Ex- | 5ive Songs

On the 94^th edition of 5ive Songs (2021), we select five songs that are associated with EX- (EXES) in some form or fashion.  

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elcome to 5ive Songs, where we keep things short and sweet – no extra calories or needless fluff! There’s a theme/topic, five songs, and a short blurb.  Yes, it’s a playlist, but it’s a miniature playlist that shouldn’t take much time to consume.  On the 94^th edition of 5ive Songs (2021), we select five songs that are associated with EX- (EXES) in some form or fashion.  Okay, let’s get into it!

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1. Summer Walker & JT, “Ex for a Reason”

💿 Still Over It • 🏷 LVRN / Interscope • 📅 2021

“Don’t fight over a nigga that got his attention all over the place…. I hope you learn from my mistakes.” Woo! 🎙 Summer Walker spits the truth via tweet regarding 🎵 “Ex for a Reason,” the promo single from her no. 1 debuting sophomore album, 💿 Still Over It.  On “Ex for a Reason,” Walker taps 🎙 JT of 🎙 City Girls for the assist.

“The bitch your ex (Your ex), for a reason though (Reason though)
Try me, trespass
Guaranteed to beat your ass
The bitch your ex (Your ex), for a reason though (Reason though)
It’s too much for her heart to take
I give no fucks ‘bout what she gotta say (No, woah).”

Clearly, Summer Walker is ‘over it!’ She cusses like a sailor on the first verse, clearly irritated.  “Fuck a bitch on? Stress is always the mindset I’m in (I’m in) / But a ex game is not the game I’m tryna play at all.” JT is even more hard-nosed on the second verse, commencing with the fiery “That bitch in the ditch for a reason though / She was singin’ on his dick with them easy notes.” Day-um! She remains unapologetic throughout, threatening at the conclusion of the colorful verse, “‘Cause a real bitch’ll pull up with the click-clack.” Holy shit! If it’s not clear, neither Summer or JT are about some BS.  They spit the truth on this 🎛 Buddah Bless / 🎛 Sean Garrett / 🎛 Boobie produced joint.

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2. Machine Gun Kelly & blackbear, “My ex’s best friend”

💿 Tickets to My Downfall • 🏷 Bad Boy / Interscope • 📅 2020

On his 2020 album, 💿 Tickets to My Downfall, 🎙 Machine Gun Kelly did an ‘about face’ shifting from rap to pop-punk.  All in all, it wasn’t a far-fetched shift considering Kells looks the part and has always had a rock star aesthetic.  Furthermore, Tickets to My Downfall has some intriguing moments including 🎵 “My ex’s best friend” featuring 🎙 blackbear.

Naturally, him and blackbear are a perfect match.  Both possess that rock energy (and ample tattoos). The listener, additionally, is treated to a rad chorus:

“I swear to God, I never fall in love
Then you showed up and I can't get enough of it
I swear to God, I never fall in love
I never fall in love, but I can't get enough of it.”

While I’ve emphasized the rock lane, this song does feature some hip-hop, particularly during bear’s verse.  Those drums – NOT ROCK, that’s for sure! Furthermore, bear’s melody is rhythmic, like rap and melodic rap.  Ultimately, the results of this sub-two-and-a-half-minute joint are successful.

Also appears on 🔽:
🔗 🎧 Best: 5ive Songs No. 91 (2021)

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3. Lil Peep, “Sex with My Ex”

💿 Come Over When You’re Sober, Pt. 2 • 🏷 Lil Peep / AUTNMY / Columbia • 📅 2018

Sadly, emo-tinged rapper 🎙 Lil Peep passed away at the age of 21 on November 15, 2017. Although the heavily tatted, often ‘sad’ rapper is no longer living, his posthumous, full-length album, 💿 Come Over When You’re Sober, Pt. 2, arrived one year later.  One of the best moments from the LP comes by way of the dramatic, incredibly ‘emo’ 🎵 “Sex with My Ex.”

On the ‘passionate’ chorus, he asserts, “Fuck me like we’re lyin’ on our deathbed / I can feel that sudden emptiness / I’m here to grant you one last wish.” He follows with one relatively simple, but effective verse, later repeated.

“I don’t know when I’ll be back in town (Back in town)
All I know is that she’ll wait around, for me
All I know is that she’ll hold me down (All I know is that she'll hold me down)
My girl keeps all ten toes on the ground, for me
I can feel it, I can feel it now
I can feel you watchin’ after me, holdin’ my breath.”

There’s also an interesting bridge, where he sings, “Catch a feelin’ / Catch a feelin’ now / I still feel your skin all over me / Sex with my ex.”

Also appears on 🔽:
🔗 🎧 20 Songs All About ‘Doin’ It’
🔗 🎧 11 Totally Relatable Songs About Exes

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4. Ty Dolla $ign, “Ex”

Ft. YG

💿 Beach House 3 • 🏷 Atlantic • 📅 2017 

“I just text my main chick / I told her I ain’t coming home / I just text my main chick / I told her, I ain’t coming home, tonight.” 🎵 “Ex” commences lushly, foreshadowing a sexual tilt.  After dropping his signature runs in a robust vocal tone, 🎙 Ty Dolla $ign informs us of exactly where he’s going with the standout from his 2017 album, 💿 Beach House 3. Following a slow intro, he drops the centerpiece of – the chorus (aforementioned).

Expectedly, it’s catchy AF, setting up a groovy, fun, carefree joint.  On his verse, he focuses on the past, hooking up with his ex.  As for 🎙 YG, who arrives for the second verse, he could care less about any exes.

“Give my last to these naked bitches
Leave your main squeeze for these naked bitches, yeah
That’s how you know, when it’s all bad
She call me or text, I could call back
But she imagine in her head I’m doing all that
I tell her I’m not, she like, ‘YG, you a thot.’”

All in all, it’s a brief, but enjoyable record.

Also appears on 🔽:
🔗 🎧 11 Totally Relatable Songs About Exes

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5. Lauryn Hill, “Ex-Factor”

💿 The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill • 🏷 Ruffhouse • 📅 1998

Grammy-winning hip-hop/R&B musician, 🎙 Lauryn Hill captivated us with the soulful 🎵 “Ex-Factor” from her 1998 masterpiece, 💿 The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill.  “Tell me, who I have to be / To get some reciprocity.” Those timeless lyrics hail from one of the truly great classics about exes, sigh. Even north of two decades since the release of The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill, both the album, and the particular single carry ample weight.  Focusing only on the song itself, “Ex-Factor” is a prime example of the plight of love, as well as how potent songs incorporating break ups can truly be.

At one point, Lauryn Hill sings, “And when I try to walk away / You’d hurt yourself to make me stay / This is crazy.” Crazy indeed Ms. Lauryn Hill, but, again, exes and broken-off relationship serve among the preeminent topics in music regardless of genre.  Yes, 🎵 “Doo Wop (That Thing)” remains the crowning achievement (and number one hit) from The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill, but you can totally feel Hill’s struggle with love – it’s so relatable on “Ex-Factor.” My favorite section of the song is the ‘breakdown’:

“(Care) Care for me, care for me
I know you care for me
(There) There for me, there for me
Said you’d be there for me
(Cry) Cry for me, cry for me
You said you’d die for me
(Give) Give to me, give to me
Why won’t you live for me?”

Also appears on 🔽:
🔗 🎧 Throwback Thursday No. 3
🔗 🎧 Weekly Gems No. 3
🔗 🎧 13 E Songs Selected with No Rhyme or Reason

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 Ex-: 5ive Songs No. 94 (2021) [📷: Atlantic, AUTNMY, Bad Boy, Brent Faulkner, Clovis Cheminot, Columbia, Interscope, Lil Peep, LVRN, The Musical Hype, OpenClipart-Vectors, Pexels, Pixabay, RODNAE Productions, Ruffhouse]

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