Big Sean released a much-anticipated collaboration with Nipsey Hussle today titled “Deep Reverence.” The song touches some of the most gruesome aspects of life experienced by these artists.
Big Sean announced that he was working with Nipsey Hussle in February 2020. He also revealed that Nipsey Hussle’s untimely death happened while this track was in progress. The song is the fourth single off of Big Sean’s upcoming fifth studio album ‘Detroit 2.’
Big Sean Tweeted out “RIP NIP!!! I can’t think of a better time to drop this one! Love! #Detroit2 next week! Letssss goooooooooo!…” a few hours before the release of the track.
Listen to “Deep Reverence” by Big Sean Featuring Nipsey Hussle
“Deep Reverence” Lyrics Meaning and Song Review
Verse 1
The first vers, relatively shorter, by Nipsey Hussle may even be a work in progress still.
In this verse, Nipsey Hussle talks about being raised in the streets with the not-so-elegant affiliations. He plays on the word C Section AKA Caesarean Section, a mode of delivering babies, to emphasize his affiliation with the crips.
Nipsey also recalls the hussle he had to put up every day to survive on the streets. Survival included fulfilling actual human needs, defending from rival gangs, and surviving police brutality. When everyone else was enjoying a calm breakfast, Nipsey and his brothers were on the streets grinding for survival.
The rapper also mentions the popular gossip website TMZ, which is known to publish the latest news on celebrities. If there was anything newsworthy on the streets, TMZ would be on it first and spotlight everyone related.
Nipsey Hussle ends his verse by revering the streets that he grew up on, that gave him everything he has, and armored with the wisdom of the world. The block or the street loves Nipsey and reveres him back as the Don.
Verse 2
The second verse by Big Sean touches on several topics ranging from the pressures of life, dedication towards work, the death of Nipsey Hussle, and most importantly the grind.
Big Sean kicks off his verse by talking about the pressure that he is on constantly. He is focused on the grind 24*7, which is no easy task. It is safe to say that Big Sean has ‘made it’ in the industry. But according to him, the grind never stops. He also talks about the state of addiction to social media mostly by females. He assumes the amount of text written down on different social media platforms could possibly fill up and encyclopaedia.
Another valuable advice by Big Sean in this verse is that it only takes one mistake to destroy an entire lifetime of work. Wikipedia page of a person is usually their factual biography. Both merits and demerits will be listed on it. So grind hard enough that you earn yourself a Wikipedia page, but also make sure your grind is honest so that you are not famous for the wrong reasons.
Big Sean mentions that he talked to Kendrick Lamar after Nipsey Hussle was shot dead. Maybe he was trying to ease his pain, assess the situation of artists in the industry, or seek advice. But he also shows that there is no beef between him and Kendrick Lamar as rumored.
Another major revelation on the verse is when he says “the shit with me get crazy and we lost a baby.” Is he insinuating that he and Jhene Aiko had a miscarriage? If this is factual, it probably would have hit him quite hard. Maybe that is why he follows up these lyrics with even more dedication towards his work; “And I’m walkin’ out the crib, they ask me where I’m goin’ / I told them, “I’m going on another ten-year run.”
Despite everything, Big Sean counts his blessings looking at his journey so far. He praises God to be a good author who penned the story of his life. He also throws back to his 2015 track “Blessings” with these remarks.
Another valuable advice from Big Sean’s “Deep Reverence” to your life is; “if it cost your peace of mind, it might be too expensive.” Here, ‘it’ could refer to anything. So take some time to reflect on the things that cost you peace of mind. Were they worth it, ever?
Big Sean also shouts out to Jay-Z in his verse. He says that at one point in life, he tried to compare himself and his success to Jay-Z, whose legal name is Shawn Carter. But as Big Sean watched Jay-Z turn himself into a billionaire and not himself, he realized that every limitation that hindered his success was just within him. Whoever conquers one’s own limitations fastest, becomes successful the first.
Big Sean also touches on anxiety and depression that bothers him even today. There were no lessons in school that taught us how to cope up with the pressures of life. This is why Big Sean keeps a gun with him. He confesses that suicidal thoughts have haunted him more than once in his life–this should not be the takeaway from the track.
He ends his verse with a shoutout to Nipsey Hussle, and suggesting that Big Sean will try his best to carry on his legacy through music. He also tells us that he feels like his purpose in life is to inspire others to become a better version of themselves.
There is always a lot of wisdom to takeaway from Big Sean’s verses! Let us hear what you think about this song in the comments below.
Check out the complete lyrics and further meaning breakdown on Genius.