Stop Sleepin: Yelawolf

By Marcus Krzastek (@MarcusKRZ)

One of the most powerful and important aspects of music is its ability to transport the listener into another place and body.  The lyrical nature of rap has empowered artists in this regard like very few genres before it.  Whether it’s the gritty realism of “New York State of Mind” or the more playful “Passin’ Me By,” rap has a long history of painting vivid portraits of its artists’ emotional and physical landscapes.  Enter the first verse of Yelawolf’s “Pop The Trunk”:

“Meth lab in the back and the crack smoke peels through the streets like an early morning fog,
Momma’s in the slaughterhouse with the hatchet, helping dad, they chop early morning hog,
I’m catching z’s like an early morning saw, when I woke up to the racket, yawn and pause,
What the fuck man I can never get sleep man, peep out the window what’s wrong with ya’ll,
Stood up in my crimson tide Alabama sweat pants and pulled my pillow,
Look’s like daddy caught the motherfucker that tried to sneak in and steal his (elbows?),
They don’t know that old man don’t hold hands or throw hands, nah he’s rough like a brillo,
Went to the chevy and pulled out a machete and a gun as heavy and tall as the (pidget willow?)”

Combined with the haunting piano loop, Yelawolf’s short but effective verse creates a distinct rural perspective for the listener, a setting which he draws upon throughout much of his work.

Described by Mike Bigga as a mix between Outkast and Lynyrd Skynyrd, Yelawolf’s style is thoroughly southern.  Born in Alabama to a 15 year-old mother who instilled in him a love of classic rock, Yelawolf’s first taste of hip hop came from one of her early boyfriends who introduced him to Run DMC and Beastie Boys.

“Stereo,” the title track off of his latest mixtape, is an example of how Yelawolf’s influences play off each other in his music.  Previously signed to Columbia but now affiliated with Ghett-O-Vision (co-founder Kawan Prather discovered T.I. and The Youngbloodz), Yelawolf’s star has been rising steadily over the past year.

Yelawolf has done a great job of getting his name out there by contributing to Slim Thug’s single, “I Run” and Juelz Santana’s “Mixin’ Up The Medicine.”  Also, co-signs from B.o.B., Raekwon (who collaborated with Yelawolf recently), and super-producer Jim Jonsin, further speak to the Alabama native’s potential.

Maybe the most impressive aspect of Yelawolf as an artist, are his live shows, and after what I’ve read and seen concerning his stage presence, there’s no way I’ll miss his next New York appearance.

Check out his performance of “I Wish” and “F.U.” at this year’s AC3 festival.

Keep on the lookout for Yelawolf’s upcoming mixtape, “Trunk Muzik”, but until that drops, check out his previous two mixtapes, “Stereo” and “Ball of Flames: The Ballad Of Slick Rick E. Bobby“.