Supplied — Eddy RisslingThe month of March is much revered in the sports world. It is this month where the top 64 college basketball teams from around the United States come together for an epic saga of upsets, buzzer-beating-nail-biters and all-or-nothing championship moments. This event is, of course, the beloved NCAA Basketball Tournament, otherwise known as March Madness.
To most people, the phrase March Madness brings to mind terms like brackets, Final Four, Cinderella story and Duke or Kentucky University, but for another group of people, March Madness has started to take on a different meaning, one that features a little less Gatorade and a little more purple drank.
Future released the song “March Madness” one year ago on March 14, 2015 in the lead up to his masterful 56 Nights mixtape and that year’s NCAA tournament. Since that time, this — let’s just call it what it is — straight-up banger has become the crowning achievement of the Atlanta-based rap star’s ever-growing catalogue.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_FH7IC-AK-s
This track came out in the midst of Future’s staggering — and still on-going — run of successful mixtape and album releases, but stands out as the prime example of everything he does best in the rap game.
Atlanta beat-maker Tarentino, of the esteemed 808 Mafia crew, constructs a sonic landscape of synths that float and dance safely above speaker-shaking bass tones, creating an uplifting, yet strikingly somber atmosphere that perfectly suits Future’s signature concoction of brutally honest lyrics and love of inebriated partying.
In one instance, he praises the power of what’s in his cup: “Dirty soda in a Styrofoam/ Spend a day to get my mind blown” before bringing it back down to Earth in a grounded realization: “I didn’t wanna fuck the bitch, the molly made me fuck her even/though she average.”
In another, he uses the March Madness tournament to drive home a potent and emotional point about police shootings: “Ballin’ like the March Madness/All these cops shooting niggas, tragic.”
Based on its ‘turn up-able’ energy and basketball-flavoured premise, this track became one of the hottest singles in many hip-hop circles and clubs over the last year and even made its way onto the court during the NBA Finals, with LeBron warming up to it before a game.
If The King’s royal affirmation isn’t enough to convince you of this track’s worth, perhaps recognition and praise from three of rap’s most recognized names will. Drake premiered an exclusive remix of “March Madness” on a recent episode of OVO Sound Radio where the legendary Nas went in on an instrumental version of the song with a rare freestyle. Also, in one of his latest — and more reasonable— Twitter rants, Kanye used the song to put the most prestigious music association on blast for their misinformed and outdated hip-hop tastes: “Has anyone at the Grammys ever heard March Madness??? Yes I have a problem with the Grammys.”
https://twitter.com/kanyewest/status/702562389678559233
Like many of the players who will participate in the annual tournament, “March Madness” may never find itself playing in the ‘big leagues’ despite all its worth. March Madness will always be known for its iconic place in American sports culture but in the spirit of this very tournament, isn’t always more fun to cheer for the underdog?
