The incident was a major setback that suspended his dream of becoming a filmmaker. Although dismayed and discouraged, SLAINE was determined to prevail, and began a new pursuit towards his entertainment goal… Music.
His discovered his love for hip hop early in his life. "I started writing rhymes when I was nine years old, I use to record on my boom box with a pair of headphones plugged into the microphone jack. I felt they were just words on a page because I didn’t have an outlet to perform them.” Determined and focused, SLAINE spent his nights as a club promoter to survive in the hard lonely streets of New York City, while at the same time, recording and being managed by hip-hop legend MC Shan. While recording a demo in a studio operated by the Lordz of Brooklyn, SLAINE was introduced to Danny Boy O'Connor of House of Pain.
That introduction led to a production deal with DJ Lethal of House of Pain, which in turn led to the mix tape release ‘The White Man is the Devil: Volume 1’ and the formation of the group Special Teamz, with Boston rap legends Edo G and Jaysaun. Special Teamz dropped a self-titled street CD, which garnered critical acclaim and allowed the group to tour in Europe. In a very short time, SLAINE had gone from living in poverty with a drug habit to traveling the world and working with hip-hop icons such as DJ Premier, Ill Bill, House of Pain, Cypress Hill, The Alchemist, and a host of other talented artists. He also became part of the collective LA COKA NOSTRA, alongside Ill Bill and all three members of House of Pain - Everlast, DJ Lethal, and Danny Boy. La Coka Nostra’s debut album, "A Brand You Can Trust" debuted at #84 on the Billboard Top 200 and #6 on the Rap charts, sending a message to the masses that the group’s brand of gritty hip-hop was exactly what fans of the genre had been waiting for.
SLAINE's name continued to grow far past his hometown of Boston due to the exposure he has received in publications such as The Source, XXL, The New York Times, The Boston Herald, and his sold out performances across the globe. SLAINE has been nominated for a Boston Music Award and received 4 trophies at The Mass Industry Committee's hip-hop awards, including and award for Best Lyricist.
As his music career expanded, a personal battle with drugs became a focal point that reared its ugly head. After overdoses, hospital visits and a whirlwind of drugs and violence, SLAINE finally checked into rehab. Instantly, he found himself with homeless drug addicts and realized he was no different than any of them. "Everybody had a story to tell. That was where the idea and the hunger for "The White Man is the Devil" was born. "The White Man" is a cocaine reference, not a declaration of self hate."
Since conquering his addiction, SLAINE has been presented with many new and exciting possibilities… such as acting. A chance of a lifetime presented itself through an unexpected ally, hometown hero and Academy Award winner Ben Affleck. SLAINE made his acting debut with his portrayal of Bubba Rogowski in Affleck's return to screenwriting and directorial debut "Gone Baby Gone". The film was critically acclaimed and led to a larger role in the blockbuster “The Town” featuring Ben Affleck, Jeremy Renner (The Hurt Locker), and Jon Hamm (Mad Men). He is also been in films, “The Crack Down” and “Bad Blood” and in the upcoming movie “Cogan’s Trade” with Brad Pitt, Ray Liotta and James Gandolfini.
While Slaine’s acting career has allowed him to blaze new paths, his venomous lyrical attack burns hotter than ever on his debut solo album, "A World With No Skies 2.0", which drops August 16th , 2011 through Suburban Noize Records. With hard-hitting lyrical content, and a vicious delivery, "A World with No Skies 2.0" instantly takes hip-hop back to its grimy roots on the streets. To execute his dark musical vision, Slaine enlisted the help of his La Coka Nostra brothers Everlast and ILL BILL, as well as Cypress Hill’s B-Real and Vinnie Paz of Jedi Mind Tricks, to create a dark hip-hop album that hits squarely in the jaw. "Even though I started my career as a solo artist by hustling my ‘The White Man is the Devil’ mixtapes, I think people are more familiar with me from Special Teamz and La Coka Nostra,” commented Slaine. “With this album I set out to create a soundscape that brings you into my world as an individual which is a bad place to be. The record is hard, dark and aggressive, from the beats to the lyrics. It’s a deeply personal trip through my life and the things that made me who I am today. A ‘World with No Skies’ is a look into my psyche and a vision of my dreams, nightmares, and realities."
Despite ups and downs throughout his career, SLAINE is living his life to the fullest. "I love making music that means something to me, I am grateful for all the experiences that I have had—good and bad. I am lucky to be alive, but my past also made me who I am today.”
The Last Song
Slaine Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
If it were to be the night that these motherfuckers murdered me
If it were to be a car crash swerving into a Mercury
Burgundy splash through the glass when sirens circle me
I will be viewed as violent certainly
Drug-addled so maybe I've only written the worst of me
Maybe by me even writing these words I'm tempting the fates
They come from the heart sent from a place
In a time warp when a mind walked from a sick scene on a sidewalk
Full of suicide thoughts, full of false dreams and hopes that you and I bought
Like dope so we had to find things to cope
Ended up covered in dirt not washed with soap
We ended up learning all about the cost of coke
By the rope and seen some good folks lost from dope
I can't begin to begin, I'm just horrified
You're me, this thing, you think it's glorified
I just hear the pendulum swing again and again
The same song, broken dreams and dead friends
I been where I been now I stand where I am
As a man with a mic in his hand now goddamn
Back holding the crack planet that's covered with monkeys
As I walk through the halls of recovering junkies
[Chorus]
If this was that last song I ever wrote
I'd tell you to grab it by the throat
If this is the last song I ever write
I'll tell you to stand back up and fight
Live your life, give your life
Stand up and fight, you're mad
Live your life, give your life
Stand up and fight, you're mad
If these the last words I ever spoke
Would you listen closer?
