Radiohead
A speaker invokes a childhood fantasy of cosmic justice to punish people who irritate him, then realizes partway through that…
petty vindictiveness corporate/institutional conformity self-recognition and guilt
Margo Price
A pointed takedown song aimed at an unnamed figure who has coasted on privilege and self-regard, predicting their inevitable…
class resentment comeuppance and karma vanity and image-obsession
Gang Starr
Gang Starr's title track is a meditation on accountability and betrayal dressed as street philosophy, moving from meditative…
betrayal and loyalty accountability/karma paranoia at success
MF DOOM
Hoe Cakes is DOOM's mock-manual on relationship management, built entirely around a running pun that turns pancakes into a…
misogynist bravado as persona commodification of relationships comic wordplay and double entendre
Beastie Boys
A boastful party-rap narrator recounts two encounters with a woman he casts as manipulative and dangerous, only for the joke to…
misplaced bravado gullibility and comeuppance urban hookup culture