There has never been an anomaly in hip-hop quite like the southern trio CunninLynguists. Sampling genres from psych-rock to blues, New Romantic to polka, they have been musically compared to UGK and Atmosphere in the same breath. They have toured and shared stages with Kanye West and Aesop Rock to equal success. They have produced for Lil' Scrappy as well as KRS-One. They have crafted songs with international soul superstar Cee-Lo Green and politically charged indie-favorite Immortal Technique … on the same album. CunninLynguists have eschewed categories, boxes and labels for 10 years, 5 albums and 4 official mixtapes, all while having what XXL Magazine described as the "Most Hated Name In Rap".
The result? If you want labels...Southern boom-bap. Too white for BET, too black for MTV2. A preacher's son, a caucasian guy from rural Georgia and a convicted felon. But mainly … a self-made career, one of the most consistent catalogs of any current hip-hop act and one of the most loyal, worldwide fanbases in all of indie rap music.
Backed with gritty beats, quality rhymes and 808 thump, the 'Lynguists intend on recapturing the soul in southern hip-hop. With what Spin Magazine calls "Outkast's tragicomic poignancy", Deacon The Villain, Kno and Natti follow in the footsteps of artists like Goodie Mob, Ya'll So Stupid, Geto Boys and the aforementioned 'Kast in painting a picture meant to remind the world that politics, death, racism, relationships, religion and struggle are just as relevant to life below the Mason-Dixon as anywhere else.
Their critically acclaimed debut LP, Will Rap For Food, was released in October 2001. CunninLynguists were joined by Floridian emcee Mr. SOS for their 2nd LP, Southernunderground, which was independently released April 1, 2003 on Freshchest Records and QN5 Music and re-released in 2004. Guests included Masta Ace, Tonedeff and RJD2. Between Southernunderground and A Piece of Strange, they released two mixtapes titled Sloppy Seconds Vol. 1 and Sloppy Seconds Vol. 2. Their third LP, A Piece of Strange, was released in January of 2006 via LAU Records. Their fourth album, Dirty Acres, was released 2007. In 2009, they released two more mixtapes titled Strange Journey Volume One and Strange Journey Volume Two, featuring such artists as Freddie Gibbs, E-40, Slug, and Killer Mike. Their most recent LP, Oneirology, was released in 2011. Guests included Big K.R.I.T., Tonedeff, Freddie Gibbs, and Anna Wise of Sonnymoon.
The group has toured worldwide, appearing onstage alongside acts like Nappy Roots, Cee-Lo Green, Bun B, Kanye West, Raekwon of Wu-Tang Clan, Brand Nubian and more.
Kno, hailing from Georgia and currently residing in Lexington, Kentucky, has been described as "one of the top loop-miners east of the Mississippi" by URB. He produced the majority of Will Rap For Food and Southernunderground, all of A Piece of Strange, and has also recieved critical acclaim in The NY Times, Rolling Stone and other magazines for his remix of Jay-Z's Black Album, entitled Kno vs. Hov : The White Al-bu-lum in 2004. Kno released a solo LP in 2010 titled Death is Silent.
Born in Versailles, Kentucky, Deacon has also established himself as a producer. His beats have been rocked by the likes of KRS-One, King Tee as well as local Kentucky artists such as Rob Jackson and Bonafide Circle. The son of a reverend, his ear for melody and church trained voice have also landed him hook work for Ruff Ryders, Sean Price and more. Deacon released an album with Sheisty Khrist titled Niggaz With Latitude in 2010.
The duo has already begun work as a production duo under the name A Piece Of Strange, currently producing for Lil' Scrappy, Devin The Dude, D-12, Immortal Technique, Warner Brothers' rock and roll outfit Melee and others. They are managed by Lee "Skill" Resnick, whose only other clients are platinum producers Denaun Porter, Naughty By Nature's Kay Gee and Mr. Lee from Houston.
