A Poetic Analysis Of Luke Boyd's 3 Foot Tall

Hip hop and rap music has been entertaining people of all ages, genders, and races for many years. One artist, who writes and produces this type of music, is Luke Boyd, better known as Classified. He was first acquainted to rap music when he was a little boy, and as a result, he began producing his own music. He began releasing albums and singles as early as the 90’s. Originally from Enfield, Nova Scotia, Canada, Classified has been nominated and has won many awards throughout his career (Cordor). Classified raps about a motley of subjects, however, one of his most well-known songs, titled “3 Foot Tall,” addresses feeling alone and being uncertain through his personal experiences. Throughout this song, he writes about being alone and not having

He starts the first verse by stating, “I am from the cross roads, off roads” (genius.com). This reveals more information about the authors past and how he come from a smaller town or city as indicated by the phrase “off roads”. His next lines announce that he has been, “Dodgin’ all of the pot holes, in my auto-mobile hollerin’ out watch out / We lost hope like Bob Hope, so what are we supposed to follow?” These lines show that even though he has “lost hope” he is still moving forward. It also discloses the author’s uncertainty with the path he is following. Classified further writes, “Been criticized and boxed out since I was a snot nosed kid.” Here he reveals more of his experiences with being the kid who does not fit in, which connects his audience because at one time or another everyone has felt this way. He then alludes to the children’s book “Where’s Waldo” when he states, “Everybody tryin’ to fit in the crowd like wheres Waldo?” In this line, he shows that people conform to their surroundings because they are not sure who or what to follow. He uses this allusion to further connect with his audience, since most people have read the book “Where’s Waldo.” At the end of the verse he writes, “But I need somebody here to talk me through, but who?” directly revealing that he is uncertain of who can help him by using a rhetorical question. Throughout this melancholy

The music video starts of by showing a child who is wearing a red jacket. The boy is perched on a stool, with an open newspaper on his lap. He is bent over with his elbows on his thighs wearing a sullen facial expression. The most prominent feature is the boy’s left black eye, which looks swollen and a brutal purple-black. The background, a light blue circle ringed with black and white, creates a fake spotlight on the boy and the rapper later in the video. Accompanying this scene are the lyrics, “When you’re alone, life can be a little rough/It makes you feel like you’re 3 foot tall.” This scene and its lyrics complement one another utilizing ethos. Since the boy in the scene is initially alone with a black eye, it directly correlates with the lyrics. Both work hand in hand so Classified can connect to his audience with the use of ethos. Another scene halfway through the music video displays a cast of people in white shirts with black eyes. They are standing in front of a chalkboard background. On the background, words such as loser, bitch, dumbass, and lesbo are written in white chalk. This scene appears after Classified sings, “3 Foot Tall / When there’s no one there to catch your fall.” Even though this scene and its lyrics do not perfectly match one another, both still connect the song its audience with the use of ethos. The two opposing views