The Hypnotic
The Roots Lyrics


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(The hypnotic, the hypnotic)

Yo, I knew this girl named Alana with mad persona
She delt with reality never fed in to the drama
I met her through my nigga named Jermaine Palmer
Who knew her through his peoples by the Baltimore harbor
Alana was a Marylan' thurough and attractive
Shorty that's relaxed with me and kickin back
Wif a phat flick to cool out
Was stressed cause the game'll make you wanna pull a tool out
And go the old school route
But all-a that cease - when that piece checkin the jewel out
A bruver was charged - light a spliff and listen to the dabarge
Let the shorty hit me wif a massage to annoint
Lubricatin my maridian points that was the Summer easy to remember
Alana was all up on - Tariq Agenda how I used to back bender
She even told her best friend Blinda from Virginia
Who asked me if I had a cousin I could recomend-a
But as time float on we grew more mature - and further apart
When I began to do tours, we lost contact
And slowly parted - reminissin of when it started
It keep me feelin heavy hearted - a stolen moment periodic
Addicted to her presence like a narcotic
Though I wonder if she ever got it - the hypnotic
That faded like a dream sequence that pursuaded
Beyond being infatuated - spiritually intoxicated
Calm, sedated- I concentrated
On how to get in touch with her
Cuase the fact of the matter remain that I miss the hypnotic

Driftin (the hypnotic, the hypnotic)

I would begin to dial
Her number but knowin it's been awhile it's hard to link
I figure what she probly think and soon start to drink
Fightin the feelin I'm concealin apparently I first appealin
Later revealin to be deeper - resistance increasingly weaker
The essence of life is more than just mic's and puffin reefa
This universe of Black Thought that I can teach ya
I'm tryin to touch ya only if I can reach ya
I hit this kid I sign up on his beepa
And ask him if a had a chance to speak ta
Jermaine Palmer who fathers a preacha
To make the story short me and my man soon ran
Into each other von the humble at a show in San Fran
I said "Yo Palma, when did you last see Alana"?
He offer me a seat and attempts to make me calma
When he began to break it down my mind start to wander
Response beyond somber incredible crushed
Kinda feelin on my shoulder - that of a boulder
To find out that her life was over - it made the room feel colder
I thought I could get wif her when she was a little older
But she a victim of the wicked system that controlled-a it's all chaotic
But if my life it's symbolic forever shadow on my mental I never forgot it
Yo the psycotic, the hypnotic check it out the Most Melodic hypnotic





Driftin' (the hypnotic, the hypnotic)

Overall Meaning

The Roots’s “The Hypnotic” begins with a story of Black Thought meeting Alana, an attractive woman who had a different perspective on reality and didn’t get into drama. Black Thought met Alana through his friend Jermaine Palmer, who knew her through his connections at the Baltimore harbor. The two became friends, and Alana helped Black Thought relax with massages, which he enjoyed immensely. While Alana was interested in Black Thought, they slowly drifted apart when he began to go on tours. However, his feelings for her remained, and he was curious if she ever knew how much of an impact she had on his life. Black Thought thought of her as the “hypnotic” because he was addicted to her presence and spiritually intoxicated by her.


The chorus of the song repeats “the hypnotic,” which could be interpreted as a symbol of life’s allure and mystique. The second verse shows Black Thought attempting to reconnect with Alana, but he discovers that she had passed away, leaving him devastated. The song can be interpreted as a tribute to a lost love and a reminder of the power of people who touch our lives.


Line by Line Meaning

Yo, I knew this girl named Alana with mad persona
I once knew a girl named Alana who had a strong personality


She delt with reality never fed in to the drama
Alana dealt with reality without involving herself in drama


I met her through my nigga named Jermaine Palmer
I met Alana through a guy named Jermaine Palmer


Who knew her through his peoples by the Baltimore harbor
Jermaine Palmer got to know Alana through his connections at the Baltimore harbor


Alana was a Marylan' thurough and attractive
Alana was a thoroughbred from Maryland and was attractive


Shorty that's relaxed with me and kickin back
She was laid-back and chilled with me


Wif a phat flick to cool out
We watched a great movie to relax


Was stressed cause the game'll make you wanna pull a tool out
She was stressed out because the game makes you want to use violence to solve problems


And go the old school route
She felt like reverting back to old ways of solving problems


But all-a that cease - when that piece checkin the jewel out
But all of that stops when you check out the beautiful things in life


A bruver was charged - light a spliff and listen to the dabarge
My friend was arrested, so we smoked a joint and listened to some music


Let the shorty hit me wif a massage to annoint
She gave me a massage with oils


Lubricatin my maridian points that was the Summer easy to remember
She massaged specific points on my body during a memorable summer


Alana was all up on - Tariq Agenda how I used to back bender
Alana was really into me and my music, especially how I used to rap


She even told her best friend Blinda from Virginia
Alana told her friend named Blinda from Virginia about me


Who asked me if I had a cousin I could recomend-a
Her friend asked me if I had a cousin to recommend to her


But as time float on we grew more mature - and further apart
As time passed, we grew up and drifted apart


When I began to do tours, we lost contact
When I started touring, we lost touch


And slowly parted - reminissin of when it started
We slowly lost touch and thought back to when we first met


It keep me feelin heavy hearted - a stolen moment periodic
It made me feel sad and nostalgic, like a moment in time that can never be recreated


Addicted to her presence like a narcotic
I craved her presence like an addiction


Though I wonder if she ever got it - the hypnotic
I wonder if she ever felt the same way about our time together


That faded like a dream sequence that pursuaded
Our time together feels like a distant dream


Beyond being infatuated - spiritually intoxicated
Our connection was deeper than just a simple infatuation, it was a spiritual high


Calm, sedated- I concentrated
I was calm and concentrated on trying to reconnect with her


On how to get in touch with her
I was trying to figure out how to contact her


Cuase the fact of the matter remain that I miss the hypnotic
The fact is, I miss the hypnotic feeling we shared


I would begin to dial
I would start to call her


Her number but knowin it's been awhile it's hard to link
But knowing it's been a while, it's hard to reconnect


I figure what she probly think and soon start to drink
I started to imagine what she might be thinking and began to drink


Fightin the feelin I'm concealin apparently I first appealin
I'm trying to hide my true feelings and appear attractive to her


Later revealin to be deeper - resistance increasingly weaker
But later revealing my deeper emotions, my resistance to reconnecting became weaker


The essence of life is more than just mic's and puffin reefa
The meaning of life goes beyond just music and getting high


This universe of Black Thought that I can teach ya
I, Black Thought, can teach you about the universe


I'm tryin to touch ya only if I can reach ya
I want to connect with you, but only if it's possible


I hit this kid I sign up on his beepa
I contacted a guy through his pager


And ask him if a had a chance to speak ta
I asked him if I had a chance to speak to Jermaine Palmer


Jermaine Palmer who fathers a preacha
Jermaine Palmer is the son of a preacher


To make the story short me and my man soon ran
To make a long story short, my friend and I soon met up


Into each other von the humble at a show in San Fran
We humbly met each other at a show in San Francisco


I said "Yo Palma, when did you last see Alana"?
I asked Jermaine Palmer when was the last time he saw Alana


He offer me a seat and attempts to make me calma
He offered me a seat and tried to calm me down


When he began to break it down my mind start to wander
When he started to explain, my mind started to drift


Response beyond somber incredible crushed
His response was incredibly sad and crushed me emotionally


Kinda feelin on my shoulder - that of a boulder
It felt like a weight on my shoulder, like a big boulder


To find out that her life was over - it made the room feel colder
To learn that Alana had passed away made the room feel colder


I thought I could get wif her when she was a little older
I thought I could reconnect with her when we were both older


But she a victim of the wicked system that controlled-a it's all chaotic
But she was a victim of a cruel system that made everything feel chaotic


But if my life it's symbolic forever shadow on my mental I never forgot it
Her memory will always be a symbolic part of my life and will never be forgotten


Yo the psycotic, the hypnotic check it out the Most Melodic hypnotic
The hypnotic feeling we shared was the most melodic and addictive thing ever




Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group
Written by: AHMIR K. THOMPSON, JOHN J. III BARNES, TARIK L. COLLINS, TREVANT VANT HARDSON

Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
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Mike Ball


on Proceed V (Da Beatminerz remix)

So after purchasing “Do You Want More” the day it dropped, my guy the upped me from jump (pass the popcorn obvi) found this join on a European release and pressed play…the rest is history. But there in lies my question…what IS the history, the story on how, where, when, this was created? I need to know for context. Drop a link if there is one out there PLEASE! V 5 is a masterpiece!

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