Korean-American rapper Dumbfoundead (Jonathan Park) released the third song from his recently released EP Rocket Man (Dec 12, 2017) a few days ago, and it strikes an immediate contrast to previous tracks "Every Last Drop”, “P.A.A.C. (Protect At All Cost)” and the Donald Trump-sampling title track. While first two tracks explored both sides of the immigrant experience (i.e. the possibility of triumph against the odds and an aggressive defensiveness against an increasingly hostile environment), “Kill Me” eschews the political for the personal. The result is a playful and witty track that provides a fresh spin on the 'ride or die' trope.
The song begins with a sweetly murderous sample for his presumed love interest: ‘you wouldn't ignore my calls right? 'Cause if you are, you know I'll kill you. Just playing. Call me back, baby. I love you’. Dumbfoundead then outlines the “love-hate all day” relationship on his hands against heady synths and a breezy beat. There are some ominous details (‘Always yelling in my face’, a mention of a ‘whip’, court hearings, ‘Abnormal with a Norman Bates attitude’, accelerated hair loss), as well as two shout-outs to the amazing sex he simply cannot walk away from ('But the pussy's strawberries, and the sex is barbaric').
As with Daryl Hall and John Oates’ 1982 classic “Maneater”, however, the cumulative effect is more of a tribute than a take-down. The chorus balances out all the evidence of criminal intent with a light-hearted and carefree delivery: ‘You kill me (you kill me)/ We laugh, then we cry, and you kill me (you kill me)/ We kiss, then we fight, yeah, you kill me/ I hate that I love it, you love that I hate it’. On Hiphopkr, Dumbfoundead revealed that it is ultimately this 'threat of death' that keeps him fully and truly alive:
““Kill me” is a track about love and hate. When you’re in love, you’re pushed to the limits, and you feel like it’s ‘killing you’. When someone falls in love, he makes himself feel emotionally, spiritually, and physically reaching the limit, feeling as if he is as dead as he is, but alive more than ever.”
