Neo Pitso’s song “Monopoly” opens with a haunting melody that sets the tone for a snappy tune with easy to recite lyrics. The song is musically adventurous and baits the listener with its melodic lines. Neo has found a clever way to rhyme within pockets of the instrumental thus creating a tonally complex serving of musical brilliance.
“Why the f*** you take a hiatus, when you know that you got haters” he asks sarcastically in the opening lines of the song. When his discography is studied we can see that Neo took a break for a year which explains his opening lines. Furthermore, it appears that he is talking to himself and encouraging himself to do better, work through the pain in order to anger the haters.
“It takes money, (money), takes money to make money” he raps with such confidence that it can be misconstrued as cockiness. These are arguably the most memorable lyrics of the entire song.
The visuals for Monopoly are quite stunning. Kudos to Neo and his videographer Raf Flores. They have successfully told a story using symbolic imagery and a series of close ups to capture the essence of the song and make it more personable. The video starts with an unhappy character who seems to be dreaming about acquiring worldly possessions. As his ambition grows he slowly acquires things that give him temporary happiness, like jewellery. There’s also an interesting scene where he is seen telling his companions how to succeed in the game of life. The choice to have his team lined up in a triangular formation feeds into the Illuminati narrative, a clever use of symbolism on the part of the director.
The story in the video is finally complete when the protagonist has a woman by his side catering to his needs and, a well behaved American Staffordshire Terrier. Despite all this the video ends with him hardly cracking a smile. He seems to have gained the whole world and lost his soul in the process. So while we can agree that it takes money to make money, the question is at what cost?
Neo seems to have found his sound since his last hit record titled “Money First”, the mea culpa for failing to deliver a promised project to his fans that year. Harmonising the chorus is a nice touch that adds vocal depth to the composition. By choosing to sing his lyrics melodically rather than recite them, as is customary in traditional hip hop, Neo taps into a new environment where the possibilities are endless. Although his voice can’t be compared to some of the greatest singers in his genre, he holds a note well enough to accomplish his mission on each song he creates. The formula works in his favour.
Neo has promised his fans 3 EPs this year which remains to be seen. He has also promised to release 6 music videos and do 50 shows. This is incredibly ambitious even for someone like Neo who’s a self-driven high achiever. He may have to set some self imposed deadlines, book some marathon studio sessions, increase his collaborations to widen his reach and most importantly consistently put music out.
Monopoly is available for streaming on all major platforms.
