Che Noir - Fall of Rome

"Opportunities knocking, I give it keys to the house"

Album: Thrill of the Hunt 2 EP
Genre: Hip Hop, East Coast Hip Hop
Album Release: June 7th 2019
Length: 2:06
Producer: 38 Spesh
Vocalist: Che Noir [age 25]
Label: Trust Comes First

Music Video


Audio


Che Noir & 38 Spesh - Dying Breed [from the same EP]

Charts, Streams & Sales

Spotify: Over 150 thousand
YouTube Music: Over 250 thousand

Credits

Details

• 'Fall of Rome' is all business, it has no hook and features Che showcasing her skills for around two minutes straight. She mentions Caesar "the Caesar of this rap shit, I gotta keep a sword, got your favorite rapper blood, on this colosseum floor" but it's just another good lyric in a sea of many. Her Christianity is an interesting wrinkle but sits uncomfortably next to the violent imagery. I'm pretty sure Jesus was a big fan of forgiveness, unlike the Romans. I can imagine Che praying for a Bentley.
  
  The Roman Empire put Jesus on the cross only to eventually fall and be replaced by Christianity as the worlds dominant power. When Che calls her song 'Fall of Rome', it's a way of acknowledging the greats that have come before her but lets the world know that her time has come by identifying herself with Christianity, "I believe in the cross, most N-words have it all but let greed be their fall" which subscribes to the Protestant values of hard work and a humble life.
  
  
• Being a Christian, Che Noir's lyrics mention her faith often. On 'Fall of Rome' she goes as far as saying she only dates religious men, although earlier on the song she describes her partner as having road rage and flipping off other drivers. Maybe the relationship was a learning experience.
  
  
• In the late 2010's a new wave of New York hip hop emerged not from New York city itself but from the broader region, especially around Buffalo and Rochester. There was Che Noir and 38 Spesh from the Trust Gang but also Conway, Westside Gunn and Benny the Butcher from Griselda Records, Jae Skeese, Eto and Elcamino among others.
  
  The artists had an undeniable classic east coast boom bap influence but it was updated with production techniques to create something new, authentic and exciting in a space where too many artists sounded the same. It was a genuine shot of adrenaline for an east coast scene that had become stale when compared to the surging popularity of trap from the south.
  
  The success of Griselda Records provided both opportunity and proof of concept to other people in the area who harboured similar ambitions. If you had beats and didn't know what to do with them you could send them to Griselda. If you didn't get a reply you could knock on the door.
  
  Artists like performing close to home because they don't have to pay for travel expenses and before long a strong local scene emerged around Buffalo, Rochester, Albany and Syracuse that rivaled that of the great New York city itself. 38 Spesh also set up Trust Comes First Music Group headquartered in Rochester.

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