13 Songs Buoyed by the Power of SO | Playlist 🎧

7. Big Sean & Metro Boomin, “So Good” (Ft. Kash Doll)

💿 Double or Nothing • 🏷 G.O.O.D. Music / Def Jam / Boominati Worldwide / Republic • 📅 2017

“Head so good, pu$$y so good / If I could quit my job and fuck you all day, shit, I would.”  That pretty much sums up the filthiest, raunchiest song from the 2017 🎙 Big Sean/ 🎙 Metro Boomin collaboration, 💿 Double or Nothing.  Big Sean is no stranger to incorporating sex into his music, but “So Good” just might ‘take the cake.’ He goes into graphic detail, taunting his size on the first verse (“Got a long dick, that shit barely fit”).  If that’s not enough, on the same verse, he manages to be blasphemous regarding his performance (“Got so deep in that bitch, it felt spiritual / Flood in that pussy, it’s a miracle”).

Featured guest 🎙 Kash Doll doesn’t let Big Sean have all the fun, as she focuses on how awesome the sex is as well.  If Sean seemed like the boss, self-proclaimed “nasty bitch” Kash Doll makes it clear that she holds the reins:

“Last time I let you fuck, it was amazing, shit

Love a nigga who ain’t scared to put his face in it.”

Obviously, she’s referring to her own private parts.  And just in case it was perfectly clear, she goes on to say, “And I still remember every single place you licked / So I sucked the soul outcha just to thank that dick.” This one’s NSFW.

Appears in 🔽:

• 15 Songs That Focus on Private Matters
• 11 Songs That are X-Rated, to Some Extent
• 15 Songs Where Female Rappers Gettin’ Down ‘N’ Dirty
• Big Sean: 4GEMZ 💎 6 (2021)

8. The Kid LAROI, “So Done”

💿 F*CK LOVE 3: OVER YOU • 🏷 Columbia • 📅 2021 

“I’m done, so done, I’m done with all the games you play,” 🎙 The Kid LAROI asserts on the chorus of 🎵 “SO DONE”. So, what exactly is young Charlton Howard ‘done’ with? Love – he’s not ready for it right now! The result of his pain is an enjoyable, melodic single from 💿 F*CK LOVE 3: OVER YOU.

Given the melodic nature of this track, as well as Howard’s distinct, expressive sound, he perfectly captures the plight of love to be honest.  “Sometimes, I sit and I think about why / I even trusted you… / Want you to walk out and walk out of my life.” He never goes incredibly deep, but whether you’re his age – an ‘angst-laden teen’, twice his age (shout-out millennials), or far older, the subject at hand is quite relatable.

Appears in 🔽:

• Done ✅: 5ive Songs No. 57 (2020)

9. Akon, “I’m So Paid” (Ft. Jeezy & Lil Wayne)

💿 Freedom • 🏷 UMG Recordings • 📅 2008

“Number one hustla get money / Why you wanna count my money / I’m a hustla and I don’t need them! / One of them y’all see! I’m so paid.” 🎙 Akon had a good run – for three albums.  Sure, he’s released more albums than that over the course of his career, but his biggest claims to fame have been 💿 Trouble, 💿 Konvicted, and 💿 Freedom.  Focusing on Freedom, the distinct voiced artist gave us a sweet gem with 🎵 “I’m So Paid”, featuring rap verses from both 🎙 Jeezy and 🎙 Lil Wayne.

“I’m So Paid” is exactly what you expect it to be.  Balling, flexing, toughness, and unapologetic lyrics and rhymes. Akon sings with incredible ease here but also packs a punch with his performance.  Likewise, Jeezy is ever a ‘G’, while Weezy asserts at one point, “How do I feel? Bitch, I feel undefeated.” Cocky and confident, consider “I’m So Paid” one of the last big bangers of the most lucrative part of Akon’s career.

Appears in 🔽:

• Pay: 5ive Songs No. 22 (2021)

10. Harry Styles, “To Be So Lonely”

💿 Fine Line • 🏷 Columbia • 📅 2019

“And I’m just an arrogant son of a bitch / Who can’t admit when he’s sorry.” On 🎵 “To Be So Lonely,” compared to a pair of preceding songs from 💿 Fine Line – 🎵 “Cherry” and 🎵 “Falling” – 🏆 Grammy winner 🎙 Harry Styles is more lighthearted. “To Be So Lonely” was written by Styles alongside 🎼✍ Thomas Hull, 🎼✍ Tyler Johnson, and 🎼✍ Mitch Rowland.  Johnson and 🎛 Kid Harpoon (Hull) produce this ‘lonely’ joint.

Interestingly, he connects both songs to “To Be So Lonely.” How so? “Don’t blame me for falling,” Styles sings in the first verse, cleverly.  Furthermore, in the chorus, he sings, “Don’t call me ‘baby’ again, you got your reasons.” Whether he’s drunk or not (“Don’t blame the drunk caller”), Styles is honest about personal flaws: “Do you think it’s easy being of the jealous kind? ‘Cause I miss the shape of your lips.” Woo!  Oh “TO BE SO LONELY!!!”

11. Kid Cudi, “Mojo So Dope”

 💿 Man on the Moon II: The Legend of Mr. Rager • 🏷 UMG Recordings, Inc. • 🗓 2010

Back in 2010, 🎙 Kid Cudi, an innovative, left-field rapper, dropped a truly underrated banger in 🎵 “Mojo So Dope”. Cudi spits agilely, while also staying true to the concept of his sophomore album, 💿 Man on the Moon II: The Legend of Mr. Rager.  While Cudi’s concepts are interesting, on this song, I found myself more taken with his flow and honestly, the production and vibe.  🎛 Emile Haynie does a fantastic job with the production. “Mojo So Dope” samples a marvelous alternative track, 🎵 “Claustrophobia” by Danish collective 🎙 Choir of Young Believers. From the onset, the sample helps to give “Mojo So Dope” its identity: “God I thought I loved you so / God I thought I loved you so” (Sung by 🎙 Fridolin Nordsø).  Nordsø’s light, airy backing vocals, coupled with the floating sound of “Claustrophobia” set up the Kid for surefire success.

Kid Cudi rides the beat like a champ! “They done let in the skinny jean-wearing / Fro-for-days in a old AA,” he spits, continuing, “Ball’ so low, most fools couldn’t price me / Silently stunt with a blunt full of P.E.” Woo! The crowning achievement is the chorus, which works brilliantly with the Choir of Young Believers sample.  Let’s just say, it’s the “oh, oh-oh, oh” by Fridolin Nordsø works splendidly with Kid Cudi’s confident rhymes.

“Oh, oh-oh, oh

Hey, my mojo so dope, bitch

My mojo so dope

Yep, we live it, live it

Yep, we on it, on it

Oh, oh-oh, oh

Give a fuck about your lifestyle

Give a fuck about a motherfucker lifestyle, ‘cause, nigga

We, we live this shit

Oh, oh-oh, oh

Give a fuck about your lifestyle

Give a fuck about a motherfucker lifestyle, ‘cause, nigga, hey.”

Appears in 🔽:

• Kid Cudi, “Mojo So Dope”: Rap BNGRZ 🔥 No. 5 (2022)

12. Ne-Yo, “So Sick”

💿 In My Own Words • 🏷 The Island Def Jam Music Group • 📅 2006

“And I’m so sick of love songs, so tired of tears / So done with wishin’ you were still here.” In 2006, 🎙 Ne-Yo (Shaffer Smith) was such a big deal.  His debut album, 💿 In My Own Words, topped the Billboard 200.  So did his debut single, 🎵 “So Sick.” Basically, Smith is perturbed by hearing these love songs given his heartbroken state.  He continues singing on the chorus, “Said I’m so sick of love songs, so sad and slow / So why can’t I turn off the radio?” Sigh – it’s a lot!

In the verses, Ne-Yo expounds on his struggles.  There are far too many reminders of what was and what isn’t anymore. “Gotta change my answering machine / Now that I’m alone,” he sings in the first, adding in the second, “Gotta fix that calendar I have / That’s marked July 15^th / Because since there’s no more you / There’s no more anniversary.” Bummer, bummer, bummer! As sad as it is, “So Sick” was and still is our listening pleasure north of fifteen years later.  Ne-Yo, well, that boy can sing!

13. Tower of Power, “So Very Hard to Go”

💿 Tower of Power • 🏷 Warner • 📅 1973

🎙 Tower of Power is awesome, period.  The R&B band has some incredible hits, with 🎵 “So Very Hard to Go” leading the charge. One of the reasons “So Very Hard to Go” is SO great are the lead vocals of 🎙 Lenny Williams.  Williams was the vocalist of TOP during arguably their most lucrative, memorable run.  His pipes are crucial to the success of this ballad.  That tone = magnificent.

“Ain’t nothin’ I can say / Nothin’ I can do,” Williams sings in the first verse, continuing, “I feel so bad, yeah / I feel so blue.” Oh, the feels, the feels, the feels.  In the second verse, he continues to acknowledge his mistakes, which leads to the chorus sections, where he states, “I can never make you unhappy /… Only wish I didn’t love you so / Makes it so, so very hard to go.” Indeed, indeed! Love sucks, but what doesn’t suck in the least is this utterly sublime Tower of Power classic.  The vocals! The songwriting! The music (instrumental)! The soulful aesthetic!