Gossip | 3 to 5 BOPS

Gossip: 3 to 5 BOPS No. 40 (2023), features musical BOPS courtesy of Big Boi, Lizzo, Måneskin, Marc E. Bassy, and Missy Elliott.  

Ah, you know what time it is! It’s 3 to 5 BOPS time – WOO! On 3 to 5 BOPS, it’s all about brevity and sweetness… for the most part! There’s a theme/topic, 3, 4, or 5 songs, and a blurb – two paragraphs or less.  3 to 5 BOPS, hence, is a mini playlist that shouldn’t take much time to consume.  In the 40th edition of 3 to 5 BOPS (2023), we select songs that are associated with GOSSIP in some form or fashion. The BOPS arrive courtesy of 🎙 Big Boi, 🎙 Lizzo, 🎙 Måneskin, 🎙 Marc E. Bassy, and 🎙 Missy Elliott. Okay, let’s get into it!

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1. Måneskin, “GOSSIP” (Ft. Tom Morello) 

💿 RUSH! • 🏷 Epic • 🗓 2023 

“Sip the gossip, drink ‘til you choke / Sip the gossip, burn down your throat.” 🤩 🎵 “GOSSIP” is high octane, thanks to a lit groove, minor key, and energetic vocals from the unstoppable Damiano David.  Måneskin came in hot on the fifth advanced single from 💿 RUSH!, the band’s international debut album. Joining Måneskin is 🎙 Tom Morello, who gives the guitars some surefire grit! 🎛 Fabrizio Ferraguzzo doesn’t disappoint in the production department either. The instrumental is a big reason why “GOSSIP” is entertaining and full of energy.  Of course, the other reason is Damiano, who commands this song like a champ.    

David matches the intensity of the instrumental, bringing out those gossipy lyrics! “Welcome to the city of lies,” for example, seems to be shade towards Los Angeles. Another shady moment comes at the end of the first verse where David sings about superficiality – “Just put some plastic on your face.” The characterization gets no better in the pre-chorus, referencing fake people, a jaded American Dream, ultimately leading to the toxic, ear-catching chorus: “You’re not iconic, you are just like them all.” The second verse is similar to the first, with the cards revealed early on.  Fittingly, Morello gets a guitar solo, something that all guitar gods should be entitled to. All told, great vocals, and electrifying instrumental, memorable lyrics, and high energy make “GOSSIP” a fun one.

2. Lizzo, “Rumors” (Ft. Cardi B)  

🎵 “Rumors” • 🏷 Nice Life / Atlantic • 📅 2021  

“They don’t know I do it for the culture, goddamn / They say I should watch the shit I post, oh, goddamn.” 🎙 Lizzo comes out swinging from the get-go on 🎵 “Rumors”.  Feisty and unapologetic, the 🏆 Grammy-winning pop artist has a bone to pick with the haters. She’s assisted by fellow 🏆 Grammy winner, 🎙 Cardi B.  Brief but potent, Lizzo flips the bird to the haters, using adversity as fuel for her fire.  Her vocals are playful – sometimes pitched, sometimes un-pitched. The melodic pre-chorus includes the memorable lines, “If you thought that I was ratchet with my ass hangin’ out / Just wait until the summer when they let me out the house, bitch.” Holy Shiitake mushrooms 🍄!!! Besides ample attitude and personality, the production work by 🎛 Ricky Reed is sensational. The backdrop shines during the chorus when brass enters in spirited fashion.  Furthermore, the drum programming deserves a shout-out. The addition of Cardi B in the second verse is perfect: “Last time I got freaky, the FCC sued me / But I’ma keep doin’ what I wanna do / ‘Cause all the rumors are / All the rumors are true, yeah!” Ultimately, “Rumors” had a mixed reception and didn’t materialize into a lucrative, memorable hit.  You win some, you lose some, I suppose.  

Appears in 🔻:   

• Awesome Songs: August 2021  
• R Songs: No Rhyme or Reason, Vol. 2 (2022)  

3. Missy Elliott, “Gossip Folks” (Ft. Ludacris) 

💿 Under Construction • 🏷 Elektra Entertainment • 📅 2002 

“When I walk up in the piece / I ain’t gotta even speak / I’m a bad mamajama / Goddammit, motherfucker, you ain’t gotta like me!” WOO! Now that’s some confidence right there, 🎙 Missy Elliott. Despite the fact that the 🏆 Grammy-winning rapper slowed down after her 2005 album, 💿 The Cookbook, her iconic status, particularly as a female rapper, is indisputable.  Among Elliott’s many hits, 🎵 “Gossip Folks”, from her 2022 masterpiece, 💿 Under Construction, ranks as one of the most beloved, top-tier moments.  Here, Missy exudes confidence, exhibits creative and innovative spirit, and shows off that marvelous, idiosyncratic personality.  Those opening lyrics from the first verse kick ass and take names – legendary! It shouldn’t come as a shock that “Gossip Folks” peaked at no. 8 on the Billboard Hot 100. #SLAY QUEEN! 

