Supreme Clientele

The Grain

Ghostface Killah

Lyrics & Rhyme Analysis

End

151

Internal

Multi

219

Slant

Chain

Rhyme Groups — hover to spotlight

[Rufus Thomas:]

Do you wanna^✦ see it?

I'm gonna^✦ do it for ya

New Ghostface!^✦

[Ghostface Killah:]

Yo deep in the trenches

Wig, young black green beret^✦

Chrome laser^✦ guns blazing at spades^✦

Wallabies, cherry^✦ noose, Kool-Aid

10 niggas^✦ call it Tai-Chi

Black blades,^✦ one hundred dollar^✦ seats

Hold up, we at the opera,^✦ Queen Elizabeth rub on my leg

Had ketchup on her dress from a whopper

Chunky^✦ ass necklace,^✦ must be her birthstone

John Paul cop the biggest stones^✦ outta^✦ Rome

So Charles, eyes up on her prince, fucking with Diana^✦

Two rows across, Dirty^✦ giving^✦ hickeys to Vianna^✦ White

Fingering Pamela^✦ Lee, we on the balcony

Dare one of y'all to Malcolm X me

Somebody might catch a Kennedy

Yo let me adjust^✦ my lens through these binoculars

I paid 5 g's sliding off like Kid Vitamin

Viking,^✦ patriot of Broad Street

Bet you think I'm laying like a hyphen^✦

[RZA:]

Tony^✦ Starks make the narc's dogs bark

With the Benz parked,^✦ up against^✦ the boulevard

Starks had the bone sparked

One cop tapped^✦ the window^✦ glass like a cymbal^✦ crash

"What the fuck son! You trying to break glass?"

He flashed his badge; "License and registrations"

At that moment,^✦ his fat partner started chasin'^✦

Chicken heads they was racing^✦ wit' they hearts pacin'^✦

For snatching gold, trying' to dip into^✦ the god's basement

Our location, lead steel shed spread

Cracked shorty^✦ head, left sweetie there for dead

Ghetto^✦ poodles,^✦ fingers sticky^✦ from cheese doodles^✦

Starving' for a 50 cent bag of Oodles^✦ and Noodles^✦

Neighborhood sick wit' it, Clinton 'bout to cut WIC

Maybe one of ya'll rich rap niggas^✦ need to politick

Reach for the sky, they throw bleach in your eye

Don't teach you why, you be keeping 'em high

Dipped^✦ like an Oreo^✦ cookie in cold milk, bold silk

Gold-filled cap, Wu wear hat, low tilt

True Islamic, we speak verbal^✦ rhyme phonics^✦

Why ya'll trying to change this hip hop to technotronics?^✦

Don't go against^✦ the grain (the grain)

[Ghostface Killah & RZA:]

Girl, because of you I'm hurting

Within^✦ my, within^✦ my heart

I know it's not right to be flirting

But a relationship has to start

You're the one that I'm clocking^✦

It's time for you to start jocking^✦

Don't want you to see me cry

This is why this is why this is why

[RZA (Ghostface Killah):]

I met this girl named^✦ Rhonda^✦ from way down yonder^✦

(Hey yo god don't fuck with her)

I met this girl named^✦ Liz she was all in the biz

(Hey yo lord don't fuck with her)

I rocked^✦ a ho named^✦ Tina^✦ from the heart of Medina^✦

(Hey yo kid don't fuck with her)

Yea that girl Kit Kat, she got the good poody-cat

(Hey yo nigga^✦ you better^✦ fuck with her!)

Technical Breakdown

7.9

Multisyllabic Rhymes8.5

Complexity of rhyme schemes (data-driven)

Internal Rhymes9.5

Rhymes within a line (data-driven)

Wordplay / Double Entendres8.0

Clever language, metaphors, punchlines

Cadence / Rhythm6.5

Flow variation and timing (data-driven)

Vocabulary Complexity8.0

Range and depth of words used (data-driven)

Delivery / Breath Control9.0

Performance and control

Computed Score7.94

Production

— RZA

Be the first to rate the production

Critic Analysis

RAPLEDGER BAROMETER™

Ghostface employs an idiosyncratic, non-linear narrative flow that juxtaposes high-society absurdity with street-level menace, creating a surrealist collage that defines his signature stream-of-consciousness delivery style.

B+

8.5

Multisyllabic

9.5

Internal Rhymes

6.5

Cadence / Flow

Vocabulary

Wordplay

Delivery

Stream-of-consciousness narrativeSurrealist imagery juxtapositionInternal multisyllabic rhyme chainsHistorical/pop-culture incongruity

Rhyme Architecture: A dense, loose-knit pattern relying heavily on slant rhymes and internal assonance, prioritizing rhythmic urgency over traditional AABB or ABAB structures.

Verified Doubles & Entendres

"Dare one of y'all to Malcolm X me / Somebody might catch a Kennedy"

① A reference to the public assassinations of Malcolm X and John F. Kennedy, establishing a threat of fatal violence.② A linguistic play on the 'X' and 'Kennedy' marks, where the threat is framed through the lens of tragic American historical iconography.

"Chrome laser guns blazing at spades"

① Physical confrontation involving firearms.② Slang use of 'spades' as a racial identifier coupled with the violent imagery of a deck of cards or high-stakes gambling.

Unrivaled charismatic presence and vocal modulation

Visceral, high-contrast imagery

Authentic, chaotic energy that defies standard cadence structures

Narrative disjointedness may alienate listeners seeking linear storytelling

Occasional reliance on shock value over cohesive thematic development

The Grain

Lyrics & Rhyme Analysis

Technical Breakdown

Production

User Scores