Introduction:
After teasing herself rapping to this freestyle she wrote on 29/03/17 via her twitter with : “Imma do it for the bitches that people told them "YOU WILL NEVER BE SHIT " lImma do it for the Bronx & the hood mamis wit a dream.” She released it on 05/04/2017.
So I’ll start to make an attempt to decipher her venomous bars. let’s begin with the title; When we say “Barz”, we’re talking about a rapper’s rhymes, the truth about a particular subject. It’s all about spitting facts and talking your shit in a very dope and extremely good manner. So why “Red Barz”. Cardi chose to name this Red because Cardi reps the “New York’s blood gang” set and their color is Red. So you know- “Red barz”.
Now let’s start to decipher what her lyrics mean.
1.I swear to God, they ain't wanna see me leave the club. Got up on my shit and now they scared, they show me love. They'd rather see me on the pole twerkin' it for dubs .i guess I really gotta show them what the fuck is up.
- Here Cardi addresses the kind of people who do not want to see her succeed. She used to work as a stripper at “Sue’s Rendezvous” to make ends meet and taking the job into consideration it’s based on how hard you work, you can make a lot on certain days or make less. Stripping does not guarantee you a stable source of income hence it was her dream to get out of this type of life but then in life, not everyone has your best interests at heart. She finally got on top of her game , doing really well then the haters began to show her love. They see how powerful she’s becoming so they now begin to attach themselves to her for their own benefit. The word “Dubs” is a slang for a small sum of money that’s like 20 dollars.
2.I'm on some other shit, that Cardi B gutta shit
- Gutta” is a slang for a ghetto or hood. She’s simply saying she’s back to acting like she’s from the hood, which she is as she grew up in the Bronx, New York. Here Cardi let’s us know she’s too gangster/real for people to even handle her. The homophone Gutter- is also someone from the slums/low
3.Every time I catch a hating bitch, she on her stutter shit
- “Stutter“ is a speech disorder characterized by the abnormal hesitation or pausing before speech. What she means is that anytime she comes face to face with those who talk slick about her, they aren’t able to say it with confidence in her face.
4.Can't finish her words but on Instagram thuggin' shit. You set yourself up, don't make it seem like I be buggin', bitch.
- Continuing from the previous line, that same person is on social media pretending to be a gangsta, so when Cardi also decides to react in that same way, she shouldn’t make it seem like Cardi is over-reacting or crazy. No! You get what you ask for. This ties back to her stuttering line.
6. And niggas hatin' on me, really be upset,
I don't know, make me wonder what you got between your legs. You a real nigga mad at a bitch for getting bread? You's a bitch from birth, you just grew a third leg, woo!
- “Bread“ is a slang for money and “A third leg” is an euphemism for a really long penis. This punchline takes shot at the type of men who sit and hate on the success of a woman. When a man is a bitch, he acts outside of the confines of his gender role. These type of men like to sit and nag, whine, complain and criticize her success on a constant basis. So for such men, she made sure to remind them that not all women are bitches, some have third legs. Nothing is more pathetic than a man who hates on the success of a woman.
7. Bite down, bite down, it was crunch time
- Crunch time is a critical period when a decisive action is needed. Mostly used in sports when a player and/team must do their best in order to win the game. Cardi used “crunch time” as a metaphor for the critical point in her life whose outcome will decide what will be for her. Also “bite down” means to to clench with your teeth/to bite hard on something in order. “Bite down means“- to clench with your teeth or to bite hard on something in order to break an object apart. She needs to fight hard in order to break through to her next stage in life. Also Crunch is an onomatopoeia for eating. when you crunch something, (crash hard) it makes noise thus resonating with “bite down”
8.Yeah I skip all of them bitches in the lunch line
- Cardi skipping the lunchline here is a metaphor for how unwilling Cardi is to go along with the flow of things. She has the desire and hunger to excel in the rap game hence she’s impatient with following rules. She’ll disrespect rules and have her own way than follow the path someone made. In a lunchline everyone is in order waiting to be served but Cardi has no time for that since she’s in beast mode. She just overtakes the other girls in the competition. This ties back to her previous line since both “crunch” and “bite down” also relate to eat.
9.I put in work, now I'm here at the front line
Ready for the bullshit, I swear it's on my bloodline.
- When you’re at the frontline, you are in one of the most important or influencial position in a movement or a debate. Since Cardi did things her own way. She’s at the top and has all eyes on her. She’s not ready to also give in to those gimmicks and intimidation. She’s prepared to face whatever comes her way
10. Touch mine, getting slumped, slimed one time. Pump blind, bitches quick, then I dump mine
- Cardi lays emphasis on riding hard for her friends/loved ones. when you attack one of her friends(slime), she’ll violate you badly. “Pump” is a slang meaning “to reload a pump action shot gun”. She’s telling us you’ll never see the gun coming at you as she’s fast with it. Try her and she empties the clip(dump) of her gun and shoots at her target.
11. Pull up with the Gucci clutch, spitting clutch rhymes, Flyer than a big big B with a Blood tie.
- Gucci clutch- a small bag from Gucci that she holds/clutches. Clutches were meant as an accessory just make help women make a statement in fashion. Cardi feels posh (fly) with her expensive clutch. All the same “Clutch“ can mean excellent or raw/hardcore. But in this context I do think she was referring to “raw” since she’s more of a raw rapper. So she means she came in the game spitting raw rhymes. This could also be a play on Amitabh Bachchan popularly known as “big b.” He starred in an action movie named “family: ties of blood.” and he’a very skilled (fly) at what he does.
13. Don’t do much, he get hard when I bust wines.
- “ wine” (dutty wine) is a sexually explicit Jamaican head dance where you move your legs in a butterfly motion and swing your head around. The moment she does this, the man gets erect. She don’t need all that fore play.
14. No straws for this juice box, gulp one time
•Cardi slides in a sexual innuendo here. You need a straw to suck juice out of a box, but the box here is also serves as a double entendre for her pussy which she describes as very wet. The juice is a metonymy for her vaginal secretions due to her sexual excitement
15. Last nigga I was with went insane
'Cause my head game over heels(hills) like I'm lookin' for the sunshine.
- Cardi used “head game” as a double entendres as it means fellatio/oral sex skills ; meaning she’s good at giving oral sex. Secondly when you play “head games“ with someone, you psychologically manipulate them into a state of confusion. There was wordplay here too, the way she pronounce head game also sounds like “head came” over hills since she’s in search of sunshine. Sun rises over the hills.- This is also an example of a “Simile” as she draws comparison using the “like” phrase.
16. I’m a Bronx bitch birthed from the hip hop from the block- to the tick tock in the Patek watch.
- Cardi was born in the Bronx and the Bronx is known as the origin of hip hop. On 11/08/1973,two siblings by name Dj Kool herc and his sister Cindy Campbell held a birthday party in the block(neighborhood). Dj kool herc introduced a technique where you can play two songs at the same time over a turntable. It then evoluted from that point to where it is now. So Cardi tells us, the culture of hip-hop is ingrained into her. she’s well accustomed with it. Also Fashion is just one element of the hip hop Culture. Patek watches have gained prominence in this field especially among rapper. They signify wealth and luxury in the hip hop community
17. Quick drop with the cash, couldn’t fit the Ziploc
- She can now afford to spend a large sum of money in any item she wants to purchase. Ziploc is a type of resealable & reusable storage bags with a zip.
18.Grips locked, get your shit popped in my flip flops.
- Grips- can be a slang for abundance of money but it’s also a slang for a protruding, handle found beneath a gun/rifle for easy handling & comfort of the firearm.. “pop” is slang for getting shot . She’s warning her adversaries that, she’s got her gun under control and you can get shot if you try her.
19.Wealthy now, but every dollar, I still want it all
- As at the time the song was made she was richer than when she was working as a stripper but to her, there’s no limit to her hustling. Why settle for less when you can have more?.
20.He wanna nail me I could give your man a cure.
- This is also a wordplay. The term “Nail“ is a slang for sex and Cardi uses the phrase “man-a-cure” to produce a homophone to manicure since manicure is done on the nails.
21.You gotta mail me but I don’t check my spam at all.
- Spam is an unsolicited messages sent. Cardi is at the point in life where she can afford to get a manager. On her “social media bios“, you can see her e-mail there but even if you send her one, she won’t see it because it goes straight to her spam.
22.Never feel what you’re saying like I’m using anbesol
- Anbesol (Benzocaine) is used short term to relieve pain from minor mouth problems. It also has anesthetic properties thus resulting in the loss of sensation without affecting your consciousness. She’s states clearly that she’s mute to the criticism of her detractors.
23. Travel all around the states getting nice checks. I was tourin' off a tape, I had a hype set.
- In 2016, With just a mixtape she dropped, she was able to go on a tour (underestimated tour) as a solo artist.
24. Is that the reason all these niggas wanna pipe next? I'm a creep, bitch, see his dick through his Nike Tech
- Nike Tech- is a Fleece fabric offers the ultimate in lightweight warmth that responds to the natural motion of the wearer. Since it’s light, when men wear it, they have “dick prints” on it and since she’s wierd she peeps at the dick. I watched a certain reaction video on YouTube about this same song and they made mention that she once said a man use to come to the strip club with Nike techs and no drawers. One day they threw him out cos it was creepy.
25. Got 'em all scared, I ain't even strike yet
- Cardi has not even reached her peak of success but everyone especially those who doubted her could see she’s slowly becoming a force to reckon, and they’re alarmed but to her the game has just began
26.Wire up jaws when I swing if the mic stretch
- “Wired up” means getting hype because someone pissed you off and “Jaw” is a slang for talking excessively. Cardi warns the people that like talking shit, she violates (punch) them and have their jaws sewn together(wired ) to keep them shut.
27.I worked hard, took the right steps, had a shot. So I took the shit, now this game gon' need a life vest.
- When you “have a shot” at something, it means you have a chance to suceed. So Cardi wants us to know, She’s about to “terminate” her competition so they should get some defensive tactics. (Life vest) ; a life vest keeps people afloat in times of danger.
