Using music to create some perspective among the audience is a part of the fabric of what American pop is, and in his powerful new single “Chariots of Fire,” this is exactly what rapper Bobby-G is looking to do. Bobby-G doesn’t just rely on the visual scheme of his music video for “Chariots of Fire” to make a point here; he’s illustrating his emotions through both his lyrics and the tone he’s presenting them in.
Although the video is exceptionally evocative given its juxtaposition of modern and classic imagery of an ongoing struggle for civil rights, equality, and justice for a Black America continuously left in a chaotic state by those in power, the personality of this piece is driven wholly by the passion with which this rapper is putting a verse to the bassline. While he’s using everything at his disposal to create an endearing set up for the viewer, there’s scarcely a moment where Bobby-G’s voice isn’t the central point of focus in this performance, allowing for us to appreciate both the substance of his statements for what they are (and not their cosmetics alone) as well as his depth as a songwriter, performer, and producer.
On the structural side of things, this beat is pretty heavy, all things considered, but it’s not too much for our vocalist to withstand. Contrarily, the pressure that the rhythm section provides on the front end of this mix is largely where some of the most spellbinding tension in the song comes from, both in the video and in the track by itself.
Chariots of Fire
Listen to Chariots of Fire on Spotify. Bobby-G · Song · 2021.
There’s never a verse where Bobby-G isn’t swinging more weight around with his voice than any of the instrumentation can, and this has little to do with the mastering of the single. Instead of relying on a bunch of bells and whistles to move us with his words in this performance, he’s getting back to the basics of what made provocative hip-hop so striking in the first place – rhythm and rhyme together in one perfectly cohesive union. There’s emotion present in every corner of this track, and rather than making us hunt it down in a blanket of unnecessary details, this player wants to give us as accessible and efficient a look at his songcraft as can be mustered from within the four walls of a recording studio.
If there’s an identity song in this rapper’s discography thus far, I think this might just be it, as I get more heart from Bobby-G in this piece than most players can produce inside of a radio-ready single. The music video is a stunning work, but while there’s little this man appears to be afraid of mastering on his own, there’s also a sense of experimentation guiding his hand in this release that makes me curious to see and hear what he’s going to come up with next. I highly doubt this is the peak of his output, and if there’s anything we can learn from what he’s done here, it’s that Bobby-G plans on using his platform for good every chance he gets.
Clay Burton