It doesn’t stop there for Missy Elliott and “Gossip Folks,” of course! What about that wild sample in the chorus? It sounds ridiculous, yet it snaps something fierce! Furthermore, there are additional samples that make this 🎛 Timbaland co-production the sugar honey iced tea that it is.  Honestly, his work behind the boards on this track alone is some of the most electrifying of the aughts! Besides two stellar verses of her own, where she puts these “Bitches [who] wanna talk shit” in their place, Missy gets an assist from fellow 🏆 Grammy winner, 🎙 Ludacris in the third verse? “Once upon a time in College Park/ Where they live life fast, and they scared of dark/ There was a little nigga by the name of Chris.” WOO! We get enamored by the new wave of female rappers but let’s not forget that Missy Elliott was that girl, NO 🚫 CAP🧢!

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Appears in 🔻:  

• Missy Elliott, “Gossip Folks”: Rap BNGRZ 🔥 No. 19 (2023) 

4. Marc E. Bassy, “Gossip Columns” 

💿 Gossip Columns • 🏷 Republic • 📅 2017

“The second that I bust, I’ma leave her in the dust, yeah / She’ll go tell her friends how real it was, oh…” Okurrr, 🎙 Marc E. Bassy 🍆 💦!  🎵 “Gossip Columns” featuring 🎙 Bobby Brackins is an interesting record – that is an understatement! Bassy not only shows off his pipes on this standout from his 2017 album, fittingly titled 💿 Gossip Columns, but also his bars 🔥.  That’s right baby, Marc got that effin’ flow, effectively pop rapping the second verse: “Girl, get on this dick, that should be enough / For your freaky ass, we gon’ hit the tub / Give that ass a bath all that dick you suck /Been a freak since you was young.” Um… wow 😮! Fitting given the title, he successfully ‘trash talks.’  Brackins complements Bassy – “Flies your ass first class before I copped the feel / On my FIFA still, kicked out asses to the curb” – while also offering a solid contrast with his rhymes in the third verse. To quote a more recent Marc E. Bassy song, 🎵 “God Damn, God Damn”! 

5. Big Boi, “Gossip” (Ft. UGK & Big K.R.I.T.) 

💿 Vicious Lies and Dangerous Rumors • 🏷 The Island Def Jam Group • 📅 2012

In the spirt of 💿 Vicious Lies and Dangerous Rumors, 🏆 Grammy-winning rapper 🎙 Big Boi unveils 🎵 “Gossip.” Of course, there is a chance that you never heard “Gossip” given the fact the rapper hasn’t had the same commercial impact post-OutKast.  Nonetheless, the ATL standout secures guest appearances from U.G.K. (🎙 Bun B and the late 🎙 Pimp C) as well as Big K.R.I.T.. All participants talk their respect sheee-it! Kicking things off over stellar production by 🎛 Organized Noise is Big K.R.I.T. who drops the infectious hook: “Niggas wanna tell it, hoes wanna gossip.”  

Big Boi follows, delivering the first verse which is true to self.  His rhymes are idiosyncratic and playful – part of the charm.  Among his funniest lines: “I went to the mall today and all the niggas had on smediums / Little bitty ass clothes / Like Dancing with the Stars without the judges or the dance flo’.” Pimp C posthumously drops brief second verse, which commences NSFW: “Uh, I’m getting blowed on the regular / Riding and talking dirty on my cellular.” RIP Pimp C! Big K.R.I.T. takes the third verse, not being left out of the intriguing rhymes: “Suck a, duck a mothafucka, rims chop, Lorena Bobbit.” Say what? Finally, Bun B does his thing, giving sound advice about gossip: “Tell them tall tales, fibs, and humdangers / Save it for Jeremy Kyle, Steve [Wilkos], or Jerry Spranger.” R.I.P. 🎙 Jerry Springer!  At least in the case of Big Boi and company, “Gossip” is a surefire, rap banger!  

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Gossip: 3 to 5 BOPS No. 40 (2023) [📷: Brent Faulkner / The Musical Hype; Atlantic, Elektra Entertainment, Epic, The Island Def Jam Group, Republic; ]