Originally a member of Busta Rhymes' crew, Flipmode Squad becoming the sixth member after the departure of Lord Have Mercy, (aside from other flipmode acts Serious and Show Money) Roc Marciano left in 2001 to form the U.N., a hardcore underground hip hop group consisting of three other MCs (Dino Brave, Laku & Mic Raw) with whom he released an album on Carson Daly's 456 Entertainment in 2004. Notably, Roc Marciano appeared in the 2005 Wu-Tang Clan compilation album, Wu-Tang Meets the Indie Culture, and in Pete Rock's 2008 album, NY's Finest, drawing acclaim for such performances. Since 2008, Roc Marciano has been working on his solo career, and to widespread internet acclaim, released his entirely self-produced debut album, Marcberg in 2010.
In 2011, Roc Marciano collaborated with Gangrene, the duo of rapper/producers Oh No and The Alchemist, to release the collaborative EP Greneberg. His second solo album, Reloaded, was released in November 2012, which Allmusic described as "Grim and exultant at once, this is low-profile hustling on wax at its finest."
Even a cursory glance at the history of Strong Island reveals that its produced more than its fair share of innovative verbal technicians over the years. One of the most original MCs to hail from its shores in recent times has been Roc Marciano from The UN crew. Initially put on by fellow L.I. resident Busta Rhymes, it wasn’t until Marcy and his crew lent their vocals to three tracks for Pete Rock’s Petestrumentals project that the world really took notice. Utilizing a stream-of-consciousness technique that sounds effortless but is actually very precise in terms of timing and cadence, Marciano is in a class of his own right now.
Thread Count
Roc Marciano Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
In the land cruiser
Tan like I been to cuba
Keys is white like sand in aruba
Exude confidence
From my view of the metropolis
I fed flakes to my tropical fish
Pull the top off the six
I’m no push over
I push a Rover
You push a Puma like a foot sodier
I put dog like I push cola
And cock the pistola
Hands inside the isotoners
Spend the night with a dice roller
You pray your ice gets returned
To its rightful owner
Rifles in the trunk of the caddy
We dump you in the swamps
Somewhere down in miami
My brush stroke the canvas
You caught in a gambit
And pimp slapped open handed
I demanded
For the operation to be expanded
Be a standard
Gee our ran was enchanted
Tool belt wearing I’m a mechanic
Bad bitch swinging in the hammock
I took a dip in the Atlantic
And bit the salmon
Its slamming
Come on hit me
I sit up in the four fifty
Shifty
This is raw nigga history
A slick pimp might resort to trickery
Bitches dig me
Your money fall short like a pygmy
Waves flow like the Mississippi
Guns longer than the wig on a hippy
On the hip keep the blicky
Petite wiz opposite of Missy
Depict me as super witty
My shank might remove her titty
I jumped off the heel of my achilles
This is light work to me
Turn a knife if your kidney
I pray Allah might forgive me
Now who could see me
Musically I’m with the kundalini
I easily scoop your Nefertiti
I bump the CD
In the green Lamborghini
Demonstrator
In linen and gator
Slick tongue like a litigator
Facilitator
Decision maker
My inner layers
Is the himalayas
Bridget is impressed by the days
Yellow gold and terry cloth robes
The Wardrobe
That made hoes come in droves
With less clothes and the flesh exposed
In a Lexus we drove through infested roads
Pellets are thrown into flesh and bone
Your name get carved into headstones slow
Gangster cadance
My space is shaded
The heat is nickel plated
Assets is liquidated
What I’m conveying
Isn’t easily articulated
Roll solo
Like the Marcsberg photo
Earth from Acapulco
We hit that
Flat screen cinemax promo
Benz logo
Black RLX polo
Your tongues knotted up like soto
But on the low tho
The lyrics of "Thread Count" by Roc Marciano depict the luxurious and dangerous lifestyle of a gangster. The opening lines suggest that the singer is enjoying his isolation by smoking weed in his Land Cruiser. He describes himself as tan from his presumed travels to tropical destinations like Cuba and Aruba. He exudes confidence, not only in his appearance but in his activities as well. He boasts of feeding flakes to his tropical fish, driving around town in a convertible while donning “isotoners” and spending the night with a dice roller.
As the lyrics progress, we see the character's violent side as he brags about cocking the pistola and keeping rifles in his Cadillac's trunk. He talks about dumping his victims' bodies in the swamps of Miami, and his brushstroke on the canvas refers to his act of violence. The use of metaphors for violence shows that the singer is comfortable with his criminal acts, and his confident demeanor indicates he has little fear of being caught.
Overall, the song's lyrics show Roc Marciano's mastery of vivid imagery, meaningful metaphors, and storytelling, creating a full picture of the singer's life in the listener's mind.
Line by Line Meaning
In seclusion I pin up piff
I smoke weed alone in private
In the land cruiser
I drive a luxury SUV
Tan like I been to cuba
I have a dark tan
Keys is white like sand in aruba
My car keys are white like the sand in Aruba
Exude confidence
I project a strong sense of self-assurance
From my view of the metropolis
From my perspective of the city
I fed flakes to my tropical fish
I take care of my pet fish by feeding them well
Pull the top off the six
I'm driving a convertible
Like Badu wig
In a stylish manner, like Erykah Badu's wigs
I’m no push over
I'm not easily intimidated
I push a Rover
I drive a Range Rover
You push a Puma like a foot sodier
You drive a less impressive car
I put dog like I push cola
I sell drugs like I sell soda
And cock the pistola
I load my gun
Hands inside the isotoners
I wear Isotoner gloves
Spend the night with a dice roller
I gamble with a friend overnight
You pray your ice gets returned
You hope your stolen jewelry is recovered
To its rightful owner
To the person it belongs to
Rifles in the trunk of the caddy
I have guns in the trunk of my Cadillac
We dump you in the swamps
We dispose of your dead body in the swamps
Somewhere down in miami
Somewhere in Miami
My brush stroke the canvas
I am artistic
You caught in a gambit
You're stuck in a difficult situation
And pimp slapped open handed
I physically hit someone in a disrespectful manner
I demanded
I made a firm request
For the operation to be expanded
For the business to expand
Be a standard
Set a high standard
Gee our ran was enchanted
My friend Gee was amazed
Tool belt wearing I’m a mechanic
I know how to fix things
Bad bitch swinging in the hammock
A beautiful woman relaxing in a hammock
I took a dip in the Atlantic
I went swimming in the ocean
And bit the salmon
I ate some salmon
Its slamming
It's excellent
Come on hit me
Give me your best shot, I'm not afraid
I sit up in the four fifty
I sit upright in my car, a Mercedes-Benz S450
Shifty
I'm sly and cunning
This is raw nigga history
This is the real-life history of a Black man
A slick pimp might resort to trickery
A smooth hustler might use deception to get ahead
Bitches dig me
Women find me attractive
Your money fall short like a pygmy
Your money is not enough
Waves flow like the Mississippi
My waves (hair) are of excellent quality
Guns longer than the wig on a hippy
My guns are long
On the hip keep the blicky
I carry a gun on my hip for protection
Petite wiz opposite of Missy
A small, intelligent woman who's different from Missy Elliott
Depict me as super witty
You can describe me as a quick-witted person
My shank might remove her titty
My knife might cut off a woman's breast
I jumped off the heel of my achilles
I overcame great adversity
This is light work to me
This task is easy for me
Turn a knife if your kidney
I will stab you in the kidney
I pray Allah might forgive me
I hope God forgives me for my sins
Now who could see me
Who can challenge me?
Musically I’m with the kundalini
I'm emotionally connected to music
I easily scoop your Nefertiti
I can easily attract a beautiful woman like Nefertiti
I bump the CD
I listen to music
In the green Lamborghini
I'm riding in a green Lamborghini
Demonstrator
I'm test driving this car
In linen and gator
I'm wearing linen clothing and alligator skin accessories
Slick tongue like a litigator
I have excellent verbal skills like a lawyer
Facilitator
I make things happen
Decision maker
I make important choices
My inner layers
My inner self
Is the himalayas
My inner self is vast and majestic
Bridget is impressed by the days
My friend Bridget is awed by my success
Yellow gold and terry cloth robes
I wear luxurious clothing
The Wardrobe
My collection of stylish clothes
That made hoes come in droves
My clothing attracted many women
With less clothes and the flesh exposed
Women come to me wearing less clothes and showing skin
In a Lexus we drove through infested roads
We drove a Lexus through dangerous parts of town
Pellets are thrown into flesh and bone
Gunshots are fired at people
Your name get carved into headstones slow
You could die from gun violence
Gangster cadance
I have a rhythmic way of speaking like a gangster
My space is shaded
My presence is intimidating
The heat is nickel plated
I have guns with nickel plating
Assets is liquidated
I sell off my property for cash
What I’m conveying
What I'm trying to say
Isn’t easily articulated
Is difficult to put into words
Roll solo
I travel alone
Like the Marcsberg photo
Like a photo taken by the rapper Marcberg
Earth from Acapulco
Marijuana (a nickname for the drug)
We hit that
We smoke marijuana
Flat screen cinemax promo
We watch a movie on a high-tech TV
Benz logo
The Mercedes-Benz symbol
Black RLX polo
I'm wearing a black Ralph Lauren polo shirt
Your tongues knotted up like soto
You're struggling to speak
But on the low tho
But secretly
Contributed by Jordyn N. Suggest a correction in the comments below.