Rapper Ransom's new song, They Live, is a Class on Humanity and Compassion for Black People.
It’s weird to think it, but there was a time when rap educated its listeners and we didn’t have to document it as if it was a rarity. Here we are though. With that said, Ransom’s new song, “They Live” off his recent project, Director’s Cut 4, is a desperately needed analysis of how social media empowers us to hate people and ignore their humanity in the process.
Focusing on two of society’s largest black sheep, Kyrie Irving, and Kevin Samuels, Ransom paints a picture of the men before the fame, explaining their views in a simple and relatable manner over the track, while also showing how they were attacked by people in their community.
In verse one, Ransom describes Kyrie Irving’s ascent into the NBA from Duke to Cleveland, focusing on his skill and passion before explaining how fame reminded him of the disparities in wealth all around him.
“Number one draft pick, got the Cavs lit
But life ain't all about playing ball some people don't have shit
For real, you don't need to speak with discretion
'Cause I don't live my life for the sake of people's perceptions. “
Ransom on Instagram: “Those who know.. KNOW! We appreciate @kyrieirving”July 11, 2023
From there, he continues painting a picture of Kyrie as someone criticized and vilified for his decisions, most notably his choice not to receive the Covid-19 vaccine and also his silent endorsement of the controversial movie, Hebrews to Negroes: Wake Up Black America.
Regardless of where you stand on the matter, the most striking thing to me lies in how Kyrie was handled by his black peers with platforms. Many of them including Shannon Sharpe, Stephen A Smith, Shaquille O’Neal and even initially LeBron James, felt it best to criticize him publicly instead of seeking to understand his views and work with him privately on the matter.
“I posted up a link to a doc, they thought that was fraudulent
They thinking I won't score again
Spirit's good and my soul's fine
The shit that hurt the most, I was torn apart by my own kind
Shannon Sharpe, Stephen A, Barkley said I was so blind
Shaq said I'm an idiot, and I was canceled in no time
And since then, how many kids I fed on my own dime.”
Ransom’s commentary on Kyrie brings out the finer points of lyricism with multiple allusions to various controversial concepts of freedom that have become central issues in today’s time of vaccinations and outlawed abortions.
Take for instance Ransom’s line, “But when it comes to my body, it's my body, my decision”. The irony of a black man invoking this line to explore how society lightweight bullied people for not taking the vaccine is almost as heavy as his next verse on the destruction of the black family.
Ransom’s second verse tackles the arguably larger black sheep, Kevin Samuels. In a similar manner, he focuses on the major aspects of his identity which include his early bout with cancer and familial loss to how he got his start working with black professional men as an image coach.
“I went to school for chemical engineering
It was there when the cancer tore me apart
Before I start, let me apologize
I can still see my mama's pain when my father cried
But he never lost his pride
That's why I try and talk to guys, give 'em game.”
While this may seem minor to some and irrelevant to others, it’s important for us to remember to always see the humanity in people we dislike and even hate. Seeing people as human doesn’t mean we ignore them when they are wrong. It means we learn to look at the totality of a person’s actions.
“Go on Instagram and praise killers, say free the homie
When I died, you said I deserved it and you ain't even know me
But still, my spirit is good and trust that my soul's fine
The shit that hurts the most, I was torn apart by my own kind
Who am I?”
I’ve written at length on the complex nature of Kevin Samuels before, so I won’t rehash it, but I will say I found it sad that people reveled in his death as if he was a mass murderer.
Ransom’s analysis explores this concept and also explored how the dating landscape has devolved into more of the same topics his channel covered. We love who we love but we don’t have to always hate the people we hate. How can we find it in our hearts to love the ones who commit actual crimes against our people and hate the ones whose only crime was hurting our feelings?
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