Summer is here. While working in my garden recently, on the raised bed, an oldie that I hadn’t heard in years came on the Keith Sweat Pandora station. The song was “How Deep Is Your Love” (sung by Keith Sweat.) When the voice boxed background vocals touch my ears, I was magically transported back to 1996. I immediately thought of an old classic by Celly Cel that lit up my summer back in the day.
Time Travel
These are important and pivotal times in my life. I just got my license. My grandfather died. I’m headed into my senior year of high school. During the summer my family and I are set for a vacation in Los Angeles (I also got a jacked up haircut shortly before the trip, but I digress.) Within all the excitement of that, I find myself obsessing over a song I saw on television.
That song is Celly Cel’s “It’s Going Down.” I hadn’t stopped thinking about it since I first heard it. I even called the local radio station to put in a request for it. They played it the next night around the same time as my call the previous day. The second I find some free time during the trip I plan to purchase the CD.
Musical Injustice
It came as quite a surprise to me that this song wasn’t more popular. Even my cousins who lived in Cali weren’t familiar. I only ever heard the song on the radio that one time after I requested it. This tune, for me, was the quintessential summer anthem. The fluttering, synthesizer-laden melody gives it that vintage West Coast timber like “Nuthin’ But A G Thang.” Celly’s rhymes are as clean and precise as Edgar Allan Poe himself.
The delivery is as smooth as peanut butter cognac. It’s an embarrassment of riches. A dope chorus, timely scratches, and a rumbling, trunk-rattling bass line are all on display throughout. That all takes a backseat to how this song makes you feel. A 16-year-old with no money, driving his mama’s car can feel like Louis XIV for the 5 minute and 24-second duration of the song.
Courtesy of Google Images
Talk To The Expert
Again, what gives? A Google search reveals absolutely nothing about record sales, nor the circumstances surrounding the song’s release. I even check Bing in my desperation. Nothing. I am at an impasse. Mos Def spoke vaguely about this in one of his songs. In the song Fear Not of Man he says, “We are Hip-Hop. Hip-Hop is going where we are going.”
That is to say, if you want to know something about Hip-Hop ask someone who had boots on the ground in the culture during that time period. So, I asked a friend and fellow lover of the culture, Mark Harris, what he remembered about it. He, like me, was one of those kids growing into manhood during the time of its release. I can say, with confidence, he understands the greater context of that time.
He says, “Celly Cel made a classic song to ride around town in a drop-top during the sunny summer hours. The issue behind the song is that it is a Bay Area hit. Many people won’t recognize its greatness because of its limited reach. Celly Cel lyrically gives every reason why it’s going down on that night. In short, the song is a winner that everyone should know about.”
Courtesy of Instagram
Rightful Place
“It’s Going Down” should be mentioned in the same breath as other summertime favorites like Jazzy Jeff & The Fresh Prince’s “Summertime,” Cameo’s “Candy,” or Gap Band’s “Outstanding” in the author’s humble opinion. In my research and surveying, I could find nary a person willing to say a bad word about it. Did it make Celly Cel a huge star? Did he sell millions of records behind it?
Not at all. In fact, RIAA scarcely mentions him at all. The secret ingredient for Celly Cel is memorability. The people that heard the song during the 1990’s eyes light up when they mention “that Keith Sweat sample.” This was in fact Celly Cel’s magnum opus. The merit of this particular work is not up for debate. I come for justice. The fact that this song is overlooked/not considered in the grand scheme of Hip-Hop is a sin against God and man.
Chris Rock said in the early 2000’s, “Whatever music was playing when you started getting laid, you’re gonna love that music forever.” Hip-Hop is a part of that very framework for me. Celly Cel more specifically is the soundtrack to that 16-year-old striking out at almost every at-bat. That doesn’t matter. Still, I wouldn’t trade the feeling of those times for a Scrooge McDuck-sized pile of gold. Grammies don’t matter. Record Sales don’t matter. Creating timeless art matters. Creating music that still lives inside of those who heard it 20-plus years previous matters. It does matter. It does still live in my heart.
