Released: 2005 • Features: 50 Cent
“How We Do” by The Game featuring 50 Cent is a boastful anthem of West Coast swagger and street credibility. It delves into their gritty backgrounds and the lifestyle changes that have accompanied their rise to rap stardom.
The hook, “This, is, how, we do”, is instantly catchy and sets the tone for the entire song. It signifies the badass lifestyle 50 Cent and The Game live, the flashy cars they drive, the wealth they flaunt, and the guns they carry because of the dangerous environment they come from.
Opening the verses, The Game reflects on his time hustling on the streets of Compton before he became an artist, making references to selling drugs as seen in, “Sellin’ that skunk, one hand on my gun” and “I was sellin’ rocks when Master P was sayin ‘Uhhh’.” We get a clear picture of how hard he had to grind in order to make a name for himself.
Meanwhile, his success is illustrated in the lines, “I put Lamborghini doors on that Escolade / Low pro so look like I’m ridin’ on blades / In one year man, a nigga’s so paid”. Here, The Game brags about his wealth, showcasing just how much his life has transformed since he left the streets.
The song also provides a peek into The Game’s struggles with being a rich, successful person from a rough background, dealing with prejudices and stereotypes. Lines like “They say I’m no good ’cause I’m so hood / Rich folks do not want me around” and “They call me new money, say I have no class / I’m from the bottom, I came up too fast”, tell us about the stigmatization he faces in elite circles due to his roots.
In the second verse, the baton is passed to 50 Cent who also reflects on his journey from the slums to the lap of luxury. He also boasts about his aggressive nature ready to protect his territory and riches as seen in “We wrap up ya punk ass, stunt and ya done” and “Fifty got a gun, ready? Here it come.”
The song, then, serves as a reminder of their tough background, the challenges they’ve overcome, and the hedonistic lifestyle they now enjoy. It’s a statement of defiance against discrimination, an assertion of their unique brand of cool, and a assertion of the determination that helped both artists rise from the streets to the pinnacle of the hip-hop industry.
