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Works Cited
Diep, E. (2017, Jan 30). Billboard. Retrieved Feb 5, 2017, from How Migos' 'Culture' Cemented the Rap Trio's Impact Beyond the Trap: http://www.billboard.com/articles/columns/hip-hop/7670070/migos-culture-rap-trio-impact-history-review
Lamarre, C. (2017, 1 9). Golden Globes: Why Donald Glover Thanked Migos in His 'Atlanta' Acceptance Speech. Retrieved 2 5, 2017, from hollywoodreporter: http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/why-donald-glover-thanked-migos-his-atlanta-golden-globes-acceptance-speech-962988
Taylor, T. 2012. The Discovery of the Youth in the 1960s: Chicago Scholarship Online.
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Migos: Young, Successful, and out of the Bando
     “Who the heck are the amigos?” A question I constantly hear from the older generation. “No it’s Migos…not amigos. And they are the future generation of hip-hop,” I repeatedly explain. Migos is a term commonly, used in the Bando, referring to drug transportation. A Bando, also known as “trap house,” is an abandoned house, located in the “hood”; drugs and weapons are usually concealed in this location. Quavo, the “Beyoncé” of the group, is the uncle of Takeoff and the cousin of Offset. These three grew up in the Bando of Lawrenceville, Georgia. Influenced by their upbringings in Atlanta, Migos have been able to project and popularize catchy street slang into the public. Some of the most commonly used terms are “Dab”, “Gas”, “Nawf side” (North side), “Dat Way,” and of course “Bando.” Their first music video was shot in the Bando of Atlanta. The video displayed an authentic setting of their lifestyle.  While repping their “Free Offset” T-shirts, Quavo and Takeoff repeat the chorus, “Trapping out the house with the boards on the windows.” Offset, who at the time was in prison for selling drugs, had a verse that went, “serving all my patients, get it from the Haitians, smoking loud my eye look Asian….. Get a brick from Venezuelo, meet the plug his name is Pedro.” Migos glamorize the drug life. They made music that connected and heavily related to their lives, as well as the lives of people who lived in the same conditions as the trio.
      Migos’ music was mainly appealing to those in the “nawf side” of Atlanta until, Drake, a well-known hip-hop artist, hopped on Migos’ 2013 “Versace” track. Because of Drake’s popular fan base, “Versace” became a smash hit. The lyrics: “Versace, Versace Medusa head on me like I'm 'Luminati…. Versace (x10)” echoed not only the Atlanta scene, but also the radio scene. Drake helped the Atlanta trio push their music closer to mainstream media. With their popularity rising, they eventually came out with a music video, which caught the attention of many. Migos’ music video presented a gleaming lifestyle full of Versace clothing, a huge mansion with a lot of women in gold, and a cheetah gracefully running down a spiral staircase. The lifestyle shown in the video was the complete opposite of what Migos previously perceived themselves in music videos. “Versace” became a “money making” song because it was able to follow the steps of what Irving Berlin’s notion of what a popular song should consist of. Firstly, “Versace” is an extremely catchy song. Secondly, the title of the song is in the song and it appeals to both men and women. The song consists of easy words and simple phrases. And finally, the sound is completely original. A combination of these factors provided a minor platform for Migos’s musical capability.         
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Although Migos’ “Versace” was a hit, people believed that, Versace would be the only hit Migos would ever make. Many thought they would live up to the “one hit wonder” title. At the time, Migos was not signed to a label, they were independent artist, but with their unique flows, memorable fashion sense, and “hood rich” accent, Migos was able to prove everyone wrong. They were undoubtedly able to make a name for themselves. It is said that, “the industry is too huge, and too beholden to clients’ wishes, to make drastic changes happen quickly”, but it didn’t take long for Migos to solidify their spot in the hip-hop game, even without a record label under their belts (Taylor).They continued to surprise the industry by creating hit after hit.      
Migos transformed hip hop lyrically by epitomizing catchy terms to their songs. Their sound is unique in comparison to other hip hop artists. Their music is known for having, a “fast, stuttering flow over” with “basic-heavy experimental beats.” They are mostly known for their rapid, yet hyperactive ad libs yelled after each verse in a song. In 2013, the same year they released “Versace,” the trio released songs like “Hannah Montana”, “Rich then Famous”, and “Chirpin.” The one quality that appeals Migos to individuals is their raunchy, yet well construed lyrics. Migos are modern hip-hop poets. If one were to listen to Migos’ lyrics closely one would find sediment and meaning to their songs. In their song “FEMA” the trio raps about hurricane katrina. The hook starts off with Quavo repeating,  
“Katrina, call FEMA
Katrina, call FEMA
Katrina, call FEMA
Katrina, call FEMA”
FEMA stands for Federal Emergency Management Agency, which prepares the readiness of people against environmentmental disasters, like Hurricane Katrina, which became the deadliest tropical cyclones of 2005. Quavo then continues to create a metaphor comparing the twist of hurricanes to making cocaine in a pot by mixing it like a disastrous hurricane.
“Hurricane wrist, hurricane wrist
Hurricane wrist, hurricane wrist
Hurricane wrist, hurricane wrist
Hurricane, hurricane, hurricane…”
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His attempt in this was to show awareness of an important issue, while at the same time glamorizing their lifestyle of making and distributing drugs. Their slight metaphorical mentions have appealed to the greater youth. These songs attract people who are mostly in the club scene. Their music has inspired a variety of artist who have eluded from Atlanta, including 21 Savage, Lil Uzi, and Lil Yachty.
The members of the trio are incredibly humble individuals, who continue to surprise fans. In a 2015 interview at the ‘Breakfast Club,’ Takeoff reveals that “if you come to the Migos studio, you ain’t going to see no paper, no pencil, no pad, no nothing...straight off top of the dome.” The interviewer, Angela Yee continues by asking, “So the three of you don’t write anything...all three of you go straight off the head?” Takeoff continues, “Yeah let the beat marinate for a lil minute, then say what you want to say.” Artist nowadays don’t write their own music so their ability to just freestyle makes their music ten times  more interesting in the sense that it is authentic. They are the bosses of their own flows and lyrics. Advantageously, Migos have even used their music to popularize a dance move called, “The Dab.” “Dab” was a song that Migos had mentioned in previous songs prior to the dance’s popularity. The definition of “dab” is synonymous to the word “swag,” meaning you have a lot of fashion. After the dance craze arose, the trio created a song called, “Look at my Dab.” Frustrated about how the word was being inappropriately used and how little credit was given to the group, Migos were able express their feelings through song. The lyrics repeated, “Look at my dab, b***h dab” and towards the end of the song, Takeoff is heard saying,
“Ni**a thinkin' that it's just a dance
When dabbin' is a way of fashion
See I'm tryin' to teach y'all the rules and regulations
Cause there's a lot of ni**as out here perpetrating”. After the release of the song, people gave Migos their recognition. To make things better people started “dabbing” to Migos’ song “Look at my Dab.”
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     On January 27, 2017, Migos released an album titled “Culture.” The album is a representation of the advancement Migos has provided to the hip-hop scene. In an interview at the breakfast Quavo says, “We need the world to respect us… they consume a lot of our hits and just act like we did not provide the hits,” he continues to add, “we the culture, we brought so much into the game.” Some critics say that Migos are “mumble rappers,” which makes it harder for people to hear exactly what they are saying. Offset argues and says, “The flow is so advanced.”  Beside the fact, Migos took off in October 2016, with their #1 hit “Bad and Boujee.” The song features, new artist, Lil Uzi Vert; Fans and critics came together to support the song, helping it become popular. The song began its popularity from the hook, “Rain drop, drop top, smokin on cookie in a hot box.” This hook became a social media sensation. Many memes and post emerged. One tweet read, “Raindrop, drop top Kevin James's Paul Bart mall cop.” Another tweet read, “Raindrop, drop top my weight is never going to drop drop.” There were even pages, titled that contained tons of formulated tweets on the subject manner. Offset also starts his verse with a memorable part. As the beat drops, he yells “Offset, whoo, whoo, whoo, whoo, whoo!” This verse caused a lot of video recreations on social media. Many people who hadn’t heard of Migos got a chance to really hear about their talent from Donald Glover, who is the creator and producer of the show “Atlanta.” During Donald Glover’s Golden Globe acceptance speech for his television show “Atlanta,” he paid homage to the Migos. "I’d like to thank the Migos — not for being on the show, but for making ‘Bad and Boujee," said Glover. Backstage, Glover was caught saying, “"I think that they're the Beatles of this generation and they don't get a lot of respect, I think, outside of Atlanta,"  "Not that they don’t get respect, but there's a generation, sort of like the YouTube generation that I kind of came up with. There's a generation of kids that are growing up on something that's completely separate from a whole group of people. "Honestly, that song is just fly" added Glover (Lamarre). The day after Glover’s shoutout, “Bad and Boujee” skyrocketed to #1 on the Billboard Charts. Migos is slowly receiving the recognition they deserve. “Bad and Boujee” only helped solidify their status as superstars, Donald Glover just confirmed their “greatness” in the hip-hop lane.
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Migos have also risen to fame not only for their music, but also for their smart moves in the industry. They have built their own brand. Instead of building their brand through fragrance lines or clothing lines, Migos began their own recording label called “Young Rich Nation (YRN).” The trio is also the face of Rap Snack, a chip brand. They have their own flavor called, “Sour cream with a Dab of Ranch.” A day after their “Culture” album released, Migos taught their own culture class at New York University. Migos gave lessons on how they reached the high platform in the rap industry and how their background in the Bando helped express themselves musically. Migos are the modern day innovators of hip-hop because they provided a new sound to fans from all the world. People have appreciated their music because people find a connection to their authenticity and humbleness.
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