5Am dV: “One Life (Off Dome Freestyle)” – laying his mindset on the table
24 year old rapper 5Am dV, was born in Manizales, Colombia. He translocated to the USA when he was 6 and currently resides in NJ. 5Am dV just dropped his latest track, “One Life (Off Dome Freestyle)”. He explained the freestyle is about what was going on in his life at the time. “The first verse was about a past relationship, while the next two verses where about what’s been on my mind lately,” says 5Am dV.
You’ll keep running into the argument where people separate freestyles into two categories, ‘written” and ‘off the dome’. The main argument is that freestyles are verses that are ‘free of style’, not about any specific pre-thought-out subject, and haven’t been heard before.
Whereas ‘off the dome’ freestyling is creating lyrics on the spot. Which doesn’t make sense to me. I think that there are ‘writtens’, and there are freestyles and nothing in-between. To me a freestyle is bars that you create on the spot, and ‘off the dome’ is just a confirmation of that it was not pre-written.
The point of the above fact, is that I wanted to clear up what 5Am dV, is doing here on “One Life (Off Dome Freestyle)”. These are rhymes that where not pre-written but poured from his heart on the spot. As such, if you consider the improvised, spontaneous, and off the top of the dome bars, 5Am dV is spitting here, it’s clear that he’s doing a good job.
He never tries to exaggerate or overly pick the pace just to show off his technical skills. The Colombian-born rapper seems more intent in creating a mood and bringing home his message than just showing off his rhyming skills.
His flow is metered, his breathing skills, and vocal nuances spot-on, to emphasize the lyrical content and the track’s overarching theme. He raps through what flows from his mind and from his soul. A rapper spitting more than 4 bars with complex flow and zero flaws is simply impossible when freestyling.
That’s why true freestylers often utilize simple rhyme schemes, unpredictable pauses and embrace imperfections. Hence 5Am dV keeps it simple, and avoids imperfections by concentrating the song’s core on its content rather than the glossy aesthetics.
In the early ghetto days, male bravado was a way of surviving the hustle. The verbal combat was another way of intimidating one’s opponent, be it in the game of hustling or the art of freestyle rapping. 5Am dV’s off the dome freestyling, on “One Life (Off Dome Freestyle)”, is not a conflictual battle with anyone else, but an introspective coming to terms, with his own inner thoughts and feelings.
It’s about the people and elements that surround him. And all 5Am dV doing is laying his mindset on the table, openly and honestly, for all to see. Especially those who made him feel this way…
OFFICIAL LINKS: SOUNDCLOUD – INSTAGRAM
