“Sassy” by Rapsody
Rapsody’s “Sassy” is a braggadocios outing with, as its title implies, what one may artistically refer to as a female empowerment undertone. In fact said title was inspired by “Still I Rise” (1978), a poem by the late Maya Angelou which is considered to be a classic piece of feminist, if you will, literature.
But that noted, “Sassy” is not what we would classify as being political or even feminist. Rather it operates more along the lines of the self-exalting rap standard, albeit being presented by a female vocalist.
Moreover, said vocalist is more of the intellectual as opposed to pop variety. So for instance, in the first verse she can make assertions like possessing an affinity for ‘reading the Bible’.
Additionally, when Rapsody speaks of her come-up she doesn’t necessarily do so in relation to wealth, though there are such allusions thrown in also. Rather she speaks more to elevating herself on a mental/spiritual level. And there are other random personal musings mixed in also, such as the fact that the narrator prefers “T-shirts with no sleeves” and is apparently strapped.
“Sassy” is a Proper Come-up Song
And the chorus verifies what was put forth earlier, i.e. “Sassy” being intended to serve as a come-up song. Rapsody has made it in the game, to the chagrin of those who were hoping that she would not. So she is celebrating said fact. Moreover she alludes to the notion of running with a “squad” who supports her and/or vice versa. Or let’s say that her ascension is symbolic of them all blowing up.
And as far as that goes, Rapsody commences the second verse by giving a shoutout to Snow Hill, a town in North Carolina which is also her ‘hood. Also sprinkled throughout the track are various shoutouts to different homies such as “Arnetta”, “Jabari” and the deceased “Johnny” and “Antawn”.
And as depicted, she was very close to her friends while growing up. However she eventually left the ‘hood to go to the college and uses some pretty-colorful metaphors to get that point across. The vocalist then proceeds to drop an allusion to her successful music career but actually uses most of the remaining passage to present herself as being fearless, woke and successful in general.
Afterwards comes the refrain, which is a reiteration of the “Still I Rise” interpolation. Here, outside of the confines of an entire verse, it becomes more obvious that it is a feminized reference to the artist’s sexuality. But again, such is not one of the subthemes of Sassy.
In Conclusion
Indeed at the end of the day, if we were forced to put this song into a singular category, it would be that of a braggadocios rap. Now that is not to say that Rapsody is boasting on par with other rap stars. She comes off as being quite humble through it all. But still, the vocalist is noting that she has in fact made it in the game.
And as relayed in the refrain and chorus especially, she is making this fact known specifically in the face of haters, i.e. those who vainly wished for her downfall.
“Sassy” Facts
Artist(s): Rapsody
Album/EP: “Laila’s Wisdom”
Did Rapsody release “Sassy” as a single?
No. It was released as part of the album “Laila’s Wisdom”. Both album and song came out on the 22nd of September, 2017.
Credits
“Sassy” was entirely composed by Rapsody and Gabouer. It’s production was later handled by a music producer named Eric G.
Accolades
It was nominated for the award of “Best Rap Song” at the Grammys in 2018 but lost to Kendrick Lamar’s “Humble”. “Sassy” was nominated alongside:
