We’ve updated our Terms of Use to reflect our new entity name and address. You can review the changes here.
We’ve updated our Terms of Use. You can review the changes here.

Dirt - Mustard Seed

from Plague by Jeremiah Dirt

supported by
/

about

Artist(s): Dirt
Song: Mustard Seed
Word Count: 415
Producer: Fingaz
Recorded: Area 12
Album: Plague (Rescue rec.1999)

Dirts favorite Line(s): ‘Locust is not me/Locust is us!’ (unity!), ‘insects move out thruought the ghetto/ spicing up activities like dried oregano’


Alotta History behind this song! For one it was my personal favorite song on the PLAGUE album next to ‘a Chapter a Day’. Both these songs always stood out in my mind. Mustard Seed, because it was just a raw track. There was really no point to the song besides to be ill!
I built the song around the scratch. One day at a swap meet I found two old Star Wars records. ON WAX! They were story records that used actual samples from the movie (instead of those cheesy second rate actors and noise effects on some of those old tapes/records). I was lit! I was so excited about it! I found ‘Star Wars’ and ‘Return of the Jedi’ both on wax, took em home and placed em on the Technics. I was doin some house chores while listening to them. Towards the end of ‘Return of the Jedi’ came that infamous scene were Luke is goin nuts on Darth Vader. He almost kills him! And then Emperor Palpatine comes in and says (paraphrasing)”Good! Good! Now kill your father and take your place at my side!”
OH MAN! That scene is crazy! But our boy Luke doesn’t submit. He turns his lightsaber off and says, “Never, I’ll never turn to the darkside.”.
And now…rotating on my turntable, I had this all on wax! I was trippin! I immediately concepted this idea where I would just scratch Luke saying the first ‘never’ through the chorus. People would be like, what is that scratch saying!?’. It would hook them into the rest of the song! Then all the way at the end of the song POW! Hit em with the rest of the line!
Needless to say, the end result is phat! I remember that we recorded this song in one of his friends personal studios. They didn’t have DJ gear in there so Fingaz was on the floor while he was laying down the scratches. But that night when I first heard my idea getting dropped in reality…I knew this song was gonna come nice!
The beginning vocal sample is Emperor Palpatine laughing and then telling Luke to kill his father and join him at his side. It was sampled backwards on the turntable (I got to do that!) by simply turning the Technic off and pushing it in reverse with my finger. (Hey! We didn’t have all those fancy computer programs that do it automatically nowadays!) . It ended up causing the biggest stink in the Christian market. I remember a few times some pastors calling rescue Records and complaining that I was satanic because I had some ‘evil backwards satanic bible verse’ playing at the beginning of Mustard Seed.
If you listen at the end of the song to the last vocal sample of Luke finally saying, “Never, I’ll never turn to the darkside.”. You can actually hear the crackle of his lightsaber turning off. I LOVE THAT!
When I went on tour with POD, this song and Chant seemed to be the heavy hitters with the peoples. A few times I was able to actually have a DJ with me to do the chorus (usually Mike Czech or Manny) but most times it was just a crowd interaction thing. I would yell for everyone to say, ‘NEVER…I’LL NEVER TURN TO THE DARKSIDE!’. Then the crowd would respond by repeating me in this crazy loud ruckus!
Somewhere in 98 or 99 I was at a local show and started jokin around on stage. Instead of just doin the back and forth scream of the chorus with the crowd. I tried to mimic the actual scratching noises on the album version of the song (think Rahzel from the Roots). It was purely screwing around and havin fun, but after the show a bunch of kids remarked how it was fun to do that. Then a couple of shows later before I went on, a couple people came up and asked if I was ‘gonna do that scratching thing on Mustard Seed’. Truthfully I had thought it was a bit silly. But I promised them that I would. Then everytime I did a local show people started to make me promise that I would do it and so it has been to this day! Its really quite funny how some of these stage habits get started (throwing up the ‘Locustfist’ started the same, almost as a joke that just stuck with the crowd).
This is one of the few songs that got recorded a few times before the album version. It was done in Diego at ‘Green Leaf’ studio with Fingaz crew. And then again, later, in the Hollywood sessions. It was mixed a couple times also before the final version. I always thought Fingaz came raw with that dope piano loop.
George Lucas, please don’t sue me.
This tsong was remixed for ‘the Upsetter Mixtape’, 2009.

lyrics

MUSTARD SEED
BODY FRAME LICKLE-BUT STILL DAVID ROCKED GOLIATH
HOTTER THAN THE PLANET SITH
FLAMING ARROWS COMETH BUT THEY USUALLY MISS
AND THOSE HITTING TARGETS ARE GETTING EXTINGUISHED
I SPEAK MY OWN SLANG LIKE PATOIS
DISPATCH LYRICS TO GRAB YA
AND NEVER EVER LET GO
INSECTS MOVE OUT THROUGHOUT THE GHETTO
SPICING UP ACTIVITIES LIKE DRIED OREGANO
GIVING UNDERGROUND PEOPLE H.E.A.T.
WITH A FINGAZ MIX-DOWN THAT SMASH THE CONCRETE
TUNE IT- INTO YOUR MENTAL STATION
TRANSMITTING- ANNIHILATION TO YOUR FOUNDATION
IT CRUMBLES THEN IT COLLAPSES
SHADOW MOVES LIKE VIRUS WORLDLY SYSTEM CAR-ASHES
PHILOSOPHIES OF TRANSGRESSION
AND YET WE SIT IN CLASSES AND STUDY THE LESSONS
FIELD SOULJAZ AND LOCUST LETS PUT IT TO WORK
INDIVIDUALS DONT MOVE AND STILL GET HURT
THE GUNS ARE ON THE BLOCK- PEOPLE ACTIN HARDER THAT ROCK
TEMPLES DESTROYED FROM CRACK PIPES THAT BURN HOT
LETS MISDIRECT THE MISDIRECTION
SIT DOWN AT TABLES AND COME UP WITH PROPOSITIONS
TO UPROOT TEENAGE STAGNATION
AND DESTROY GUN TOWERS THAT SHOOT PERVERSE AMMUNITION


GRIP EVERYONE UP- WHATS UP- WE GET RAW
WITH NO WEED OR ALCOHOL
WITH THE HOLY-SPIRIT WE LICK UP THE DANCEHALL
CARRY OUT LIKE U-HUAL
MAKE ENEMIES SIT DOWN LIKE BATHROOM STALL
PUT TITLES ON WICKED EMCEES LIKE TOMBSTONE
LET THEM DO THEIR SOUND CHECK THEN BLOW-UP THEIR MICROPHONE
THE ATTITUDE-CHILL LIKE THE CORNER CAFE
THE WEAPONS-TAPEDECKS WITH REVERSE PLAY
THE ONLY GHOSTFACE THAT YOU CANNOT KILL
SOUND SYSTEM MOBILIZE "DIRT UP IN YOUR GRILL
NO EAST OR WEST BECAUSE WE PENTE-COAST-AL
DONT TRY TO MASTER THIS CUASE WE METHOD-IS
TO GET UP IN YOUR FACE LIKE ZIT AND TRANSMIT



CHECK THE IMPLOSION- LOCUST STARTED WITH ME- BUT LOCUST IS NOT ME
LOCUST IS US
MANY ROCKS CRUSH CUP
RIGHTEUOSS PEOPLE GET UP
AND NEVER DEGENERATE
DONT GIVE UP LIKE STORES THAT LIQUIDATE
RECORD FREESTYLES ON HIGH RESONANCE TAPES
HADES LOCKS ME BUT WE FIND FIRE ESCAPES
---AND BRING IT HARD LIKE IMPACT
CANT FIND RIGHTEOUSNESS LIKE NEEDLE IN HAYSTACK
POLICE STICK US TO THE WALL LIKE A THUMBTACK
PEOPLE BURN US WITH JUDGMENTS SIMILAR TO SHADRACH
-
BUT IT COMES STEREO PHONIC
AND BLOWS YOUR EARDRUMS WITH THUNDERCLAP LYRICS
DON'T GET MAD....TAKE A DEEP BREATHE AND COUNT TO TEN
SETTIN OFF CAR ALARMS WITH HIGH POWERED VIBRATIONS
YOUR MAN TOLD YOU, THAT YOU OUGHTA, BRING YOUR CAMCORDER
AND RECORD IT ON FILM, WE BURN HOT LIKE KILN
CHECK IT OUT, NO DOUBT, THEN BURN OU LIKE THE END OF A JET
THE SEED IS BREAKING BRICK WALLS IN THE PROJECT

credits

from Plague, released October 15, 1997

license

all rights reserved

tags

about

Jeremiah Dirt (Shadow of the Locust) Odessa, Texas

ALL FULL ALBUM DOWNLOADS HAVE FREE HIDDEN BONUS TRACK(s)!
Beginning a career in 1999 with the acclaimed album, Plague, after years of touring with, then, labelmates POD, Dirt has kept and keeps his fans loaded up with his unique blend of creative, emotional, revealing lyrical ferocity and love for pure Hiphop.
Founding Father of 'Shadow of the Locust' - he's proven to be an emcee NOT to sleep on.
... more

contact / help

Contact Jeremiah Dirt (Shadow of the Locust)

Streaming and
Download help

Report this track or account

Jeremiah Dirt (Shadow of the Locust) recommends:

If you like Mustard Seed, you may also like: