Death Certificate

No Vaseline

Ice Cube

Lyrics & Rhyme Analysis

End

222

Internal

124

Multi

252

Slant

Chain

Rhyme Groups — hover to spotlight

Goddamn^✦ I'm glad y'all set it off

Used^✦ to be hard now you're just wet and soft

First you was down with the AK

And now I see you on a video^✦ with Michel'le?

Lookin'^✦ like straight Bozos^✦

I saw it comin'^✦ that's why I went solo^✦

And kept on stompin'

When y'all motherfuckers moved^✦ straight outta^✦ Compton^✦

Livin'^✦ with the whites,^✦ one big house

And not another nigga^✦ in site

I started off with too much cargo^✦

Dropped four niggas^✦ now I'm makin'^✦ all the dough

White man just rulin'^✦

The Niggas^✦ With Attitudes, who ya foolin'?^✦

Y'all niggas^✦ just phony^✦

I put that on my mama^✦ and my dead homies^✦

Yella^✦ Boy's on your team, so you're losin'^✦

Ay yo Dre, stick to producin'

Callin'^✦ me Arnold,^✦ but you been-a-dick

Eazy-E saw your ass and went in it quick

You got jealous when I got my own company

But I'm a man, and ain't nobody^✦ helpin'^✦ me

Tryna^✦ sound like Amerikkka's Most

You could yell all day but you don't come close

'Cause you know I'm the one that flowed^✦

Ya done run 100 miles,^✦ but you still got one to go

With the L-E-N-C-H M-O-B, and y'all disgrace the C-P-T

'Cause you're gettin'^✦ fucked^✦ out your green by a white boy

With no Vaseline^✦

The bigger^✦ the cap, the bigger^✦ the peelin'^✦

Who gives^✦ a fuck about^✦ a punk-ass villain?^✦

You're gettin'^✦ fucked^✦ real quick

And Eazy's^✦ dick, is smellin' like MC Ren's shit

Tried to tell you a year ago^✦

But Willie D told me to let a hoe be a hoe, so

I couldn't stop you from gettin'^✦ ganked^✦

Now let's play big-bank-take-little-bank

Tried to diss Ice Cube, it wasn't worth it

'Cause the broomstick fit your ass so perfect

Cut my hair and I'll cut them balls

'Cause I heard you like givin'^✦ up the drawers

Gang-banged by your manager,^✦ fella^✦

Gettin'^✦ money^✦ out your ass, like a motherfuckin'^✦ Ready^✦ Teller^✦

Givin'^✦ up the dollar^✦ bills

Now they got the Villain^✦ with a purse and high-heels

So don't believe what Ren say

'Cause he's goin' out like Kunte Kinte

But I got a whip for ya Toby^✦

Used^✦ to be my homie, now you act like you don't know me

It's a case of divide-and-conquer

'Cause you let a Jew break up my crew

House nigga^✦ gotta^✦ run and hide

Yellin'^✦ Compton,^✦ but you moved^✦ to Riverside

So don't front, MC Ren, 'cause I remember when you drove a be B210

Broke as a mothafuckin'^✦ joke

Let you on the scene to back up the First Team

It ain't my fault, one nigga^✦ got smart

And they rippin'^✦ your asshole apart^✦

By takin'^✦ your green, oh yeah

The Villain^✦ does get fucked^✦ with no Vaseline^✦

I never^✦ have dinner^✦ with the President^✦

And when I see your ass again,^✦ I'll be hesitant

Now I think you a snitch

Throw a house nigga^✦ in a ditch

Half-pint bitch, fuckin'^✦ your homeboys

You little maggot,^✦ Eazy-E turned^✦ faggot^✦

With your manager,^✦ fella^✦

Fuckin'^✦ MC Ren, Dr. Dre, and Yella^✦

But if they were smart as me

Eazy-E would be hangin'^✦ from a tree

With no Vaseline,^✦ just a match and a little bit of gasoline^✦

Light 'em up, burn 'em up, flame on

'Til that Jheri^✦ curl is gone

On a permanent vacation,^✦ off the massa^✦ plantation^✦

Heard you both got the same bank account

Dumb nigga,^✦ what you thinkin' 'bout?

Get rid of that Devil^✦ real simple, put a bullet^✦ in his temple

'Cause you can't be the Nigga^✦ 4 Life crew

With a white Jew tellin'^✦ you what to do

Pullin'^✦ wools with your scams, now I gotta^✦ play the Silence of the Lambs

With a midget^✦ who's a punk too

Tryna^✦ fuck me, but I'd rather^✦ fuck you

Eric Wright, punk, always^✦ into^✦ somethin', gettin'^✦ fucked^✦ at night

By Mista^✦ Shitpacker,^✦ bend over^✦ for the goddamn^✦ cracker,^✦ no Vaseline^✦

Motherfuckin'^✦ nosejob having ass

Motherfuckin'^✦ Jheri^✦ curl lite

Ambi^✦ wearing motherfuckin'^✦ bitch

Technical Breakdown

8.9

Multisyllabic Rhymes9.5

Complexity of rhyme schemes (data-driven)

Internal Rhymes9.5

Rhymes within a line (data-driven)

Wordplay / Double Entendres9.0

Clever language, metaphors, punchlines

Cadence / Rhythm8.5

Flow variation and timing (data-driven)

Vocabulary Complexity8.0

Range and depth of words used (data-driven)

Delivery / Breath Control9.5

Performance and control

Computed Score8.95

Production

— Ice Cube, Sir Jinx

Be the first to rate the production

Critic Analysis

RAPLEDGER BAROMETER™

Ice Cube utilizes aggressive, direct-address storytelling to dismantle N.W.A. through a blend of visceral social commentary and clinical character assassination, cementing 'No Vaseline' as the gold standard for diss record structural integrity in 1991.

A+

9.5

Multisyllabic

9.5

Internal Rhymes

8.5

Cadence / Flow

Vocabulary

Wordplay

9.5

Delivery

Direct addressInternal rhyme stackingNarrative arc developmentSocio-political metaphorMultisyllabic enjambment

Rhyme Architecture: Predominantly AABB or AAAA couplets with heavy usage of internal multisyllabic clusters that bridge lines, maintaining a high-velocity, driving cadence.

Verified Doubles & Entendres

"Callin' me Arnold, but you been-a-dick"

① A play on the name Arnold Schwarzenegger (referencing his co-starring role in 'Higher Learning' or industry comparisons).② Phonetic decomposition into 'been a dick', functioning as a direct insult to the target's character.

"I started off with too much cargo / Dropped four niggas now I'm makin' all the dough"

① Metaphorical reference to the weight of his former group members (N.W.A.) acting as baggage.② A play on the literal 'cargo' of a ship or truck, implying he was carrying them financially/artistically.

"Livin' with the whites, one big house / And not another nigga in site"

① A critique of N.W.A.'s lifestyle shift towards suburban/white-dominated environments.② A visual pun on 'site' (location) versus 'sight' (vision), suggesting a metaphorical blindness or alienation from their roots.

Unmatched level of vitriol and narrative focus

Exceptional rhythmic drive that maintains intensity throughout

Seamless integration of personal betrayal with cultural critique

High-impact, quotable punchlines that serve the structural arc

Relies heavily on aggressive posturing which may overshadow subtle lyricism for some listeners

The simplicity of the AABB structure occasionally borders on repetitive when removed from the context of the high-tempo delivery

User Scores

Notes

Ice Cube's nuclear demolition of N.W.A. His surgical precision and controlled rage make this one of the greatest diss records ever