When he was held by Washington, D.C., police regarding the murder of a drug dealer in 1987 ("Murder, Drugs, and the Rap Star" read a Washington Post headline), it gave him an even greater notoriety (he was never charged with the murder). Declaring war on D.C.'s go-go scene and loudly criticizing Run-D.M.C. (then the ruling New York hip-hop outfit), Just-Ice set a pattern for many a future hip-hop feud. Little could halt Just-Ice's ascension to hip hop stardom, though the departure of Mantronik from Sleeping Bag was a bad omen. KRS-One stepped in to produce 1987's Kool & Deadly, an album that swapped Mantronik's hi-tech skills for raw, elemental beats and rhymes. The British and New York public that had so enthusiastically embraced Back to the Old School were indifferent about this one, and 1989's The Desolate One (with KRS-One back in the producer's seat) was no great improvement. By 1990, both Just-Ice and Sleeping Bag appeared to be quickly fading as a new generation of MCs and labels overtook them. He continued to release albums at intervals across the 1990s, but they were on tiny independent labels, although one, 1993's Gun Talk, had major-label distribution and had five of the album's 10 cuts produced by Kurtis Mantronik; and were rarely noticed. Just-Ice was a member of hip-hop super session, the Stop the Violence Movement, which released one single ("Self Destruction") in 1990.
Freedom Of Speech
Just-Ice Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
What's the First Amendment?
Freedom of Speech, that's some motherfuckin' bullshit
You say the wrong thing, they'll lock your ass up quick
The FCC says "Profanity - No Airplay"?
They can suck my dick while I take a shit all day
Think I give a fuck about some silly bitch named Gore?
Yo Tip, what's the matter? You ain't gettin' no dick?
You're bitchin' about rock'n'roll, that's censorship, dumb bitch
The Constitution says we all got a right to speak
Say what we want Tip, your argument is weak
Censor records, TV, school books too
And who decides what's right to hear? You?
Hey PMRC, you stupid fuckin' assholes
The sticker on the record is what makes 'em sell gold
Can't you see, you alcoholic idiots
The more you try to suppress us, the larger we get
[You have the right to remain silent]
Fuck that right! I want the right to talk
I want the right to speak, I want the right to walk
Where I wanna, yell and I'm gonna
Tell and rebel every time I'm on a
Microphone on the stage cold illin'
The knowledge I drop will be heard by millions
We ain't the problems, we ain't the villains
It's the suckers deprivin' the truth from our children
You can't hide the fact, Jack
There's violence in the streets every day, any fool can recognise that
But you try to lie and lie
And say America's some motherfuckin' apple pie
Yo, you gotta be high to believe that
You're gonna change the world by a sticker on a record sleeve
Cos once you take away my right to speak
Everybody in the world's up shit creek
Let me tell you about down south
Where a motherfucker might as well not even have a mouth
Columbus, Georgia, said they'd lock me up
If I got on the stage in my show and said "Fuck"
So I thought for a minute and said "No,
I wasn't even gonna do a damned show"
Cos for me to change my words from my rhymes
Is never gonna happen cos there's no sell outs on mine
But I vowed to get those motherfuckers one day
They even arrested Bobby Brown and Cool J
Yo, they got their's comin', cos I'm mad and I'm gunnin'
Homeboys, and there's no runnin'
I'm gonna tell you how I feel about you
No bull, no lies, no slack, just straight fact
Columbus, Georgia, you can suck my dick
You ain't nothin' but a piece of fuckin' shit on the damned map
Freedom of Speech, let 'em take it from me
Next they'll take it from you, then what you gonna do?
Let 'em censor books, let 'em censor art
PMRC, this is where the witch hunt starts
You'll censor what we see, we read, we hear, we learn
The books will burn
You better think it out
We should be able to say anything, our lungs were meant to shout
Say what we feel, yell out what's real
Even though it may not bring mass appeal
Your opinion is yours, my opinion is mine
If you don't like what I'm sayin'? Fine
But don't close it, always keep an open mind
A man who fails to listen is blind
We only got one right left in the world today
Let me have it or throw The Constitution away
What they're trying to do with radio, with this, uh, McCarron-Walter
Act and a lot of other ways, is start by saying that they're
protecting the public from wicked rock bands, or girlie magazines, or
whatever. But, if you follow the chain of dominoes that falls down,
what they're really trying to do is shut off our access to information
itself.
If they can't do it by law they know there's other ways to do it.
The lyrics to Just-Ice's "Freedom of Speech" address the issue of censorship and the First Amendment right to free speech. Just-Ice takes a confrontational stance against the concept of censorship, which he deems as "bullshit." He argues that the FCC's prohibition of profanity from airplay and the PMRC's efforts to censor rock and roll music are both forms of censorship that violate the First Amendment. Just-Ice also criticizes those who attempt to suppress the truth in various forms of media, such as books, TV, and music.
The song also touches on the issue of racism and the suppression of free speech in the South. Just-Ice describes how he was threatened with arrest for using profanity during a show in Columbus, Georgia. He vows to fight against those who try to suppress his voice and promote censorship.
Overall, "Freedom of Speech" is a powerful and provocative song that emphasizes the importance of free speech and challenges efforts to suppress it.
Line by Line Meaning
Freedom of Speech, that's some motherfuckin' bullshit
Just-Ice thinks that the idea of Freedom of Speech is nonsense
You say the wrong thing, they'll lock your ass up quick
People can get imprisoned for speaking their mind in the wrong way
The FCC says "Profanity - No Airplay"?
