KRS-One, originally a member of the hip hop crew Boogie Down Productions, is known for setting the path for both hardcore rap and socially conscious political rap.
Youth and early career
Born Lawrence Parker in the Park Slope neighborhood of Brooklyn in 1965, the future KRS-One grew up with his brother Kenny and their single mother in assorted inner city neighborhoods of Brooklyn and the Bronx. According to interviews with The Source Magazine, one fateful day when he was 12 years old, he and his brother Kenny prepared a pan of flavored rice, which was to be the family's dinner for the evening. The hungry pair ate the whole thing, and when their mother came home from work, she kicked them out of the apartment in a fit of anger. They stayed away for two days before younger Kenny decided to go back home, while Lawrence opted not to return. He spent the better part of the next seven years homeless, much of it at local libraries.
In his late teen years, Lawrence Parker fell in with some illegal drug dealers and became a courier. Using a bread delivery truck as a cover, Parker and his partner drove around town to make drops. During one of their trips, a police car pulled up behind them with flashing lights. Parker's partner panicked, and led the cops on a chase for several miles which ended with the truck crashing and the two being apprehended. At the trial, the judge made the commentary that the only reason the police had initially tried to pull them over was because they had private plates on a commercial vehicle, there was no original intent to search for drugs.
Parker, still a minor, claimed he was a ward of the state, and got sent to a juvenile home for his sentencing, after which he was moved to a Covenant House youth homeless shelter. It was there that he met Scott Sterling, a recent college graduate who just started working at the shelter as a social worker. Parker discovered that Sterling moonlighted as a hip hop DJ under the name Scott La Rock. By this time, Parker had earned the nickname "Kris" from the relationship he had developed with local Hare Krishnas that evangelized near the shelter. Heavily influenced by Eastern philosophies, he was also an aspiring rapper, and practiced routines in verbal spars with the other shelter residents.
Parker and Sterling, along with two other fellows, decided to form a rap group together, initially calling themselves "Scott La Rock and the Celebrity Three". That was short-lived, however, as the two peripheral members quit, leaving Parker (now calling himself KRS-One) and Sterling. They then decided to call themselves "Boogie Down Productions". Success is the Word, a 12-inch single release on indie Fresh/Sleeping Bag Records (under the group name "12:41") did not enjoy commercial success. Soon after, the pair approached another NY indie, Rock Candy Productions, for a deal. As it turns out, the entertainment company was allegedly a front for a pornography operation, but Parker and Sterling convinced the boss to front them the money to record an album, under the newly created subsidiary label, B-Boy Records. After a few 12-inch single releases, the Criminal Minded album finally surfaced in 1987.
Criminal Minded featured many dis tracks that attacked other hip hop emcees and tracks about street crime ("wa da da deng wa da da da deng, listen to my nine millimeter go bang"). KRS One and La Rock appeared on the cover of the album holding firearms, a controversial precedent that would be followed by many rap artists in the years to follow. Musically, the album was based around James Brown samples and reggae influences. They also sampled hard-rock band AC/DC on "Dope Beat". During these years, KRS-One was also famously involved in a hip hop battle with MC Shan, of Queensbridge. KRS objected to MC Shan calling Queensbridge the home of hip hop, and attacked him viciously on a seminal battle rap, The Bridge Is Over.
Later career and emphasis on political issues
Following the fatal shooting of Scott La Rock in 1987, Boogie Down Productions (BDP) became increasingly political. KRS One was the primary motivation behind the HEAL compilation and the Stop the Violence Movement. KRS One attracted many prominent emcees to appear on the 12-inch single "Self Destruction." As Parker adopted this more conscientious, less violent approach, he stopped calling himself "The Blastmaster" (his battle rap nickname), and instead began calling himself "The Teacha", turning the nickname KRS-ONE into the backronym "Knowledge Reigns Supreme Over Nearly Everyone".
On his first solo album, 1993's Return of the Boombap, KRS worked together with producers DJ Premier (Gang Starr), Showbiz and Kid Capri. The catchy yet very hardcore track "Sound of da Police" is featured on this album. His second album, KRS One featured Channel Live on the track "Free Mumia", a political protest song about Mumia Abu-Jamal, an imprisoned African-American and Black Panther member who a vocal group of activists on the political Left claim is innocent of the crime of which he was convicted. Other prominent guest artists on KRS One included Mad Lion, Busta Rhymes, Das EFX and Fat Joe.