The group now officially counts emcee Natti as the third and final piece of the CunninLynguists' puzzle. After turning to music as a positive release after a 2 year prison stint in the early 2000's, Lexington, Kentucky native Natti's gravely drawl and streetwise lyrics give the group a decidedly interesting 3rd angle on the group's already broad range of subject matter.
Origin: Atlanta, GA
Year Formed: 2001
Members: Deacon The Villain
Kno
Natti
Former Member: Mr. SOS
Official Site: www.cunninlynguists.com
phantasmata
CunninLynguists Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
surrounded with evil,
I take flight
Devils they take me
into it for days away
Into the nightmare,
surrounded with evil,
Devils they take me
into it for days away
I see visions of creatures,
crawl through the lonesome,
so I might fall
I tried to turn anyway
and gaze at the beauty
I had known
the sun went down
he's lost the crown
the sun went down
he's lost the crown
"...and since much of our basic desires
involve those things which are taboo
or modified by moral precepts
especially sexual desires and desires
to commit hostile and violent acts
we find that these things are not
allowed to appear directly in our dreams
Instead they are modified by regrouping,
substitution, displacement, and other
devices that disguise them..."
The lyrics to CunninLynguists' song Phantasmata speak to the artist's experiences with nightmares and visions in which they are surrounded by evil entities. The repeated line "Into the nightmare, surrounded with evil, I take flight" conveys a sense of being trapped in a surreal and terrifying world. The artist describes being taken by devils for days at a time, suggesting a sense of being lost and unable to escape the nightmare.
The lyrics also suggest a struggle to find beauty amidst the horror, with the artist trying to turn and gaze at something they had known before the nightmare took hold. However, the mention of the sun setting and losing its crown suggests a sense of hopelessness and a feeling that they cannot escape the nightmare. The final lines of the song quote a passage about dreams from a book on psychology, which adds a layer of introspection and analysis to the lyrics.
Line by Line Meaning
Into the nightmare,
Starting off in a bad dream,
surrounded with evil,
Being with wickedness on all sides,
I take flight
Trying to run away,
Devils they take me
Followed by sinister creatures,
into it for days away
Trapped there for quite some time
I see visions of creatures,
Seeing monsters in my mind,
crawl through the lonesome,
They slither through the silence,
so I might fall
To cause me to stumble and lose hope
I tried to turn anyway
I tried to find a way to break free,
and gaze at the beauty
To look at something better,
I had known
That I had once seen before,
the sun went down
Night came,
he's lost the crown
Something important has been lost,
the sun went down
Night came again,
he's lost the crown
Something valuable is no longer there,
"...and since much of our basic desires
involve those things which are taboo
or modified by moral precepts
especially sexual desires and desires
to commit hostile and violent acts
we find that these things are not
allowed to appear directly in our dreams
Instead they are modified by regrouping,
substitution, displacement, and other
devices that disguise them..."
People's unconscious desires, like sex or violence, are typically suppressed or disguised in their dreams.
Contributed by Thomas M. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
ShagginWaggin32
These guys deserve more credit. They are my favorite group without a doubt. Everyone go buy this album!! Or at least spread the word to. Give this some positive thumbs so it will remind people to support this absolutely amazing group!!!!
seanan8
one dislike? ONE DISLIKE!?!? how the hell could anyone think of this godly art in any negative manor?!
memyselfandi2311
Oneirology is a great and very underrated album.
alwayshigh94
I dont know why but new cunninlynguists material like this album and Kno's Death is Silent calm me but also send a chill down my spine.......daaaam mad respect to these guys
Young Based God
I wish Kno made a longer mix of this. It's fantastic.
DiLL590
LOVE this group....loyal fan for a long time! :)
Broken Dubz Entertainment
The whole album is dope & this track is sick
Hypnostedon
Phantasmata (Φαντάσματα) is a Greek word. It means Ghosts. I love this track so much ❤️
imOverWhere
this is a great song i love it
SovereignBrotherRoy
Top 3 of 2011 easy! Amazing work a Classic no doubt.