A Pimp C parable underscores the latest Gangsta Gibbs mini-movie: “Dear Lord, I know you don’t condone the things I be doing out here in these streets. And I hope that, you can overlook the wrong that I had done in my life…I don’t know no other way to survive out here. I got a whole bunch of people depending on me.”
Beyond sheer rap ability, what’s always separated Gibbs from those who traffic in narratives that would give El Chapo ideas, is the sense of perennial conflict. It’s between him and his enemies, but it’s also internal. The Wire quotes in here paint him as the rap Avon Barksdale, and just like in any great character, the closer you look, the more complexities appear.
“Fuckin’ Up the Count” is one of those videos that forces you to pay attention. In many ways, it’s an unofficial sequel to “Thuggin,” in which Gibbs went full ski mask way, creating terror as unsettling as a 1970s hijacker. This video is built on creeping menace. It starts with playgrounds and swings, young teenagers happily walking to school, becoming neighborhood D-Boys on the corner because there aren’t any internships out here.
It ends with the body in the trunk and a best friend forced to be the one committing the final blast. In between, Gibbs plays the evil spirit, the Omerta mastermind but also the one merely telling the story. He presents it as it is, offering no sentimentality or judgment, save for the final repercussions. But if you look closer, there’s that pervasive sense of sadness. These are the tragedies that he’d rather prevent, but he’s forced to place the need for survival above all.
Courtesy of Frank Dukes and Boi 1-Da, the beat bends with a sinister slant that could really only be tackled by someone who knows where the bodies are buried, because he buried them there himself.
We take Gibbs for granted sometimes. Is there anyone who has been this consistent for so long? Inasmuch as one weak record or wrong step and it could be over. No reality shows or branding opportunities. He’s not out here collaborating with Taylor Swift or selling Meek Mill brand oral care products. He doesn’t rap over the Bad Blood beat, he embodies the notion of bad blood. His Snapchat comedy might flesh out the full character, but when it comes time to create, there’s still no one colder.
