Apollo began making his own music in 1996 using now-archaic Voyetra audio software, then upgraded to Cool Edit 2000 in becoming a self-described bedroom beat-maker for roughly the next eight years. After graduating from Michigan State University with a degree in business administration, he moved to the west side of Detroit and immersed himself in the local hip-hop community, forming the Black Day in July production crew with high school classmate and Wu-Tang affiliate Bronze Nazareth. When the pair branched off into individual work, Apollo relocated to the east side of the Motor City and continued to build before becoming disenchanted with music and stepping away from production for two years.
It was the mid-2000s, and the upstart producer saw no future for his work—work he had dedicated his life to—in an industry where radio was setting a formulaic pattern for mainstream music. But he eventually began to miss the creativity in his craft and began producing once again, releasing the instrumental albums Skilled Trade (2007) and Make Do (2009). Apollo was soon in high demand, collaborating with Detroiters Finale, MaGestiK LeGenD, Danny Brown, Paradime, and Kam Moye aka Supastition. He went on in 2009 to win the Detroit Red Bull Big Tune Championships and competed in the national finals. Apollo then signed as a producer with the Mello Music Group in December of 2009, having left Michigan in late 2007 to take a position as a property inspector in Cleveland, Ohio. A week after signing, he was laid off from his job.
“Beautiful,” was Apollo’s reaction, as he viewed the layoff as a blessing and prepared for what he terms his “one-year plan.” Starting things off will be The Reset, a series of reworked tracks in true remix tradition, with new music and arrangements for verses by Rapper Big Pooh of Little Brother, Black Milk, MED, Grap Luva, labelmates Kenn Starr, Oddisee, and Diamond District, along with a host of others.
Next up was Brown Study with Boog Brown which features Miz Korona, Invincible, Kam Moye, and Kenn Starr. When the long-awaited Gas Mask LP by The Left with DJ Soko and MC Journalist 103 took the stage in late October 2010 Apollo cemented his place as one of the games best new producers.
Then early in 2011 Apollo released his first Mello Music Group instrumental album, Clouds, and dominated best of lists at the end of the year. 2011 also saw the release of the album Daily Bread, with Rochester, New York MC Hassaan Mackey.
After taking just under a year off to create a new masterpiece, Apollo released his biggest album to date with the legendary O.C. of D.I.T.C. entitled Trophies. The internet again became abuzz with talk of album of the year. Never one to rest on his laurels, Apollo spent the next 7 months both campaigning for "Trophies" and putting together another album, Dice Game, with Motor City compatriot Guilty Simpson. The result of his intense immersion in his work was yet another year with two albums ("Dice Game" and "Trophies") ending up on people's Best of 2012 lists.
Apollo’s credo is simple: “Everything I make, I try to make it my favorite album of all time.”
The 11th Hour
Apollo Brown Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
One direction
Straight ahead
Just more and more
Straight ahead
One direction
No left, no right
Straight ahead
One direction
No left, no right
Just more and more
Heading for the turf
We got a steady flow
And the system
Was set to overload
One direction
Only way to go
So push it
Push, push, push, push
Ooh, ooh, we've got the love in sight
Ooh, ooh, straight for the love
Ooh, ooh, we've got the love in sight
Ooh, straight for the love
Straight ahead
One direction
Straight ahead
One direction
No left, no right
More and more
More and more
Heading for the turf
We got a steady flow
And the system, was set to overload
One direction
Only way to go
So push it
Push, push, push, push
Ooh, ooh, we've got the love in sight
Ooh, ooh, straight for the love
(Straight for the love)
Ooh, ooh, we've got the love in sight
Ooh, ooh, straight for the love
(Straight for the love)
Straight ahead
One direction
Straight ahead
Just more and more
Straight ahead
One direction
No left, no right
More and more
Straight ahead
One direction
No left, no right
Just more and more
The lyrics of Apollo Brown's "The 11th Hour" speak to a sense of determination in the face of a world that offers no choices. The repeated lyric, "Straight ahead, one direction, no left, no right, more and more," emphasizes the idea of a single path towards their goals with no room for variation. The subject of the song seems to be heading towards a destination, referred to as "the turf," and is doing so with a "steady flow" and a sense that the system is working against them. Despite these obstacles, they push forward with an unrelenting enthusiasm towards their objective. The repetition of "push it" at the end of the song further emphasizes this idea of pushing towards their goal no matter what stands in their way.
Line by Line Meaning
Straight ahead
Keep moving forward without stopping.
One direction
No alternative paths allowed, stay focused on the goal.
Straight ahead
Continue on a linear path towards the objective.
Just more and more
Keep striving for an increase in success or attainment.
No left, no right
There are no distractions, focus solely on the task at hand.
More and more
Continue to grow and develop without slowing down.
Heading for the turf
Moving towards a specific area or location with purpose.
We got a steady flow
Continuing at a consistent pace without any disruptions.
And the system
The overall structure or framework in place.
Was set to overload
Pushing the limits of what the system can handle.
Only way to go
No alternate routes or methods, only the chosen path remains.
So push it
Exert additional effort or force to accomplish the goal.
Ooh, ooh, we've got the love in sight
The end goal or desire is within reach and clear.
Ooh, ooh, straight for the love
Continuing on a direct path towards the desired outcome.
More and more
Continue to advance even further.
Just more and more
The goal is to keep succeeding without any interruptions.
Contributed by Amelia I. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
Darek Read
on Learn the Meaning
feeling apollo brown been writing to his beats for years some of my best i ever wrote