Rapper-producer Jay Dee left after the group's first national album, 2000's Fantastic, Vol. 2 (Barak) and rhymer Elzhi was added to the mix for 2002's Trinity (Past, Present And Future) (Barak/Capitol). Now, with the release of Slum Village's new album, the stunningly impressive Detroit Deli (Barak/Capitol), the group consists of just T3 and Elzhi. Throughout the changes, Slum Village's musical mission has remained constant: to deliver soul-stirring sonics that represent Detroit to the fullest. That vision is fully realized on Detroit Deli. Throughout the sensational 15-cut collection, T3 and Elzhi give listeners an intimate look at life in The D, from where they shop, hang with friends and eat to the type of cars they drive (check "Zoom") and what clothes they wear.
Slum Village represents the Midwest's funk heritage on the inspirational "Do You," which was produced by Jay Dee, and teams with Chicago's Kanye West on lead single "Selfish," a sly, piano-driven song where T3, Elzhi and West rap about their desire to have a monopoly with women. They then team with Ol' Dirty Bastard on the riotous "Dirty" about having to battle for a woman and deliver a Player's Hand Guide of sorts on the sensuous "Count The Ways," Both produced by B.R. Gunna.
Even though Slum Village excels at making this type of lighthearted music, they show on Detroit Deli that they also hit hard with more serious subject matter. On the moving, guitar-driven "Keep Holding On," they rap about people not losing faith in their lives, while on the stirring "Old Girl/Shining Star," T3 and Elzhi send a open letter of hope and support to single mothers working hard to survive.
"The inspiration came from my boy's niece who has a gang of kids and is out here struggling," Elzhi says. "She's stringing her kids around on the bus, just to get by. By me just looking at that, I'm like, 'I need to write a song because I know she's not the only one going through it.' Slum Village has never touched on ladies like that and everybody is calling girls hoes and Bs, dissing these ladies, so we wanted to touch the ladies in a different way."
The group also takes a different route on "Reunion." Jay Dee joins T3 and Elzhi on the insightful cut, which offers three different takes on the group's status. "It's like you're going through three state of minds at one time kind of in reverse," T3 says. "What we're trying to say is that we wish we were together, we might be together and then we're not together at all. We're trying to give you all the aspects of how people are coming at us, the type of stuff we're dealing with and kind of give you a glimpse of the stuff we're dealing with in the group."
Indeed, songs such as "Keep Holding On," "Old Girl/Shining Star" and "The Reunion" signal Slum Village's evolution; they mark the first time the group has let listeners in on their personal feelings. "I don't think people really know us and we never really touched on our emotions like that," T3 says. "We wanted to bring some realness, besides just the soul music. Elzhi, as a guy that saw Slum Village on the outside, he brought it to my attention that we never touched on serious topics and that we should try to touch on them more. I was with that and I have a lot to say, so why not?"
Detroit Deli also stands as Slum Village's most musically rich album to date. B.R. Gunna producers Black Milk and Young RJ, both 20 years old, handled the majority of the beats, while Kanye West produced "Selfish," Jay Dee handled "Do You" and T3 along with young RJ produced "Closer" and "Count The Ways." The beats are as divergent as the album's subject matter, ranging from soulful to futuristic, but they always remain powerful and innovative.
The same can be said for Slum Village's storied career. After releasing Fan-tas-tic Vol. 1 independently, Slum Village became one of hip-hop's hottest groups. While working on Fantastic vol. 2, they were joined in the studio by such luminaries as D'Angelo, Busta Rhymes, Kurupt, Pete Rock, and A Tribe Called Quest's Q-Tip, among others. The resulting album became an underground classic and Slum Village was seen as the second coming of the Native Tongues (A Tribe Called Quest, Jungle Brothers, De La Soul) by member Q-Tip, as well as fans and journalists alike.
Jay Dee left the group after Fantastic, vol. 2 in order to work on his solo career, but Slum Village pressed on, releasing in 2002 the Dirty District mixtape and later that year its third album and first with new member Elzhi, Trinity. Many fans looked at rapper-producer Jay Dee as the group's backbone, but Trinity proved that Slum Village could provide without its sonic architect, as that album's single "Tainted" became the group's biggest hit.
"We've always stuck to our guns," T3 says. "We've never tried to change to get commercial success. We always just did what we did and when you do what you do, eventually somebody's going to have to give you your respect for having the courage to do what you do."
Now back where they started, Slum Village yet again thrills and delights fans and gains yet a larger audience hungry for the smoking beats under the hot lyrical talent of T3 and Elzhi. Slum has begun to bring more of their personal feelings to their music, allowing the listeners and fans to touch more on the emotions and realness and touched on more serious topics. Prequel to a Classic features previously unreleased joints and jams from Slum Village with production by B.R. Gunna, J Dilla and Kareem Riggins. The mixtape gives listeners the best of some of their material since Fantastic Vol. 1.
T3 has said in a recent interview that slum village has reunited with Baatin and has added Illa J(J Dilla's Brother) to bring a Dilla effect. He is quoted "Slum Village is totally not that at all,” T3 adds. “I’m incorporating Baatin, and I’m putting Illa J in—not to take Dilla’s place, but just to have that essence of Dilla on this new project. I’m pulling together all the producers that we’ve used before—Black Milk, Wajeed , Kareem Riggins, Pete Rock and all the people who have been down with SV from day one.”
J Dilla died on February 10, 2006 after being diagnosed with TTP and Lupus.
Baatin died on July 31, 2009.
www.slumvillage.com
Call Me
Slum Village Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
All that I want is to show you love
All I got to do is find the time
So when can I see you? (I see you love)
I know what you want
I know what you babe
Yeah yeah hit my ring ring call me
We don't even see each other much hardly
It never stopped me from girl thinkin' 'bout your body
Swear to God, she's so sexy.
Thinkin' to myself the lord must've blessed me many times
I wrote many verses girl, many lines about you and me,
Us together intertwined.
On some serious shit,
Girl you got a nigga st-stuttering.
Got me on some long term thinkin' other than.
On some diamond ring shit.
Girl smotherin', we be talkin' on the late nights.
Takin trips to see each other on the long flights.
Spending tour money on you girl I don't mind.
But it's been a minute girl, you been on my mind.
Call me.
[Chorus]
We brought each other pain, fought with in a brawl with our fists
Yellin', niggas could hear us through the walls and the bricks
Sayin' what we don't mean
Stabbin' each other in the heart through the back
And actin' like the cuts just don't sting me neither
See the sun but the clouds make it smoky
You was my down chick when others just went down on me
Must've saw something in me to wanna birth my first
You changed my mind about raising a child on a earth that's cursed
Wonder where we went wrong when the thing's so right
When our future looked brighter than casino lights lit on the strip
In the bed you shocked me, bit on your lip
Sex was tighter than a leather outfit on a gimp
Was our feelins supposed to disappear the minute we kept, lost
Started out on a good foot then we eventually stepped off
Or is it just troubles that couples go through?
Mad on the phone can't hang up
But I'm hung up on you
Give me a call
[Chorus]
Are we in love?
Is it possible to have love within this relationship?
Cause now that I got the time
You should call me tonight
And I'll be alright oohh
[Chorus]
"Call Me" is a song by Slum Village that talks about a man who has been thinking about his lover, and despite being busy, he can't stop thinking about her. The chorus expresses the singer's desire to show the woman he loves how much he cares for her, but he just needs to find the time to do so. The first verse shows the singer's regret for being busy and not being able to spend time with his lover. However, he assures her that he thinks about her all the time and that she's always on his mind. The second verse talks about the ups and downs of their relationship, how they have been through tough times and hurt each other. However, the singer wonders what went wrong and whether they're still in love or not. Despite the troubles they've been through, he still cares for her deeply and asks her to call him.
The song's lyrics describe a man struggling to balance his relationship with his busy life. He longs to spend more quality time with his lover and shows his willingness to go to great lengths to make her happy. The chorus is catchy and expresses the singer's desire to connect with his loved one. The verses are reflective and show the singer's awareness of the ups and downs of their relationship.
Line by Line Meaning
All that I want is to show you love
I want to express my love to you.
All I got to do is find the time
I just need to make time for you.
So when can I see you? (I see you love)
When can we meet? I see your love for me.
I know what you want
I understand what you desire.
I know what you babe
I know you well, my love.
Yeah yeah hit my ring ring call me
Please call me, and I'll answer right away.
I know I'm always busy sorry and
I apologize for being busy all the time.
We don't even see each other much hardly
We hardly see each other.
It never stopped me from girl thinkin' 'bout your body
Not seeing you doesn't stop me from thinking about you and your body.
Swear to God, she's so sexy.
I swear to God, you are so attractive.
Thinkin' to myself the lord must've blessed me many times
I often think that God has blessed me many times because of you.
I wrote many verses girl, many lines about you and me, Us together intertwined.
I have written many songs and poems about you and us being together.
On some serious shit, Girl you got a nigga st-stuttering.
You make me so nervous, my speech gets disrupted.
Got me on some long term thinkin' other than.
You are making me think about the future and not just the present.
On some diamond ring shit.
I am thinking about buying you a diamond ring.
Girl smotherin', we be talkin' on the late nights.
We talk every night, for a long time.
Takin trips to see each other on the long flights.
We take long flights to see each other.
Spending tour money on you girl I don't mind.
I don't mind spending my tour money on you.
But it's been a minute girl, you been on my mind.
It's been a while since we've talked, but you have been on my mind.
We brought each other pain, fought with in a brawl with our fists
We have hurt each other and fought physically.
Yellin', niggas could hear us through the walls and the bricks
We yelled so loud that people could hear us through walls and bricks.
Sayin' what we don't mean
We said things we did not mean.
Stabbin' each other in the heart through the back
We hurt each other emotionally without being direct.
And actin' like the cuts just don't sting me neither
We act like the wounds don't hurt us either.
See the sun but the clouds make it smoky
We can see the sun, but the clouds obscure it, making it hard to see.
You was my down chick when others just went down on me
You were there for me when others only wanted physical satisfaction.
Must've saw something in me to wanna birth my first
You must have seen something in me that made you want to have my child.
You changed my mind about raising a child on a earth that's cursed
You made me change my opinion about bringing a child into this broken world.
Wonder where we went wrong when the thing's so right
I wonder where we went wrong when we had so much going right for us.
When our future looked brighter than casino lights lit on the strip
Our future looked so promising, as bright as the lights on a casino strip.
In the bed you shocked me, bit on your lip
You surprised me in the bed by biting your lip.
Sex was tighter than a leather outfit on a gimp
Our sex was intense and satisfying.
Was our feelins supposed to disappear the minute we kept, lost
Were our feelings supposed to fade after sex and then get lost?
Started out on a good foot then we eventually stepped off
We started our relationship well, but eventually lost our way.
Or is it just troubles that couples go through?
Or is this just a normal issue that couples experience?
Mad on the phone can't hang up
We are mad at each other on the phone and can't end the call.
But I'm hung up on you
But I am still in love with you.
Are we in love?
Are we truly in love?
Is it possible to have love within this relationship?
Can we still have love in this relationship?
Cause now that I got the time
Because I have some free time now.
You should call me tonight
You should call me tonight.
And I'll be alright oohh
If you call, I'll be alright.
Lyrics © Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC
Written by: CHRISTOPHER JASPER, CHRISTOPHER H JASPER, ERNIE ISLEY, MARVIN ISLEY, O'KELLY ISLEY, R.L. III ALTMAN, RONALD ISLEY, RUDOLPH ISLEY
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
LoveGalore
All that I want is to show you love
All I got to do is find the time
So when can I see you? (I see you love)
I know what you want
I know what you babe
Yeah yeah hit my ring ring call me
I know I'm always busy sorry and
We don't even see each other much hardly
It never stopped me from girl thinkin' 'bout your body
Swear to God, she's so sexy.
Thinkin' to myself the lord must've blessed me many times
I wrote many verses girl, many lines about you and me,
Us together intertwined.
On some serious shit,
Girl you got a nigga st-stuttering.
Got me on some long term thinkin' other than.
On some diamond ring shit.
Girl smotherin', we be talkin' on the late nights.
Takin trips to see each other on the long flights.
Spending tour money on you girl I don't mind.
But it's been a minute girl, you been on my mind.
Call me.
All that I want is to show you love
All I got to do is find the time
So when can I see you? (I see you love)
I know what you want
I know what you babe
We brought each other pain, fought with in a brawl with our fists
Yellin', niggas could hear us through the walls and the bricks
Sayin' what we don't mean
Stabbin' each other in the heart through the back
And actin' like the cuts just don't sting me neither
See the sun but the clouds make it smoky
You was my down chick when others just went down on me
Must've saw something in me to wanna birth my first
You changed my mind about raising a child on a earth that's cursed
Wonder where we went wrong when the thing's so right
When our future looked brighter than casino lights lit on the strip
In the bed you shocked me, bit on your lip
Sex was tighter than a leather outfit on a gimp
Was our feelins supposed to disappear the minute we kept, lost
Started out on a good foot then we eventually stepped off
Or is it just troubles that couples go through?
Mad on the phone can't hang up
But I'm hung up on you
Give me a call
All that I want is to show you love
All I got to do is find the time
So when can I see you? (I see you love)
I know what you want
I know what you babe
Are we in love?
Is it possible to have love within this relationship?
Cause now that I got the time
You should call me tonight
And I'll be alright oohh
All that I want is to show you love
All I got to do is find the time
So when can I see you? (I see you love)
I know what you want
I know what you babe
Momentum
The chorus is so haunting yet so beautiful. God bless you beautiful afroamerican citizens of this world
Mas Needsoss
@turd ferguson based
turd ferguson
liberal hippy
MoodMuzikFilez
this beat was flipped 100 times better than "Today was a good Day"..
Dee Free
You only hear the back ground. From the ISLEY BROTHERS, This beat is Original. J DILLA , RIH.
Lyrical_images20
duhh, look who flipped it.
QUIETSTORM313
Pure facts!!
Keith Sinclair
Everything S Villa turns to gold!
RIP Dilla & Baatin - still get chills from hearing them go off on Theolonious!
stephon wolf
Dwele most underrated artist I feel .
Travis Alston
I have all of dweles cds. Dope music