Big K.R.I.T. - “Dreamin’”
In the grand tradition of songs like “Juicy,” this is a self-contained origin story paired with a light kiss-off to everyone who ever doubted Justin Scott, a.k.a. Big K.R.I.T. But rather than harp on his success (in part, perhaps, because he’s still something of an up-and-coming figure) “Dreamin’” finds K.R.I.T. casting his youthful struggle as a point of integrity. “Couldn’t afford to pay the rent but passed up on a deal ‘cuz it wasn’t right,” he explains humbly, “besides I ain’t rap about dope nor did I sell it / I guess the story of a country boy just ain’t compelling.” If the lyrics scan a tad flat, it’s because they’re brought to life by the soft sepia glow of K.R.I.T.’s much-lauded production. Southern in its rural sprawl but eschewing the sharp highs and thundering lows of real trunk-rattlers, “Dreamin‘“s beat fleshes out all the strange nostalgia for harder times only hinted at in the verses. K.R.I.T. pulls this trick several other places on Return of 4eva, but nowhere else does he sound as haunted by his own doubts (the chorus samples croon “He’s dreamin’…he’s not for real”) or as uplifted by the knowledge that he’s proven them wrong.
runner-up: “My Sub”
