(Written by broken cool writer Maxine Ross)
Originally Marketing jargon, ‘swag’ is an acronym for Stuff We All Get, promotional materials, samples, free shit. Available to one and all, swag is in fact, the antithesis of exclusivity. Somewhere in the game of Telephone we call media development coupled with bastions of uninspired rappers, ‘swag’ or having ‘swagger’ became the personification of success. Never mind that what it really means is that Louis rag you’re waving around is equivalent to the free Trojan Pleasure Packs Planned Parenthood gives out at the clubs.
What the verbiage is designed to do is determine the user’s cool. Make a determination on the ability to flow through every experience as though driven by the sea. Cool. Easy baby. The guy that had an awkward moment just to see what it felt like. The girl with the super fly twists and bass in her walk carrying a Blackberry and a blunt. Cool. Easy, natural mannerisms often envied by spectators and imitated by haters.
Every time a rapper uses the word ‘swag’ in a song, somewhere in Brooklyn a Miles Davis record skips. The Miles Davis Nonet, a nine piece ensemble with arrangements from notable stars, laid magic to the concept of fresh style with the 1949 recorded and ’57 released “The Birth of the Cool.” The idea of a nine piece collective of anything sounds complicated but imagine a conglomerate of the best composers, musicians, players and one or two vocalists in one space working on one project. Mayhem is euphemistic.
With unusual instrumentations and at times complicated provisions, the foundation of cool wasn’t easy. It looked easy, sounded easy to the uninvolved ear and felt, oh how it felt, cooler than the other side of the pillow. It was the work, the belief and the unhurried and non-harried manner of moving that took an idea for a rehearsal band and turned it into a revolution and upheaval of composition.
Containing such gems as “Godchild” and “Budo,” the listener is dragged into a destiny of greatness, even if not their own. The musical foreshadowing manifested by “The Birth of the Cool’s” release could not be rivaled. Some would argue that we have moved beyond our generation’s time for musical greatness. Not since that MC from Queens has there been an air of authenticity and recognition permeating through the airwaves.
Your style cannot be turned on. You don’t wake up in the morning, hit a switch and all of a sudden are surrounded by “swagger light.” There are some artists/rappers/performers/fuckery-inducers, that would have you believe otherwise but he’s probably never listened to a Miles Davis album.
I’ve never been so unexcited about music. Perhaps we need to work harder. Establish a new set of rules and cool point requirements. As long as the medium of creativity is relegated to gum, sunglasses, battery operated fans and vibrators, there will be no motivation, no inspiration, and I will never get rid of my record player.
“It takes a lot of effort to make this look so effortless.” - Jay-Z
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