Their debut album One For All is one of the more popular and acclaimed alternative hip hop albums of the 1990s, known for socially conscious and politically charged content inspired by the teachings of the Nation of Gods and Earths.
1989-1992
Brand Nubian formed in 1986 after Grand Puba's original group, Masters of Ceremony, split up. Its first single, "Brand Nubian," was released in 1986. Signed to Elektra Records by A&R man Dante Ross, its debut album, One For All, was released in 1990. Generally acclaimed, the album drew fire for militant Five-Percenter rhetoric on tracks such as "Drop the Bomb" and "Wake Up." The controversy helped sales, though the album was still not a great commercial success. To date, the album has sold 350,000 units. A version of the Fab Five Freddy-directed video for the single "Wake Up," featuring a Black man in white-face makeup, was also banned from MTV. On MTV and from official WEA sources, this image was replaced by a Baptist preacher. The singles "Slow Down," "All for One," and "Wake Up" all became hits on Billboard’s Hot Rap Tracks chart in 1991.
Shortly after its debut release, Sadat X and Lord Jamar began having problems with Grand Puba, which caused him to leave the group, along with DJ Alamo, to pursue a solo career. Lord Jamar and Sadat X enlisted DJ Sincere to join the group in 1992. The same year, Puba released his solo debut, Reel to Reel, which featured the hit single "360° (What Goes Around)".
Later in 1992, the Puba-less Brand Nubian released a hit single of its own, "Punks Jump up to Get Beat Down". The track was met with controversy over alleged homophobic content, referencing the Sadat X line "I can freak, fly, flow, fuck up a faggot/I don't understand their ways, I ain't down with gays." Despite the controversy, the single charted on the Billboard Hot 100 at number 77. Later versions omitted the line, including the version on the greatest hits compilation The Very Best of Brand Nubian.
1992-1996
In late 1992, the crew released its second album, In God We Trust. "Punks Jump Up to Get Beat Down" was included on this release, as well as the number-92 Hot-100 single, "Love Me or Leave Me Alone." The effort sold moderately well, fueled by the crew's continuing controversy. Also in 1993, the group contributed a track for the Menace II Society soundtrack, titled "Lick Dem..........."
The group’s next release, Everything is Everything, was issued in November 1994. The controversy kept growing, with further accusations of the group’s music being analogous to hate speech. The album received very mixed reviews and mediocre sales, despite the top-40 Hot Rap Tracks singles "Word is Bond" and "Hold On (feat. Starr)." In 1995, the group broke up, left Elektra, and launched solo careers in music and television. That year, Puba released his second solo effort, 2000, featuring another Billboard Hot 100 single, "I Like It (I Wanna Be Where You Are)." Sadat X released his first solo effort, titled Wild Cowboys (Loud/RCA/BMG Records), in 1996.
1997-2000
The original members reunited in 1997, contributing a song to the Soul In The Hole soundtrack, titled "A Child is Born". Another song, "Keep It Bubblin'," appeared on the 1997 Money Talks soundtrack. In 1998, the four original members returned with the album Foundation on a new label, Arista/BMG Records. The album received wide acclaim and featured contributions from a larger group of producers, including DJ Premier, Buckwild, Lord Finesse, and Diamond D. The lead single "Don't Let it Go to Your Head" became, at number 54, the group's highest-charting single on the Hot 100. In 2000, the crew once again teamed up with Buckwild of D.I.T.C. and released the underground single "Rockin' It," before the members continued their individual pursuits. Sadat X released a solo EP in 2000, The State of New York vs. Derek Murphy, on Loud/Relativity Records.
2001-present
Puba released his third solo effort, Understand This, in 2001, which received little attention despite featuring his fellow Brand Nubian members. The original members reunited once again in 2004 for the release of its fifth album, Fire in the Hole, their first release on an independent label, Babygrande Records. The album received mixed reviews and sold below expectations. Sadat X released another solo effort in 2005, titled Experience and Education, receiving mostly positive reviews. Jamar also furthered his acting career, recently appearing on an episode of The Sopranos, as well as episodes of Oz, Third Watch, and Law & Order. Lord Jamar released his first solo album, The 5% Album, June 27, 2006, on Babygrande Records. Sadat X's third full length album, titled Black October, was released October 2006. In 2007 the group released an album titled Time's Runnin' Out.
A Child Is Born
Brand Nubian Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
A child is born with no state of mind
Blind to the ways of mankind
God is smiling on you but He's frowning too
Because only God knows what you'll go through, uhh
A child is born with no state of mind
Blind to the ways of mankind
God is smiling on you but He's frowning too
(Sadat X)
He grew up in an instant, the fourth of seven children
The oldest male on the block was half and half
Brown stones to neck bones, crack jonez to tones
Where young girls spread out and drop seeds like they're farmers
They're old as their momma's, the same age as their aunt
and the neighbourhood drunk men
and that lady with the dreaded disease is like hard to please
And the house of ill fate with the metal gate
Keep the thin people cracked out like munchkin monks
The ole man with the fruit stand is on his man
His hand, his ole heart just can't stand
the CPR as they load him in the back of a car
I'm on a world tour to help free the poor
>From the local drug cats to kids in front of the store
Number runners, gangbangers and the big money spenders
Reality check rings as we descend from the king
(Grand Puba)
Now a child is born with no state of mind
Blind to the ways of mankind
God is smiling on you but He's frowning too
Because only God knows what you'll go through
A child is born with no state of mind
Blind to the ways of mankind
God is smiling on you but He's frowning too
Because only God knows....
