Although Dwele has had somewhat of a short career as a commercially avaliable artist, he has a vast catalogue of material currently unreleased that die-hard fans revere as some of his best work, considerably superior to his material released as a signed artist that showcases the true depth of his artistic and diverse talent, displayed without constraint.
Gardner was raised on the west side of Detroit in a musical family. He played piano from the age of six, later taking up trumpet, bass and guitar. He was deeply affected by the fatal shooting of his father outside his home when he was age ten, later stating "I learned to put my emotions into music; it was my therapy."
He cites Stevie Wonder, Donny Hathaway, Roy Ayers, Miles Davis, and Freddie Hubbard as favorite artists, and took inspiration from hip hop group A Tribe Called Quest, becoming an MC, and working with Slum Village. Gardner recorded a demo in his bedroom, called, The Rize, and sold it out of the trunk of his car. He had about 100 copies, which sold out within a week. He caught the ears of local heroes Slum Village and more specifically their world-renowned producer J Dilla. Slum Village invited Dwele to sing the hook of the song "Tainted" for their album Trinity (Past, Present and Future). It became an instant classic and led to more high profile work with female rapper Bahamadia, the all-star group Lucy Pearl and London's New Sector Movement. Dwele signed to Virgin Records in 2003, who released his debut album, Subject, which mixed neo soul and hip hop. In a 2005 review in The Independent, his style was summed up: "Dwele's rooted in vintage soul but isn't stuck in the past, overly reverential or an exercise in pastiche - there's a major hip-hop edge which betrays his original incarnation as a rapper." A second album, Some Kinda..., followed in 2005. He then later signed with RT Music Group and KOCH records in March, 2008. He is coming out with his fourth album titled, W.W.W. (W.ants. W.orld. W.omen) coming out June 29, 2010. Dwele was recently featured on the first single off of Kanye West's fifth studio album, Good Ass Job. The song was entitled "Power" and was leaked on May 28, 2010.
The truth
Dwele Lyrics
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Dooooh
Babe would you please be mine
(My)
Subject.....
My Subject... [repeated] yeah
Doodoodoodoumdoumdoum
Doodoodoodoumdoumdoum
Do ooooh
Ooooh..... [repeated]
Oh babe I -I II
I lied
I said you were the truth
You took it as the truth
And now I got you
But I don't want you like that
There only lives one love
And of that you can't compare to
And that's the bare-naked truth
[pause]
You knew
And I knew
But you didn't want to hear
What I didn't want to tell you
Now we've got hard times....
And now there's no love at home
When separate we build so alone
But we can't stand to be together
To talk about it
Had time
To inc
Thoughts instead
Of bodies
This can't be love
[pause]
What if we
Produced a shorty
Hard times would still be visual
Within this love
Within our love
This can't be love
And that's the bare-naked
You took it as the truth
And now I got you
But I don't want you like that
There only lives one love
And of that you can't compare to
And that's the bare-naked truth
I said you were the truth
You took it as the tru-you-uth
We can't stand to be together
To talk about it
But we can't stand to be
Apart long enough to hear this thing baby
You and I started off good
Findin' time to spend time
I said what you wanted to hear
Now you need to go
I lied
I said you were the truth
You took it as the truth
And now I got you
But I don't want you like that
There only lives one love
And of that you can't compare to
And that's the bare-naked truth
And you need to
Take that as the truth
If our words were truly fact
We probably still wouldn't have love
But we would love what we had
But we don't
Reality is we like
Now you and I must say goodbye
Can't you see the
Bare-naked start to speak
I'm a young man
World is mine
I shoulda' been
Straight with you from the beginning
You probably wasn't even lookin' for a man
[pause]
Oh
This time has been
No doubt interesting
But now that we broke up
I'm thinking this mighta' been love
This coulda been love
Damn what the...
I'ts just my luck
[finger snappin']
This sounds like some 'ol west coast...
The song "Truth" by Dwele is about the aftermath of a breakup and the realization that the relationship was never built on genuine love. The song opens with a plea for his lover's attention and the repetition of the word "subject" hints at their perceived unequal status in the relationship. He then admits to lying that his ex-partner was "the truth," which seems to have led to their separation. The singer goes on to express his emotions about the breakup and how they both knew it was coming but didn't want to confront it. He suggested that they might have stayed together if they had a child, but he knows deep down that they were never meant to be together.
The singer's realization that he was never in love with his partner is the central theme of "Truth." He feels remorse for leading his partner on and lying to her about the depth of his feelings. The lyrics indicate that he was dishonest with her because he didn't want to lose her or be alone. Ultimately, he comes to terms with the fact that their relationship was built on lies and that they are better off apart.
Line by Line Meaning
Babe would you please be mine
As the singer's subject, he is asking someone to be his girlfriend and giving the context for the rest of the song.
I lied
The singer is admitting he was dishonest with his partner.
I said you were the truth
The singer made false claims to convince his partner to enter a relationship.
And now I got you
The artist's partner is now in the relationship under the false premise that she is the artist's 'one love.'
But I don't want you like that
The artist doesn't want to continue the relationship under false pretenses.
There only lives one love
The singer believes there is only one true love to be found in life.
And of that you can't compare to
The singer's partner is not his true love.
And that's the bare-naked truth
The true nature of the relationship is the artist's real message to his partner.
But you didn't want to hear
The partner knew there was something important their partner wasn't saying.
What I didn't want to tell you
The artist must communicate their deception to their partner.
When separate we build so alone
Being apart only builds loneliness and discomfort between them.
Thoughts instead Of bodies
Rather than physical comfort, the artist would prefer a partner who understands them on a deeper level.
This can't be love
The singer is realizing that what he has with his partner cannot be considered 'love.'
Produced a shorty
If the pair had a child together, the hard times would still persist as evidence of a flawed relationship.
What if our words were truly fact
If the partner believed the singer's untruths, they would not have love, but a false relationship.
But we would love what we had
They could still care about the time they had together, despite it being a flawed relationship.
Reality is we like
Ultimately, the reality is that this relationship was built on deception and didn't possess true love.
Now you and I must say goodbye
The singer realizes the relationship is beyond salvaging.
You probably wasn't even lookin' for a man
The singer believes that his partner wasn't looking for a relationship with a man specifically.
This coulda been love
The artist realizes that a relationship could have started on a better, truthful foundation.
Damn what the...
The artist is distraught that the relationship has ended.
It's just my luck
The artist understands that he has no one to blame but himself for the failure of this relationship.
Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group
Written by: ANDWELE GARDNER
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind