Nee-hi began his artistic journey at the early age of 11, taking things much more seriously into his mid teens and focusing fully on forming a career from then. From the age of 12 he was active in grime sets and ciphers where he would learn his trade. After constant practice and writing, at 14 years of age, Nee-hi became part of a crew known as ‘Ear to the Street’. The crew worked independently to record and put out a mix tape and a DVD which featured ‘Roll Deep’. They worked extremely hard together to get recognised and to gain the interest of people in the Ipswich area. They soon proved they were the best, when E2DS won a ‘DJ cup clash’ competition which involved a number of Ipswich’s local talents.
As his music began to progress, Nee-hi brought out an independent mix tape called ‘The Story Book’ which centred around creatively conveying stories through lyrics. This idea derived from the Slick Rick album, ‘The Art of Storytelling’. Nee-hi has always been a fan of the Hip-Hop renaissance of the late 1980's and has been largely influenced by groups such as: The Natives Tongues Posse, Rakim and Krs-One.
His most recent E.P is ‘The Delorean’ has had an extremely positive response. Drawing inspiration from 80's cult classic movie “Back to the Future”, it focused on the idea of ‘time travelling through music’ so every song corresponds to a different point in time and draws its style from the Zeitgeist of that era. This is typical of the experimentation and imagination Nee-hi attempts to bring to his music.
At present Nee-Hi has been working almost constantly with Danny C from Aim Records and has completed the recording of his new L.P 'Houston we have an L.P' which is due out in November for FREE download and CD.
Nee-Hi started working with Danny C in mid July of 2010 and a couple of months after that had a new L.P completed featuring collaborations with local Ipswich artists but also P-Money and Sketchman who he is in talks with, about shooting videos for the separate tracks they feature on. Nee-Hi has already got a few starting tracks of another project. He has also shot two videos with Jacuzzi Films who are responsible for shooting videos for artists such as Devlin, Fugative, JMC and more.
Despite being a music artist, Nee-hi has shown he also has talent with writing in other areas. He has written a number of poems and performed these to audiences across the country, in places such as Ipswich, Norwich, Diss, Bedford and Manchester. His experience in poetry has enabled him to better understand the complexity of being a lyricist and helped shape the intricate wordplay apparent in his latest work.
Name Game
Nee-Hi Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Consistant, motivation, resistance to stagnation
Of information, distribute it free to the entire population
No hesitation, makin it public
No privitazation from corporations
Today in order to be sane you gotta go crazy so remain
On top of the game, and master your universe like you was he-man
See me and hi tek knock you out de frameWhile I'm stimulatin de brain
In de "train of thought" that's the name
Of the reflection eternal lp man!
Ain't nuttin new except organic produce that means that's free range
You might see me on mtv, bet, or still up on the d-train
It's just everybody else be seemin strange in they approach
I see these guys and read they eyes
Need to disguise and so I cloak
Into a cloud of smoke, I brown a roach
To keep myself from soundin loc'
Destroy they hopes of hatin
Don't move aboard before they rock the boat
Yo it's not the dope
These snakes will come in peace to slit your throat
Give you compliments, with a promise yet
To get me heated and provoke me
To be rockin shit, shove apocalypse
Down your esophagus so swallow that
Guess what you could be coppin that
N'kiru books for fifteen dollars flat
Cats who spit knowledge on tracks
And get bumped out the back of impalas and cadillacs
All my live cincinatti bearcats holla back
Tomorrow they gonna wanna borrow raps like
"c'mon black, I'll pay you back"
I ain't no lyrical atm even though I'm nice and I'm a mackBetter believe that, leave that crack alone
And you see that there microphone
Ain't no place to work your self-esteem issues
Do that shit when you alone!
Nigga you is grown, why is you still suckin on that pacifier
Quickly call that ass a liar, exposin you's my last desire
Olympic skills so pass the fire
I roll with niggas that match attire
Black aware, that's filled with gas
But rollin on, flat ass tires
Yeah, yo hehehe, yo, yo yo yo
Yo I got a special guest
Lil' baby tone tone, tell 'em what's up
Yo we bout to be, tell 'em peace out tone
{peace out} yeah word word baby tone, what?
In these lyrics, Nee-Hi speaks of perseverance, commitment, and motivation. He believes in the free distribution of information to the masses, without privatization from corporations. He acknowledges the fact that to stay sane in the modern world, one must be willing to embrace their own form of "craziness" and stay on top of their game. He explains how he and Hi-Tek can knock their competition out of the frame, as they stimulate the brain with their music. Nee-Hi references his album "Train of Thought" and how it provides an avenue for him to share his message with the world.
Line by Line Meaning
Persistance, dedication
The importance of persisting and being dedicated in achieving goals.
Consistant, motivation, resistance to stagnation
Need for consistency, motivation, and resistance to being stagnant in order to achieve success.
Of information, distribute it free to the entire population
Sharing of information with the entire population for free.
No hesitation, makin it public
No hesitation in making information public for everyone to access.
No privitazation from corporations
Opposing privatization of information by corporations.
Today in order to be sane you gotta go crazy so remain
To maintain sanity, one may need to take risks and be unconventional.
On top of the game, and master your universe like you was he-man
Being on top of one's game and dominating one's universe like the character He-man.
See me and hi tek knock you out de frame
Showing how one's music and style can outperform others.
While I'm stimulatin de brain
Stimulating the brain with the music and lyrics.
In de "train of thought" that's the name
Referring to the album "Train of Thought" by Reflection Eternal.
Ain't nuttin new except organic produce that means that's free range
There's nothing new except for organic produce that is free range.
You might see me on mtv, bet, or still up on the d-train
One's exposure on different TV networks and still being connected to the streets.
It's just everybody else be seemin strange in they approach
Others may have a different and strange approach to things.
I see these guys and read they eyes
Observing others and reading their intentions and feelings from their expressions.
Need to disguise and so I cloak
Hiding oneself to avoid being detected by others.
Into a cloud of smoke, I brown a roach
Smoking a joint to relax and avoid stress.
To keep myself from soundin loc'
To avoid sounding crazy or irrational.
Destroy they hopes of hatin
Overcoming negative attitudes and criticism from others.
Don't move aboard before they rock the boat
Avoiding conflict and drama before it arises.
Yo it's not the dope
Clarifying that the message is not about drugs.
These snakes will come in peace to slit your throat
Warning about dishonest people who will harm you even when they act friendly and harmless.
Give you compliments, with a promise yet
Deceiving you by giving compliments and making promises.
To get me heated and provoke me
Provoking someone by making them angry or upset.
To be rockin shit, shove apocalypse
Showing one's ability to dominate and control things, even in the face of an apocalyptic situation.
Down your esophagus so swallow that
Forcing someone to accept or deal with a difficult situation.
Guess what you could be coppin that
Encouraging fans to purchase and support the artist's music.
N'kiru books for fifteen dollars flat
Promoting and selling the book "N'kiru" for a flat price of fifteen dollars.
Cats who spit knowledge on tracks
Artists who share knowledge and wisdom in their music.
And get bumped out the back of impalas and cadillacs
Referring to how music is played and enjoyed in cars.
All my live cincinatti bearcats holla back
Shoutout to fans from Cincinnati who support and follow the artist's music.
Tomorrow they gonna wanna borrow raps like
Predicting that others will want to copy and use the artist's style.
"c'mon black, I'll pay you back"
Promising to pay back someone that they owe.
I ain't no lyrical atm even though I'm nice and I'm a mack
Clarifying that the artist is not just a source of money or lyrics, but also someone who is skilled and respected.
Better believe that, leave that crack alone
Encouraging others to avoid using drugs and to believe in themselves.
And you see that there microphone
Showing the importance and power of one's microphone and voice.
Ain't no place to work your self-esteem issues
Clarifying that the artist's music is not a way to address one's self-esteem problems.
Do that shit when you alone!
Encouraging people to work on their self-esteem and personal issues when they are alone and can properly focus.
Nigga you is grown, why is you still suckin on that pacifier
Questioning why someone is still acting childish and immature even though they are an adult.
Quickly call that ass a liar, exposin you's my last desire
Refusing to deal with or be associated with liars and being honest in exposing them.
Olympic skills so pass the fire
Being skilled and successful in one's craft.
I roll with niggas that match attire
Surrounding oneself with like-minded people who share similar styles or tastes.
Black aware, that's filled with gas
Being aware of the importance and power of one's black culture and community.
But rollin on, flat ass tires
Struggling or facing challenges even when one has knowledge and skill, represented by the metaphor of the car rolling on flat tires.
Yeah, yo hehehe, yo, yo yo yo
Repeating a sound or phrase to create a musical effect.
Yo I got a special guest
Announcing the presence of a special guest on the track.
Lil' baby tone tone, tell 'em what's up
Introducing the special guest artist, named "Lil' baby tone tone".
Yo we bout to be, tell 'em peace out tone
Saying goodbye to the audience and the guest artist.
{peace out} yeah word word baby tone, what?
Closing the song with a final call-and-response between the artist and the guest artist.
Lyrics © BMG Rights Management
Written by: TALIB KWELI GREENE, TONY COTTRELL
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind