by Dan O

The first step Young Bol makes towards being a stand out song on Reef The Lost Cauze’s album The Triumphant is in the tone of the writing. When an OG writes a song about how jacked up the kids are it can be valid but its always low hanging fruit. The abundance of that perspective has washed away my interest in that kind of song. Young Bol establishes a different tone early, in the first minute you can detect a lack of venom in his outlining of accomplishments. His tone is near glowing, dude is coming up! When he smash cuts to the opps and social media feuding until he needs a change of environment. You can understand the greater point. The more interesting point. Being available as a modern artist who is important opens you up to enemies on a scale hard to imagine and traps you with them. Blocking is only so effective and can be seen as ducking the issue. Your timeline will watch for your response, measure you by how you handle pressure.

The most important part of the song is the end. The empathy and attention to detail push the song above most others but Reef is well aware of the weight behind how this concludes. Where is he supposed to leave the listener? Happily ever after would feel good but artificial. Rappers are dying and a lot of them. Fooling ourselves into the notion that its going to fix itself is dangerous. The other road isn’t great either. Sure, rappers are dying but making songs about young rappers dying while their dying leaves us drowning in our problems.

Two minutes and forty six seconds into the song Reef asks us how the story ends. Laying out all the options: the bloody demise vs the peace summit. Reef acknowledges the weight of the decision and as an author and allows it be thought about collectively. Instead of declaring or copping out (like the end of T2: Judgement Day) and leaving it truly undecided he dazzles us with options. The true end of the song is Reef with sincerity soaking each word stating “The cycle of pain… its like we can’t escape it, I hope Young Bol makes it… even if its only on paper.” That last line haunts me. Not even Reef has control enough to save Young Bol and that’s what makes this the ultimate OG song. OG’s don’t live comfortable lives of gentle recollection they stress non stop rooting for the Young Bol.