Released: 2018 • Features: Lil Pump
“Nephew” by Smokepurpp featuring Lil Pump, spits raw, visceral verses that drip with an aggressive swagger, punctuated by references to wealth, power, a dangerous lifestyle, and an unapologetic disrespect for social norms. Essentially, the song is a flashy, uncensored glimpse into their world of extravagance and perceived invincibility, which they have achieved through their success in the rap game.
The track kicks off with ‘Lil Purpp!’ expressing his intent to get extraordinarily intimate with a woman, using the playful metaphor “paint on her face like I’m DoodleBob” to suggest explicit activities. The next line, “Jump in, that pussy like I scuba dive,” continues this trend. The juxtaposition of seemingly innocent activities like painting and scuba diving with an explicit context is a tool often used in rap to create shock value.
As the song progresses, lyrics like “AK-47 ’round my arm like a shoulder pad” and “If I see you, I’ma wet you, hit you and your nephew” speak to an underbelly of violence that accompanies the life of fame and excess. The term “wet you” is slang in hip-hop for shooting someone, and these lyrics together create a threatening aura of fearlessness and defiance.
To them, being this raw and reckless is a badge of honor, adding authenticity to their public persona.
Lines such as “I just fucked up five racks, dropped it on a jacket” and “Six grams in a blunt, and I’m sippin'” demonstrate excessive spending and drug usage, which are often seen as symbols of wealth and status in hip-hop culture. However, the critique of such behavior is also implicit, painting a picture of wasted potential and self-destruction.
Interestingly, the song also reveals some of their relationships with family members in an eccentric fashion. Lyrics such as “Serving to my auntie, yeah, she a good custy” depict them selling drugs to their own relatives, while “My grandma got a face tat” paints a vivid image of a family that has embraced the unconventional and anti-establishment lifestyle of the artists themselves.
“Nephew” provides an unabashed, gritty, and often shocking window into the volatile world of Smokepurpp and Lil Pump. It’s a no-holds-barred exposition of their reality, unabashedly demonstrating their disregard for conventional social norms and portraying their rebellious personas.