In 1997, Parker surprised many with his release of the album I Got Next. The record included a remix of the single "Step into a World" which featured a sample from the 1970s rock group Blondie by commercial rap icon Puff Daddy. "Heartbeat", featuring Angie Martinez and Redman, was based on the old school classic "Feel the Heartbeat" by the Treacherous Three. These collaborations with notably mainstream artists took many fans and observers of the vehemently anti-mainstream KRS One by surprise. However, in August 1997 KRS One appeared on Tim Westwood's BBC Radio 1 show and vociferously denounced the DJ and the radio station more generally, accusing them of ignoring his style of hip-hop in favour of commercial artists such as Puff Daddy.
In 1999, there were tentative plans to release an album called "Maximum Strength"; a lead single, "5 Boroughs", was released on The Corruptor movie soundtrack. However, KRS apparently decided to abort the album's planned release, just as he had secured a position as a Vice-President of A&R at Reprise Records. KRS moved to southern California, and stayed there for two years, finally ending his relationship with Jive Records with A Retrospective in 2000. The next year, he resigned his position at Reprise and in 2001 The Sneak Attack was released on Koch Records. In 2002, he released a gospel-rap album, Spiritual Minded, surprising many longtime fans. Parker had once denounced Christianity as a "slavemaster religion" which African-Americans should not follow. He founded the Temple of Hiphop, and released a new album, Kristyles, in mid- 2003, which was preceded by KRS-One: The Mixtape. In the summer of 2004 he released Keep Right.
KRS One's latest CD Life, was released in June 2006, and another CD, Adventures in Emceein on Koch Records is slated for later in the year. KRS has also confirmed for his next album of new material, expected to be out in 2007, he will be working with Marley Marl.
September 11 comments and ensuing controversy
In 2004, KRS engendered a controversy when he was quoted in a panel discussion hosted by New Yorker Magazine as saying that Blacks "cheered when 911 happened". The comment drew criticism from many sources, including a pointed barb by the New York Daily News that called Parker an "anarchist" and said that "If Osama bin Laden ever buys a rap album, he'll probably start with a CD by KRS-One."
Parker responded to the furor surrounding his comments with an editorial written for AllHipHop.com. In it, Parker said "I was asked about why hiphop has not engaged the current situation more (meaning 911), my response was 'because it does not affect us, or at least we don’t perceive that it affects us, 911 happened to them'. I went on to say that 'I am speaking for the culture now; I am not speaking my personal opinion.' I continued to say; '911 affected them down the block; the rich, the powerful those that are oppressing us as a culture. Sony, RCA or BMG, Universal, the radio stations, Clear Channel, Viacom with BET and MTV, those are our oppressors those are the people that we're trying to overcome in hiphop everyday, this is a daily thing. We cheered when 911 happened in New York and say that proudly here. Because when we were down at the trade center we were getting hit over the head by cops, told that we can’t come in this building, hustled down to the train station because of the way we dressed and talked, and so on, we were racially profiled. So, when the planes hit the building we were like, 'mmmm, justice'. And just as I began to say 'now of course a lot of our friends and family were lost there as well' but I was interrupted..."
Just To Prove A Point
KRS-One Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Please tell me something before I'm gone
It seems like we have come to the end
Should I be listening to all my friends
Is it true what they say?
Is it true what they say?
Is it true what they say?
I'm hearing things like you'll be sleeping creeping behind my back
You might be laughin' might be jokin' but I'm thinkin' it's whack
If we are over let's be over and let's leave it at that
See I can't trust you anymore because your love is an act
Is it true what they say?
Is it true what they say?
Is it true what they say?
Just who do you, think I really am?
One of your mindless and stupid friends?
Why can't you simply tell me the truth?
So I can hold you, or cut you loose?
I'm not the type to listen to what everybody will say
But more and more it's seemin' that I can't trust you anyway
You make me think that I must sleep with somethin' over my head
For fear I wake up in a pool of blood and probably dead
How are we livin'? how are we livin'? it seems
You are not givin' what you gave in the beginning
How are we livin'? how are we livin'? it seems
You are not givin' what you gave in the beginning
Is it true what they say?
Is it true what they say?
Is it true what they say?
I'm hearing things like you'll be sleeping creeping behind my back
You might be laughing might be joking but I'm thinking it's whack
If we are over let's be over and let's leave it at that
See I can't trust you anymore because your love is an act
I'm not the type to listen to what everybody will say
But more and more it's seemin' that I can't trust you anyway
You make me think that I must sleep with somethin' over my head
For fear I wake up in a pool of blood and probably dead
Probably dead!
Probably dead.
Probably dead.
