Bitemarks: Jay Electronica Makes Biting Sound Like Fine Dining on “Call of Duty”

"Call of Duty", the latest in a string of sporadic, obscure, and dope as all hell releases by Jay Electronica (stream at the bottom of the page), features a lot of what we’ve grown to expect from the most mysterious emcee in the game; a vintage, politically-infused sample introducing the track - this time its Winston Churchill, a high profile feature - this time its Prodigy of Mobb Deep, cerebrally deep lyrics spit with a trademark mumbled flow, and a slew of bitten lyrics including Biggie’s fiery ‘Who Shot Ya’ quip “I burn baby burn like Disco Inferno, Burn slow like blunts with yayo”:


“I burn slow like Disco Inferno, Burn slow like blunts with yayo” (1:18)

Here’s the point where I trash Jay Elect like I did Jay-Z for unapologetically biting Biggie’s classic line, which itself references the Trammps disco hit, especially since this is far from his first lyrical crime. Instead, my first thought when I heard the bar was honestly to applaud the New Orleans born rapper for paying homage to the legend while simultaneously delivering a creative metaphor to his "Sunshine Eternal".

Wait, how does this make any sense?! Am I just another sucker caught up Jay’s veiled brilliance - forged through his intellectual, even pretentious content and his captivating rise to fame that brought the buzzing emcee through just about every hip hop Mecca on the East Coast - so deep that I am blinded to this straight lyrical robbery? Well, not necessarily… I do love Jay Elect’s music, and somewhat understand his atypical release schedule (it really just makes us anticipate his album more… btw when the hell is this thing coming out?!?!) but the real reason he shouldn’t catch the same heat as Jay-Z goes much deeper than personal preferences.



The essence of biting isn’t meant to be detrimental and cheap, but rather uplifting and a sign of respect. I hate to be that guy, but just look at old school, “Golden Age” hip hop! Take the famous “Milk is chillin', Giz is chillin'. What more can I say?” line by Audio Two which has been borrowed so many times its become synonymous with the genre itself. The negative connotation of biting we are so used to originated with Jay-Z’s sampling of Nas on ‘Crack Game/Rap Game’ - which later became a catalyst of their beef - and has more recently been amplified by the trend towards competitive yet lackluster lyricism that has thrown innovation out the door.

Jay Electronica is different, combining an old school approach that has critics and heads giddy with progressive, abstract thinking to form a mural of styles, ideas, and inspirations on unique tracks like ‘COD’. A consistent element of Jay’s mural is his aforementioned frequent biting/borrowing of Notorious B.I.G., Jay-Z, and other legendary emcee’s lyrics. When I say frequent, I mean just about every song Electronica releases features an almost encyclopedic quote from the golden age of hip hop. (for example: recognize ‘Act II’s’ hook? That’d be Jay-Z from ‘Brooklyn’s Finest’).


There’s some strange resemblance between the three, no?

Now, biting on a consistent basis doesn’t automatically make it ok, but Jay Electronica’s visible idolization of Biggie - who he paid tribute to with ‘The Ghost of Christopher Wallace’ with Diddy - and Jay-Z - who is now his boss at Roc Nation - earns him a pass. Furthermore, his own brilliant lyrics and seamless and relevant placement of these bitten lyrics actually work to enhance his appeal.

I know it sounds crazy, but Jay Elect’s unique status as a “real hip hop” savior allows him to utilize these classic lines to strengthen his own impactful lyricism. Jay Electronica exemplifies the old school version of borrowing lyrics, let’s just hope it catches on.

Verdict: Not Guilty!