Rappers talk about everything in their songs, but what about those times when they actually foretold the future? Consider these examples of songs that gave us a preview of events to come.
#1: Killah Priest – In his 1998 song “Information,” he predicted wiretapping by the National Security Agency. Of course, the government’s been spying on us since at least the 1950s with COINTELPRO, but in 2001 the Patriot Act made it official.
#2: Busta Rhymes – Busta not only predicted planes flying into buildings, as on 9/11, but his album cover also showed lower Manhattan engulfed in flames. If his 1998 song Against All Odds was just rapping, that’s a mighty coincidence!
#3: The Game – On his 2007 track “Hard Times,” the West coast rapper not only predicted Obama would become president but also that Obama would catch Bin Laden.
#4: Goodie Mob – These members of Southern rap royalty released “Cell Therapy” in 1995, and in doing so warned us about smartphones, increased gentrification, and even the social effects of the COVID-19 pandemic!
The honesty in these lyrics not only provided us with dope music, but they also showed us the ways they experienced the world. Whether these songs were prophetic or not, we should always tell the stories of our experiences in our own voices, too. Our Blackness is the future!