Perhaps most impressive is that he does all of these things, and well. With a background as colorful as his talents, Tonedeff grew up in Chicago, IL, before moving to Miami, FL, for the remainder of his adolescence. While it was in Miami that he began recording and performing, it wasn't until relocating to Queens, NY at 21 that the well-traveled emcee really began making noise. He won a string of battles, including the Braggin' Rites MC Battle and NYC's notorious Da Cypha battles, to name a few. At the same time, he built a name for himself by opening for esteemed acts such as Common, Royce Da 5'9, Beatnuts, Brand Nubian and Rahzel.
Where most up-and-comers hit a stalemate, however, Tonedeff had only just begun. After forming the independent label QN5 Music in 2000, he released a series of work including the enhanced Hyphen EP, Happy F*ck You Songs with Extended F@mm, the "Clear 'Em Out" 12" single with KRS-One, and countless guest spots for artists such as Masta Ace, DJ JS-1 and CunninLynguists. 2003 saw him grace the pages of The Source Magazine and the MTV airwaves in a commercial for Hip Hop Week.
April 2005 marks the release of Archetype, his long-anticipated debut LP. A culmination of his artistic abilities, Archetype displays the incontestable versatility and raw talent that sets him apart from the rest. Comprising the spine-tingling harmonies of the intro; the relentless, rapid-fire punchlines of "Let's Go" and "Issawn"; the unabashed wit and comedy of "Disappointed" and "Pervert"; and the breathtaking beauty of the true story "Porcelain"; Tonedeff shatters the mold of conventional hip-hop, bringing it to levels that others only speak of. Influenced by a diverse range of artists - Common, Fresh Prince, Enya, Tori Amos and Bjork, for example-his own style is reflective of such, a melting pot of styles and sounds.
Combining beauty, talent and artistic innovation, Tonedeff is set to awaken hip-hop with a distinctively new sound. Following the QN5 mantra of "the New Hip-Hop," the multi-talented artist breathes new life into a dwindling art form, taking the reigns in the pursuit of new ideals as the originator, the new standard, the archetype.
Optimist
Tonedeff Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Life is wonderful.
Life goes full circle.
Life is wondeful.
Verse:1
Sometimes I hate everyone and everything -
To the world itself
And been blessed with many things
Cause when it seems life's beginning to take
A splendid lead
Suddenly, everything tends to lean negatively
I used to feel my luck was bled from me at seventeen
Because ever since positive outcomes have been
Seldom seen
They tell me that bouts with doubt can self-fulfill
Prophetically
And that's prolly why John & Paul said that
It's best to let it be
And I use to be the cat with plenty kinetic energy
Happy go lucky, Mr. Follow-Your-Dream-And-Set-It-Free
But over the years, son,
I've been jaded to the Nth degree
I hate it, cause my sense of grief
Is blatant and my friends agree
See, people's selfish deeds lead to my
Bleak expectancy (Like) If I catch the E,
I never expect to see an empty seat
(Nice) But in typical fashion, this'll pass
Until my next defeat
Until I'm stressing deep and forced to beg and plea
Till then we'll sing.
Chorus:
Life is wonderful.
Life goes full circle.
Life is wondeful.
Verse:2
They say I'm a natural born pessamist
And that's fuckin wild
Must've come with my mother's smile
And father's bullheadedness
I pull ahead and get pulled back,
But I keep struggling
Son, I feel like I couldn't catch a break beat juggling
Still I reach upward and on,
And proceed trudging along
As I lead these brothers in arms,
To achieve what's in our hearts
But the scene's shrugging us off,
So...
I just remember that every dream comes with a scar
When I see something I want
When it seems nothing is wrong, well -
I gotta keep telling myself to stop
Waiting for the other foot to drop
Live in the moment, sit on the throne
And just take a look from the top
It's a whole other perspective to see
The good that you got
Now, if it's an omen, quit with the moaning!
Don't let it push you to flop
That's like being spooked at the doc since
You was a baby, still shook from the shot
Don't imagine a tragic end to the book,
When there's not
You gotta try to rewrite inspite of how crooked the plot.
Chorus:
Life is wonderful.
Life goes full circle.
Life is wondeful.
Verse:3
Now, when you go this long uphill,
You lose the will to climb it
So, I wrote this song to remind me of the silver lining
In a world this wrong, gotta carry
A sword that's strong
And slice 'em all with smiles,
Y'all -- I fight 'em as I kill with kindness
Nobody wants a Bitter Benny
Or a Debbie Downer
Or a Sad Sam that be wrapping a wet blanket around them
Keep a sunny disposition -- Breathe Out
Cause life has a way of stripping the paint
Off of your dream house. It's simple.
Indeed these things seem to be easy to see
But they easily flee your mind
As you find repeated deceit
Now, there's reasons the weak
Of will never dream or believe
Before they leap, they concede
To defeat and agree to retreat
Now, when fatigue has really got you
By the balls/ Remember that if you really didn't believe
You'd succeed, then you wouldn't have tried at all
So, jump regardless of the consequence
Cause even on the night of the apocalypse,
Everybody's an optimist.
Chorus:
Life is wonderful.
Life goes full circle.
Life is wondeful. X2
Bridge
No matter how hard it seems.
There's always someone in another position.
So, when it rains, just hold on.
When it's gray, just hold on.
When there's pain, just hold on.
When it rains.
And when it rains, think dry skies.
When it's gray, think bright lights.
When there's pain, just smile, smile.
When it rains.
Verse:4
I know it seems everyday is a struggle
To keep yourself outta trouble
This modern jungle is jumbled with muddled puzzles to stump you
And snipers gunning to stumble you,
Like you've been hunted
Dude, how the hell are you telling us
'Life is wonderful'?
Some of you have come to
Conclusions/assumptions, But nothing as true or stunning
That misery becomes something that's comfortable
Trumping the will to shun it.
Run from it if you're stuck in a rut or two
So, I figured I'd drum up something
I could hum to you. (Like this).
When it rains, just hold on.
When it's gray, just hold on.
When there's pain, just hold on.
When it rains.
And when it rains, think dry skies.
When it's gray, think bright lights.
When there's pain, just smile, smile.
When it rains.
The song Optimist by Tonedeff is a song about finding the positive amidst the negative experiences of life. The first verse speaks to the cyclical nature of life; how sometimes when it seems like everything is going well, suddenly things take a turn for the worst. He talks about how he used to be a "happy go lucky" person but over the years has become "jaded to the Nth degree" due to the grief and selfish deeds of others. Despite this, he still sings "life is wonderful" in the chorus as a reminder to himself that life does go full circle.
In the second verse, Tonedeff admits that he's been told that he is a natural-born pessimist. He talks about the struggle to keep moving forward despite feeling like he can't catch a break. He advises himself to live in the moment and not wait for the other shoe to drop. He also talks about the importance of being kind and not letting negativity consume you.
The third verse continues with the theme of perseverance and fighting against the odds. Tonedeff encourages listeners to hold on during the hard times and to remember that everyone is an optimist, even during the apocalypse. The bridge reminds listeners that no matter how hard things seem, there is always someone in a worse position. The chorus repeats the message that life is wonderful and goes full circle.
Line by Line Meaning
Life is wonderful.
Life is full of amazing experiences.
Life goes full circle.
Life has its highs and lows, but it always balances out.
Life is wonderful.
Despite hardships, life still has beauty in it.
Sometimes I hate everyone and everything -
To the world itself
even though I'm the portrait of health
And been blessed with many things
Sometimes, even though I have everything going for me, I still feel overwhelmed by negativity in the world.
Cause when it seems life's beginning to take
A splendid lead
Suddenly, everything tends to lean negatively
Just when everything seems to be going well, things quickly turn sour.
I used to feel my luck was bled from me at seventeen
Because ever since positive outcomes have been
Seldom seen
Ever since I was young, I felt unlucky and that feeling has continued throughout my life.
They tell me that bouts with doubt can self-fulfill
Prophetically
And that's prolly why John & Paul said that
It's best to let it be
People say that if you doubt yourself, it can become a self-fulfilling prophecy. To avoid this, it's best to let things happen naturally.
But over the years, son,
I've been jaded to the Nth degree
I hate it, cause my sense of grief
Is blatant and my friends agree
As I've grown older, I've become more pessimistic and cynical, which is obvious to those around me.
See, people's selfish deeds lead to my
Bleak expectancy (Like) If I catch the E,
I never expect to see an empty seat
(Nice) But in typical fashion, this'll pass
Until my next defeat
Until I'm stressing deep and forced to beg and plea
I've come to expect disappointment from people, so even when good things happen, I'm always waiting for something bad to happen next, which causes me stress and anxiety.
They say I'm a natural born pessimist
And that's fuckin wild
Must've come with my mother's smile
And father's bullheadedness
People say that I have a naturally negative outlook on life, which is surprising considering my parents' personalities.
I pull ahead and get pulled back,
But I keep struggling
Son, I feel like I couldn't catch a break beat juggling
I have moments of progress, but they're often followed by setbacks, which makes me feel like I'm constantly struggling and unable to catch a break.
But the scene's shrugging us off,
So...
I just remember that every dream comes with a scar
When I see something I want
When it seems nothing is wrong, well -
I gotta keep telling myself to stop
Waiting for the other foot to drop
Despite setbacks, I remind myself that every dream comes at a cost, and I can't keep waiting for something to go wrong.
Live in the moment, sit on the throne
And just take a look from the top
It's a whole other perspective to see
The good that you got
Now, if it's an omen, quit with the moaning!
Don't let it push you to flop
Take a moment to appreciate the good things in life instead of dwelling on the bad. Don't let negativity defeat you.
Now, when you go this long uphill,
You lose the will to climb it
So, I wrote this song to remind me of the silver lining
When life is tough for a long time, it's easy to lose motivation, but this song serves as a reminder to find the good in bad situations.
In a world this wrong, gotta carry
A sword that's strong
And slice 'em all with smiles,
Y'all -- I fight 'em as I kill with kindness
In a world full of negativity and wrongs, it's important to remain positive and fight back with kindness.
Nobody wants a Bitter Benny
Or a Debbie Downer
Or a Sad Sam that be wrapping a wet blanket around them
Keep a sunny disposition -- Breathe Out
No one wants to be around negative people, so it's important to have a positive attitude and not be a downer.
Cause life has a way of stripping the paint
Off of your dream house. It's simple.
Indeed these things seem to be easy to see
But they easily flee your mind
As you find repeated deceit
Life can wear down even the most optimistic people, but it's important to remember the good things in life.
Now, when fatigue has really got you
By the balls/ Remember that if you really didn't believe
You'd succeed, then you wouldn't have tried at all
So, jump regardless of the consequence
Cause even on the night of the apocalypse,
Everybody's an optimist.
When you're exhausted and feel like giving up, remember that if you didn't believe in yourself, you wouldn't have tried in the first place. Keep pushing forward and stay optimistic, even in the worst of times.
No matter how hard it seems.
There's always someone in another position.
So, when it rains, just hold on.
When it's gray, just hold on.
When there's pain, just hold on.
When it rains.
There is always someone in a position worse than yours, so when things get tough, hold on and persevere.
And when it rains, think dry skies.
When it's gray, think bright lights.
When there's pain, just smile, smile.
When things are tough, try to think positively and focus on the good things in life.
I know it seems everyday is a struggle
To keep yourself outta trouble
This modern jungle is jumbled with muddled puzzles to stump you
And snipers gunning to stumble you,
Like you've been hunted
Life is full of challenges and obstacles that can make it difficult to succeed.
Dude, how the hell are you telling us
'Life is wonderful'?
Some of you have come to
Conclusions/assumptions, But nothing as true or stunning
That misery becomes something that's comfortable
Trumping the will to shun it.
Some may question how I can say that life is wonderful when there is so much negativity, but I believe that one can choose to focus on the good or bad. Misery can be comforting, but it's important to not let it control your life.
Run from it if you're stuck in a rut or two
So, I figured I'd drum up something
I could hum to you. (Like this).
When it rains, just hold on.
If you're feeling stuck or overwhelmed, try to find something that inspires you and hold onto it. When things get tough, hold on and keep pushing forward.
Contributed by Isabella H. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
@soknheith3259
The most underrated rapper on the fucking earth. Tonedeff really inspired me throughout my life, alongside Eminem and Tech N9ne. 3 best rappers I've ever heard and only 1 of them deserves a lot more than he gets...
@lightningtreeband
I am an old school Rock and Roll musician. This is not the kind of music I normally listen to. I really respect the talent of this artist. Some of the deepest lyrics I have heard in a long time. Bravo to the open heart of this songwriter. This is the kind of music that helps people get through the hardest times in life. Thank you for your music. I share it with friends and family every chance I get.
@bellamorte1317
You are very right!! I know this song in particular has helped me through some of what I thought were my darkest days..
@izvunzemen
That's because you're married to the blues like every musician by heart. I know you wrote that 2 years ago, but I don't think it's irrelevant...
@Dark-Lotus
lightningtreeband you know this isnt tonedeffs channel right?
@AmericanNope
One of the most missing elements from hip hop. Positivity. Optimism.
The record companies poisoned the well to make a buck and push records. What could have been I guess.
@jdub5644
I do the same yo
@Gretev1
In the summer of 2007 there was a music festival in my home town. Jason Mraz was performing an open concert free to be joined by any onlookers. I was in the crowd with my buddy when Jason performed „Life is Wonderful“. I had no idea who Jason Mraz was at the time but I was a huge Tonedeff fan. After Jason‘s performance I went up to him asking if he was familiar with Tonedeff‘s song Optmist or if he collaborated with him in any way. I was blown away that a „random“ musician (to me at the time anyway) was performing a song that to my ears at the time was a Tonedeff song. I didn‘t know Tonedeff had sampled a hook to an original song. So when I questioned Jason Mraz about Tonedeff he looked puzzled and had no clue what I was talking about and seemed kind of put off by my question. He seemed annoyed at me. I was a young teen. After this incident I messaged Tonedeff on Myspace at the time telling him about the incident to which Tonedeff jokingly replied that he never officially collaborated with Jason and is now nervously checking his mail for a cease and desist notice. Haha
@jdub5644
Awesome story to read. Thanks for sharing!
@TheOriginalFagoot
haaha awesome men, thanks for sharing 😂😅🤜