VILLELIKEMOOKIE - Ron Obasi

Written By Michael Minton

Artwork - “VILLELIKEMOOKIE”

“We’d play them in basketball and Mookie would kick our ass, then we'd play them in baseball and Mookie would kick our ass. He was money every time.”

These are the stories I would hear from my brother’s friends, and it sounds like Mookie was a two-sport menace. Well, really a three-sport menace (He bowled a perfect game at the 2017 World Series of Bowling; the man really is incredible). Watching him grow from a high schooler who was whooping my brother’s classmates, to his successes in the MLB and using his platform to speak on issues such as race and class inequity, specifically at the ballpark, really makes me want to fight for him, in any setting. In a sport as old and traditional as baseball, he is one of the leaders of the “new school” that’s turning the game and its outdated rules on its head and making it more enjoyable again to watch. He really is somebody who I am proud represents Nashville on a global level.

“More to do, whole lot more to fuckin’ do,”

Rob Obasi sounds like somebody who knows the road your legacy lives on is paved with hard work. With production from Rapper/Producer dual-threat Reaux Marquez, and the video production handled by HALV, Obasi digs in to do battle, and really, his only competition is himself. An opening black and white shot of a mural dedicated to Nashville legend Quanie Ca$h really sets the perfect scene; a master in his dojo, putting the work in, shadowboxing himself. From corner store rooftops to neighborhood streets, Obasi takes his gospel to every level he can reach; navigating life’s truths while facing truths of his own. “No time to coast now”, another callback to paving that road, and the subsequent journey to new opportunities, double’d prices and the experience that comes with it. His ability to use captivating storytelling along with sharp and thoughtful wordplay is what puts Obasi, in my opinion, in the Top 1% of rappers in the South.

I see the same things in Obasi that I see in Mookie. Young men, making their way through life, doing it their way. Carving their own path, planting their flag, and letting people decide if they’re on the team or not, and shit, I don’t blame ‘em. It seems like every day, something or someone, is trying to project what they want onto us; trying to forge a path for us that we have no interest in. That sort of rebellious spirit keeps me alive. Anybody who’s willing to have that spirit and wield it without fear of any sort of threat? That’s money.

“All bets on me,” the only question is how much money is my bank going to let me borrow?

Watch The Video For “VILLELIKEMOOKIE”

Michael Minton
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