Jakk Quill Tells Of His Experiences By Weaponizing Irony
Jakk Quill's sophomore album has finally dropped, and fans like me are madly in love with it. His debut, New Decade Same Dreams, is one for the books and was critically acclaimed by hiphop elites in Kenya, earning him a nomination for lyricist of the year at the 2020 edition of the UnKut Hiphop Awards. This second album comes with more maturity yet more flexibility and experimentation. Some of the cadences as well as the production techniques are refreshing.
The artist uses contrast and irony to address his themes. Lost In Motion is an ode dedicated to pointing out how the artist ,and many other people, are lost in the hustle and bustle of everyday life - work, family, commitments and everything in between!
The project however has many other sub themes that makes it interesting. He takes on two parallel ideas throughout the album; one that he is this invisible MC with a lyrical ability no one can match up to. The second one is that that making music is a task that be-labours him to no end as much as the character sisyphus from greek mythology.In the number, Break It Down, for example he claims that 'repetitive cycles of sh*t take him back to the booth' almost as if he feels cornered about it. In the same song however, he says he is happy to be a vessel dispelling the blues from his fans. The second song of the album, 2 Chappelle's, embodies the contrast motif perfectly. He starts off the verse by counting the times he's been rejected, or the tables he has not been invited to. He even says that he's had low days much like Hades, but he managed to bounce back soon enough. This contrasts to his current state where he is happier, feels more included within his community, and is more secure about his rap skills and ability. He also sends shots at rappers, asking in a funny way, "What is the difference between a clown and a legend? "
Ghosts, is a beautiful one,.The irony and contrast brings out the plight of a human being struggling with his 'ghosts',,a metaphor for weaknesses and shortcomings. For example he admits he made up with a woman he loved but still ended messing up .However, as he says in the hook, "I'm getting better ,I learnt how to deal with the ghosts", he is on a path to grow as a human being, and even as an artist ,if we take the double meaning from it. He also realises that avoiding his ghosts hasn't been the best way of dealing with them.
Another track, and perhaps the one I love most, Break It Down, is itself a contrast of two different styles as well as themes. He starts off with melody for the intro/hook singing, "She gonn break it down right now" before going on to a deliver a melodic verse about how he's in love with this woman but they always end up arguing and fighting.
He then goes to the second part of the song, changing his flow to regular rap as he discusses himself, his being- and this feels like his most intimate thoughts. He questions the order of things asking ironically, "If time is a loop, how sure are the juice comes after the fruit/ The rain after the roof/ The pain after truth/ Repetitive cycles of sh*t take me back the booth". He talks about how he was for a long time bullied and how he is too broke for therapy, and so music is his way of dealing with his stuff. But just to make sure, he isn't doing two songs , at the end he admits the song started off as a twerk song but somehow got introspective. He also admits that when his lover 'breaks it down' ,he feels less alone- perhaps meaning but without saying that this lover is a female version of himself, who is dealing with her own problems, but he still loves her and stays with her, because drumroll - they are one and the same.
The album embraces darkness in a way that seems unattached. You early on get the energy that he has this broody nature about him, always deep in thought. In the third song, Planning For Doom, he takes on a braggadocious persona that declares doom and violence on other rappers claiming that he is the best. His melancholy also makes him a tad bit snobbish - on the song Silhouette, he says he can barely remember people and so he 'curves them politely.' The song Sharpie fronts the idea that he doesn't trust people generally, and especially has a problem with the honey-tongued types. He prefers instead that people be honest about their intentions and 'get to the point like a sharpie'.
The album is not all doom and gloom, with some stand out songs that balance the themes and the sound of the whole project. The song Hopes and Facts is Indeed hopeful, and contrasts with the others in the album. The songs Yes Indeed and Gone, featuring Steph Kapela (the only feature in the album), are club ready bangers. Maybe the rapper made them deliberately for this purpose or probably not. Either way ,having ready to go songs never hurt an artist. Gone hasn't sacrificed the rappers essence at all, even though he delivers four bars in Swahili (uncharacteristic much), Using lethal wordplay about fish in the sea- to tell a double layered story about having a love- hate relationship with a woman and the music industry. Kapela, who is on a roll right now did not disappoint, and the trust accorded to him to grace the project was well reciprocated. Lost In Motion, the last song captures the message of the project, and the artist's journey so far. He raps about the hurdles he has gone through as an artist and how he has 'grinded' to get to where he is currently.
The project is beautiful and coherent. Quill has shown growth by making music that is more 'danceable'. However he doesn't sacrifice his essence - his commitment to making deep, introspective music. And that's what stands out overall. Like fine wine, he and his projects will only get better, and that's an exciting proposition to think about.
