DJ Shadow spent his teenage years in Davis, California and was a DJ at the community radio station KDVS. During his time as a radio disc jockey, DJ Shadow was significant in developing the experimental instrumental hip-hop style associated with the California-based Solesides record label. His early singles for the label, including In/Flux and Lost and Found (S.F.L.), were genre-bending works of art merging elements of funk, rock, hip-hop, ambient, jazz, soul, and used-bin found records. DJ Shadow is often cited as a leading creator of trip-hop, though this is a label he strongly contests.
Although he previously released a couple of original works (during 1991-1992 for Hollywood Records) by the time Mo' Wax's James Lavelle contacted him about releasing In/Flux on the fledgling imprint, it wasn't until his distribution association with Mo' Wax that his sound began to mature and cohere.
Shadow's first full-length work, Endtroducing....., was released in late 1996 to immense critical acclaim. Following the success of this album, he acted as a shadow producer for Rage Against The Machine for their album, Evil Empire. It is said he influenced the solo on their song "Bulls On Parade". Endtroducing... made the Guinness World Records book for "First Completely Sampled Album" in 2001. Preemptive Strike, a compilation of early singles, followed in early 1998. Later that year, Shadow produced tracks for Psyence Fiction, the debut album by U.N.K.L.E., a long-time Mo' Wax production team that gained superstar guests including Thom Yorke (of Radiohead), Richard Ashcroft (of The Verve), Mike D (of the Beastie Boys) and others. His next project came in 1999, with the transformation of Solesides into a new label, Quannum Projects. Nearly six years after his debut production album, his second album, The Private Press, was released in June 2002. In the same year, the movie "Scratch" (2001, Doug Pray) was released to DVD with DJ Shadow appearing several times throughout the movie.
The documentary films "Dark Days" and "Wisconsin Death Trip" feature music of DJ Shadow while "Scratch" features an interview and more music.
DJ Shadow has also collaborated with fellow artist Cut Chemist. Together they have made two CDs entitled Brainfreeze and Product Placement. These albums fuse jazz, funk, and soul in the framework of a cohesive concept. The second of these (Product Placement) followed a very similar pattern to the first, but using remixes/other versions of the songs in roughly the same order.
In the year 2004, Shadow released his feature length DVD, In Tune and On Time. The DVD features a live performance in London, emphasizing intricate visuals.
In 2005, Shadow released a Deluxe Edition of his first album, Endtroducing.... and a new album, titled "The Outsider" in 2006.
While Shadow's earlier works, especially 'Endtroducing.....', are known for their innovation in genres such as hip-hop, ambient, and trip-hop, his fourth full length album, The Outsider, had several tracks dedicated to Hyphy. This decision has been controversial, leaving many fans feeling alienated. DJ Shadow addressed this point in an August, 2006 interview, in which stated, "Repeat Endtroducing over and over again? That was never, ever in the game plan. Fuck that. So I think it's time for certain fans to decide if they are fans of the album, or the artist."
Also in 2005, Brian Udelhofen began work on the Shadow Percussion Project, an attempt to adapt some of the tracks from Endtroducing... for a live performance group. The result was largely successful and well-received by DJ Shadow himself.
In 2007 DJ Shadow was contacted by the Hollywood Bowl to do a show featuring Freeze with Cut Chemist. However, not wanting to repeat old material DJ Shadow and Cut Chemist came up with a whole new routine entitled The Hard Sell. In 2007 and 2008 they went on The Hard Sell tour and were accompanied on stage by two large video screens with visuals created for the tour.
Discography
Solo Albums
* 1996 - Endtroducing.....
* 1998 - Preemptive Strike
* 2000 - Dark Days
* 2002 - The Private Press
* 2003 - The Private Repress (Japanese Remix Album)
* 2004 - In Tune and On Time
* 2005 - Endtroducing... (2xCD Deluxe Edition)
* 2006 - The Outsider
* 2007 - The 4-Track Era Vol.1 Best of the KMEL Mixes
* 2007 - The 4-Track Era Vol.2 Best of the Remixes and Megamixes (1990-1992)
* 2011 - The Less You Know, the Better
with Q Bert
* 1997 - Camel Bobsled Race (Q-Bert Mega Mix) CD-EP
with UNKLE
* 1998 - Psyence Fiction
with Cut Chemist
* 1999 - Brainfreeze
* 2001 - Product Placement
* 2004 - Product Placement on Tour
* 2005 - Freeze
* 2008 - The Hard Sell
with Dan The Automator
* 1998 - Bombay the Hard Way: Guns, Cars and Sitars
Seein' Thangs
DJ Shadow Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Man I call on the Lord, pain doesn't easy from wealth
These cars, these clothes, these hoes
Never meant nothing, having nightmares screaming and busting
At my enemy, I put a bullet in that nigga and I see it's me
Is it my soul?, killing self hate
Or does that nigga in me have to die before I reach them pearly gates
Either way I got something to say
But it's hard to walk like a man the industry's ..
And these the same motherfuckers that's controlling my cash'
And the same ones, the government, controlling your ass
Why George bush ain't in jail for stealing them votes?
Why the CIA ain't closed man, for pushing that dope?
Get it cracking America, the CIA, aka the KKK
It's judgement day!
Seein', seein' thangs, I can swear that I'm seein' thangs
Seein', seein' thangs, I can swear that I'm seein' thangs
Seein', seein' thangs, I can swear that I'm seein' thangs
They coming for your soul, they already got the chains…
In a Chevy, I'm wondering if the Feds broke the levy
Are they in with the devil to control the weather?
Hurricanes and typhoons every other week
While po' folks are drowning in the middle of the street
We too scared to speak, or too busy on the internet
I heard they about to put lo-jacks in our kids necks
Marshall law, tell Bush now we ain't ready to flip
The hood is like a modern slave ship
We packed like sardines and shackled to the streets
And crack is cotton that grows up from the concrete
Shit, but I guess I'm seein' thangs
We'd rather not learn, we'd rather fucking gang bang
Seein', seein' thangs, I can swear that I'm seein' thangs
Seein', seein' thangs, I can swear that I'm seein' thangs
Seein', seein' thangs, I can swear that I'm seein' thangs
They coming for your soul, they already got the chains…
The lyrics of "Seein' Thangs" by DJ Shadow are an insight into the rapper's state of mind and his feelings towards the issues that affect society. The song starts with voices whispering to him to kill himself, but he calls on the Lord to ease his pain. He talks about how materialistic things like cars, clothes, and women mean nothing to him and that he is haunted by nightmares where he is the one killing himself. He wonders if it is self-hate that is driving him or the "nigga" in him that needs to die before he reaches the pearly gates. He has something to say and references Jam Master Jay, who used to yell "walk this way," but he finds it hard to walk like a man in the industry where the same people who control his cash are the same ones controlling the government.
He questions why George Bush is not in jail for stealing the votes and why the CIA is not closed for pushing dope. The song reflects his anger and disapproval of the government and the system. He feels that the CIA and the government are like the KKK, controlling people's lives and destiny. He talks about seeing things that are not there and feeling like he is losing his mind.
The second part of the song talks about the devastating effects of the hurricane and the typhoons that have hit the country, leaving poor people to drown in the middle of the streets. He mentions being too scared to speak out and too busy on the internet, and he questions whether the government is in control of the weather. He talks about the hood being like a modern slave ship, where people are packed like sardines and shackled to the streets. He sees crack as cotton that grows up from the concrete, and the youth engaging in gang activity instead of learning.
Overall, "Seein' Thangs" is a powerful song that reflects the rapper's concerns about society, the government, the system, and people's lives.
Line by Line Meaning
I hear voices whisper tell me, "Banner kill yo'self"
The singer hears voices in their head urging them to commit suicide.
Man I call on the Lord, pain doesn't easy from wealth
The singer prays to God for help dealing with the emotional pain that is not eased by material possessions.
These cars, these clothes, these hoes
Never meant nothing, having nightmares screaming and busting
Material possessions and sexual partners have no true meaning to the singer and they suffer from night terrors that cause them to scream and thrash around.
At my enemy, I put a bullet in that nigga and I see it's me
The artist has violent thoughts towards their perceived enemies and realizes that they may be projecting their own issues onto others.
Is it my soul?, killing self hate
Or does that nigga in me have to die before I reach them pearly gates
The artist wonders if their inner hatred for themselves is causing these violent thoughts, or if they need to rid themselves of a part of their identity in order to find peace and salvation.
Either way I got something to say
Jam Master Jay used to yell walk this way
But it's hard to walk like a man the industry's..
And these the same motherfuckers that's controlling my cash'
And the same ones, the government, controlling your ass
The singer feels oppressed by the music industry, which controls their finances, and the government, which has control over them as a citizen.
Why George bush ain't in jail for stealing them votes?
Why the CIA ain't closed man, for pushing that dope?
The singer questions why no one is being held accountable for corrupt actions by the government and feels they are complicit in perpetuating societal issues.
Get it cracking America, the CIA, aka the KKK
It's judgement day!
The artist calls for action against the corrupt elements of American society and feels that justice will eventually be served.
In a Chevy, I'm wondering if the Feds broke the levy
Are they in with the devil to control the weather?
Hurricanes and typhoons every other week
While po' folks are drowning in the middle of the street
The artist is suspicious of the government's involvement in natural disasters and feels that the poor are the most affected by their consequences.
We too scared to speak, or too busy on the internet
I heard they about to put lo-jacks in our kids necks
Marshall law, tell Bush now we ain't ready to flip
The hood is like a modern slave ship
We packed like sardines and shackled to the streets
And crack is cotton that grows up from the concrete
Shit, but I guess I'm seein' thangs
We'd rather not learn, we'd rather fucking gang bang
The artist feels that society is too scared or distracted to speak out against injustices, and that the government is implementing invasive technologies. They also compare the state of impoverished communities to modern-day slavery, where those struggling to survive are often the victims of the drug epidemic. The artist acknowledges that they may be perceived as crazy for their observations, but feels that people are too content with their current situation to strive for change.
Seein', seein' thangs, I can swear that I'm seein' thangs
They coming for your soul, they already got the chains...
The singer feels that they are witnessing events that others are oblivious to, and warns that the government is already in control of society's freedom.
Contributed by Sophie O. Suggest a correction in the comments below.