I'm not a huge A-Boogie Wit Da Hoodie (A-Boogie for short) fan, however his song "Jungle" stands out to me amongst his others. I've listened to the song on repeat for a few days, to really understand the lyrics. Throughout the song, I related the "jungle" to life and it's struggles. I gained some understanding to his life, and how it holds true within our society.
Coming from a place where he wasn't expected to have successful accomplishments, he made a name for himself. He speaks about betrayal saying that people "throw you in the shade cause they wanna shine though," and I can relate to that because we are taught to live in a dog eat dog world. He talks about his bro (close friend) being killed, making him want to treat people around him like John Doe's and them actually becoming John Doe's. It gave me insight on the type of life he lives, which is surrounded by violence and gaining success from the downfall of others.
Becoming an artist is what he worked hard for, and he questions in the song, "Why Would I Let You Take It From Me...?" I feel like he knows the rarity of coming out of the 'hood and establishing himself, and risking it all would be stupid. But, he also expressed that he's capable of defending himself against people who've been plotting against him since day one. Growing up, we learn eventually that we have to watch our back against both enemies and friends, because "this is what that jungle do". Society/the 'hood, in a sense teaches minorities how to survive in this jungle we live in.
A-Boogie promotes where he's from to let anyone who'd listen know that he's "about that life". He does that to show people that his success didn't change who he was and never forgot where he came from. He didn't forget his past, and if it were to resurface, he'd respond to it as if time didn't interfere. I can assume that he dealt with struggles, "Stepping over puddles full of pain, it's a big storm", but he isn't letting it hold him back. He uses his struggles to motivate him to be about his money, and he's learned to not trust anyone. A-Boogie mentioned that when he was younger and trying to make something of himself, he didn't have anyone to show love and support him, expect for a select few.
In a lot of A-Boogie's music, he speaks on his life journey in the "jungle" and how it has shaped his as a person because of it. It made him a "monster", which can be taken one or two ways: Someone that people fear, or someone that's a bully and would do whatever it takes to protect themselves. The jungle made him go "harder", making him push himself to be everything he's expected not to be.
This song really stood out to me, because I believe that the "jungle" that we live in, makes it close to impossible to not have the desire to fight. Whether it be in a metaphorical sense, or a literal one. In a sense, everyone lives in their own "jungle" which is filled with personal struggles. I couldn't help but relate it to "the survival of the fittest", because not everyone can make it in, or out of the "jungle."