The lyrics to KRS-One's song, Just To Prove A Point, are a poignant depiction of a relationship that is on the rocks. The singer is seeking honesty from their partner, asking them to reveal what is wrong before they are gone. There is a sense of desperation in the repeated questioning of, "Is it true what they say?" as the singer grapples with rumors of infidelity and lies in their relationship. The fear and distrust that they express create a haunting image of the potential consequences of a love gone wrong.
The lyrics also touch on the idea of perception and identity, with the singer asking their partner, "Just who do you think I really am?" There is a frustration in their inability to get the truth from their partner, and the fear of being misled creates a disturbing sense of unease. The repeated refrain of "How are we livin'? How are we livin'?" highlights the disconnect between the reality of the relationship and what it once was. The final lines, "For fear I wake up in a pool of blood and probably dead," add a layer of foreboding to the song, suggesting that the consequences for ignoring the truth in a relationship can be catastrophic.
Line by Line Meaning
Tell me right now, tell me what's wrong
Please be honest with me and tell me what is causing these problems.
Please tell me something before I'm gone
I need answers before this situation becomes irreparable.
It seems like we have come to the end
Things have gone too far and it feels like it's too late to fix them.
Should I be listening to all my friends
I am questioning whether or not to believe what others are saying about you.
Is it true what they say?
I am questioning the validity of the rumors I have heard about you.
I'm hearing things like you'll be sleeping creeping behind my back
People are saying that you are being deceitful and unfaithful behind my back.
You might be laughin' might be jokin' but I'm thinkin' it's whack
I don't find the rumors about you cheating on me to be funny or acceptable.
If we are over let's be over and let's leave it at that
If our relationship is truly over, we should end it and move on.
See I can't trust you anymore because your love is an act
Your actions have shown me that your love for me is not genuine and I cannot trust you.
Just who do you, think I really am?
I am asking if you truly know who I am, or if you are simply using me for your own purposes.
One of your mindless and stupid friends?
I am questioning if you see me as someone who is easily manipulated or not intelligent.
Why can't you simply tell me the truth?
I am frustrated that you cannot be honest with me about what is going on.
So I can hold you, or cut you loose?
I need to know the truth so I can decide whether to stay in this relationship or end it.
I'm not the type to listen to what everybody will say
I usually do not believe rumors or gossip, but the things I have been hearing about you are concerning.
But more and more it's seemin' that I can't trust you anyway
Your actions have made it difficult for me to trust you, even if the rumors are not true.
You make me think that I must sleep with somethin' over my head
I am afraid that you may harm me in my sleep because of the rumors and distrust.
For fear I wake up in a pool of blood and probably dead
I am genuinely scared that things may escalate to a dangerous level.
How are we livin'? how are we livin'? it seems
I am questioning the state of our relationship and how things have changed.
You are not givin' what you gave in the beginning
It feels like you are no longer putting the same effort into our relationship that you did at the start.
Probably dead!
This line is a repeated warning of the potential danger that the artist feels.
Probably dead.
This line is a repeated warning of the potential danger that the artist feels.
Probably dead.
This line is a repeated warning of the potential danger that the artist feels.
Lyrics © BMG Rights Management
Written by: EDDIE NAPPI, G. SIMONE, PETER HINES, PETER MENGEDE
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
@sureumm7233
The chorus goes harder than just about anything ever. God damn I love KRS-ONE
@mrkingssizesnicker
Too many styles. Too many lyrics. Too many songs with any and everybody. Too many albums. KRS-ONE The Greatest MC Of All Time!
@dcnado8
Man that was just impeccable ..krs the legend 🔥🔥🔥
@thelevelbeyondhuman
KRS-1 showing us he can do heavyyyy hard rock song on his hip hop album if he wants to JUST TO PROVE A POINT!! legend
@danielgimj
This goes hard!!
@cameronjennings3863
KRS-One is a musical Renaissance man
@Menjeed
This Rocks!!!
@Hypestyle
Interesting. Parker was married to his 2nd/current wife, "G-Simone" who was an aspiring R&B singer, but apparently didn't get to release an LP. This sounds like lyrics from one of her self-written songs/poems, paired with the rock band to provide the music. The A&R folks at Jive at one point had suggested that KRS-1 record a rock album, this is a few years before folks like Korn and Limp Bizkit blew up. KRS recorded a handful of rap-rock songs in the years to come, but never a full LP. He should record an album with Rick Rubin, it would probably be fire.
@BuckDat
That's interesting. The guitar player on this, Peter Mengede, had a wife (who sadly passed away many years ago) named Reyne that was A&R at Jive at the time. She probably helped put a lot of the shit together and I gotta imagine they worked on more than just this one track.
@tylerstevens6295
Mt. Rushmore of MCs .. to be honest how can he not be