This is the Canary, the Oracle of the Amazons, bringing you a review of “Mr Roy G Biv”, the sixth album from Georgia based rapper, Zane Smith of Lithonia. First track off the album is called “All Black”. When first hearing the track you think your hearing P$C “Murder Game” because it has the same flow, same sound but when he starts rapping, his flow is almost identical to one of my favorite rappers of the south, Ludacris. The song pretty much tells you who he is, personality wise and why he sports the color. Very simple but you easily can get an insight a little bit to the man behind the album. Before I go any further, let me give you a little run down on the album. The album gives birth to a new persona: Mr Roy Biv. It has to do with his background in graphic design. The album cover itself consists of nine colors, with each color represented by a track off the album. Personally that’s creative as hell and real deep. The album has tracks about relationships, the love he has for his hometown, the man behind the music, and different emotions. The sound on this album definitely represents the southern rap style, from crunk to snap. The next track on the album is called “Cruisin'” represented by the color gray. The song is exactly what the title states. Late night drives and just vibing to music. I’m guilty of this a lot because the drives help clear my head but all reminisce and think. What makes the drives better is having music and knowing the right songs to play. This song right here definitely fits in that category and I can actually see myself driving to this because the track is so mellow, there’s a sense of calm when you hear it. The next track up is “Family” represented by the color red. Red represents fire, passion and blood. This song is about family and literally makes you think, what does family mean to you? Do you consider close friends as part of the family? There’s some deep meaning in this song, and is open to interpretation. You have to listen for yourself to hear.
The next track up is “Zoo” represented by the color orange. Orange represents determination, success, joy and more importantly, creativity. This track talks about his old job working at the zoo in Atlanta. He quit the job to pursue a career in rap and reached out for help to people he knew in the industry but he didn’t receive any. I understand that feeling and he raps about that in the song and listening to it, you know he’s not wrong. No matter what industry you’re in, whether it’s music, sports, acting, retail, restaurants, whatever, it’s literally every person for themselves. I easily relate to this track due to my history. I have 35 years of living and experience and have seen my fair share of the dog eat dog world we’re in. It’s sad to say, in this day and age, you have to look out for yourself because at the end of the day, no one is going to have your back no matter how tight you are with people. You have to look out for yourself and this track right here shows you that. Definitely one of the tracks I can relate to and understand where he is coming from. Because i do have dreams and only can I make them a reality. Definitely a song that should be in your playlist for inspiration. The next track up is called “Ol’ School Chevy” and it’s represented by the color yellow. Yellow represents joy and happiness. The song is exactly that for him. He reminisces about wanting a Chevy and pretty much is like the companion to the previous track “Cruisin'”. To the listener, there isn’t much special meaning but to him, it’s his passion and his love for a vehicle that he always wanted. For me, I always wanted a Camaro and still hope one day I can have one. The tracks music definitely sounds like something Al Kapone could mess with. Next track up is called “Tippin'”. Green is the color for this song and pretty much represents money, growth and harmony. Listening to this, you would think the song is about partying but in reality its about your different vices and why we do it. He gives you the answer and honestly it makes sense. Your vices can be anything from drugs to alcohol, video games to music, cooking to writing, etc. And the answer he gives, is it’s an escape for us and I have to agree. My vice is writing and music. I used to be a hardcore drinker, where I would drink on the job, mixed that with the various drugs I did like coke, acid, molly and I would literally not know what was going on because at the end of it, I did it to escape the shitty life I was living and the jobs that were monotonous and stressful. Honestly I can say, I literally can relate to a lot of these tracks, which leads me to the next song: “It’s Cool”. Represented by the color blue, blue is associated with sadness and coldness. Talks about his relationship which didn’t last and honestly we can all relate to this song. And it doesn’t even have to be about your love life. But he raps about why it didn’t work but he has no grudge and as it states, “It’s all cool”. Honestly though, I wish I had his attitude but i still hold a grudge but I understand completely.
Now the next track is my favorite track on the album and is the first song I have listened to from him. It’s called “Home” and it’s represented by the color indigo. Indigo is the color of perception and intuition. He talks about his hometown of Lithonia, Georgia and how things have changed but no matter the changes, he still has fond memories of places that used to be there and are still there. This song definitely hits, the music is soothing and has feel. Literally listening to this track, I can’t help but reminisce about my hometown of Salinas, Ca and how much it’s changed. Had a lot of good memories and bad ones but nonetheless, it’s still my home. I miss it everyday and wish I still lived up there and maybe one day I’ll go back but who knows. This song definitely has a lot of meaning for me because i took my hometown for granted and now realize that place is my home and will always be in my heart. I can honestly say I have this song on repeat because the sound is so smooth, it literally makes me sad because I do miss my hometown and how things used to be. The final track on the album is called “24 Hours”. Represented by the color violet. Violet represents wisdom, regality, imagination and spirituality. The song talks about his past experiences but I interpret it as what would you do in the 24 hours we have a day. Like literally what do you do? Do you write? Do you workout? What do you do for your day? Do you take it for granted or do something for it. At the end of day, you have a choice. You can make the most out of it by accomplishing the things you want to do or squander it away and do absolutely nothing. Gives you a lot to think about. Zane Smith is somebody to look out for. After 5 albums, this one is his sixth, and after going through the rest of his catalog, he clearly has grown and honestly I’m glad to have found out about him and can’t wait to see what he does next. Zane if you are reading this, you have a fan in me brotha, and I can’t wait to hear more. I am the Amazon Oracle, coming to you as the Canary. Welcome to the Amazon. One love y’all!
The Musical Hippie 