After releasing a pair of albums with the Freestyle Fellowship, To Whom it May Concern... and Innercity Griots, Acey signed to Capitol Records and released his highly acclaimed solo debut, All Balls Don't Bounce, in 1995. He returned three years later with his second album, A Book of Human Language, a collaboration with producer Mumbles.
Acey returned solo again in 2001 with his third solo album, Accepted Eclectic. In 2002, the Freestyle Fellowship returned after 9 years for the release of their third group album, Shockadoom. 2002 and 2003 saw two more solo releases, Hip Hop and the World We Live In and Love & Hate and another A-Team album ('Lab Down Under'). In 2006, Aceyalone released two more solo projects, first, Magnificent City, a collaboration with producer RJD2, followed by Grand Imperial. 2007 sees Acey releasing the first in his planned explorations of world musics, Lightining Stikes.
Widely recognized as one of the more lyrically gifted in the history of emceeing, Aceyalone embodies the sophisticated west coast style that is showcased in other indie artists such as Blackalicious and Del Tha Funkee Homosapien.
The Hold
Aceyalone Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Can't hold on.
Hook:
Hold on is what they say
But I say open up your hands and let it fly away
Until the day it comes back and it was meant to be
Take a look at the lovely gift the world has sent to me
The rougher the storm gets the more they complain
They don't aim
They shoot sporadaically
Panicky and so dramatically
He ran frantically
Summarized by the look in his eyes
He couldn't hold on after one too many tries
Verse 1:
He held on tight
He put his arm around it and he squeezed with all his might
Don't fight
You should let it go
And sooner than you think it will be right back at your door
Open it up if your open up to learn
Got your head between your legs hoping it returns
They're not concerned
They're so continuous
No matter what my opinion is it's all strenuous
Summarized by the look in his eyes
He couldn't hold on after one too many tries
She held on tighter
She put her arms around it because she knew it would excite her
Don't fight her
You should let it go
And sooner than you think it will be back at your door
Open it up if you're open up to learn
Got your head between your legs hoping it returns
They're not concerned they're so continuous
No matter what my opinion is it's all strenuous
Summarize because she was not wise
She couldn't hold on after one too many tries
Hook
Verse 2:
They hold on tight
They put their arms around it and they squeezed with all their might
Don't fight
You should let it go
And sooner than you think it will be right back at your door
Open it up if you're open up to learn
Got your head between your legs hoping it returns
They're not concerned they're so continuous
No matter what my opinion is it's all strenuous
Summarized by the look in their eyes
They couldn't hold on after one too many tries
Aceyalone's "The Hold" is a song about the danger of holding onto things too tightly. The song critiques the idea of holding on as a solution to problems, instead suggesting that one should let things go and let them return if they were meant to be. The song argues that holding on is often not productive and can lead to more problems than it solves. The lyrics describe people who hold on too tightly to things, whether it be an idea, a relationship, or something else, and ultimately can't handle the pressure and let go.
The first verse tells the story of a man who is holding onto something too tightly and can't let go, even though it's causing him distress. Aceyalone suggests that he should let go and wait for it to come back if it's meant to be. The second verse tells a similar story about a woman who is also holding on too tightly, leading to her downfall. In both cases, the lyrics suggest that holding on too tightly is not the answer and can ultimately lead to more problems than it solves.
Line by Line Meaning
Can't hold on.
The singer cannot hold on to something any longer.
Hold on is what they say
Others often advise to hold on to things.
But I say open up your hands and let it fly away
The singer suggests letting go of things and allowing them to come back if they're meant to be.
Until the day it comes back and it was meant to be
Things will return if they're meant to be.
Take a look at the lovely gift the world has sent to me
The artist has received a beautiful gift from life.
Don't suffer you got to maintain
One must endure difficult times and persist in order to succeed.
The rougher the storm gets the more they complain
People tend to complain more when things get tougher.
They don't aim
People are not focused.
They shoot sporadically
People act randomly and without direction.
Panicky and so dramatically
People panic and make things seem worse than they are.
He ran frantically
Someone ran away in desperation.
Summarized by the look in his eyes
The desperation in his eyes was evident.
He couldn't hold on after one too many tries
He let go of something after attempting to keep it for too long.
He held on tight
He clung to something tightly.
He put his arm around it and he squeezed with all his might
He embraced something tightly and tried to hold onto it.
Don't fight
One should not resist letting go of something.
You should let it go
One should release what they're holding onto.
And sooner than you think it will be right back at your door
Things will come back if they're meant to be.
Open it up if your open up to learn
Opening up to new experiences and learning opportunities is important.
Got your head between your legs hoping it returns
The artist feels hopeless and desperate for something to return.
They're not concerned
Others are not worried about the artist's struggles.
They're so continuous
Others remain consistent in their own lives despite what the artist may be going through.
No matter what my opinion is it's all strenuous
The singer recognizes that people's struggles are difficult no matter what anyone else thinks.
She held on tighter
She clung even tighter to something.
She put her arms around it because she knew it would excite her
She was excited about what she was holding onto and refused to let go.
Don't fight her
One should not resist letting go of what she's holding onto.
Summarize because she was not wise
Her unwillingness to let go was foolish.
They hold on tight
Others cling tightly to things they don't want to lose.
They put their arms around it and they squeezed with all their might
They are desperate to keep something they value and cling tightly to it.
Summarized by the look in their eyes
Their desperation is evident through their facial expressions.
They couldn't hold on after one too many tries
Eventually, they were unable to keep something they were holding onto for too long.
Hook
Repeats chorus.
Lyrics © O/B/O APRA/AMCOS
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
Věrka Soukupová
on Impact
:::::Soundtrack of ME https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cODJMg8skB0&list=RDMM&index=6