Would you close your eyes, envision what I'm supposed to be?
Just a ghost of my boys that overdosed
On crushed-up poison, crushed with the noise of the ocean
Way before Affleck or Costa Nostra
Before I had a cashed check or a poster
Rode sofa to sofa clutching on the old toaster
Writing on spray paper, gray days of cold culture
Devil got an ulcer with a habit to match it
In a bad temper so I'm grabbing a ratchet
Just to go along with it my stakes are high
To the people this is the way that I say goodbye
To my baby boy Terrance, parents so opposite
Just as smart as momma is, fiery as poppa gets
Just one thing little man you cannot forget
If your will is real nobody else can stop the shit
Shit I'm living proof, take a look and figure it
I grew up in a paradox and rather not forgive the shit
But I had to box out this box and I live with it
Boxed out of detox, they said I'm on some wigger shit
Hated, they were racist so I was facing bigger shit
Seen too many homies die just trying to dig a ditch
I philosophize all my life burning cigarettes
I became smarter but y'all returned to ignorant
[Chorus]
In this powerful and introspective song, Slaine reflects on his life and the possibility that this might be his last song. He acknowledges his struggles with drug addiction and the violent nature of his past, admitting that he may have only written the "worst" part of himself. He contemplates the idea that by writing these words, he may be tempting fate and putting his life in danger. Slaine then delves into the gritty details of his experiences with drugs, describing the devastating consequences they have had on himself and those around him. Despite all of this, he encourages listeners to live their lives to the fullest and to stand up and fight for what they believe in.
Line by Line Meaning
If this the last song I ever wrote
If it were to be the night that these motherfuckers murdered me
If it were to be a car crash swerving into a Mercury
Burgundy splash through the glass when sirens circle me
I will be viewed as violent certainly
Drug-addled so maybe I've only written the worst of me
Maybe by me even writing these words I'm tempting the fates
They come from the heart sent from a place
I couldn't find in my mind, I was blind, I was lost
In a time warp when a mind walked from a sick scene on a sidewalk
Full of suicide thoughts, full of false dreams and hopes that you and I bought
Like dope so we had to find things to cope
Ended up covered in dirt not washed with soap
Ended up learning all about the cost of coke
By the rope and seen some good folks lost from dope
I can't begin to begin, I'm just horrified
You're me, this thing, you think it's glorified
I just hear the pendulum swing again and again
The same song, broken dreams and dead friends
I been where I been now I stand where I am
As a man with a mic in his hand now goddamn
Back holding the crack planet that's covered with monkeys
As I walk through the halls of recovering junkies
If this was that last song I ever wrote
I'd tell you to grab it by the throat
If this is the last song I ever write
I'll tell you to stand back up and fight
Live your life, give your life
Stand up and fight, you're mad
Live your life, give your life
Stand up and fight, you're mad
If these the last words I ever spoke
Would you listen closer?
Would you close your eyes, envision what I'm supposed to be?
Just a ghost of my boys that overdosed
On crushed-up poison, crushed with the noise of the ocean
Way before Affleck or Costa Nostra
Before I had a cashed check or a poster
Rode sofa to sofa clutching on the old toaster
Writing on spray paper, gray days of cold culture
Devil got an ulcer with a habit to match it
In a bad temper so I'm grabbing a ratchet
Just to go along with it my stakes are high
To the people this is the way that I say goodbye
To my baby boy Terrance, parents so opposite
Just as smart as momma is, fiery as poppa gets
Just one thing little man you cannot forget
If your will is real nobody else can stop the shit
Shit I'm living proof, take a look and figure it
I grew up in a paradox and rather not forgive the shit
But I had to box out this box and I live with it
Boxed out of detox, they said I'm on some wigger shit
Hated, they were racist so I was facing bigger shit
Seen too many homies die just trying to dig a ditch
I philosophize all my life burning cigarettes
I became smarter but y'all returned to ignorant
[Chorus]
If this the last song I ever wrote
Lyrics © O/B/O APRA AMCOS
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
John Anderson
on My Girl, My Wife, My Mother My Bitch
sh*ts super sick wit it legit, i love slaine, viva slaine, true lyracist boston up, westside down. sh*t man i mean im from the westside you already know how we go, we pimpin playing its trap out here cuz. The bay got it like yeee yaadidah err day... and the east got it whoop unorthodox true hiphop lyricism I have to say theres some crazy good sh*t coming out the east and I love where its going man. love the sound, love the style, f-in raw and brutal, genius yo.