The Bronx rapper explained her thought process when she's writing lyrics and why she doesn't like to overthink things.Photo: Getty Images
TeeRoy's 2 Cents:
- There's a name for this approach. It's called "Dumbing it down."
- She's not giving her audience enough credit.
- Sometimes when the lyrics are too clever, you find yourself doing what Nicki does and having to explain the parts that went over people's heads.
- She isn't the only one who refuses to write before recording. We've heard over the years that Jay-Z and Lil Wayne take similar approaches.
- It will be interesting to see how her writing evolves over the course of her career.
- It's okay for everyone not to be lyrical. But sooner or later, most artists get a chip on their shoulder and feel they have something to prove. Just ask Doja Cat.
- She's obviously doing something right. If it sounds good over the beat, don't overthink things.
- She might be super-lyrical but at least she's self-aware.
Ice Spice says there’s a reason why her lyrics are so simple.
In a new interview with Complex, the Bronx rapper speaks on her pen game. She says, “It’s funny because Hype [Williams] was just trying to call me a lyricist… I wouldn’t consider myself a lyricist. Obviously, lyrics go into music and I do think about them and I do be having bars in my music but they’re just super simple… I want them to be digestible, I don’t want them to fly over people’s heads and they never catch it. I want people to hear it right away and be like, ‘OK, that was cute.’ But it’s also fun at the same time.”
Her producer, RiotUSA, broke down the creative process in the studio, noting that Ice doesn’t write down lyrics before going into the booth, instead, “freestyling line by line.”