Their commercially successful sophomore album E&A (released 2004) became a staple of the Twin Cities hip hop community, although following hectic touring the release of Eyedea & Abilities next album By The Throat would take several years, with Eyedea and DJ Abilities touring separately.
After a productive hiatus they returned with the critically acclaimed By The Throat (released 2009). Sonically divergent from their earlier work, By The Throat would showcase the their individual development along with the talents of Jeremy Ylvisaker, J.T. Bates & Graham O'Brien.
Eyedea (Born Micheal Larsen on November 9, 1981 – October 16, 2010) who also performed under the name Oliver Hart became widely known because of his battle and freestyle skills. The Many Faces of Oliver Hart prominently features the obliterating lyrical speed of a young Carnage the Executioner aka Terrell Woods along with Slug (of Atmosphere). Eyedea was best known for his victory at the Blaze Battle, which was aired on HBO, showing some of the best underground battlers in action. Eyedea largely toured with Slug aka Sean Daley during his early career, and would continue to collaborate with his mentor.
Numerous posthumous releases regularly appear since his passing, including Face Candy Waste-Age Teen Land and Eyenine Afraid to Dream on Crushkill Recordings, along with dedications from Kristoff Krane aka Christoffer Keller, Sadistik aka Cody Foster, No Bird Sing, Sage Francis, Brother Ali, Carnage XXXL, Murs among others. His mother Kathy Averill maintains an official dedication site www.micheallarsen.com.
DJ Abilities aka Maxx Keltgen is known for winning three DMC awards and for his work on his mixtapes and 1200 Hobos. He continues to tour, and is currently signed to Rhymesayers Entertainment.
Act Right
Eyedea & Abilities Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Yo, I got a lil' somethin' I gotta get off my chest right quick
"Spit it out, spit it out, go ahead spit it out"
Alright dig this man, I'm sick of all these punk motherfuckers in this rap game
You know what I'm sayin? "What's happenin' fool?"
I'm sayin' these fools steppin' up to us knowin' they shit is straight ga'bage
You know what I'm talkin' about, E&A don't play that shit man
"Why don't you explain?" Alright, check it out
It's like we walk into the place and instantly we surrounded
The kingpin, big shots, thuggish underground shit(?)
In less than a sec Abilities is at the bar
Half these guys don't even know who we are, but we still act like stars
Your set could'a been tight, I wasn't listenin'
I was peepin' out some new lyrics my man Carnage was kickin'
Forcin' this contortionist towards blowin' kids
Physicals over inproportionate coordinates (..damn that shit is hot)
Now back to the subject, to me not givin' a damn about you
This is my world, it just so happens that you live in it too
But that don't mean I gotta tolerate your talk
There's a thousand other people in this room
that'd probably love to hear your thoughts
But while your uncomfortably ridin' my tip
Abilities is upstairs stealin' your shit
You want props, stop runnin' your mouth
Just give a pound, buy a CD, and be out
Yo, you need to take a few steps back
Your DJ can't scratch and your emcee can't rap
You all up in my face and we just came here to max
Man you stupid motherfuckers need to learn how to act
"Ayo, ain't that that Eyedea kid, talkin' all that crazy..
Man I'm 'bout to hyperbolate this fool, you can't see me!"
Ever since we started winnin' battles and travelin' 'cross the land
Fools think if they could beat you they could beat you and
They want to test so they step not knowin Eyedea's rep to leave 'em swept
Up off they feet, the contest always ends like this:
-Your cheap flimsy chump style ain't worth the ground it'll get buried beneath
-The beats are buckin' your weak, flowin' your flow is scared of the beat(?)
-Princess, the king's here so play the background
-How's that sound? You just got clowned now sit your ass down.
