Noted for his intense flow and sharp wit, Francis has won acclaim both as a freestyle battler and as an unapologetic, intellectual lyricist. Francis uses a broad emotional palette to address a wide range of personal, cultural, and political issues. His unconventional style and persona have given him crossover appeal, but at the same time alienated some hip-hop listeners.
Prior to embarking on a full-time career as an MC, Francis displayed his skills in slam poetry. During the late 1990s, he recorded his first demo tape (1996), fronted the now defunct Providence hip-hop band Art Official Intelligence, and hosted a weekly slot on independent radio station WRIU (the "True School Session"). He also formed the Non-Prophets and released a 12” (Drop Bass/Bounce/I Keep Calling, Emerge Records, 1999), following up in 2003 with their first full-length offering, Hope. Francis is a contemporary of underground hip-hop artists such as Slug, Eyedea, Sole and the anticon. collective. He is also loosely affiliated with the vague underground hip-hop super-group The Orphanage.
As a solo performer, Francis won the MC battle at the 2000 Scribble Jam, and in 2001 he came close to repeating as champion (semi-finalist) while performing as his "metal" alter ego, "Xaul Zan". Francis released his first proper solo album, Personal Journals, on Anticon. in 2002. He toured with a live band on the Live Band Dead Poet Tour to support it. Francis subsequently became the first hip-hop artist to sign with Punk label Epitaph, agreeing to a three-album deal. His first album for Epitaph, A Healthy Distrust, was released in early 2005 and was followed up with Human the Death Dance in 2007.
One of Francis' best-known tracks is "Makeshift Patriot", a commentary on the American media recorded one month after the September 11, 2001 attacks which he released on the internet as an MP3 as well as a limited edition 7" single.
In February 2005 Sage dropped his second full length album on the originally punk label Epitaph, it was widely regarded as the best underground hip hop album of the year by critics and fans alike and featured heavily political tracks such as "The Buzz Kill" and "Slow Down Gandhi" and more personal material like that more similar to that of his debut 'Personal Journals' such as 'Bridle' and a few heavily satirical comments on the modern day rap and urban scene such as the satirical comment on youth gun culture 'Gunz Yo'.
Sage has helped to set up the Wiki KnowMore.org which is described as a 'way to keep tabs on the some of the biggest and most dangerous businesses in the world'. He is a vegetarian and also chooses to abstain from drugs and drinking, though doesn't label himself as "straight-edge" because he believes "you shouldn't define yourself by what you don't do."
Sage has set up his own label and signed some of who he claims to be his favorite artists of the moment such as Buck 65 and Proplyphic and Reanimator named Strange Famous (which shares his initials) with which he released his most recent work 'Human the Death Dance'
This album was released in May 2007 and takes a step away from the heavily political 'Healthy Distrust' and heads back to the more personal lyrics of 'Personal Journals' and comments on modern culture. The album features cameos from many Strange Famous artists such as Buddy Wakefield, Buck 65 and Reanimator.
In 2010 Sage released his fourth full length album Li(f)e (the title coming from the famous quote from 'The Cure' on the Non-Prophets album Hope "Life is just a lie with an f in it and death is definite"). The album was extremely well received and one particular single off of the album 'The Best Of Times' received extensive air play on the popular British radio station Radio 1. After Sages Li(f)e tour Sage has stated that he will no longer be doing tours but will still be releasing albums and other materials, instead he will be doing select gigs throughout each year.
On 3 June 2014, Sage released his fifth studio album 'Copper Gone'. It is the first official studio album after Sage Francis announced his hiatus, which lasted for four years.
Different
Sage Francis Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
What have I done to myself? It's been way too long!"
We need to reacquaint. Things are different now, I ain't the same man I was
Hi, how are you doing? I'm new and improved with even less to lose
A collector's edition version of a virgin drink ordering cocktail teller
Gone way wrong...to the point of no rerun
Holding my head in pure doubt
Out of insight. Out of mindful things to shout or rhyme about
Yeah, I know I was supposed to change the world and all
But it looks like the world got to me first
If you can't beat em, join 'em..
Then hurt the team by beating yourself
I'm different...in a different way
The only thing that stays the same is change
While people claim their states, I state my claims
Sage Francis made a name for himself
For the record my mother calls me Paul
Which was my father's middle name, but Ray
Stepped in and raised me
It's crazy, but this is a game I play
called "Shut the fuck uuuuuuup!"
Don't bother calling me at all because I'm not answering
Is that a voice-mail-bomb-threat or a broken promise I'm mishandling?
Gambling away my money issues, somebody owes me big bucks
My career depends on explosive vacuums sucking me in and blowing me up
Poetry struck a nerve in the listenership
Spoken word then got 'em all interested
Now I don't have to serve ice cream to little kids
I serve emcees who think they're rippin' it
And poets who think they're somehow significant
Meanwhile both are loud and ignorant
And don't know how to speak to a crowd in an intimate environment
I am different. In a different way
The only thing that stays the same is change
While people claim their states, I state my claims
I'm a quiet natured player who outwardly hates the game
I shake what I got, which is a jingly pocket
I do my mini-market research and make noise for myself when I walk quick
I talk with authority while I question it
When I ask, "Who am I?" I'm left guessing
But if you're a poor man's version of ANYTHING
It is your self-perception
Growing up in a microscopic town prepared me well for this petrii dish
Where talk is invisible to the eye and they hate the guy they're speaking with
I'm a real vegetarian: No chicken...not even fish
I'm a real underground rapper
My tape quality sucks, my records are warped and my CD skips
Lady Luck is a greedy bitch with itchy palms and a case of the gimmes
I've got an outtie if she's got an inny, I'll clean her pipes and then sweep her chimney
The beat that's in me is polyrhythmic. You're only 60 heart beats per minute
A human second-hand-me-down-to-earth-guy who will thriftshop-lift his hiphop
I may be getting too big for my britches
but I paid my dues when the cost was climbing
If I burn too many bridges I'll never get off of this awful island
As long as I've been rhyming, they only started listening
Because for a while they didn't like how
I wouldn't smoke the pot that I was pissin' in
Plus I had no dead homies to pour out the liquor I don't drink
You can flash your shiny objects in front of my eyes and I won't blink
I'm motherfucking different. Oooohhhh yyyeeeaaahhhh..
I'm motherfucking different. Oooohhhh yyyeeeaaahhhh..
The lyrics in Sage Francis's song "Different" touch on themes of transformation, self-doubt, and finding one's place in the world. The line "Nothing at last is sacred" suggests that the world can be a harsh and uncertain place where nothing is guaranteed. The reference to the fallen great speaks to the idea that even those with the most promise and success can stumble and fall.
The singer questions what they have done to themselves, suggesting they may have contributed to their own struggles. They acknowledge that they need to "reacquaint" with the world because things are different now. The singer points out that they are not the same person they used to be and that they are "new and improved with even less to lose." Despite the confidence in this statement, there is an undercurrent of uncertainty and vulnerability throughout the lyrics.
The song also touches on themes of identity and self-perception. The singer notes that people claim their states, but they state their own claims. They suggest they are quiet-natured and hate the game they are playing, indicating that they are not interested in conforming to societal expectations. They also discuss the challenges of being an underground artist and the insecurity that can come with that job. Ultimately, the song's message seems to be that being different can be tough but that it's important to stay true to oneself.
Line by Line Meaning
Nothing at last is sacred. Oh how the great have fallen
We need to reacquaint. Things are different now, I ain't the same man I was
What have I done to myself? It's been way too long!
Hi, how are you doing? I'm new and improved with even less to lose
A collector's edition version of a virgin drink ordering cocktail teller
Gone way wrong...to the point of no rerun
Over the edge and burned out before I even got my shine
Holding my head in pure doubt
Out of insight. Out of mindful things to shout or rhyme about
Out of insight. Out of mindful things to shout or rhyme about
Yeah, I know I was supposed to change the world and all
But it looks like the world got to me first
If you can't beat em, join 'em..
Then hurt the team by beating yourself
I'm different...in a different way
The only thing that stays the same is change
While people claim their states, I state my claims
Sage Francis made a name for himself
For the record my mother calls me Paul
Which was my father's middle name, but Ray
Stepped in and raised me
It's crazy, but this is a game I play called "Shut the fuck uuuuuuup!"
Don't bother calling me at all because I'm not answering
Is that a voice-mail-bomb-threat or a broken promise I'm mishandling?
Gambling away my money issues, somebody owes me big bucks
My career depends on explosive vacuums sucking me in and blowing me up
Poetry struck a nerve in the listenership
Spoken word then got 'em all interested
Now I don't have to serve ice cream to little kids
I serve emcees who think they're rippin' it
And poets who think they're somehow significant
Meanwhile both are loud and ignorant
And don't know how to speak to a crowd in an intimate environment
And don't know how to speak to a crowd in an intimate environment
I'm a quiet natured player who outwardly hates the game
I shake what I got, which is a jingly pocket
I do my mini-market research and make noise for myself when I walk quick
I do my mini-market research and make noise for myself when I walk quick
I talk with authority while I question it
When I ask, "Who am I?" I'm left guessing
But if you're a poor man's version of ANYTHING
It is your self-perception
Growing up in a microscopic town prepared me well for this petrii dish
Where talk is invisible to the eye and they hate the guy they're speaking with
I'm a real vegetarian: No chicken...not even fish
I'm a real underground rapper
My tape quality sucks, my records are warped and my CD skips
My tape quality sucks, my records are warped and my CD skips
Lady Luck is a greedy bitch with itchy palms and a case of the gimmes
I've got an outtie if she's got an inny, I'll clean her pipes and then sweep her chimney
The beat that's in me is polyrhythmic. You're only 60 heart beats per minute
A human second-hand-me-down-to-earth-guy who will thriftshop-lift his hiphop
I may be getting too big for my britches
But I paid my dues when the cost was climbing
If I burn too many bridges I'll never get off of this awful island
If I burn too many bridges I'll never get off of this awful island
As long as I've been rhyming, they only started listening
Because for a while they didn't like how I wouldn't smoke the pot that I was pissin' in
Plus I had no dead homies to pour out the liquor I don't drink
You can flash your shiny objects in front of my eyes and I won't blink
I'm motherfucking different. Oooohhhh yyyeeeaaahhhh..
I'm motherfucking different. Oooohhhh yyyeeeaaahhhh..
Lyrics © O/B/O APRA AMCOS
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
Cheche Garcia
on Buckets Of Silence
I never held a funeral for that big part of me that died.
I need to put these thoughts to rest. i need to find a peace of mind.
I need to piece my mind, find a piece of mind to rest in.
need to find someone to confide in, and with the rest i need to start restin'.
needless to say, i couldn't hide.
fifteen grown men shouldn't cry.
Cheche Garcia
on Message Sent
I've got some letters inside of my drawer
that should have been stamped and delivered
One is addressed to my ex
it says I'm the type of kid who can't be lived with
One is addressed to my friends
it says I'm a mess so y'all can't visit
One is addressed to myself
but I don't know what personality or hand to give it