SONG REVIEW: Frank Ocean - Pyramids

SONG REVIEW: FRANK OCEAN - PYRAMIDS

A couple of days ago on Friday, June 8th, Frank Ocean hit us with the first single, Pyramids, off of his highly anticipated debut album Channel Orange. Male R&B is a dying genre and Frank is one of the few crooners out there that rarely disappoints, so to say I was happy to hear some new music from him would be an understatement. Along with the new track, he also announced that his debut album would be released worldwide on July 17th. Since the release of his debut mixtape Nostalgia, Ultra Frank has been relatively quiet and hasn't released much material since, so to hear that his album would be dropping so soon was definitely refreshing.

The first thing that caught my attention after downloading the song was the fact that it was ten minutes long. Most songs fall in between the four to five minute range so he was definitely taking a step in the dark by releasing such a long song. It's hard to keep listeners attention for four minutes, let alone ten. But in typical Frank Ocean fashion, he doesn't disappoint. Within the ten minutes of the song he tells you multiple sides to the life of a woman by the name of Cleopatra. The most impressive thing about the song to me was all of the double and triple meanings hidden throughout. Cleopatra is most famously known as the last Pharaoh of Ancient Egypt, hence the Pyramid references throughout the song. But the pyramid that he is referring to in MOST of this song is actually a strip club, with actual literal pyramid references in the first two verses. He plays many different roles throughout the song, taking advantage of the long length of the song.

At first Frank is Cleopatra's man, boyfriend, King, whatever you may want to call him...and he finds out that she has been cheating on him with another man. We find that out in the very first line, which actually has a double meaning. "Set the cheetahs (cheaters) on the loose." Throughout the first sequence of the song he talks about how him and his lady and how he can't believe that she has run out on him and what they had. After two verses of describing the situation Frank decides that what she has done was unforgivable and that he must let her go, hence the line "Remove her, send the cheetahs to the tomb."

In the second sequence of the song Frank now portrays the character of Cleopatra in a different light. He now puts himself in the position of a man who has bought the services of Cleopatra for the night. He describes them waking up in a cheap motel room in which she is getting dressed and getting ready to leave for her next job at "the pyramid", another play on words. He gives further proof that the pyramid is indeed a strip club in the lines that state the attire that she is putting on, "Then your panties in the mirror, then your lipstick, then your six inch heels.". This leads to another bridge where all he says is simply "She's working at the Pyramid tonight."

Finally, Frank ends the song with a long segment in which he puts himself in the position of Cleopatra's pimp. He goes on to describe their order of business, the fact that he is in love with her, and also that he is broke and she is actually his only source of income. Throughout the last few verses he talks about them making love in between her encounters with her clients (fucking sick right?). Cleopatra is stripping at the Pyramid for him, selling her body for him, but in return she receives nothing. Eventually at the end of the song Cleopatra realizes the predicament she is in and eventually wants Frank to be one of her clients, rather than her pimp. You see this in the line "But your love ain't free no more.", at the end of his last verse.

Frank's incredible songwriting ability is definitely shown in this one, it's what sets him apart from just about every other R&B singer. He manages to keep you entertained for a whole ten minutes, while describing multiple sides of one big story and using various double meanings along the way. It will take you several listens to figure everything out, but that's the beauty of it. I'm looking forward to Channel Orange dropping on July 17th, as well as his concert in Atlanta on the 22nd. Look forward to more song, album, and mixtape reviews on deejsays in the near future. Until next time.....