Man these kids get on my nerves, but I can't pretend I hate 'em
Cause whack emcees are such a great source of entertainment
Me and Abilities watched the Blaze Battles for like a year:
"This kid out there, got nothin' to do"
Heh, it's funny, sometime's kids is so whack with the rappin
Instead of actually rappin' back I just wind up laughin' like
"Haha haha haha ha haha ha haha ha ha ha"
Yo, you need to take a couple steps back
Your partner can't scratch, and your cousin can't rap
You all up in my face and we just came here to max
Man you stupid motherfuckers need to learn how to act
"Oh my God, Eyedea & Abilities, you guys are soo phat!
My boyfriend loves you guys soo much
You know what? Oh my God, you should sign my tits
Oh great, this is gonna be perfect!"
You know we love to see ya'll at the shows
But this is dedicated to the ones someone might call a ho
All I gotta do is wink to get you back to my hotel
I can't respect a person that don't respect themselves
You're that one girl I went to highschool with
Back then you treated me like I wasn't shit
You say if I give you a free CD you'll show me your tits?
You get the CD for ten bucks like everyone else you stupid bi-yotch
No I don't care if you just broke up with your boyfriend No
I ain't tryin' to go where every other rapper's been No
If I was to kick it all my boys would clown so I could
Never hold you, can't hold you, won't hold you down
Look all you gotta do is learn some manners
Women and men, DJs and rappers
There's nothin' more to say, this meeting is adjourned
And if you don't know by now I think it's time you learned
The lyrics to Eyedea & Abilities' song Act Right are a commentary on the rap game and the attitudes of some of its participants. The verses describe how the duo enters a scene, aware of their talent, and unfazed by the lesser performers around them. They note how they are surrounded by "punk motherfuckers" who have inferior skills and posture themselves as stars despite their incompetence. However, Eyedea and Abilities are not aggressive or insecure. They are calm and confident, secure in their abilities, and fully aware of their status as underground legends. They proceed to call out the ignorance and bad behavior of other rappers and fans.
The song has several punchlines that capture the arrogance and delusion of some rappers. Eyedea cleverly plays with language, delivering lines that are both clever and humorous. Most importantly, the message of the song is that respect and authenticity are necessary in the rap game, and those who don't possess them should not be tolerated.
Line by Line Meaning
It's like we walk into the place and instantly we surrounded
As soon as we enter, people crowd around us.
The kingpin, big shots, thuggish underground shit(? )
These people are like the top dogs in the underground rap scene.
In less than a sec Abilities is at the bar
Abilities goes straight to the bar without wasting any time.
Half these guys don't even know who we are, but we still act like stars
Even though some people don't know about us, we still act like famous stars.
Forcin' this contortionist towards blowin' kids
We're so amazingly influential that we can change people's behavior.
Physicals over inproportionate coordinates (..damn that shit is hot)
Our music is so profound that it can change the way people view the world.
This is my world, it just so happens that you live in it too
We're the center of attention, and everyone else is just living in our world.
But while your uncomfortably ridin' my tip
You're sucking up to me in an annoying way.
Abilities is upstairs stealin' your shit
Abilities is taking whatever he wants from you.
Man you stupid motherfuckers need to learn how to act
You guys are acting dumb and need to improve your behavior.
Fools think if they could beat you they could beat you and
People who beat us in battles think they can always beat us.
The beats are buckin' your weak, flowin' your flow is scared of the beat(? )
The beat overpowers your weak flow and makes it sound scared.
Princess, the king's here so play the background
We're royalty, and everyone else should just back off.
Man these kids get on my nerves, but I can't pretend I hate 'em
These people annoy me, but I don't hate them.
Cause whack emcees are such a great source of entertainment
Even though they're bad, they're fun to watch.
All I gotta do is wink to get you back to my hotel
I can easily seduce some women with just a wink.
You're that one girl I went to highschool with
We went to high school together and you treated me badly.
You say if I give you a free CD you'll show me your tits?
You're trying to use my music to get something that you want.
Look all you gotta do is learn some manners
You need to learn how to behave properly.
There's nothin' more to say, this meeting is adjourned
We're done talking to you.
And if you don't know by now I think it's time you learned
If you're not aware already, it's time for you to start paying attention.
Lyrics © OBO APRA/AMCOS
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind