Lyrical Breakdown of By The Time I Get To Arizona - A Journey through Words and Rhymes

Welcome to the detailed analysis of "By The Time I Get To Arizona" on Lazyjot. Here, we unravel the lyrical complexity and artistic brilliance that define this iconic song.

Lyric Overview: Witness how Public Enemy weaves words into powerful emotions and vivid imagery. From intricate rhyme schemes to compelling storytelling, every line in "By The Time I Get To Arizona" is a testament to masterful songwriting.
Rhyme and Rhythm Analysis: Our Lazyjot editor highlights the ingenious use of multi-syllabic rhymes and the rhythm pattern that Public Enemy employs. Understand the construction of each verse and how it contributes to the song's overall impact.
Syllable Pattern Insights: Dive deeper into the structural elements of the lyrics. See how the syllable count varies across the song, adding a unique rhythm and flow to Public Enemy's narrative.

This lyrical analysis of "By The Time I Get To Arizona" not only celebrates Public Enemy's artistic prowess but also serves as an educational tool for aspiring songwriters. If this analysis inspires you and you'd like to see your own songs analyzed in this way, join the Lazyjot community. Register at Lazyjot and start exploring the full potential of your lyrical creativity. Turn your thoughts into rhymes and your rhymes into songs with Lazyjot!

This is Sister Souljah. Public Enemy, Security of the First World

And all allied forces are traveling west to head off a white supremacy scheming to destroy

The national celebration of Dr. Martin Luther King's birthday

Public Enemy believes that the powers that be in the states of New Hampshire and Arizona

Have found psychological discomfort in paying tribute to a black man

Who tried to teach white people the meaning of civilization

Good luck brothers, show 'em what you got

I'm countin' down to the day deservin', fittin' for a king

I'm waitin' for the time when I can get to Arizona

'Cause my money is spent for the goddamn rent

Neither party is mine, not the jackass or the elephant

Twenty-thousand niggy-niggy brothers in the corner

Of the cell block, but they come from California

Population is none in the desert and sun

With a gun cracker runnin' things under his thumb

Starin' hard at the postcards, isn't it odd and unique

Seein' people smile wild in the heat?

A hundred-twenty degree, 'cause I want to be free

What's a smilin' face when the whole state's racist?

Why I want a holiday? Damn it, 'cause I wanna

So what if I celebrate it standin' on a corner?

I ain't drinkin' no forty, thinkin' time with a nine

'Til we get some land, call me the trigger man

Lookin' for the governor, huh? He ain't lovin' ya, ha?

But here to trouble ya, he's rubbin' ya wrong

Get the point and come along, he can get to the joint

I urinated on the state while I was kickin' this song

Yeah, he appear to be fair

The sucker over there, he try to keep it yesteryear

The good ol' days, the same ol' ways that kept us dyin'

Yes - you, me, myself, and I, indeed

What he need is a nosebleed

Read between the lines, and then you see the lie

Politically planned, but understand, that's all she wrote

When we see the real side that hide behind the vote

And they can't understand why he the man, I'm singin' about a king

They don't like it when I decide to mic it

Wait, I'm waitin' for the date

For the man, who demands respect 'cause he was great, c'mon

I'm on a one mission to get a politician to honor

Or he's a goner by the time I get to Arizona

Well, I got twenty-five days to do it

If a wall in the way, just watch me go through it

'Cause I gotta do what I gotta do

PE number one, gets the job done

When it's done and over, was because I drove 'er

Through all the static, not stick but automatic

That's the way it is, he gotta get his, talkin' MLK

Gonna find a way

Make the state pay, I'm lookin' for the day

Hard as it seems, this ain't no damn dream

Gotta know what I mean, it's team against team

Catch the light beam

So I pray, I pray every day, I do and praise Jah the maker

Lookin' for culture I got, but not here from Jamaica

Pushin' and shakin' the structure, bringin' down the Babylon

Hearin' the sucker that make it hard for the Brown

The hard boulevard, I need it now more than ever now

Who's sittin' on my freedom, oppressor, people beater

A piece of the pick, we picked a piece of land that we're deserving now

Reparation, a piece of the nation, and damn, he got the nerve

Another nigga they say and classify we want too much

My people plus the whole nine is mine, don't think I even double dutch

Here's a brother, my attitude is hit 'em, hang 'em high

I'm blowing up the nineties, started tickin' in eighty-six

When the blind get a mind, better start fearin' while we sing it now

There will be the day we know those down and who will go

Go, go, go, go

By the time I get to Arizona (zona, zona, zona)