Ceschi Ramos is a rapper and singer from Connecticut who has been hopping g… Read Full Bio ↴Ceschi Ramos is a rapper and singer from Connecticut who has been hopping genres and spilling guts for the better part of two decades. He has been seen outside venues at 3am in Germany playing an acoustic guitar and singing to people that didn’t want the show to end. He has written poems to fans from behind bars whilst locked up on bogus marijuana charges. He has suffered a spiral fracture of the humerus while arm wrestling a marine in Hawaii. He has recorded with and toured alongside some of independent rap music’s most influential figures, including Sage Francis, Busdriver and Astronautalis. He has been in bands described as hardcore, crunk rap, lo-fi synth pop, Latin progressive and psych-jazz-rap. He has crafted abstracted and personal narratives mining the depths of depression and heights of hope. He has slept on countless floors when hotels weren’t in the touring budget and lost girlfriends and jobs all for the love of creating and performing.

Ceschi was born with four fingers on his right hand, which served as partial inspiration for the name of his DIY record label, Fake Four, Inc. Those who have worked with him describe Ceschi as one of the most artist-friendly labelheads out there, a rare breed who values art over profit almost to a fault. Since 2008, he has curated a roster of wildly original and critically praised talent and put out albums from the likes of Open Mike Eagle, Buck 65, Sister Crayon and Dark Time Sunshine in addition to his solo records The One Man Band Broke Up and Broken Bone Ballads.

An engaging, theatrical live performer, Ceschi Ramos has treated entire venues like a stage, viewing the middle of the audience or an empty barstool as good a place as any to perform a soul-baring folk song or tongue-twisting rap track. Ceschi once described himself in song as “a martyr at most… a failure at least” and said that, “In the eyes of history I’ll be no more than a leaf on a tree.” He knows what it is to suffer for his art and is aware that music exploring the ugliness and sorrow of the human condition will always exist on the fringes of a game dominated by disposable escapism and expensive publicists. Yet he still pours everything he has into his craft, and on any given night you can find him tracking vocals at his cousin’s New Haven studio, warmly greeting fans and friends at a dive bar merch booth or rapping double-time in Japan or Europe for audiences that often don’t speak his language, but are able to see the giant heart at the core of it all.

Elm City Ballads
Ceschi Lyrics

Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴

4am, driving through the streets of New Haven again
Baby faced crack corner kids working graveyard shifts
With the diner waitresses, everybody trying to break bread
I'm every lung that's breathing in this filthy city waste

I'm trick turning streetwalker Mary full of grace
Undocumented worker, wage slave, I'm needle pierced vein
I am black rose on grandmother's grave

We'll find a way, the old man said an AA

They told us faith in God will take the pain away
But God is nowhere to be found in this place
We're only half awake, waiting to be served
Slop and corn cake by inmates

Love me city till I'm gray
Elm City love me safe

Love me city till I'm gray
Love me till I am erased

Overall Meaning

In these lyrics from Ceschi's song "Elm City Ballads," the artist takes us on a late-night drive through the streets of New Haven, Connecticut. The first paragraph sets the scene with a vivid description of the city's working class at 4am. Ceschi references "baby faced crack corner kids" who work night shifts alongside diner waitresses, all striving to make a living. He emphasizes his connection to the city by proclaiming himself as "every lung that's breathing in this filthy city waste," suggesting a deep immersion in its struggles and realities.

The second paragraph delves into the lives of marginalized individuals within the city. Ceschi mentions a character named Mary, who is described as a "trick turning streetwalker...full of grace." This juxtaposition highlights the complexity and humanity in those circumstances. He also brings up an "undocumented worker, wage slave" and connects himself to the struggle through being a "needle pierced vein." Ceschi symbolically represents the rose on his grandmother's grave, tying together the themes of love, loss, and ancestry.

The third paragraph shifts focus to the search for solace and understanding. Ceschi recalls an old man's advice from an Alcoholics Anonymous (AA) meeting. The singer's comment about faith in God providing relief from pain is met with cynicism, as Ceschi asserts that God is absent from this place. The city's inhabitants are portrayed as "only half awake, waiting to be served" in a metaphorical sense. They are resigned to a life of bland sustenance, represented by "slop and corn cake served by inmates," hinting at the institutionalized nature of their existence.

In the final paragraph, Ceschi calls upon the city to "love" him until he is old and gray. The repeated lines, "Elm City love me safe, love me till I am erased," convey a longing for belonging, safety, and acceptance. Despite the hardships and challenges faced by both Ceschi and the city, there remains a glimmer of hope in this plea for love and understanding. It encapsulates the artist's desire for a sense of place and community within Elm City, while acknowledging the potential erasure that can come with time.

Line by Line Meaning

4am, driving through the streets of New Haven again
In the early hours of the morning, I find myself navigating through the roads of New Haven once more

Baby faced crack corner kids working graveyard shifts
Innocent-looking young individuals are forced to work night shifts in the corners, consumed by the influence of crack cocaine

With the diner waitresses, everybody trying to break bread
I am accompanied by the waitresses from the local diner, as everyone strives to share a meal together

I'm every lung that's breathing in this filthy city waste
I represent each and every person who inhales the polluted air of this grimy city

I'm trick turning streetwalker Mary full of grace
I embody Mary, a sex worker who skillfully maneuvers through the streets, yet still carries an air of elegance

Undocumented worker, wage slave, I'm needle pierced vein
I am an undocumented laborer trapped in a cycle of working for minimal wages, reminiscent of a vein pierced by a needle

I am black rose on grandmother's grave
I symbolize a black rose placed upon the resting place of a beloved grandmother

We'll find a way, the old man said an AA
According to the wisdom of an elderly individual from Alcoholics Anonymous, we will discover a path forward

They told us faith in God will take the pain away
We were told that placing trust in God would alleviate our suffering

But God is nowhere to be found in this place
However, it seems that God is absent in this particular location

We're only half awake, waiting to be served
We are merely partially conscious, biding our time for someone to assist us

Slop and corn cake by inmates
Prisoners provide us with an unappetizing meal consisting of slop and corn cake

Love me city till I'm gray
Embrace me, city, until I become old and gray

Elm City love me safe
Please, Elm City, provide me with a secure and loving environment

Love me city till I'm gray
Continue to love me, city, until I am no longer visible

Love me till I am erased
Hold affection for me until I cease to exist

Lyrics © O/B/O DistroKid
Written by: Julio Ramos

Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind

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