The FCC prohibits the use of profanity on the radio
They can suck my dick while I take a shit all day
Just-Ice doesn't care about what the FCC thinks and speaks vulgarly against them
Think I give a fuck about some silly bitch named Gore?
Just-Ice doesn't care about what Al Gore thinks
Yo PMRC, here we go, raw
Just-Ice is calling out the PMRC (Parents Music Resource Center)
Yo Tip, what's the matter? You ain't gettin' no dick?
He is mocking Tipper Gore, who was part of the PMRC, suggesting she's only opposing certain music because of her sexual frustration
You're bitchin' about rock'n'roll, that's censorship, dumb bitch
Just-Ice thinks that criticizing rock music is a form of censorship
The Constitution says we all got a right to speak
The Constitution gives anyone the right to speak freely
Say what we want Tip, your argument is weak
Just-Ice believes that censorship advocates don't have a strong argument
Censor records, TV, school books too
Just-Ice believes that censorship extends to various forms of media
And who decides what's right to hear? You?
Just-Ice questions who gets to decide what people can and cannot hear
Hey PMRC, you stupid fuckin' assholes
Just-Ice insults the PMRC
The sticker on the record is what makes 'em sell gold
Just-Ice believes that censorship only increases merchandise sales
Can't you see, you alcoholic idiots
Just-Ice insults the PMRC members and refers to them as alcoholics
The more you try to suppress us, the larger we get
The more the anti-censorship movement is suppressed, the more it grows
Fuck that right! I want the right to talk
Just-Ice wants the freedom to speak up and express himself
Where I wanna, yell and I'm gonna
Just-Ice wants to be able to express himself freely and loudly
Tell and rebel every time I'm on a
He wants to use his platform to speak out and rebel against censorship
Microphone on the stage cold illin'
Just-Ice wants to express himself through his music and performance
The knowledge I drop will be heard by millions
Just-Ice is confident that his message will reach a large audience
We ain't the problems, we ain't the villains
Just-Ice believes that censorship advocates are the issue, not the music artists
You can't hide the fact, Jack
He believes that the truth about censorship can't be hidden
There's violence in the streets every day, any fool can recognise that
Just-Ice believes that violence is a real issue that needs to be addressed, rather than censoring music
But you try to lie and lie
Censorship advocates lie to make their point seem valid
And say America's some motherfuckin' apple pie
Just-Ice believes that censorship advocates present a false and unrealistic image of America
Yo, you gotta be high to believe that
Just-Ice believes that believing censorship advocates requires one to be ignorant
You're gonna change the world by a sticker on a record sleeve
Just-Ice thinks that censorship advocates believe a sticker on a record sleeve will change the world
Cos once you take away my right to speak
Just-Ice believes that taking away the freedom of speech is a slippery slope
Everybody in the world's up shit creek
If everyone's freedom of speech is taken away, the world would go to shit
Where a motherfucker might as well not even have a mouth
Just-Ice speaks about a place where freedom of speech is entirely suppressed, rendering speech unnecessary
So I thought for a minute and said "No
Just-Ice decided not to perform at a place where he couldn't speak his mind
I wasn't even gonna do a damned show
Just-Ice refused to perform where he was censored
Cos for me to change my words from my rhymes
Just-Ice cannot change his lyrics to appease censorship advocates
Is never gonna happen cos there's no sell outs on mine
Just-Ice will not change his words for money or fame
But I vowed to get those motherfuckers one day
Just-Ice will work towards getting his message across in a censored area
They even arrested Bobby Brown and Cool J
Even famous musicians such as Bobby Brown and LL Cool J got arrested for speaking their minds
Yo, they got their's comin', cos I'm mad and I'm gunnin'
Just-Ice is angry and has plans to take action against those who suppress free speech
Homeboys, and there's no runnin'
Those who oppose free speech will eventually have to face the consequences
I'm gonna tell you how I feel about you
Just-Ice will speak his mind about those who oppose free speech
No bull, no lies, no slack, just straight fact
Just-Ice will speak the truth about censorship advocates
Columbus, Georgia, you can suck my dick
Just-Ice insults Columbus, Georgia, for censoring his performance
You ain't nothin' but a piece of fuckin' shit on the damned map
Just-Ice insults Columbus, Georgia, and belittles them
Let 'em censor books, let 'em censor art
Just-Ice believes that censorship should not be extended to literature and art
PMRC, this is where the witch hunt starts
Just-Ice believes that censoring music is just the start of a broader witch hunt
You'll censor what we see, we read, we hear, we learn
Just-Ice believes that censorship will extend to various other areas of life
The books will burn
Just-Ice believes that books will be burned if censorship is taken too far
We should be able to say anything, our lungs were meant to shout
Just-Ice believes that people have the right to express themselves loudly and freely
Say what we feel, yell out what's real
People should be able to express their true feelings and beliefs
Your opinion is yours, my opinion is mine
Everyone has their own opinion and the freedom to express it
If you don't like what I'm sayin'? Fine
If someone disagrees with what Just-Ice says, he's okay with that
But don't close it, always keep an open mind
Just-Ice wants people to listen and be open-minded to things they disagree with
A man who fails to listen is blind
Not listening to other opinions is a sign of ignorance
We only got one right left in the world today
The freedom of speech is the last right to protect
Let me have it or throw The Constitution away
Just-Ice wants to preserve the freedom of speech or abandon the Constitution entirely
If they can't do it by law they know there's other ways to do it.
People who seek to suppress free speech will find other, non-legal ways to do so
What they're really trying to do is shut off our access to information itself.
Censorship advocates are trying to limit access to information by censoring it
Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group, Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC
Written by: JELLO BIAFRA, CHARLES ANDRE GLENN, TRACY MARROW
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind