Lyrically, clipping.βs music attempts to reshuffle and repeat accepted rap scenarios, while eliminating a traditional single-point perspective. Diggsβs writing is heavily citational, like a rough-edged collage, gluing together half-glimpsed images and misremembered references, many of which might feel familiar, and some of which assuredly do not. But even while he consumes and regurgitates established styles, his self-erasure is incomplete; Diggsβs dense, often motormouthed flow remains wholly his own.
Individually, the members are known outside of the group for their extra-curricular artistic projects. Diggs is a stage actor, while Snipes composes music for film, and Hutson is an established noise music artist. Snipes and Hutson have collaborated on many projects, including the score to the documentary Room 237, which was released by IFC in 2013.
In February 2013, clipping. released their debut album, Midcity, on their website. The project was created entirely in-house, with the trio writing, producing, engineering, mixing and mastering all of the material themselves. There was no budget, no outside promotion, no hype-machine, no blog or label interest. In fact, clipping. had no expectation that anyone would bother listening to the album, let alone enjoy it. Nevertheless, reactions were largely positiveβ despite the uncompromising nature of the production, and its obfuscatory lyrical contentβ and within five monthβs of Midcityβs release, clipping. signed a deal with Sub Pop Records.
CLPPNG, the bandβs label debut, was written and recorded between February and October of 2013. Highly well-received, CLPPNG is an album that demonstrates the variety of sounds available when the βrulesβ of a genre are willfully questioned.
http://www.itsclippingbitch.com
Story 7
clipping. Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴
Video was grainy but she could make out his face
It clearly had to be Steve
Hadn't seen him in maybe, what?
It couldn't be more than a couple days
Who was this bitch on her knees?
She was not even pretty, fuck
He better not still be up in her place
Check the lock, it is broken in
Impatiently, a scowl on her face
Kimberly opens the door
She wasn't ready, drops the keys, drops to the ground and tries to catch her breath
Steve was still there on the floor
What was left of him, gnarled bone, the body parts are piled in a mess
How easily she ignored
All of the scratches, could be nails or could be teeth, certainly not a knife
She should have looked at the floor
Follow blood to the window sill where it went up and out into the night
Cynthia strolling through the moonlight
Casually wiping the blood from the corner of her mouth
Cynthia knew Steve wouldn't do right
From the moment when he had said that he wouldn't eat her out
Cynthia singing on a blue night
Temporarily satisfied but she knew that wouldn't last
Cynthia steps into the Brew Right
Thirsty for a drink and to find someone to help hours pass
After Randy had sent the photos, he decided that he had just earned a drink
Shit, he's celebrating the end of a horrible case
He never had to see that woman Kimberly ever again
He thinks, shit, he had completed the task that was simple enough
She knew her man was cheating like they always do
She only needed proof
So he got to tailing the brown Chevrolet
And he'll say this for Steve, he knew what he was doing
So good that he almost got away with all of his bullshit
But Randy wouldn't get paid, and let's face it
He needed every dollar that this little job could make
The bookies were calling with more regularity
He would rather keep his kneecaps still unbroken, thank you, if it's all the same, shit
Nothing had changed, he was the definition of in a rut
Anyway, job well done, he saunters on into the Brew Right pub
The spot pretty jumpin', he spies a seat at the bar
Orders the scotch and then feels a gentle hand on his back
And he turns to meet the eyes of a woman who tells him her name is
Cynthia cross-legged at the bar now holding up a drink
Wink, lips
Cynthia whispers and his heart now takes another beat
Think, skips
Cynthia, tongue along his ear now, maybe he should pay
The tab
Cynthia knows just where to go now, and they leave and hail
A cab
He say, is this the type of thing where he pay?
And, if so, he gon' need a rain check (check, check)
She say, "You can have this one for free, bae"
As she licked the lips and started bitin' on his neck
He say what's crazy 'bout this, between the bites and the kisses
Is he ain't been in a taxi since back when he lost his sister
But, Cynthia isn't listenin' to him, she on a mission
The moon is full and she hurtin', and he might be the prescription
And now she pullin' up her dress, and he grabbin' on her breasts
And she start to see the throbbin' in his veins and she get ready for the sβ
But just then the cabbie pulled the taxi over quick
Click (click, pop, pop), silver flashes mixed with red and that was it
Cynthia is choking on her blood now
The cabbie walks off into the night unseen while
Cynthia, still locked in Randy's hug now
'Cept for the oaken window high above the scene and
Cynthia looks straight into her doom now
Little 'Trina watches everything that happens down below but doesn't scream and
Cynthia is howling at the moon now
Tomorrow, 'Trina's gonna wake up wondering if it was really all a dream
Cynthia
Cynthia
Cynthia
The song storytelling by clipping. in Cynthia is a grim tale of infidelity and violence that unfolds in three parts. It revolves around a woman named Kimberly who hires a private investigator named Randy to track down her cheating boyfriend. In the first part, Kimberly finds Steve's body dismembered and scattered all over the room, despite ignoring obvious signs that could have led her to the culprit. The second part introduces Cynthia, who walks in the moonlight after killing Steve because he refused to pleasure her. She sings to herself, looking to satisfy her thirst and probably find help. In the third and final part, Randy is celebrating the end of his job before Cynthia lures him out of the bar. They flirt and go into a taxi, where Cynthia bites and kisses Randy. Suddenly, the cabbie pulls over and shoots Cynthia, leaving a traumatized witness behind.
The narrative presents different perspectives on how women deal with betrayal, violence, and revenge. In the first part, Kimberly's disbelief and shock unveil the dangerous allure and naivete of blind love. She ignores Steve's unfaithfulness and overlooks the crucial evidence that could have helped her stay safe. In the second part, Cynthia proves to be an idiosyncratic and highly assertive character. She takes matters into her own hands, and her retribution fits the harm inflicted on her. However, in the third part, Cynthia's thirst for revenge crosses a line, and she becomes another victim herself. The ending of the three-part story leaves some ambiguity as to who ultimately killed her but shows a young girl, a potential witness, who experienced or witnessed the whole ordeal.
Lyrics Β© O/B/O APRA AMCOS
Written by: Daveed Diggs, Jonathan Snipes, Steven L Kaplan, William Hutson
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind