T.I. Kicking Metaphors Over A Soul Sample Is Pure Money (Video)

Hip-Hop loves a metaphor. From Kendrick Lamar to Common, Tupac to Nas, the great MCs love to make songs that seem like they are about one thing, that double as another. From “I Used To Love H.E.R.” (and Common’s latest iteration in the saga) to Kanye West’s “Homecoming,” many metaphors appear to be songs about the complications of love, when the subjects in the lyrics also apply to Hip-Hop, a city, etc.

T.I. joins onetime Trae Tha Truth protege (and ABN artist) Yung Quis for “Feels So Good.” At a surface level, the song seems like it could be about the ecstasies of love and romance. However, both MCs tell stories that reveal it the serenade is really dedicated to the power of a dollar. Tip nimbly raps, “Elastic band around your waist when you’re gettin’ chubby / I always ask you, ‘if I wasn’t rappin’, would you still love me?’ / Be second guessing whether you’re the only thing for me / Even though I know you came and changed every thing for me / Caught me when I failed, fresh outta jail / Time and time again, you made sure I prevailed / Invested in my talent ‘fore a ni**a knew I was valid / Took to me when I was trappin’ and took me out to Paris / Tattoo on you say ‘In God We Trust,’ it’s hard to trust / Be ashes to ashes, dust to dust, involving us.

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The video finds both MCs standing besides candy-painted convertibles outside of the Cascade Club. The deliveries are interwoven with a vignette of young love, further adding to the dual interpretation of the song. In the first verse, Quis describes lusting for paper, and the paranoia that set in once he acquired some. Meanwhile, the nostalgic Soul sample adds to the reminiscent vibe of the song.

Notably, Trae is an executive at T.I.’s Grand Hustle. Earlier this year, Quis released Under Rated. This month, T.I. and collaborator Teyana Taylor made a mini-movie (directed by Taylor) for “You (Be There).” That DIME TRAP single and visual confronts sex trafficking and abuse.