Mr. Mann (or Rodney Dominique Mann II to give his full moniker) is a rap artist from Brooklyn, New York. Raised in the school of hard knocks, he rose above his poverty-stricken background where making it to the age of twenty-one is considered an achievement. His rap style is direct and forceful, yet more laid-back than some of his more rapid-fire contemporaries. This makes his words easier to understand and helps with the impact of his message.
This track, Game Time, begins with a spoken word intro (‘What time is it? Game time) over a driving piano figure, before a slow but potent hip-hop beat kicks in. The verse depicts the lead up to a majorly important football game, and the struggle to stay focussed on the prize, doubling up as a metaphor for the negativity he has faced in his life: ‘Training my whole life for this moment….boos from the crowd, dealing with all these hecklers, but I feed on that…I promise this game is mine…’.
The chorus hook is ultra catchy, the sentiment and self-belief reminiscent of Eminem’s Lose Yourself: “Winning’s the only option, standing on top of mountains, this moment belongs to me, prepared to be astounded….”. You could imagine this track being very popular if it was played at sports events, it has that uplifting quality you want from a sporting anthem.
Overall, this was an enjoyable and inspirational piece of rap, Mr. Mann proving that sounding authentic can’t be faked and he is the real deal. If you liked the late, great Notorious B.I.G. (or Biggie as often known) or Mos Def then you should most definitely check out Mr. Mann’s music. I will be interested to hear a full album from him in the future.
