Max Bell says donate to Sean Price’s family here.
Sean Price knew his image should be on walls. You heard it in his voice every time he told you he was the best. In “Figure More”, the last music video Price recorded before his untimely demise, you see him act it out. There he is, standing on a school playground somewhere in Brooklyn, his back against a wall, posed like he was carved into an Egyptian relief.
The sequel to Price’s forever quotable “Figure 4” (below the jump), “Figure More” appears on Price’s Songs in the Key of Price (review here). If you listened to Mic Tyson, you know his penchant for Alchemist beats. Here, he raps glides over the string-tempered grime of Alchemist’s “No Hesitation” (Lord Steppington) with veteran ease. Weed is smoked, deals are made, and all available barrels are at aimed foes, subpar peers, and Darren Wilson. P even updates his John Starks line from Nocturnal. It was his way of letting you know that he hadn’t lost his first step after nearly twenty years.
Unlike many posthumously released music videos, “Figure More” actually captures why Price had one of the greatest personas in rap. He plays hopscotch and goes for an imaginary lay-up before ordering a hit. All is hilarious and self-aware. The humor is what separated him from those who never put away their fatigues. The duality made him more endearing, and his threats much more menacing.
I highly doubt there will never be an Alchemist/Price mixtape, EP, etc. But according to Illa Ghee (who also raps well on this song/appears in the video), Ghee and Price have a collaborative project in the vault. Whether or not it will ever be released remains to be seen. For now, you can listen to Songs in the Key of Price. You travel to Crown Heights to visit the mural at the top of this post. It’s a relief that it exists. It’s a reminder of what P knew all along.
