After extensive touring and a bit of schooling, the band got back together with Chris Zane (Les Savy Fav, The Walkmen, Passion Pit, White Rabbits) to record their first full-length album, TECHNICOLOR HEALTH, which arrives March 24 from Gigantic Music. The members of Harlem Shakes have been obsessed with pop music their whole lives, and they have great faith in its power to make people feel a little better about things, and to say something vital and, inshallah, maybe even enduring.
- Band's Myspace (http://www.myspace.com/harlemshakes)
2009
Strictly Game
Harlem Shakes Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Where we'll work so hard, we can do no harm
We'll till the land and duck our debts
Underneath soft sun, chewing Nicorette
This will be a better year
This will be a better year
Make a little money, take a lot of shit
Feel real bad, then get over it
This will be a better year
Oh I keep pushing boulders
I stay game till sun'll shake my shoulders
Oh, I keep feeling older
I stay game, stay game, stay game
The East Coast kids, man, we just don't know
Singing wait, wait, stop, drop me, go, go, go
But I'm taken by the hand to a blue pay phone
We can break blue laws with our skin and bones
And now I'm back in the city, I'm counting frick frick frick
Heard of milk great things, speaking soft and thick
He said, "If life gives you lemons, then thus god bade.
So put a little bit of bitter in your pink lemonade"
I'm sick of thee sheep, I'm sick of thou shepherd
Sick of dressing like a human when I'm feeling like a leopard
I'm sick of slow rock, I'm sick of quick quips
Sick of holding on to nothing when I just want to hold your hips
This will be a better year
This will be a better year
Make a little money, take a lot of shit
Feel real bad, then get over it
This will be a better year
Oh I keep pushing boulders
I stay game till sun'll shake my shoulders
Oh I keep feeling older
I stay game, stay game, stay game
The opening lines of Harlem Shakes's "Strictly Game" take the listener on a journey from the basement to a friend's farm, where he works hard, tilling the land and ducking his debts "underneath soft sun, chewing Nicorette." The repetition of "this will be a better year" hints at dissatisfaction with the past and a yearning for a better future. The singer is not shy about the challenges he has to face, as he understands he has to "make a little money, take a lot of shit, feel real bad, then get over it." He keeps pushing boulders and feeling older but remains game, committed, and optimistic.
The following lines illustrate the singer's return to the city while lamenting sheep and their shepherd, as he is "sick of dressing like a human when I'm feeling like a leopard" and clinging onto nothing instead of holding someone's hips. The song concludes with the same chorus, "This will be a better year," expressing the hope for a brighter future, no matter how tough the journey may be. Overall, the song is about resilience, perseverance, and hope for a brighter future.
Line by Line Meaning
Up from the basement to my best friend's farm
Leaving a confined space and going to a farm owned by a close friend
Where we'll work so hard, we can do no harm
Working hard with the intention of not causing any trouble
We'll till the land and duck our debts
Clearing debts by working on the land
Underneath soft sun, chewing Nicorette
Enjoying the sun while trying to quit smoking
This will be a better year
Positive outlook on the upcoming year
Make a little money, take a lot of shit
Earning money while facing difficult challenges
Feel real bad, then get over it
Accepting and moving on from negative feelings
Oh I keep pushing boulders
Continuing to work hard despite obstacles
I stay game till sun'll shake my shoulders
Remaining determined and committed until physically affected by the sun
Oh, I keep feeling older
Noticing signs of aging
The East Coast kids, man, we just don't know
Admitting ignorance of a particular situation
Singing wait, wait, stop, drop me, go, go, go
Singing a catchy but meaningless chorus
But I'm taken by the hand to a blue pay phone
Being led to a payphone
We can break blue laws with our skin and bones
Violating laws using one's own body
And now I'm back in the city, I'm counting frick frick frick
Returning to the city and counting something meaningless
Heard of milk great things, speaking soft and thick
Heard rumors of something incredible
He said, "If life gives you lemons, then thus god bade.
Sharing a cliche piece of advice
So put a little bit of bitter in your pink lemonade"
Adding some negativity to a positive situation
I'm sick of thee sheep, I'm sick of thou shepherd
Tired of being part of a herd, tired of the one in charge
Sick of dressing like a human when I'm feeling like a leopard
Feeling trapped by societal expectations
I'm sick of slow rock, I'm sick of quick quips
Fed up with certain types of music and humor
Sick of holding on to nothing when I just want to hold your hips
Frustrated with lack of intimacy
This will be a better year
Repeating the positive outlook on the upcoming year
Make a little money, take a lot of shit
Repeating the struggles of earning money
Feel real bad, then get over it
Repeating the acceptance and moving on from negative feelings
Oh I keep pushing boulders
Repeating the continued hard work despite obstacles
I stay game till sun'll shake my shoulders
Repeating the determination and commitment until physically affected by the sun
Oh I keep feeling older
Repeating the acknowledgment of aging
Contributed by Cole M. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
Mitchell Brown
I ordered their EP back during their myspace days. They mailed it from their apartment in NY, with a hand written note saying that they could now afford top ramen for a month and thanked me.
cheesechoker
These guys recorded a great first EP. "Carpetbaggers", "Sickos", "Nineteen"… quality tracks. Saw them play in Montreal back in '08 (?) and they were a decent live act too. Still can't understand why they never got more exposure. At the time, people were raving about much worse bands IMO… Indie rock is weird
memespace
My band used to play with these guys and hang out with them. So much better than I even remember.
James Squires
I hold this song dear to my heart because two years ago I abandoned the lease on a shit basement apartment to move to my best friends farm where I tilled his grandpas garden and "ducked my debts" while chewing tobacco underneath the heat of the south Georgia sun. I eventually gained enough money to move back to Atlanta and as the song says, I was counting "brick, brick, brick". I really wanted nothing more than to go back to the farm.
Koal
I always go to this video when I want to hear this song, ever since it was uploaded. I just learned this year, 2018, back in November that it's actually a video, and not a montage of pictures. Almost 10 years.
Nick Wade
This band is really good, sound professional.. deffantly need a record deal!! hope my music sounds as good haha
Pucci
Filming is one of the funniest parts of making a video, i can imagine the laughs they got from recording this. There should have been so much bonding. How could they have disbanded after doing something so amazing? :/
kirtyRY
genuis. pure genius. my new favorite band.
jennifefre
Harlem Shakes should have kept making good music like this song. Heard of them in an episode of GG and was hooked to this rhythm. Too sad they broke up :( :, (
em
this is absolutely fantastic!