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jakinni
08-09-2004, 11:09 AM
I translated the following article only to realize afterwards that it wasn't an official news, but a nice piece of writing written by an online fan. :sweat: So I thought might as well bring it into discussion here.

The author brings up an interesting point of view, that the lyrics have often been looked at as the core of a song. Yet, Jay has made it a point to infuse his music with multitude of sounds that stimulate our listening sensations. There's often a competition between the melody and the lyrics in Jay's songs. Sometimes one doesn't know which one to focus on more. This is the reason why so many of us who don't even understand the language can enjoy his songs so much. His mumbling may also have contributed to this, whether intentional or unintentional or started out unintentional but became more intentional as it became his trademark.

Despite Vincent's great lyrics, by somewhat neglecting it through unclear pronounciation, is Jay actually bringing something more important to music, especially Chinese music? Which is to break out of the conventional mold of the typical "lyrical language". Recycled terms and phrases in so many love songs become so overused, that by putting more focus on the music, it 1) forces pop music listeners to concentrate on the music and draw meaning from a song through its melody and 2) think of more innovative language to convey meanings in songs and not resort to old forumlas.

So the question is one of form vs. content:
Can lyrics really be secondary to the melody and perhaps only act as just another tool for accentuating the melody/rhythm? Is Jay's mumbling/unclear pronounciation of the lyrics actually a musical revolution(in terms of how we view lyrics and melody) in disguise?

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《我的地盤》 流行音樂中的形式主義革命
"My Territory" is a formulistic revolution of pop music

Source: 思郁 Si Yu (online fan @ Tom)
Translated by: jakinni - www.jay-chou.net

我們平常听到的流行音樂是時尚的也是通俗的。每一首歌曲都在敘說著不同的故事,這樣的故事大都是關于愛情的 ,具体地說是關于失去愛或者得到愛。這樣的或喜或悲的故事配著不同的風格的旋律就是一首完整的音樂。這是我 們日常習慣的音樂,在這樣的音樂里面,人們在上演著不同的悲歡离合,我們也隨著歌曲的悲歡离合的演繹,在幻 想著自己的得与失。從這樣的音樂旋律上來說,它是附屬于歌曲中所敘述的故事的,所以在整首歌曲當中它沒有自 己獨立的地位,緊緊的和的內容結合在一起。如果我們說,這首歌曲的旋律很好听的時候其實暗含的某种意思就是 這首歌的所講的故事打動了我,讓我不能自己,或者是掉進了回憶溫柔的陷阱,或者是激起了某种溫 馨的情緒。
We often hear that popular music is trendy and common. Each song is narrating a different story, this kind of story mostly involve love, more specifically it's about lost or gain of love. This kind of happy or sad story accompanying different styles of melody can become a piece of complete music. This is the music we've gotten used to in our lives, in this kind of music, people are acting out different kinds of sadness/happiness and separation/union. And we've followed the these themes in the songs and daydream about our own gains and losses. This kind of music melody, it is secondary to the story told by the song, therefore within the entire song, it doesn't have its own independent place and have to be tightly adhered to the content. If we say, this song's melody sounds very good, it actually contains the hidden meaning that the story told by this song has touched us, making us unable to be ourselves, whether it's falling into the gentle trap of memories, or it's stimulating a certain warm sentiment.

但現在的情形好像逐漸的得到改變。改變的標志就是現在在全國各大音樂電台向全國的多個城市不斷的播放的周杰 倫的新歌《我的地盤》。之所以把這首歌作為一個和以前我們听的“敘事型”音樂區分的標志,是因為一個很簡單 的事實:以前我們能夠听懂的歌曲突然讓我們覺得不可理解了。歌手的嘴里所吐出來的一個個含糊不清的音節,所 搭配的旋律也是怪异而獨特,是的,這种情形很怪异,因為在一個通俗歌手在向我們演唱一首歌的時候,我們從來 沒有出現這种情況:同時要去猜想他所唱的歌詞是什么,他在向我們敘述一個什么樣的故事,他向我們傳達什么樣 的一种意義,或者用一個比較意識形態化的詞說,他在向我們宣揚或教化什么。因為從我們以前所听到的流行歌曲 來說,他們無非都在傳遞著以上我所說的信息,如果他不能包含以上的內容,從當時的觀點看,這樣的歌曲無疑是 很失敗的。
But now, the situations seems to be gradually changing. The sign of change is the new Jay Chou song "My Territory" that's currently being broadcasted at various cities by large radio stations across the country. The reason this song was used as the sign of music differentiation from the previously listened to "narrating type", is because of a very simple reality: the songs that we were able to understand before have suddenly made us feel unable to understand. The ambiguous syllables coming out of the singer's mouth, plus the accompanying uniquely strange melody, yes, this situation is very strange, because when a common singer is performing a song for us, we've never had this happen before: To have to guess what the lyrics are he's singing, what story is he telling us, what kind of message is he conveying, or using a more ideological term, what is he advertising or teaching us. Because from the popular songs we've listened to before, they've always been transmiting the messages we've previously mentioned. If it couldn't contain the above content, from the past point of view, this kind of song would definitely be considered a failure no less.

但就在這首周杰倫的新歌《我的地盤》中隱含著一种讓我激動的信息,它似乎想我傳送了一個心領神會的信號:一 個新的時代的到來——在這個時代中“敘事型”的音樂遭到了徹底的顛覆,相對出現了歌曲所唱的內容和旋律徹底 的決裂——我們稱之為“形式主義”的音樂。
But in this new Jay Chou song "My Territory" there contains a type of message that makes me feel excited, it seems that it wants to convey a tacit signal: a new era has come--in this era, "narrating type" music has been completely overturned. In contrast, the songs appearing now have a achieved a complete divide between the content and melody.--what we call a "formulistic" music.

我們先分析這首歌。這首歌是周杰倫的新唱片《七里香》的主打歌,是一首為中國移動所專門創作的廣告歌。在這 首歌中,同樣的有兩個層次:歌詞和旋律。但在我們注意到了這兩個層次的變化。在“敘事型”的音樂中,是以歌 詞為主的,旋律處于附屬的地位。但在這之后的被我們稱之為“形式主義”的音樂中,這种看來牢不可破的地位發 生了翻天覆地的變化。還記得那個听歌曲猜歌詞的活動嗎?在以前的歌曲中我們已經習慣了听到一首很清晰的唱詞 ,通過唱詞我們了解歌曲的意義。但這种一貫的傳統現在對于這首歌好像無能為力了。我們听不懂歌曲的歌詞,也 就同樣的意味著我們無法了解歌曲的意義,至少按照大多數人習慣的思維是這樣的。在這首名為《我的地盤》的歌 曲中,歌詞所要傳達的意義被歌唱者有意的忽略了,因為很顯然,歌唱者是有意這樣做的,它完全可以控制自己的 發聲,或清晰的突出每個音節,或者就是含糊不清。在這樣的有意的一种行為中,很顯然歌唱者想通過掩飾一种東 西而突出另外一种東西:就是旋律。這首歌顛覆了傳統,改變了我們的听覺習慣:我們以前是在听歌詞,但現在不 能不被迫著听我們一直被忽視的旋律。被壓抑的被掩蓋的都被挖掘了出來,并且在傳統的意義上和原來的規范進行 了決裂,這种決裂無疑是一种形式主義的革命。
Let's first analyze this song. The song is Jay Chou's new album "Qi Li Xiang" 's first single, it's a commercial song created for China Mobile. In this song, there are 2 layers: lyric and melody. But we've observed the change within these two layers. In "narrating type" music, lyrics was the priority, the melody was given the subordinate position. But after this "formulistic" music, the previously thought to be indestructible relationship has undergone an earth shaking change. Still remember the game where you listened to the song and had to guess the activity? In the songs of the past we've already gotten very used to hearing the lyrics very clearly, and through singing the lyrics do we understand the song's message. But this consistent tradition seems to be powerless facing this song. We don't understand the song's lyrics, and thus also meant that we were unable to understand the song's meaning, at least that's how it is following the way of thinking that people are used to. The song named "My Territory", the message that's conveyed by the lyrics has been purposely overlooked by the singer, because very obviously, the singer did this on purpose. He can completely control the way he produces the sounds, choose to clearly enunciate each syllable or to mumble. In this kind of purposeful action, it is clear that the singer has thought it through, which is to cover one thing to enhance something else: that is melody. This song has overturned tradition, changed our listening habits: We were listening to lyrics before, but now are forced to listen to the melody that we've been overlooking. What's been oppressed and concealed have been dug up, which has also carried out a split between the traditional message and the previous model. This kind of split is a type of formulistic revolution.

其實說這首歌對我們的流行音樂是一种徹底的顛覆,同樣可以從形式主義語言的“陌生化”來說。在以前“敘事型 ”的音樂中,歌詞之所以重要是因為其中歌詞的
載体語言的存在。但是,在那种音樂充斥我們日常生活的每一個角落的時候,音樂中的語言受到了強力的影響而變 得极其僵硬,從而從這种語言所傳達的歌詞的含義也無疑是固定的、僵化的、陳腐的。比如我們都認為,現在的那 种愛來愛去的音樂讓我們多多少少的感到厭煩就是這個道理。所以我們對這樣的歌曲已經不能產生興趣了,他們對 我們沒有意義。但從形式主義看來,對這种日常生活的語言進行有意的扭曲和顛倒,就可重新使語言煥發犀利的光 彩,從而重新的建立我們對他的新鮮感。具体到周杰倫的《我的地盤》這首歌曲,他甚至比形式主義者走得更遠, 不是說日常語言已經僵化了嗎?那么我們干脆拋棄語言,直接的關注于歌曲中的旋律。但是,對于一首流行歌曲來 說,歌詞和旋律都必須是必備的,那么我們怎樣拋棄那些陳腐的語言呢,折衷的角度來講,就是雖然我們創作了歌 詞,但是在歌唱的時候可以對他們進行有意的忽略——用含糊不清的發音掩蓋歌詞所想要代表的意義。這是對“敘 事型”音樂的另一种挑戰。
Actually to say that this song is a complete overhaul of our popular music, at the same time we can speak from the "unfamiliarization" of formulism. In the former "narrating type" music, the reason the lyrics were important was because the lyrics contained the existence of language. But, when that kind of music has flooded every corner of our daily lives, the language in the music received strong influences and became very rigid, therefore the message conveyed in the lyrics of this kind of language is fixed, rigid, and stale no less. For example this is the reason we all think that the current "I love you you love me" type of music has pretty much made us feel sick of it. So we've already become disinterested in this type of song, they've become meaningless for us. But from the point of view of formulism, it has given an interesting overhaul and twist to this type of daily language, and has allowed language to glow its sharp radiance, and thus has rebuilt the fresh feeling we have towards it. Specifically about Jay Chou's "My Territory", he actually goes farther than the forumulist. Didn't we say that our daily language has become rigid? Then we might as well just abandon language, and directly focus on the melody of the song. But to a pop song, lyrics and melody are both necessary and essential, then how can we cast aside the stale language? Using a breaking from the old point of view, it's that although we've created lyrics, but when singing we can purposely neglect it---using a ambiguous articulation to disguise the message that the lyrics are trying to convey. This is another challenge against "narrating type" music.

仔細的分析這首歌的歌詞,你從中几乎找不出表面的意義,至少我們看不出它是在講述一個什么樣的故事,或者說 在宣揚教化什么。我們從中唯一能夠得到的就是那句領頭的主題詞,他不停地在說著“在我的地盤這 你就得听我的”。至于其他的歌詞,好像和“我的地盤”關系,也就是說,如果不是為了配合實際的廣告的運作, 這句主題歌詞和其他的歌詞沒有任何意義上的聯系。他的歌詞里面講到很多的意象,有鴿子,有老師,隔壁的小姑 娘,還有我在練拳,但這些和“我的地盤”這個主題都沒有關系。這么多的意象,只不過是為了吸引我們的注意力 ,把我們從“一看到歌詞就要尋找意義”這樣的思維定勢中解放出來。總而言之,這首歌詞正像我們所想的那樣, 根本是沒有意義的,它的存在不過也是一种形式的需要罷了。
Carefully analysing the lyrics of this song, you seem to almost can't find the surface meaning, at least we can't tell what kind of story it's trying to tell, or what it's trying to advertise or teach. The only thing we can obtain from it is that first theme phrase, he keeps saying "In my territory here, you have to listen to me". Regarding the other lyrics, it seems to have something to do with "my territory". In other words, if it wasn't for the coordinating of it with the reality of the commercial, this thematic phrase doesn't really have any connection message-wise with the rest of the lyrics. In the lyrics it talks about a lot of imagery, there are pigeons, teachers, little girl next door, and me practicing boxing, but these have no relation to the theme "My Territory". All these images are only there to attract our attention, liberating us from the "trying to find meaning within lyrics whenever we see it" powerful way of thinking. In short, the lyrics of this song is just as we thought, no meaning whatsoever, its existence is only a to fulfill its form requirement.

旋律從歌曲中一躍成為主体,很顯然是一种顛覆了傳統唱法的形式主義的革命。對于周杰倫來說,他的這首《我的 地盤》也許只不過是一种新的嘗試,但對于一個時代來說,他帶來了一場流行音樂中翻天覆地般的革 命。
The melody has leapt into the forefront in the song, very clearly it's a formulistic revolution that's overhauling the traditional way of singing. Regarding Jay Chou, his "My Territory" may perhaps be a new type of experimentation, but to this era, he has brought an earth shaking revolution to popular music.

kahel
08-09-2004, 11:29 AM
wow! very nicely put!

I have to give it to you Jenna for translating this piece. :flowers:

When I first listened to Wo De Di Pan on the preview, I initially didn't like it but when I listened to it as a whole, I thought that definitely, there was a genius behind this work. Hearing the song's intro, there was some foreshadowing on what to expect on the song itself. It's like Jielun is preparing us for something magical. I was expecting Ariel to come out from the sea, or the beast transformed into a prince. But indeed, Jielun was preparing us into a fusion of sounds. The layers of sounds and melodies used in the song...the beijing "er" sound, chinese musical instruments, hints of guitar, the innovative piano instrumental...it was all arranged and blended into one perfect harmony.

It was perfect for a song called "My Territory" who confidently tells "In my territory here, you have to listen to me." Because music is Jay Chou's territory and no matter what we do, we always end up listening, listening.

Dong Feng Puo
08-09-2004, 11:42 AM
Jakinni, thanks for a very thought-provoking question. And "Si Yu" writes very well! Thanks for including his/her writing.

I don't know if this makes sense, but personally, Jay's mumbling actually emphasizes the lyrics by making me pay more attention to them. Like many, I often have trouble understanding parts of Jay's songs, so I have to resort to the actual lyrics. By actually reading the lyrics and processing them with my brain, I can appreciate Vincent's talent much more. I don't know about others, but when I sing along to lyrics I can understand without looking up, I don't actually think about them. I just perform an automatic verbal response to auditory stimulation.

50% of my love for Jay's music comes from Vincent's lyrics. In an industry where 9/10 songs on an album are ba la (guava) love songs tailored for karaoke, Jay and Vincent make songs that tell stories covering topics from basketball to drug abuse. If one of the two partners' creation mattered more than the other's, I don't think the "Partners" album would've ever came out. If lyrics were less important than the melody, Jay wouldn't have worked with Vincent on so many songs. A good melody with bad lyrics is a tragedy. a good melody with okay lyrics is a shame. A good melody with good lyrics is a popular song. A good melody with great lyrics that are different? Now that's music that will last. That's Jay and Vincent. =)

All in all, I think mumbling is just what comes naturally to Jay. And since it's become his controversial trademark style, there's really no need to change it. If he can't be faithful to himself, how can he be faithful to his fans? He said his exaggerated enunciation in "My Territory" is a mockery of the criticisms of his mumbling--that he'll change his mumbling but it'll still be hard to understand.

I think Jay's "unique" enunciation choices weed out those who don't really care to listen to the message, so that only the sincere ones have access to what Vincent is saying.

imkwtrz0r
08-12-2004, 09:44 AM
i have to agree melody>lyric in his songs since you have to read the words on paper to know what he is saying, but the melody is actually really good and not repeative beats that gets boring

muzikanjel
08-12-2004, 10:59 AM
That is one great peice of writing and translating! exactly how i feel about jays music!
some of my friends go "jays music is louder than his own voice, cant even hear wat he is singing"
well...his music is his main focus...
im very impressed with the writing! =]] thankyou so much for posting and translating!

ker_ai_teresa
08-12-2004, 01:49 PM
contrary to the view/fact/opinion that ppl have always paid more attention to the lyrics of a song rather than the music, i've always paid more attention to the music. i'm no music critic or expert, just your ordinary, everyday audience, and perhaps that's why lyrics and it's meaning and message aren't such a big thing to me.
add to that, my crappy mando (and yeah, to some extend, Jay's mumbling), my enjoyment of Jay's music has heavily relied upon the melody rather than the words. if i can comprehend and understand what he's singing about, then great, i can enjoy that aspect of the song, but if i can't, then it's the music that i'm attracted to.

am i "forced" to focus more on the music, because of Jay's mumbling? i don't really think so. Vincent Fang's lyrics are generally TOO deep and meaningful for me to comprehend anywayz.

can lyrics become secondary to the music/melody? yes, it can. lyrics are important, yes, but so is the music. without the music the lyrics are really just poetry.
but music is such a subjective thing, so whether emphasis is placed on the lyrics or the music, really depends on the individual person. it's about what they enjoy and their reason for listening to the song.

Is Jay's mumbling/unclear pronounciation of the lyrics actually a musical revolution? i guess it can be viewed that way.....considering this way of singing hasn't been attempted by his predecessors.

It was perfect for a song called "My Territory" who confidently tells "In my territory here, you have to listen to me." Because music is Jay Chou's territory and no matter what we do, we always end up listening, listening.

good way of putting it. :thumbsup:

dazzlette
08-12-2004, 03:01 PM
Yes, I do think that lyrics can be secondary to the music. Many songs nowadays have nice melodies but are accompanied with crappy/meaningless lyrics. People like the song, not because of what it says but how it sounds.

Personally I think Jay's mumbling is only really bad on his faster songs. I still believe that Jay, unlike many singers, uses his voice to blend with the music. It is an instrument. So what he says doesn't really matter, as long as it fits into the whole theme/atmosphere of the song. Jay's singing isn't the best around, but he is smart to use his voice to create a very complete sound.

Jay's mumbling singing of Mandarin sounds good. Other singers before him who have sung R&B and hip hop songs just couldn't make Mandarin songs good cos they sing too clearly, which is the traditionally accepted style of singing in Chinese music.

That being said, lyrics do matter to me. I will be biased against a song, if the lyrics are really crappy or meaningless. That's why I like Jay's songs so much, cos there's meaning behind the music as well.

If Jay's lyrics weren't special, I don't think I'd like him as much.

soapie
08-12-2004, 06:48 PM
(I registered for the forums just so i could reply to this post! ^.^ !! ) Yes, lyrics can become secondary to music and melody.

I've been listening to Jay simply for this reason; he's a musical genius!! I don't know of any other song writer/ composer who can compose like him. His music has always been fresh, original, and beautiful. I've been learning classical piano since I was 6, so I have a huge appreciation for music. His music compositions are simple yet complex, all absolutely amazing. He incorporates different instruments, sounds, and voices. He starts with one instrument/voice/whatever you want to call it, and by the end of the song, he's finished with a masterpiece, a concerto. This is what distinguishes him from other artists. His brilliant originality and creativity.

Sometimes I'm so moved by his music, I want to stand up and applaud, giving my stereo a standing ovation. (i'm such a nerd =P).

As others have said, I think of his voice as an instrument. As a musician, that's what it is. Every singer uses their voice as an instrument; some have a better voice than others, some have better control, and some manipulate their voice to make it sound the way they want. So you one may call it mumbling, and I may call it music. *shrug*. He's still amazing.

A disclaimer... considering that I don't understand Chinese, ~_`;; I unfortunately don't understand his lyrics when I first hear his songs. But this goes the same for songs in English... I always listen to melody first, lyrics after.

I dont' disagree with everyone that his lyrics are awesome (based off of translations I have read)... They're deep, more than fluffy superficial stuff, and thought provoking. But in my ears, I hear the music and melody first. That's what I love about music. We each hear the same song but it plays a different chord in each of us. =)

SimpleBlackHumor89
08-13-2004, 05:57 AM
i agree with soapie . lyrics are secondary... i mean obviously in universal language, there is no language, so pronounciation isnt exactly important. when you first hear a song on the radio, you're more likely to pay attention to the song's tune, rather than the lyrics.

mayb mumblilng is the new insturment, kinda like recitin words fast, became rap.... soon everyone's gon start mumblin, what a nice revolution jay! :)

jakinni
08-14-2004, 09:39 AM
It's quite fascinating to see that although we all love Jay's music, it really is quite different how each of us perceive Jay's music and how we enjoy it.

I think for me, it's always been the music over the lyrics. Until now, I don't think I've read any of Jay's lyrics more than 5x. For example, I haven't even read the lyrics of Jiang Jun on the new album once even though I love that song and has already listened to it countless times. Of course I appreciate the story that the lyrics tell, but I've never purposely tried to learn it or memorized it to sing along. Perhaps it's due to the fact that I mostly listen to music on the go, I rarely sit down and JUST listen to music and look at the lyrics. To me, just knowing the basic/outline story behind the song from the lyrics is already enough. Music, especially Jay's music, it tells a story on its own, I can feel the emotion/message he's trying to convey from the beats, rhythms, melodic arrangements. Now I'm also just an average ordinary listener of music, so what I love is how Jay's music draws me, keeps my attention. The fact that I don't understand what he's saying most of the time and not having memorized the lyrics, does not take away from my enjoyment of it. Instead, as the author of the article points out, it makes me concentrate on all that Jay tries to incorporate in his musical creations. Just the music is enough to mesmerize me and make the time go by faster on tedious rides on public transportation. So I really want to give Jay dues for emphasizing the melodic components in his music through the ingenious incorporation of sound samples or simply a beautiful melody that hits me right in the heart. He even manipulates his voice as an instrument in such songs as My Territory, Luan Wu Chun Qiu, Jiang Jun off of the new album. I think no one else in the Chinese music industry can come close comparing to his creativity in this aspect. He's just incredible.

In short, I believe I appreciate Jay's songs based mostly on its music components, while I appreciate and respect him as an artist/person in trying to incorporate more meaningful and personal topics through the lyrics in his works. It shows he's a conscientious person, aside from being a musical genius and for that I also applaud him.

To answer my own questions, yes I think lyrics can really take the backseat to a beautiful melody. Just think of classical music, they are timeless without the help of lyrics or words. Music crosses a lot of boundaries that languages do not.

I do think Jay is bringing forth a revolution in the Chinese music industry. Just look at how many acts that are cropping up these days trying to incorporate the Chou styled sound? I do think there's a lot more innovative music coming out than there used to be. Just compare the Taiwanese pop industry to HK's and one can see the difference and how Jay's influence has affected things. Whether it's through his mumbling, that's questionable. Perhaps even if he enunciated everything perfectly, his music would still have been noticed and given the credits its due.

jay_is_cute
08-14-2004, 10:18 AM
i agree that the music has always captured me more than the lyrics in jays songs, but im not saying they dont matter. the meaning behind a song is pleasant when meaningful. when i compared jay's songs to those of other singers, i noticed something distinctly different between them, but wasn't exactly able to pinpoint it. recently i figured that music, or melody, is the main focus of jay's songs and in other artists, music is only secondary, like the article and everyone here has said. (ive only become an avid listener of jay the past few months. :wink2: ) other artists focus on their voices and the lyrics of the song.

the author said that enunciation and clarity of lyrics has always been a traditional in chinese music, the accepted way. could this be the reason that alot of the older generations like our parents, dont like jay as much as we do? for one thing, my dad doesn't like jay because he mumbles and is hard to understand. :happy:

the one
08-14-2004, 09:17 PM
for me, i think melody is much more important than lyrics coz i don't understand the lyrics anyway, as a foreigner being ignorant of the language and such.. i think it's what attracts me to one's music.. if i like the vibe/beat/rhythm of the song, i'll soon like it afterwards..

ap
08-15-2004, 10:40 AM
for me i think tt melody and lyrics stand side by side....although in the past b4 i started to listen to jays songs, i dun even concentrate of what the lyrics is abt....now its a diff story....i dun really like singing songs tt have crappy lyrics...even tho it has a great melody....i'll prefer to hum thru the song instead of singing out word by word...main reason - i think tt the crappy lyrics will only degrade the wonderful melody.....

the way i listen to jay's songs is tt i started out plainly listening to the melody....after i'm used to the melody, i'll turn to reading the lyrics while he sings....its quite strange tt the lyrics will actually change the way i feel towards the songs.....eg. i din really like a particular song at first but after finding out that the lyrics was wonderfully written, it actually change my perspective towards the song and starting to like tt song and even singing along with it.....tts y i think that the melody and lyrics are equally important.

my conclusion : good melody + good lyrics = good song

htc10
08-22-2004, 06:53 AM
I never looked at his music this way before, but I think you have a point. His songs use so much more than just lyrics. When I think about it, I'm first drawn into his songs through the beats and melodies. Only then after do I actually listen to the lyrics. It's incredible how Jay is able to get people who don't even understand his words into being fans.