Clipse’s Let God Sort ’Em Out is Dissect’s pick for Best Rap Album of 2025. In this episode, we break down 10 of the most mind-blowing bars from the project, line by line, decoding the layers of wordplay, cultural references, and religious symbolism that make this album so lyrically dense.
🎵 Chapters
00:00 Pusha T, “So Be It”
01:40 Malice, “Ace Trumpets”
04:25 Pusha T, “Ace Trumpets”
07:14 Malice, “M.T.B.T.T.F.”
09:29 Pusha T, “P.O.V.”
11:42 Pharrell, “So Be It” Sample Breakdown
14:01 Pusha T, “Chains & Whips”
15:42 Stove God Cooks, “F.I.C.O.”
16:51 Push & Malice, "FICO"
19:40 Malice, “So Far Ahead”
21:44 Malice, “Birds Don’t Sing”
💬 Subscribe for more breakdowns of hip-hop’s greatest writers - from Kendrick Lamar to Tyler, The Creator, and beyond.
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26:33
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26:33
The Most GENIUS Number Bars in Rap History
From Rakim to Kendrick Lamar, this is the story of hip-hop’s obsession with numbers.
Dissect's Cole Cuchna breaks down the evolution of “number bars” - a lyrical tradition where rappers use math, numeric sequences, and wordplay to showcase technical skill and encode hidden meaning.
Beginning with Rakim’s groundbreaking verse on “My Melody” (1986) - a quatrain built around groups of seven that secretly mirrors his own 21-letter name - we trace how MCs have used numbers as both a mathematical signature and a symbolic device for decades. From Melle Mel’s divine 7-count in “Superrappin” to Jay-Z’s “22 Twos”, Biggie’s “Ten Crack Commandments,” and Mos Def’s “Mathematics,” numbers became an essential part of hip hop tradition and lyricism.
By the 2000s, artists like Lupe Fiasco, J. Cole, JID, Vince Staples, and Kendrick Lamar transformed number schemes into complex storytelling tools. We unpack everything from Lupe’s hidden 3–2–1 countdown on Kanye West’s “Touch the Sky” to Kendrick’s quantum-level equations on “Nosetalgia.”
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32:37
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32:37
Rosalia's 'LUX' is a Masterpiece
In this emergency episode, Cole shares his initial thoughts on Rosalia's new album LUX, plus provides a brief breakdown of the album's four movements, and shares how its beginning and end connect thematically and narratively.
How are you feeling about LUX? Comment below.
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37:34
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37:34
Chance The Rapper dissects 'STAR LINE' track-by-track
Chance the Rapper and Dissect’s Cole Cuchna sit for an in-depth, track-by-track breakdown of Chance’s new album Star Line. We dig into the meaning behind the album’s title, the symbolism of its artwork, and the historical references woven throughout - from Marcus Garvey and the Black Star Line to the Wattstax documentary and beyond.
Chance dissects specific lyrics, discusses the spiritual and political threads running through the project, and shares how themes of resistance, memory, and Black liberation shaped the sound and vision of Star Line.
This is the definitive deep dive into Chance’s most ambitious work to date.
Chapters:
00:00 Intro / Tour Experience
03:50 ‘STAR LINE’ Title Breakdown
14:45 Album Art Breakdown
21:25 “Star Line Intro” Breakdown
44:23 Why Wattstax Doc is Sampled
48:51 “Ride” Lyric Breakdown
01:06:00 “No More Old Men” Breakdown
01:17:36 “The Negro Problem” Breakdown
01:23:49 “Drapetomania” Breakdown
01:31:06 “Back to The Go” Breakdown
01:38:08 “Space and Time” Breakdown
01:50:27 “Letters” Breakdown
02:00:42 “Speed of Love” Breakdown
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2:14:15
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2:14:15
Crowning the BEST Album of the 21st Century | LAST SONG STANDING [Finale]
It all comes down to this! Season 4 of Last Song Standing concludes with Cole and Charles finally crowning the Best Album of the 21st Century (so far).
Each album that advanced to the finale now duke it out in a cut-throat bracket that includes Frank Ocean's 'Blonde', Kendrick Lamar's 'To Pimp a Butterfly', Daft Punk's 'Discovery', Beyonce's 'Lemonade', MF DOOM's 'Madvillainy', and more.
What artist should be selected for next season of Last Song Standing?
Hosts: Cole Cuchna & Charles Holmes
Producer: Justin Sayles
Video/Audio Engineer: CT
Video/Audio Editing: Kevin Pooler
Theme Music: Birocratic
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Analyzing the music and meaning of one album per season, one song per episode. Join host Cole Cuchna as he dives deep into albums by Kendrick Lamar, Kanye West, Radiohead, Beyonce, Tyler The Creator, Frank Ocean, and more. Let's Dissect.
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