(Lord Jamar)
The home's filled with horror in my horoscope
Tomorrow I could be broke, this ain't a joke
I'm twenty dollars away from bein dead ass
I'm bout to spend half on a bag to get my head blast
Last week I lost to justice cypher born
and spawned a riff with my wiz
now she dead with my kids
I live by the subway, niggas push drugs in my hallway
All day everyday tryin to get the pay
And I be tryin ta find a better way
You see, when you're poor then you're forced to adore to raw play
Survival be a forte, lookin forward to-a robble up your food stamps
Projects' like boot camps
wit generals cookin chemical warfare
Ki's to a mayor, I ain't seen ya ass in four years
The law bears down on anybody that's brown
My complexion puts me in the direction of the section 8
Rejection seems to be my fate
As a kid, don't wanna ship my momma, always said I had to wait
And it's been drama up to date
Enough to traumatise people's lives and the eyes they try to fixate
(Sadat X)
A child is born with no state of mind
Blind to the ways of mankind
God is smiling on you but He's frowning too
Because only God knows what you'll go through
A child is born with no state of mind
Blind to the ways of mankind
God is smiling on you but He's frowning too
Because...
(Grand Puba)
Born into existance with some resistance
A struggle comin out my ol' earth's womb
It was little past noon, three months before June
I had a feelin I was headed toward the land of doom
I came out and the doctor got ready to smack
I grabbed the 'bilical cord and tried to pull myself back
but it was too late for that cos in fact
I'll slit the sack so I gotta maintain where I'm at
Now I'm here breathin this diff'rent kind of air
Poverty bound, headed for the welfare
Drug-infested, rat-infested, people drownin in sorrow at neighbourhood bars
Roaches bigger than my hot wheel cars
Dope fiends with swollen arms lookin like rotten wood
turn to crack monsters up and down the neighbourhood
Liquor store business soar as the crowd pour
or thru the corridors, echoin off the project walls
That's why the Gods say
(Lord Jamar)
A child is born with no state of mind
Blind to the ways of mankind
God is smiling on you but He's frowning too
Because only God knows what you'll go through, uhh
A child is born with no state of mind
Blind to the ways of mankind
God is smiling on you but He's frowning too
Because only God knows what you'll go through, uhh
The lyrics "A Child is Born" by Brand Nubian revolves around the struggles faced by people living in poverty, particularly in the projects. The song opens with Lord Jamar interpolating the words from Grandmaster Flash's song "The Message" by stating that a child is born with a clean slate and no preconceived notions that can be changed. However, God is both happy and sad as he has no idea the difficulties the child will face. The verse by Sadat X focuses on his own experience growing up in poverty, being one of seven children, among many others in his community, struggling for survival amidst the darkness brought by drug addiction, poverty, disease, and violence.
In Grand Puba's verse, he talks about his start into life with resistance, feeling like he was headed towards the land of doom. He reflects on the terrible circumstances of his surroundings, such as being born into an impoverished project where crime, poverty, drugs, and disease were rampant, even describing the rats and roaches that infest the area. Despite the bleak circumstances, the song encourages listeners to persevere and to take part in creating a better world for the next generation.
Overall, the lyrics of "A Child is Born" discuss the harsh realities of life in poverty-stricken communities, discussing issues like crime, drugs, and disease. Additionally, the song highlights the resilience and perseverance innate in people and encourages listeners to keep hope and strive for a better future despite their circumstances.
Line by Line Meaning
A child is born with no state of mind
A newborn has no preconceived notions or beliefs
Blind to the ways of mankind
A child is unaware of society's workings and injustices
God is smiling on you but He's frowning too
God is happy for your birth but knows there will be struggles
Because only God knows what you'll go through, uhh
Only God has knowledge of the future and the challenges one will face
He grew up in an instant, the fourth of seven children
The child had to mature quickly due to their large family
The oldest male on the block was half and half
The child had a mixed racial identity
Brown stones to neck bones, crack jonez to tones
The child grew up in a neighborhood affected by poverty and drugs
Where young girls spread out and drop seeds like they're farmers
Teenage girls in the neighborhood were having children
The neighbourhood drunk men and that lady with the dreaded disease
The neighborhood had its share of alcoholics and those suffering from illnesses
And the house of ill fate with the metal gate
There was a dangerous house in the neighborhood with a metal fence
Keep the thin people cracked out like munchkin monks
The drugs in the neighborhood were highly addictive and dangerous
The ole man with the fruit stand is on his man
The man with the fruit stand is being targeted by criminals
I'm on a world tour to help free the poor
The singer is working to alleviate poverty worldwide
Number runners, gangbangers and the big money spenders
The neighborhood had people involved in illegal activities
Reality check rings as we descend from the king
The singer realizes the truth about the world's inequalities as they return home
Now a child is born with no state of mind
The cycle of birth and naivete begins anew
The home's filled with horror in my horoscope
The artist's future looks bleak
Tomorrow I could be broke, this ain't a joke
The singer is constantly worried about financial troubles
I'm twenty dollars away from bein dead ass
The singer is only a small amount away from being financially ruined
The law bears down on anybody that's brown
The artist faces discrimination because of their skin color
The complexion puts me in the direction of the section 8
The artist is forced to live in government housing due to poverty
Rejection seems to be my fate
The artist has faced many setbacks in life due to their circumstances
As a kid, don't wanna ship my momma, always said I had to wait
The singer had to delay their dreams due to familial responsibilities
Born into existance with some resistance
Life begins with struggles and obstacles
A struggle comin out my ol' earth's womb
The singer faced difficulties during their birth
Dope fiends with swollen arms lookin like rotten wood
Drug users in the neighborhood are physically deteriorating
That's why the Gods say
This is why the divine beings warn us of the difficulties of life
Contributed by Alexander E. Suggest a correction in the comments below.