On Faux Nem

## Song by Lupe Fiasco

"**On Faux Nem**" is a song by Lupe Fiasco, released as the 10th and final track from his eighth studio album, *Drill Music in Zion* (2022). The title references to the Chicago term, "on foe nem" (similar to 'on my life'), which is used to assure one of telling the truth. Fiasco contrasts this with the line, 'I wish that you were lying to me / I hope none of that comes true.'

He elaborated to *Okayplayer*, "This album isn't a critique on drill music as a whole, so I don't want to lean into that narrative like that's what I was doing it for. [...] The people that were influenced by drill music in their particular city—from London to Atlanta to LA to New York to wherever—it's the same thing. People are dying, they're going to prison, they're catching the crazy RICO cases like in Atlanta, and it's all the same energy."

## Critical reception

The particular lyric, 'Rappers die too much...' shines light on the high mortality rate and glorification of violence within the rap industry. *Exclaim!* named it to be the "most memorable verse," while *Pitchfork* wrote, "From there, he unleashes searing bars about the culture of drill music. In a world where authenticity is typically prized above all, he wishes that drill artists were actually lying in their lyrics." *The Ringer* noted, "Many drill artists—they are, almost invariably, young Black men—have been victims of gun violence, the survival and perpetration of which is a frequent topic of their songs." *EARMILK* declared Fiasco to "ultimately [become] the first rapper with a 1 bar verse in hip-hop."

*Ambrosia for Heads* wrote, "That one line sums up not only the Hip-Hop community's anguish over the last [two] months, but also the pain that has accompanied more than 60 other such tragic demises of MCs since 1986, beginning with Boogie Down Productions' Scott La Rock." They continued, "As powerful and complete as Lupe's single bar verse is, his incisive commentary does not stop there. [...] The themes that Lupe Fiasco is espousing [...] have been the subject of great debate and widespread media coverage." They concluded, "However, Lupe is far from moralistic in his critique of his livelihood. In his third verse, he deftly addresses the paradox that comes with being a rapper. He also turns his lens on the industry that profits from the carnage."

## Lyrics

**Lyrics**
[Intro]

And they sing, singy-singy-sing-sing

Singy-sing-sing-sing-sing

Sing, mm-mm-hm

[Chorus]

I wish you were lying, oh, oh, oh

Yes, I do

I wish that you were lying

I hope that none of that comes true

[Verse 1]

Rappers die too much

That's it, that's the verse

[Chorus]

I wish that you were lying to me, oh, oh, oh

Yes, I do

I wish that you were lying to me

I hope none of that comes true

[Verse 2]

Yeah, silent reflection was the first verse's mission

I ain't want to water it down with a whole bunch of conditions

Just give it to you raw how a n\*\*\*a really feelin'

"Rappers get shot too much" probably has a lot more precision

But that was the decision, and with that, I'ma stick

I don't really support n\*\*\*as 'cause the shit be making me sick

Look at what we say in this bitch just to get rich

Shoot a n\*\*\*a right in the head, don't even flinch

[Interlude]

Nah, nah we can't, we can't talk about that

We gotta talk about something else

I mean, because it's hypocritical, n\*\*\*a, you got guns

You surrounded by gangsters and killers, all your n\*\*\*as

Like, the fuck is you talkin' about?

N\*\*\*a, talk about something else, talk about something else

N\*\*\*a, talk about something else

[Verse 3]

I've admired many cities through the windows of hotels

From the window of a plane, I've seen the window of a cell

The plane started to fly, the rain started to fell

That's LaGuardia and Rikers, a airport next to a jail

I took a picture looked like my window was crying

'Cause it was sad that all they saw every day was somebody flying

And they was trapped, this shit is wack

But it was crack, hung it on my wall like a plaque

Keep your eyes on the prize and your thumbs on the apps

Facts, I wish that they was lying in they raps

How does that transpire

To be so damned by God, you want your friends to be goddamned liars?

All we talk about are our goddamned priors

Shiny metal boxes on top of goddamned tires

I'm goddamned tired

If I say I didn't indulge, my pants would be on goddamn fire

'Cause I'm a part of the problem

Sometimes the P-, sometimes the -roblem

Fame, all in the name of martyrdom (Yeah)

I wish that you were lying

What's the difference between a posthumous album

And a life insurance policy?

Spotify

A dollar's worth what a dollar buy, go monetize

[Chorus]

I wish that you were lying to me

Oh yes, I do, yeah

I wish that you were lying to me

I hope that none of that comes true, ooh

[Verse 4]

Giving you a fourth, wanna make up for the first

Only 'cause I know that you can take another verse

Want the Qur'an to be a lie 'cause Hell sounds like it hurts

Also want it to be real 'cause Heaven sounds like it's turnt

Wear my conscience like a condom 'cause I don't wanna be burnt

Wear my dharma like its armor 'cause I don't wanna return

To the wheel of the quivering meat conception

Sometimes I hide inside Kerouac for protection

From the Thanksgiving where bears attacking the dressing

Like Tekken, just lean back and tear into that refreshment

Sometimes real life parallaxes in depression

That's real

Maybe not lie, maybe just chill (Yo)

Maybe not die, maybe just kill (Wait, no)

Maybe survive making a mil'

Greetings wavy but wavy don't make you a Navy SEAL

[Chorus]

I wish that you were lying to me

Oh yes, I do

I wish that you were lying to me

I hope that none of that comes true

## References

1. ↑ Turner-Williams, Jaelani (June 24, 2022). "Lupe Fiasco Is on to His Next Chapter". *Okayplayer*.
2. ↑ Ayiku, Vernon (June 28, 2022). "Lupe Fiasco Preaches Without Being Preachy on 'DRILL MUSIC IN ZION'". *Exclaim!*.
3. ↑ Berry, Peter (July 7, 2022). "Drill Music in Zion by Lupe Fiasco". *Pitchfork*.
4. ↑ Thompson, Paul (August 2, 2022). ""Rappers Don't Fall Off": Lupe Fiasco on Aging in Hip-Hop, Drill Music, and the Audience". *The Ringer*.
5. ↑ Odutola, Tayo (June 27, 2022). "Lupe Fiasco shares new project 'DRILL MUSIC IN ZION'". *EARMILK*.
6. ↑ "Lupe Fiasco Has The Year's Best Verse & It's Only 1 Line". *Ambrosia for Heads*. November 12, 2022.