Ice-T – ‘The Tower’

For a medium so literate and wordy, that often relies on self-discipline, Rap and The Novel do not enjoy a close a relationship. I only know of one brilliant novel by a rapper (Lee Scott’s Swan Songs), as hip hop generally seems to veer more towards poetry than prose. Though I loved rap, many of my favourite tracks were either comedic calls for rebellion (anything off the first Beastie Boys album), natural surrealism (‘I Like It Raw’ by Ol’ Dirty Bastard, hip-hop’s Captain Beefheart), or to do with the message rather than a story (Public Enemy’s ‘Fight The Power’). The two linear narratives that cut through that were Snoop Dogg’s ‘Murder Was The Case’, and before that, Ice T’s ‘The Tower’.

Admittedly, these are stories that leant more heavily on observation than imagination, but Ice’s diction, matter of fact enunciation, and delivery is basically a literary technique. The confidence with which he tells his story, of a convict’s first day in prison, without playing to any of his or the genres obvious strengths, testifies to a grim humility borne of exposure to a world that lay well beyond my experience. Being loud and something of a show off, and therefore a more than likely candidate for being shivved on my first day on the yard, ‘The Tower’ implied not so politely, that becoming more observant and thoughtful, and getting a less absurd version of myself down on paper, was the way to go — a long term project I am still engaged in.