Wind | 3BOPS

1. Tyler, The Creator, “Hot Wind Blows”

Ft. Lil Wayne

💿 CALL ME IF YOU GET LOST • 🏷 Columbia • 📅 2021

“We just landed in Geneva / Yeah, that’s in Switzerland.” 🎙 DJ Drama announces those lines on 🎵 “Hot Wind Blows,” another elite number from 💿 CALL ME IF YOU GET LOST. For those keeping score, CALL ME IF YOU GET LOST marks the third straight masterpiece by 🏆 Grammy-winning rapper, 🎙 Tyler, The Creator.  Keeping the album star-studded, Tyler enlists  “Weezy the GOAT,” aka fellow 🏆 Grammy-winning rapper 🎙 Lil Wayne for the assist.

Lil Wayne drops bars, following the first verse by Tyler.  For good measure, Tyler remains in character within the context of CMIYGL (Tyler Baudelaire), asserting, “We boated here, it’s Tunechi and Tyler but call me Baudelaire, yeah.”  Also, he keeps the production on-point, no cap, sampling 🎵 “Slow Hot Wind” by 🎙 Penny Goodwin and 🎵 “Senile” by 🎙 Young Money. As for Weezy, he’s true to self, whether it’s mentioning lean, exuding ample confidence, or flexing.

2. SZA, “Doves in the Wind”

Ft. Kendrick Lamar

💿 Ctrl • 🏷 Top Dawg Entertainment / RCA• 📅 2017

🎵 “Doves in the Wind” packs the biggest punch of 💿 Ctrl.  For some context, Ctrl is the 2017 debut album by 🏆 Grammy-nominated R&B artist, 🎙 SZA.  Notably, the song at hand, which enlists 🏆 Grammy winner 🎙 Kendrick Lamar for the assist, focuses on – wait for it – pussy.  According to SZA, “Real niggas do not deserve pussy.” Woo! Also, cleverly, she references K-Dot’s 🎵 “These Walls” (“Meaning it’s more, you see right through walls”) and 🎦 Forrest Gump (“Come with me, Forrest Gump had a lot goin’ for him / Never without pussy, y’know, Jenny almost gave it all up for him”).

It doesn’t end there for SZA, who later asserts “Your [beep] is weak buddy / It’s only replaced by a rubber substitute.” Yikes – analyze that one for yourself.  The big takeaway is she’s disgusted by the shallowness of men.  Women, specifically their private parts, should be respected, not merely objectified or avenues of pleasure for men whenever they desire. Kendrick Lamar expounds on p-power on the second verse, uttering the word at least 17 times.

“You overcompensate too much for the pussy
You like to throw all kinda shade for the pussy
See, that’s what pussy niggas do.”

Kendrick makes a valid point there.

3. Bette Midler, “Wind Beneath My Wings”

💿 Beaches • 🏷 Atlantic • 📅 1988

Question: “Did you ever know that you’re my hero / And everything I would like to be?” Just hearing those famous lyrics give me chills! 🎙 Bette Midler is undoubtedly an icon.  Her career as an award-winning actress and singer is truly amazing and ‘once in a lifetime.’  Among her most iconic moments was her recording of the oft-covered, much beloved song, 🎵 “Wind Beneath My Wings.”  No, Midler was not the first to record this 🎼✍ Jeff Silbar and 🎼✍ Larry Henley penned hit. Doesn’t matter because her version, which appeared on the soundtrack for the film 🎦 Beaches, has become the definitive, most decorated version of the song.

Few would deny that “Wind Beneath My Wings” is the perfect song.  The music and lyrics – incredibly thoughtful and poetically penned – are awesome. “It must’ve been cold there in my shadow,” the first verse commences, continuing, “To never have sunlight on your face.” So, so, gorgeous! Add those expressive vocals by Midler, along with a heaping dose of authenticity, and this record is nothing short of a juggernaut.  The chorus, excerpted at the top (the centerpiece of this masterpiece), continues as follows:

“I can fly higher than an eagle
For you are the wind beneath my wings.”

Also appears on 🔽:
🔗 🎧 Take Flight with These 11 Wings Songs