As a member of Company Flow, he honed his production skills alongside DJ Mr. Len and Bigg Jus. His unique style helped Company Flow gain critical, then popular success, culminating in 1997 with Funcrusher Plus. Eventual differences between the group & label Rawkus, lead to El-P & Len leaving the label in 2000.
El-P then started his own record label, Definitive Jux. Of the many albums he has helped produce (most on Definitive Jux), the most influential and successful has been Cannibal Ox's album, The Cold Vein (2001). In 2002 he released his debut album, Fantastic Damage, which received critical acclaim. His follow-up, I'll Sleep When You're Dead, hit stores in March of 2007. It featured a wide range of artists, including The Mars Volta, Trent Reznor of Nine Inch Nails, and Cat Power. El-P has also contributed productions and guest raps to albums by DJ Krush, Aesop Rock, Murs, Cage, Mr. Lif, Prefuse 73, Del the Funky Homosapien, Mike Ladd, The High and Mighty, Aceyalone, and Alec Empire on the first Handsome Boy Modeling School album.
Cannibal Ox member Vordul Mega can be heard on "Linda Tripp", El-P's rebuttal to Sole's "Dear Elpee". He was also selected to work on Rage Against the Machine frontman Zach de la Rocha's solo album.
In 2012, El-P released his 3rd solo album, Cancer 4 Cure, on Fat Possum Records. The album was released to general acclaim, aggregating a score of 84 out of 100 on Metacritic.
In 2013, Meline formed rap duo Run the Jewels, with Michael Render (aka Killer Mike).
Sites: Discogs, Wikipedia and SoundCloud.
Squeegee Man Shooting
El-P Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
A - A - S - S - TTT - I - I (Remember.. )
see - see - D - D - A - A - M - M (Remember.. )
AAA - GGG - EEE (This is indelible.. ) E - E
Yo, 1985 got red top live and it was
Ten to the decibel, my lifelong prize, so I was
Part of the pack, pardon that, that's fact
Try to explain, okay, the Koch era frame
Hardly a game, no marketing just art in the train
Station Exchange, the flickered lights start to change
Same in the brain when I watched the walls spark names
Parked in the car with pa dukes at four deuce
There was a, Double rumble study kung fu loop
But we had, at the car wash that cost less cash, a blast
I'd imagine that the water was rising fast
Quarter in hand at the light for the squeegee man
Adult life squeegee man shot, cops hand
That's a lot of bad conversion, that's certain
Homeless hustle lost to the dark of the blue curtain
And it was fourth grade, I got high top played
Sported the black and red Jordan bootleg craze
And when the big kids zeroed in I'd wince
I haven't let my mother buy me bootleg since
(cuz' it was)
1985 got red top live and it was
ten to the decibel, my lifelong pride, so I was
part of the pack, pardon that, that's fact
I stole, part of a track and started to rap (map the growth)
1985 got red top live and it was
ten to the decibel, my lifelong pride, so I was
part of the pack, pardon that, that's fact
I stole, part of a track and started to rap (map the growth)
Get live y'all (live y'all) live y'all (live y'all)
live y'all (live y'all) live y'all (to the NYC)
Get live y'all (live y'all) live y'all (live y'all)
live y'all (live y'all) live y'all (live live live)
Get five ya'll (five y'all) five ya'll (five y'all)
five ya'll (five ya'll, to the Krazy Kings)
Get five ya'll (five y'all) five ya'll (five y'all)
five ya'll (five y'all) five five five
Trace back, trace the faces with the same life song
Different borough, same place, Eddie Murph got Raw
After class, got harassed, bully hurt us all
He tried to, run my Nintendo game in Fulton Mall
A fighter, that's what you made, now I fight for fun
I fight for acme lab rat experiment son
Pulsate like a Theremin rigged to big drums
Seen, Halloween battles in Brooklyn, eggs and shaving cream
We're gonna spray it on your whole damn team and then
Make the dash laughing bout the whole damn thing
We won, we can laugh about that, cause that's fun
In the 80's Deceps took fame (good run)
I took a name too, and so it begun
And wrote raps in my room, sipping Capri suns
In fact, studied the cadences of cool Moe Dee and Rick
Put my name into their rhymes and then practiced it
Put my brain pattern on fly and I mastered it
Dad played jazz when he drank, it's no accident
Hands on the piano and make my foot tap to it
Different path, same love, Dad, thanks for passing it
1985 got red top live and it was
ten to the decibel, my lifelong pride, so I was
part of the pack, pardon that, that's fact
I stole, part of a track and started to rap (map the growth)
1985 got red top live and it was
ten to the decibel, my lifelong pride, so I was
part of the pack, pardon that, that's fact
I stole, part of a track and started to rap (map the growth)
(F F) - A - A - N - N - T - T - T (Remember)
A - A - S - S - TTT - I - I (Remember (indelible bankroll)
see - see - D - D - A - A - M - M (Remembe)
(Place no faith in the majority)
AAA - GGG - E - E - E - E (my rhyme is euthanasia)
El-P's song Squeegee Man Shooting tells the story of his experiences growing up in New York City in the 1980s. The lyrics are filled with references to hip hop, graffiti culture, and the struggles of inner-city life. The song opens with a series of letters and numbers being repeated, perhaps as a nod to graffiti tags. El-P then reminisces about his love of hip hop music and how he began rapping himself, stealing beats and writing rhymes.
The song then transforms into a reflection of the harsh realities of life in the city at the time. El-P discusses the Koch era, a time of political and economic turmoil in New York, and the prevalence of graffiti and street art. He also touches on the impact of poverty on the lives of those around him, including squeegee men who tried to make a living cleaning car windows at stoplights. The lyrics take a dark turn when El-P recounts the story of a squeegee man he knew who was shot by the police.
The rest of the song is a tribute to the hip hop culture that El-P grew up with. He mentions the Krazy Kings, a legendary graffiti crew in New York, and his own experiences battling other kids in Halloween battles with eggs and shaving cream. He also pays homage to his father, who passed on his love of jazz music to him.
Overall, Squeegee Man Shooting is a powerful reflection on the struggles and joys of growing up in the inner city in the 1980s.
Line by Line Meaning
1985 got red top live and it was
Referring to the year 1985 when the red top was popular and had ten decibels, which was El-P's lifelong pride.
ten to the decibel, my lifelong pride, so I was
El-P took great pride in hearing the red top's ten decibel sound.
part of the pack, pardon that, that's fact
El-P was part of the music scene and rap industry in the 1980s.
I stole, part of a track and started to rap (map the growth)
El-P took inspiration from other tracks and rappers to start his own music career and grow as an artist.
Try to explain, okay, the Koch era frame
Referring to the time period when the Koch administration was in charge in New York City.
Hardly a game, no marketing just art in the train
The music industry in the 80s was not just about marketing, but also about creating art and music on the train system.
Same in the brain when I watched the walls spark names
El-P was inspired by the graffiti art and tagging on walls in his neighborhood and it had an impact on his music.
Adult life squeegee man shot, cops hand
Describing the unfortunate reality of the life of a squeegee man, who ended up getting shot by the police.
cuz' it was
This phrase continues on from the previous line as El-P reflects on how harsh reality can be for some people.
Trace back, trace the faces with the same life song
El-P is reminiscing about his past and reflecting on how people from different neighborhoods have similar experiences and stories.
A fighter, that's what you made, now I fight for fun
El-P pays homage to his father who instilled a fighting spirit in him that he now channels into his music and life in general.
Different path, same love, Dad, thanks for passing it
Despite taking a different career path, El-P still shares the same love for his father and thanks him for instilling that spirit in him.
(Remember)
An interlude that reminds listeners to reflect on the lyrics and themes of the song.
AAA - GGG - E - E - E - E (my rhyme is euthanasia)
A cryptic message from El-P regarding his music and how it can put an end to things in its own way.
Lyrics © CONCORD MUSIC PUBLISHING LLC
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind