Feature Poet: Starlito (by Marqual Moy)

​Jermaine Eric Shute (born December 15, 1984), better known by his stage name Starlito (formerly All $tar Cashville Prince), is an American rapper from Nashville, Tennessee. He is best known for the 2005 song, "Grey Goose" which featured artists Young Jeezy and Yo Gotti. His second single, released in 2007, was Champagne Crazy featuring then labelmate Lil Wayne. His third radio single was "I Go Ham" and would later also feature the Atlanta rapper Gucci Mane. He is also known for working with rapper Young Buck and the Ca$hville Records label earlier in his career. 2010-Present, taking on the moniker “Starlito” he now has various mixtapes and has become a fully independent artist and his content has gained over 10 million Youtube views.  

Poem 1: "SOS"

The first of his works I will be analyzing is called, "SOS 5:55AM." This could be referred to as Save Ourselves or Save Our Sons. Over the course of this song Starlito is having an honest conversation with him-self as he is dealing with pressures of anxiety and insomnia, in fact, he titled the name of this mixtape, “Insomnia Addict":
 
“Anxiety overwhelms me (sometimes), nothing settles me
She whispers in my ear gently, stop lettin' it upset m
Devils get up off of me, devils get up off of me!!”
 
In the opening of this poem his is talking about the troubles he faces and he uses a metaphor of “Devils." Devils could be people that want to do him harm or it could be his high level of stress and anxiety that he wishes to get on of his mind, body, and spirit:
 
“Everything is not for everybody, this is effortless
Yet thoughtfully composed, it's from the soul
Those who know me best would all agree”
 
In these lines he gives insight into his music making process and tells of how the people dear to him would all agree that what he portrays being the mic is exactly who he is in real life:

“My thoughts so often make me nauseous
Blame the way that I was brought up
Made mistakes that made me cautious
Aw shit, forgive me if I lost you
I'm standin' in the booth, feel like I'm kneelin' at the altar.”
 
Multiple things are moving at this point in this poem. Starlito’s thoughts are so depressing and sicken to him that they are making him nauseous, however, he blames his childhood and his overall upbringing for these thoughts. “Aw shit, forgive me if I lost you” is the poet apologizing for his babbling on, he at this point realizes that he is actually talking to himself. He also realizes that even as he writes these words, the listener may never understand the true effects of what he is saying. 

Poem 2: "Outro"

The next poem from Starlito will be “Outro” This song comes from his most recent album “Hot Chicken” and it is the last song on this project. Starlito focuses on a relationship between him and a female as he writes her a letter. In this letter he expresses his thoughts about the tension in their relationship. I relate this song so much because it touches on current issues that go on in my life on a daily basis:
 
“All we do is argue, all we do is harbor
Our resentment like a farmer with his harvest and it's August
And this fall we facing famine... dammit
Get that so often, when I'ma take you off the market and make a family.”
 
The opening lines of this poem feature this huge empathizes on word play. “Harbor,” “Farmer with his harvest,” and “Famine” are words that stick out to me he associates this job of how a famer has his harvest and sometimes the famer faces a famine. He is saying, we have problems with the things we chose to grow. Starlito is choosing to grow a relationship and they are currently having problems. He also notes that people often ask, "when are you going to marry her and make a family with her?":
 
“Make an honest woman out you, but, honestly you lie too much
And I say that cuz you lied to me once”
 
Starlito is highlighting the issue of trust one I believe all couples face at some point in their life span, it is alarming because he cannot give over the fact that the lie was just once.

Towards the end of this song, Starlito sums up the ending stating that he is now alone:
 
“Ain't forgave you or myself, then I hate when you enjoy yourself
I don't know about no one else, but right now life seem so unfair
Feel like I got everything, only thing there's no one there
Lost in my mind, trapped in my feelings...”
 
He feels like he has no one and that he is really emotion over the events that have just taken place over the course of this song.
 
These two poems showcase the word play of Starlito and focus on real life issues. He is a poet, artist, and musician who is not afraid to shy away from the issues he are facing in his life. He has a wide range of overall content and I wanted to make sure I portrayed him correctly.