How Much a Dollar Cost

POTUS Pick

How Much a Dollar Cost by Kendrick Lamar

Recommended by Tim

"I HIGHLY recommend listening to this twice with reading the Rap Genius explanations in-between. Each line has a separate deep meaning contributing to the story of the song. I would be impressed if you got the meaning all on your own haha."

So Tim is mostly correct. Yes, you need to read the Rap Genius explanations to really understand the song, but you better listen to it more than twice.

The literal action of the song is about Kendrick Lamar pulling up in his luxury car at a Johannesburg gas station and having a brief encounter with a homeless man. The man asks for ten Rand (South African currency; ten Rand is about $1 USD) so he can feed himself. Lamar, thinking the man is a crack addict, refuses to give him the money and closes the car door.

Lamar and the homeless man engage in a staring match, and Lamar starts getting angry, feelin' some type o' disrespect. Who is this man, askin' for handouts?

The homeless man finally asks Lamar if he's read Exodus 14, which is the part of the Bible about Moses parting the sea. It's about how Moses never wanted to be a leader, yet he was chosen to lead the Israelites out of Egypt. Likewise, Lamar didn't become famous and wealthy in order to influence society...yet here he finds himself with the power, the bittersweet potential, to lead by example.

The entirety of this song is based on this one event, which Lamar has said is a true story (x). The lyrics expand on Lamar's feelings as he thinks about the incident and the real cost of a dollar - the real value of wealth.

To the homeless man, a dollar is worth a lot. To Lamar here on Earth, a dollar is worth very little.

As Lamar drives off, he feels guilty for not donating a dollar, but it's not that simple. It was selfish not to give up a dollar when it means so little, but my selfishness is what got me here. He thinks he would have given the dollar before he was rich and got better judgment to know when someone's hustlin'.

The big reveal comes at the end of Verse 3.

The homeless man confesses that he is God in disguise, and in this case, the answer to how much a dollar cost is Lamar's place in Heaven.

This track features some chill piano chords behind both the dreamy, faraway hook by James Fauntleroy and the soothing outro sung beautifully by Ronald Isley. but your focus should really be on the verses that Kendrick Lamar delivers over a simple accompaniment and drum beat.

How Much a Dollar Cost is an excellent example of storytelling and the masterful use of references, mostly Biblical, to get a message across. There's no difference between these lyrics and the poetry that we would read in high school English class except for the method of delivery.

Obama named this as his favorite song of 2015. Lamar responded, "Man, that's great, man" (x).

Overview:

Genre:
Hip Hop

Favorite Lyrics:
Your potential is bittersweet.

Verdict:
"Help as many people as you can, man, if you want to live forever" (x).