It Was A Good Day
Jennifer Thornton
English 103
03-18-10
It
Was A Good Day is a song by Ice Cube that was
released in 1993. This song chronicles a
day in the narrator’s life where everything seemed to go his way and he can
look at it and feel happy about the occurrences of the day when he lays his
head at night. Historical/biographical,
gender and cultural perspectives could be used to analyze the lyrics of It Was A Good Day
to understand various issues brought up during the song.
Analyzing this song using a
historical/biographical perspective, the lyrics take on a whole new
meaning. Ice Cube was born as O’Shea
Jackson on June 15, 1969 in South Central Los Angeles. Jackson
had both parents living in the house, and they worked hard to give him a chance
at a better future. His parents put him
in sports like football and basketball to keep him out of trouble. However, he was still exposed to the same
hardships of the inner-city that his peers were exposed to. Jackson never became a gang member, but, “He
became a feared voice of the ghetto at the tender of 16 when he joined the
notorious rap group NWA (Niggaz With Attitude)”
(McKenna 120), which gave him the opportunity to use his expertise of penning
lyrics to speak his mind using the persona Ice Cube as a narrator, as seen in It Was A Good Day. Jackson was surrounded by gang activity
because it was so rampant, and he used those experiences to convey his thoughts
in word through his persona, Ice Cube, as evidenced in the first line of the
song, “Just waking up in the morning gotta thank God”
(Jackson 1), exposing that the reality of these surroundings would always live
in his mind. Along with Jackson, many young men of South Central Los
Angeles have experienced a lot of negative influences. In an article written by Mike Sager featured
in Rolling Stone, Sager noted, “Since then, of course,”
referring to the 1965 Watts Riot, “the people of South-Central have been
fighting another kind of battle, against gangs and drugs. More than half of the county’s 90,000 gang
members live here, yet it is quite a nice place” (Sager 78), stating how
prevalent gang activity was in South
Central LA.
In an article entitled Dancing
between two worlds: a portrait of the
life of a black male teacher in South Central LA, the author, Marvin Lynn,
writes of his interview of a teacher who grew up in South Central Los Angeles
and stays in that community to teach kids so he can make a difference in the
community. In the article, Kashari Rogers, who is the subject being interviewed,
recounts how life was growing up in his neighborhood. “He immediately began to describe how his
neighborhood was ‘divided up’ by gangs.
‘It was like a faction of five different sets’ of gangs: the ‘Playboys, Hoovers, Schoolyards, Neighborhoods’ and so on” (Lynn 228), showing how
the various gangs have control over their ‘hoods. Jackson
understood the dangers of just living and driving within this community. “Cause just yesterday them fools tried to
blast me, Saw the police and they rolled right past me” (Jackson
22-23), Jackson
uses the narrator’s voice (Ice Cube) throughout the song to illustrate the
potential violence encountered on any particular day. Citizens of South Central Los Angeles are
well-aware of the practice of gangs, as was/is Kashari,
“[…], as a young child, he had to be astute enough not to enter into the wrong
space at the wrong time” (Lynn
228). This concept played an enormous
role in the lives of young black men.
This was a reality, no matter how much parents tried to keep their
children safe. Jackson calls upon his
memories of growing up to chronicle this reality by writing the lyrics,
“Thinking will I live, another twenty-fo’” (Jackson
8). This thought of murder was obviously
something that sat strong in his mind, as he added it into his lyrics more than
one time, stating, “No helicopter looking for a murder” (Jackson 53).
When Jackson
references the helicopter, he is actually talking about the “Ghetto Bird” which
is a term used to indicate the police helicopters that are used to find
suspects and patrol neighborhoods. The
last and final time he wrote lyrics of killing or guns was towards the very end
of the song when he penned, “Today I didn’t even have to use my A.K., I got to
say it was a good day” (Jackson
58-59). The A.K. that is referred to
there is the AK-47, which is a type of assault rifle. Homicide is routine in these neighborhoods;
“According to an analysis for The Times by county health officials of homicide
data between 1991 and 2002, Latino men ages 20 to 24 were five times more
likely than white men the same age to die, and black men were 16 times more
likely” (LA Times, The Homicide Report).
It’s unfortunate that black males have to endure these living
conditions, but Ice Cube is rapping about this to characterize that day played
out so well that it is a great memory.
Continuing on with
biographical/historical perspective, something else young black men had to face
daily along with being killed was being arrested. Lynn
states in his article that there are, “Over a million young black men in
prison. A little more than half a
million black men are enrolled in institutions that lead to some kind of
degree” (Lynn 228), which means that there are more black men in prison than in
school. It’s almost as if a young black
male in the inner city ending up in jail is a fact of life. As if being the underdog likely to end up in
prison wasn’t enough, young black males have to live with the fact that they
are commonly targeted by police. The
listener can feel the surprise the narrator portrayed when he raps, “Didn’t
even see a berry flashing those high beams” (Jackson 52), referring to a police
car with the red lights on top, which is said to look like a berry. Education was not something that was strong
in the minds of young black males in South Central. It was more about sex, drugs and guns. Jackson is very familiar with both sex and
drugs, even at a young age, as evidenced in his lyrics using Ice Cube’s voice,
“It’s ironic, I had the blunt, she had the chronic” (Jackson 39), referring not
only to drugs but also drug paraphernalia.
A blunt is a cigar that has been hollowed out and refilled with
marijuana, and chronic is a high-quality
marijuana. He speaks of drugs right
before he describes his sexual encounter with a girl he had interest in trying
to “do” for quite some time. He
describes it as, “I felt on the big fat fanny, pulled out the jammy, and killed the punanny” (Jackson 41-42), which is
a term used to describe female genitalia.
He further states, “And my dick runs deep, so deep, so deep, put her ass
to sleep” (Jackson
43-44), suggesting his sex was more than pleasurable.
In context of gender criticism, Jackson brings up many
points throughout the song of the trials and tribulations young black men
endured. However, even though it’s
addressed, it’s done so more in the manner of excitement that the narrator had
a day off from the worries of fighting for his life. He brings up the issue of car jacking with
the lyrics, “Had to stop at a red light, Looking in my mirror, not a jacker in sight” (Jackson 11-12), which is a strong point
because people, especially those living in South Central Los Angeles, are
constantly faced with this concern. Many
times people would be jacked just waiting for the light to turn green. Lynn in his article writes of Kashari, “Kashari lived with the
constant threat of being ‘jacked’ or murdered by gang members, police officers
or a host of other entities […]” (Lynn 238), which is a common feeling within
the community. There was fear of being
murdered not only by gang members but also police officers. Police officers in Los Angeles are notorious for racial
profiling and practicing police brutality.
In 2009, two men in Athens,
California named Jay Johnson and Darrick Collins were standing in the driveway in front of
Collins’s house after a night of playing video games. Suddenly, Los Angeles deputies pulled up and Collins
went into the backyard and was killed.
In an interview with ABC News, Johnson stated, “He [the deputy]
basically just looking for somebody to mess with, you know, so that's the main
reason why I assumed Darrick, you know, went towards
the back. You know, he didn't want to
get messed with like that” (Sykes), showing that although this happened in
2009, it is evident that this is and has been a continuing problem for black
males in the inner city. Even if black
males weren’t in fear of being murdered by the police, they were well-aware of
the chances of being stopped due to “Driving While Black” (Lefevre),
referring to the notion of being pulled over because of color. An article written on CNN.com stated, “With
the growing number of allegations that police are using racial profiles to
decide which motorists to pull over, some states are moving to gather
statistics to show just who is stopped for alleged traffic violations” (Lefevre), in an effort to try and eradicate this long-time
problem. According to a study prepared
in 2008 requested by the American Civil Liberties Union, “Per 10,000 residents, the black stop rate is 3,400 stops
higher than the white stop rate, […]” (Ayres 3), identifying that the
likelihood of being stopped while driving because one is a young black male is
high. Accordingly, “Relative to stopped
whites, stopped blacks are 127% more likely […] to be
frisked” (Ayres 3), further giving affirmation to the concept of racial
profiling. Jackson depicts this
phenomenon in a different aspect since he has the narrator referring to a good
day, however, so he uses the words, “No
flexin, didn't even look in a niggaz
direction as I ran the intersection” (Jackson 25-26), again referring to it’s a
miracle the narrator didn’t get pulled over.
In an interview in Esquire,
Jackson states that he and his friends would
say, “Police got such and such up there!”
He further stated, “And we’d all go over. ‘The dude is shot!’ And we’d all head off to find out what that was
about” (Fussman 50), recalling instances when police
brutality was an issue in his neighborhood.
In a book written by Edward W. Knappman
entitled Great American Trials that
also incorporated in it work written by Colin Evans, pieces of testimony from
the trial of the officers in the Rodney King beating that took place on March
3, 1992 were published. One important
piece of testimony was from an officer with the California Highway Patrol named
Melanie Singer who took the stand during trial.
She stated, “He had it in a power swing and he struck the driver right
across the top of the cheekbone, splitting his face from the top of his ear to
his chin,” (Evans 825), referring to what she saw Officer Laurence Powell do to
King. King himself testified while on
the stand that he recollected officers saying to him, “What’s up, nigger? How do you feel, killer?” (Evans 826). This is just one more example of the
unfortunate events young black males living in South Central Los Angeles
experience and/or worry about daily:
Unarmed police killings and police brutality. However, in the song, the narrator is
describing the dream of a good day so it is stated as, “Plus nobody I know got
killed in South Central L.A.,
Today was a good day.” (Jackson
35-36). The reason that was such an epic
event in the narrator’s mind is because of the consequences of police brutality
and the fact that it was so common.
The culture of young black males from the
environment Jackson
grew up in are faced with a lot of discrimination, crime and hatred. With that said, they have choices, but most
of them feel hopeless and believe they can’t get out of that lifestyle. Lynn
stated in his article, “When he tried to explain why so many of his friends did
not become successful, he said, ‘It’s not that they don’t have potential. It just the environment is just so deterring
from anything that is academically focused’” (Lynn 228).
According to Kashari, this is due to South
Central Los Angeles’s “ghetto mentality.”
He states, “They living in the projects.
They whole mentality was different.
We out here trying to get paper. You know, dressin’
fresh and driving low-lows. [They] all about jackin’ and pimpin’ […]” (Lynn
231). The concept of getting
jacked is further confirmed by the lyrics in Jackson’s song. As far as Kashari
mentioning low-lows (lowriders), the narrator speaks
of the same thing. He says, “I gotta go cause I got me a drop
top, And if I hit the switch, I can make the ass drop” (Jackson 9-10), referring to a lowrider he owns.
When he says, “hit the switch” (Jackson
10), he is referring to hydraulics, which is something young black culture admires
greatly. Also being able to do “tricks” in the lowrider was a big
deal in this culture. In the words of
the narrator, “Took another sip of the potion, hit the three-wheel motion” (Jackson 48), he raps
about driving the car on three wheels rather than the normal four. Sundays were big on Crenshaw Boulevard, where young black
men, along with a mixed group who also enjoyed lowriders,
would gather and show off their cars and hang out. According to Keith N. Dusenberry
who wrote Showdown On The Shaw-On The Scene The Uncertain Future Of Lowriding’s
Infamous Strip for Lowrider Magazine,
he stated Crenshaw Boulevard has been, “Long
regarded as one of the most important and symbolic lowrider
cruising spots in the country-and the world […]” (Dusenberry),
proving lowriders were an important part of the
culture. The narrator also mentions the
joys of being looked at as a pimp in this particular line, “Even saw the lights
of the Goodyear Blimp, And it read Ice Cube’s a pimp”
(Jackson
55-56), sounding proud at the thought.
This is because of the typical things regarded as being cool in these
neighborhoods: cars, drugs, sex, guns and the ability to run women. It strokes a young man’s ego from the ‘hood
to have the power to make women feel good.
This idea is evident in the lyric, “Woke her up around one, She didn’t
hesitate, to call Ice Cube the top gun” (Jackson 45-46), once again showing the
ego of the young black male.
Another aspect of the young black culture
is hanging out with friends playing dominos and shooting craps. In the narrator’s dream of a good day, he
says, “What’s the haps on the craps, Shake em up,
shake em up, shake em up,
shake em, Roll em in a
circle of niggaz and watch me break em, With the seven, seven-eleven, seven-eleven, Seven even
back do’ little Joe, I picked up the cash flow, Then we played bones, and I’m yellin domino” (Jackson 28-32). Kashari further
verifies this practice during his interview with Lynn,
wherein it was stated, “[Buddies] wore baggy clothing and would ‘shoot dice’
and sell drugs at all different times of the day” (Lynn 232).
This type of activity, hanging out in the yard playing dominos and
shooting craps, is a typical pastime among young black men.
Although this song brings up all the
negative images of inner-city, Jackson
uses his experiences in life and turns it around in a way to portray a
wonderful day using the narrator. This
song also teaches listeners about the troubles youth face in South Central and
how appreciative they are when they can experience a day or a time when they
are not faced with these dangers. A song
like this can be both effective in downplaying gangsta
life but also highlight and mislead people into thinking all the negative
circumstances are actually cool, depending on the listener’s ideals. The reality of it all is that having a good
day without facing any problem, such as Ice Cube rapped, is merely a fantasy
and not likely to happen. He narrates a
perfect day in his eyes and has the listener believing his every word. However, Ice Cube ends with, “Hey, wait, wait
a minute poo, Stop the shit. What the fuck am I thinking about?” (Jackson 62), indicating
it was a dream.
WORKS
CITED
Ayres, Ian and Jonathan Borowsky
“A Study of Racially Disparate Outcomes in the Los Angeles Police Department.” Oct 2008 www.yale.edu/ayres/
Dusenberry,
Keith N. “Showdown On The Shaw-On The Scene The
Uncertain Future of Lowriding’s Infamous Strip.” Lowrider Magazine Nov 2009 www.lowridermagazine.com
Evans, Colin “Los Angeles Police
Officers’ Trials-1992 & 1993.”
Great American Trials
Visible
Ink Press 2003: 824-828 ISBN: 9780-810391345
Fussman, Cal “Ice Cube.” Esquire Jan 2003 Vol.
139, Issue 1:50 ISSN: 01949535
Jackson, O’Shea “It Was A Good Day.” www.sing365.com
Lefevre, Greg “’Driving While
Black’ - racial profiling under study.” 2 June 1999 www.cnn.com
Lynn,
Marvin “Dancing between two worlds: a portrait of the life of a black male
teacher in South Central LA.”
International Journal of Qualitative Studies in Education Vol. 19, No.
2, March-April 2006:221-242, ISSN 1366-5898, DOI: 10.1080/09518390600576111
McKenna,
Michael “Ice Cube comes in from the cold.” Sunday Telegraph, The (Sydney)
Edition 1, 2 Feb. 2003:120, Accession number 200302021120372841
Smale, B, with M. Sager “Cube.” Rolling Stone
Oct 1990, Issue 588:78 ISSN: 0035791X
Sykes,
Leslie “Unarmed man killed by deputy in Athens.” www.abc.com
September 15, 2009
The
Times staff writers “The Times chronicles L.A. County
homicide victims Frequently Asked Questions.” The Homicide Report www.latimesblogs.latimes.com/homicidereport/faq