Future and Rocky

Today I have music for you by a rapper that has had a huge presence in the the rap scene recently. Future is a rapper that has been both praised and criticized, but either way, no one can deny his popularity in music right now. This song is one that is very different in comparison to the other songs I have heard from Future. For one, there is a lively intensity to the song. A lot of Future's songs have that standard hi[ hop and rap beat to it, the one that kind of identifies a song as a rap one from the get go. Generally it is a noticeable bass and snare drums that make up the musicality of the song. And the other thing with Future is that his songs are like the slow jam version of rap. They don't necessarily have a driving energy to them, which is fine since that is his thing. But this song is a nice change for a couple of reasons. I guess I should start off by prefacing this with the fact that this song was made for the soundtrack of the movie Creed. This is  a boxing movie, a continuation of the Rocky movies. That being said I absolutely love the homage paid to the original movies and soundtrack with the fact that a vast majority of this song is a remixed version of the original Rocky theme. I love how intense they made that original theme. There is this incredible sense of determination and pride and prowess in this song, and that is possible the coolest thing ever. The rarity of an uplifting song by Future is pretty great, so the fact that we get to hear one of those "blue moon" type songs is pretty awesome. And a lot of that uplifting sound comes from the way the song was produced. First of all, there is a lot more energy to the song. As in, it doesn't just stay kind of stagnant, but has highs and lows and a driving beat. The song actually opens up with that Rocky theme, but it is slightly slowed down and each note is more pronounced, which adds so much to the way the tone of the rest of the song is. It automatically creates this sound and feeling of sheer power and will. And of course the use of the bell that strikes at the beginning of each phrase, man, that is just poetically brilliant. It gives the song so much more intensity than we realize. This grittier version of the original Rocky theme is exactly what makes it so great. Future is a rapper who perfectly suits this rougher and gruffer version of the theme. The Rocky theme is most prevalent during the chorus and is accompanied by a drum set which actually adds a lot more depth to the song. The ending of the song is the best part for me though. It is so incredibly inspiring that I feel like nothing can stop the main character. It is this huge swelling of orchestral and choral background, along with the bells and the original theme. The way everything is put together is pretty damn perfect. I mean the production quality on this song is actually one of the best for a theme flip, if not THE best. Fierce rhymes and a powerful musical support make this a song that can inspire anyone. Today's instrumental song of course had to be from the Rocky movies. It is the perfect fit to go with the first song, and sometimes it is nice to hear the iconic movie themes. I mean they became iconic for a reason! But it is so interesting to hear how even though both songs use the same melodies and segments, they each have very different tones and moods. I hope you enjoy the music and please feel free to comment!