All Of Me

This was originally on Joe Budden's 2007 mixtape "Mood Muzik 3", the follow-up to MM2 in 05', which many a hip-hop head would describe classic. It easily became my favorite song on the tape at the time; I'm pretty sure I played it at least twice a day for a couple of months. Fast forward to the Reprise version, laced by the Klasix, Emanny laying vocals all throughout the verse, and the intro and outro sections add that much more drama to an already emotional piece. Joe Budden lays down roughly seven minutes worth of deep, introspective thoughts (what he's known for), from his issues with a former close friend in the industry, to mending the relationship with his current girlfriend, from his bouts with depression and growth in the rap game to a heartbreaking reflection on a lost friend. This isn't just rap, it's art.

"Friends keep telling me leave her, I won't,
Cuz she see something in me that I don't,
And I see something in her that yall won't,
If you never been in love don't tell me I'm wrong."

"There's three types of niggas in this world ya know?
You either gonna make shit happen, watch shit happen,
or not know what happened..."

Manhattanhenge

Every year, twice a year, the Sunset aligns itself with the east-west grid of Manhattan for the event known as "Manhattanhenge".

Taken from Wikipedia because I can't describe it better;

"At sunset, a traveler along one of the north-south avenues on the West Side looking east can observe the phenomenon indirectly, being struck by the reflected light of the many windows which are aligned with the grid. An observer on the East Side can look west and see the Sun shining down a canyon-like street."

Streets. Light.
Street Lights.

The world's greatest love affair. Even the Sun can't resist Manhattans charm. I'm not sure how the city and Sun are content... satisfied... whatever you'd like to call it... with intertwining their fingers; holding hands, for fifteen minutes twice a year. The remaining 525,530, both behemoths tend to do their own thing. Exist in their own way. Stealing glances as the globe turns.

I don't know; maybe there's a lesson there we should all walk away with. "I'll make you the center of my world if you make me yours." We are all behemoths in our own way, of our own measure. We should recognize ourselves as great; and never need to be appreciated together in order to appreciate both. We should build ourselves up, and then find someone who we can architect a part of heaven with. Someone that, when your seen out walking on a mid-day in July, strangers'll think to themselves "Beautiful."