Yeezus

Blood on the Leaves

Kanye West

Lyrics & Rhyme Analysis

End

116

Internal

Multi

166

Slant

Chain

Rhyme Groups — hover to spotlight

[Post-Chorus: Kanye West]

Before^✦ the limelight^✦ tore you

Before^✦ the limelight^✦ stole you

Remember we were so young

When I would hold you

[Bridge: Kanye West]

Before^✦ the blood on the leaves^✦

I know there ain't... wrong with me

Something strange happenin'

Uh, uh, ayy, ayy

[Chorus: Kanye West]

You could've been somebody^✦

We could've, uh, we could've been somebody^✦

Or was it on the first party^✦

When we tried our first molly?^✦

And came out of our body^✦

And came out of our body,^✦ yeah

[Post-Chorus: Kanye West]

Before^✦ they call lawyers

Before^✦ you tried to destroy us

How you gon' lie to the lawyer?^✦

It's like I don't even^✦ know you

I gotta^✦ bring it back to the 'Nolia^✦

[Interlude: Kanye West]

Fuck them other^✦ niggas,^✦ 'cause I'm down with my niggas^✦

I ride with my niggas,^✦ I'd die for my—

[Bridge: Kanye West & Nina Simone]

Uh, on the southern^✦ leaves^✦

[Verse 2: Kanye West]

To all my second-string bitches tryna^✦ get a baby^✦

Tryna^✦ get a baby?^✦ Now you talkin'^✦ crazy^✦

I don't give a damn if you used^✦ to talk to JAY-Z

He ain't with you, he with Beyoncé, you need to stop actin'^✦ lazy^✦

She Instagram^✦ herself, like, "Bad bitch alert"^✦

He Instagram^✦ his watch, like, "Mad rich alert"^✦

He only^✦ wanna^✦ see that ass in reverse

Two-thousand-dollar bag with no cash in your purse

Now you sittin'^✦ courtside, wifey^✦ on the other^✦ side

Gotta^✦ keep 'em separated,^✦ I call that apartheid

Then she said she pregnant-ated,^✦ that's the night your heart died

Then you gotta^✦ go and tell your girl and report^✦ that

Main reason^✦ 'cause your pastor said you can't abort^✦ that

Now your driver^✦ say that new Benz, you can't afford that

All that cocaine on the table, you can't snort that

That go into that, all that money^✦ that the court got

All in on that alimony,^✦ uh

Yeah-yeah, she got you, homie, yeah

'Til death, but do your part, uh

Unholy^✦ matrimony^✦

[Bridge: Nina Simone]

Black bodies^✦ swinging in the southern^✦ breeze

Freeze

Strange fruit hanging from the poplar^✦ trees

From the poplar^✦ trees

[Outro: Kanye West]

That summer^✦ night, holdin'^✦ long and long

'Din long

No waiting for the summer^✦ rose and...

And breathe

And breathe and breathe

And live and learn, and live and learn

And livin'^✦ and livin'^✦ like I'm lonely^✦

Lonely,^✦ lonely,^✦ lonely^✦

And livin'^✦ lonely^✦

And live and learn

And live

[Produced by TNGHT, Kanye West, Mike Dean, Arca, Carlos "6 July" Broady, and 88 Keys]

Technical Breakdown

7.5

Multisyllabic Rhymes8.5

Complexity of rhyme schemes (data-driven)

Internal Rhymes8.5

Rhymes within a line (data-driven)

Wordplay / Double Entendres6.0

Clever language, metaphors, punchlines

Cadence / Rhythm8.0

Flow variation and timing (data-driven)

Vocabulary Complexity5.0

Range and depth of words used (data-driven)

Delivery / Breath Control7.5

Performance and control

Computed Score7.46

Production

— Kanye West, Hudson Mohawke, Lunice, TNGHT, Mike Dean, Arca, 88-Keys, Carlos Broady

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Critic Analysis

RAPLEDGER BAROMETER™

Kanye West prioritizes emotional atmosphere and sonic texture over intricate linguistic wordplay, utilizing repetitive, mantra-like structures to evoke a sense of descent and loss.

B+

8.5

Multisyllabic

8.5

Internal Rhymes

Cadence / Flow

Vocabulary

Wordplay

7.5

Delivery

Assonant rhyme chainsRepetitive phrasing as emotional signifierInternal rhythmic mirroringCall-and-response cadence

Rhyme Architecture: The verse relies heavily on mono-rhyme and slant-rhyme clusters (limelight/stole/young/hold; somebody/party/molly/body; lawyers/destroy/Nolia), creating a hypnotic, claustrophobic loop that reinforces the lyrical themes of instability.

Verified Doubles & Entendres

"Came out of our body"

① The physical sensation of a dissociative drug experience induced by molly.② A metaphor for the loss of self, innocence, and moral clarity within the destructive cycle of celebrity life.

"Before the blood on the leaves"

① A literal reference to the track title and the dark imagery of the 'Strange Fruit' sample.② A symbolic marker of the transition from a pure, pre-fame relationship to one marred by violent, historical trauma and systemic decay.

Strong emotional resonance through repetitive cadence

Effective use of the 'somebody/body/molly' sequence to ground the narrative

Vocal delivery shifts provide a sense of urgency despite simple vocabulary

Limited lexical complexity

Wordplay is functional rather than layered

Relies more on the atmospheric production for impact than the written density

Blood on the Leaves

Lyrics & Rhyme Analysis

Technical Breakdown

Production

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