Hip Hop Is Dead

Hold Down the Block

Nas

Lyrics & Rhyme Analysis

End

159

Internal

Multi

177

Slant

Chain

Rhyme Groups — hover to spotlight

[Chorus: Mark B. Mayfield, (Nas)]

I gotta^✦ hold down the block, when the block is hot

I gotta^✦ use my imagination^✦ to change the situation^✦

I gotta^✦ hold down the block, when the block is hot (hold it down)

I gotta^✦ use my imagination^✦ to change the situation^✦

[Verse 2: Nas, (Mark B. Mayfield)]

Uh, uh, it's beef week, Monday,^✦ murder^✦

Two niggas^✦ dead, Tuesday^✦

Wednesday^✦ and Thursday^✦ is hearse-day^✦

Friday,^✦ somebody-gotta-die day

Saturday,^✦ put the gat away^✦

Chillin' with your chick and a bag of haze

Wonderin' how it's all gon' end and what type of way

'Cause Sunday,^✦ back to gunplay^✦

Most shit start over^✦ nothin'^✦

And get finished quick, 'cause the art of repercussion^✦

Yeah, I seen it, a G going out indecent (When the block is hot)

Takin'^✦ a plea agreement, thinking^✦ he secret^✦

Escape^✦ the crime scene, now you live straight like 9:15

Then one-time^✦ intervene (I gotta^✦ hold...)

My man ain't like me sayin' "I don't care if I die"

But the SIG Sauer on me, know I'm scared^✦ to die

You thinking^✦ the one I send to clap you'd be a shorty^✦

But he old school, holdin'^✦ a .38, he in his 40's

[Chorus: Mark B. Mayfield, (Nas)]

I gotta^✦ hold down the block when the block is hot

I gotta^✦ use my imagination^✦ to change the situation^✦

I gotta^✦ hold down the block, when the block is hot (Yeah, word to mother)^✦

I gotta^✦ use my imagination,^✦ to change the situation^✦ (Yeah)

[Verse 3: Nas, (Mark B. Mayfield)]

(I gotta...)^✦ Anytime^✦ brothers can't get jobs, then they rob (When the block is hot)

A man rather^✦ die than live on his knees and starve

Cops steady^✦ askin'^✦ your man what happened

First he tell, then he stop, like he not really^✦ rattin'^✦

Guess he not really^✦ in that casket^✦ from a sawed-off

(When the block is hot)

Listen,^✦ peep game from the brain of an all-star

The rain hurt niggas'^✦ bones^✦ who been shot

Metal pins in their leg, they walk with a limp-hop

The streets lie (when the block is hot), so you better^✦ be cautious

Your man'll fry you, plus everybody talkin'^✦

A vet, a General, don't step where I walked^✦ in

Make your own path, be a legend^✦ in your skin

(Hold down the block, when the block is hot)

Make your own cash, don't stress what I'm flossin'

Don't expect more when you put in less work than all them

Queensbridge projects has taught him

And that's for life, you heard me right, I got the block

[Outro: Mark B. Mayfield]

When the block is hot, when the block is hot

I gotta^✦ use my imagination^✦ to change the situation^✦

I gotta^✦ hold down the block, when the block is hot

I gotta^✦ use my imagination^✦ to change the situation^✦

I gotta^✦ hold down the block, when the block is hot

I gotta^✦ use my imagination^✦ to change the situation^✦

Technical Breakdown

8.7

Multisyllabic Rhymes9.5

Complexity of rhyme schemes (data-driven)

Internal Rhymes9.5

Rhymes within a line (data-driven)

Wordplay / Double Entendres8.0

Clever language, metaphors, punchlines

Cadence / Rhythm9.0

Flow variation and timing (data-driven)

Vocabulary Complexity7.0

Range and depth of words used (data-driven)

Delivery / Breath Control8.5

Performance and control

Computed Score8.67

Production

— Mark Batson

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Critic Analysis

RAPLEDGER BAROMETER™

Nas utilizes a cyclical, calendar-based rhyme scheme to create a claustrophobic atmosphere, reinforcing the inevitability of street violence through rhythmic repetition and internal slant rhymes.

9.5

Multisyllabic

9.5

Internal Rhymes

Cadence / Flow

Vocabulary

Wordplay

8.5

Delivery

Cyclical rhyme progressionTemporal markers as narrative structural devicesInternal rhyme densityEnjambment for tensionSlant rhyme pairing

Rhyme Architecture: The verse employs a rigid, cyclical A-A-A-A temporal structure for the first seven bars (Monday/Murder/Tuesday/Wednesday/Thursday/Friday/Saturday), utilizing the days of the week as the primary anchor for internal and end rhymes, eventually resolving into a standard multisyllabic narrative flow.

Verified Doubles & Entendres

"Wednesday and Thursday is hearse-day"

① The literal days of the week in a sequence of violence.② A grim compound word suggesting that these days are designated for funeral transport due to the anticipated homicide rate.

"live straight like 9:15"

① A reference to clock time, implying a specific hour of daily survival.② A visual pun on the straight alignment of the numbers 9, 1, and 5, suggesting a temporary appearance of 'straight' (law-abiding/orderly) living.

"he old school, holdin' a .38, he in his 40's"

① The hitman is a man in his forties years of age.② A play on the caliber of the firearm (.38) versus his age (40s), suggesting his seniority and commitment to 'old school' methods.

Exceptional rhythmic integration of temporal markers

High-impact narrative pacing

Evocative imagery of systemic violence

Strong structural cohesion within the weekly motif

Occasional reliance on conventional street tropes

Vocabulary complexity is slightly lower compared to his peak abstract lyricism

Hold Down the Block

Lyrics & Rhyme Analysis

Technical Breakdown

Production

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