dead, and that the listener is hearing the voice of someone who has either died or will soon die. The café is introduced as a place where the singer meets people and hears their stories, though they admit that these usually aren't happy stories. Despite this, the singer seems to feel neither regret nor bitterness about their death or their experience of life, resigned to their fate but still offering the listener some measure of enjoyment.
The song's lyrics reflect El-P's interest in dystopian and post-apocalyptic themes, as well as his use of unconventional storytelling and wordplay in his lyrics. The concept of a café where the only employee is a dead person is both surreal and haunting, a fitting symbol for the kind of loneliness and isolation often present in El-P's music. The opening line, "안녕? 어서 와요" is a greeting in Korean that translates to "hello, welcome." This line sets the tone for the song's eerie and enigmatic mood.
Line by Line Meaning
안녕? 어서 와요
Welcome, hello there
뭐, 이미 간판 보고 들어왔겠지만
I'm sure you've already seen the sign and come in
여긴 하드보일드 카페라고 해요
This place is called Hardboiled Cafe
난 여기 유일한 종업원 씬디구요
I'm the only employee here, my name is Cindie
여기 마스터나 단골들은 그냥 '씬'이라고 부르기도 하죠
The regulars and the boss here sometimes simply call me 'Scene'
음 사실 난 죽었어요
Actually, I'm dead
아니, 당신 시점에선 이제 곧 죽을 예정이겠네? 아마 한 세곡 정도 뒤에? 그러니까 지금 당신은 이미 죽었거나 곧 죽을 예정인 씬의 목소리를 듣고 있는 거죠
Well, from your perspective, I'm probably about to die soon. Maybe after one or two more songs? So, right now, you're hearing the voice of someone who is either already dead or about to die – me, Scene.
이 카페가 어떤 곳이고 여기서 만난 사람들 사연이 어떻고 하는 뭐, 그런 뻔한 얘기가 이제부터 시작되겠죠
From here on, we'll be starting with the dull stories about this cafe and the people I've met here like what kind of place it is and what kind of stories they have to tell.
뭐, 당연한 거지만 나한텐 별로 즐거운 얘기는 아니에요 근데 뭐 그렇다고 억울하거나 그렇지도 않아요 꾸역꾸역 살아서 이 꼴, 저 꼴 다 보느니
Well, it's nothing exciting to me, but it's not unfair or anything like that. I've struggled through life, seen it all, so it doesn't matter much either way.
암튼, 당신들한테는 재밌는 얘기가 될 거에요 자 그럼, 즐거운 시간 되길 바래요 난 이만
Anyway, I hope it'll be interesting to you guys. So, have fun, and I'll see you later.
Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group, Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC, Songtrust Ave, Peermusic Publishing
Written by: Jin Pil Kang, Byeoung Do Lee, Goo Seon Jeong, Jae Young Song, Gap Yol Youn, Sang Kwon Jeong
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind