The Four Horsemen of the Rapocalypse

"Really Doe", the third single and fourth track from Danny Brown's seminal 2015 album, Atrocity Exhibition, is a posse cut, featuring extended guest verses from Ab-Soul, Earl Sweatshirt, and Kendrick Lamar, who also contributes the hook and bridge. Danny stated in interviews at the time that he regarded these three as the only rappers who were on par with him or better. He has described them, (himself included), as "The Four Horsemen", a reference to The Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse. The song serves as a platform for each of them to stake their claim in the top of the game, and each verse includes references to drugs and women to illustrate this, albeit in a different way for each of the rappers.

The beat to the track is built primarily around two samples. The drums are taken from the opening seconds of "Get Down", by The Montereys, released in 1971, and the chimes heard throughout are lifted from 1985's "Fragments of Crystal", by Giovanni Cristiani. The drums serve to bring a driving rhythm through the track, while the chimes provide an eerie backdrop to the sinister lyrical content. The track also includes an interpolation from the 2003 track "Wish a Mutha Would" by Frayser Boy, namely the title phrase: "I wish a motherf***er would". The original song consists of Frayser Boy explaining why nobody should mess with him, and each line of the chorus ends with this phrase. This phrase is used in each verse throughout "Really Doe", with the exception of Kendrick's. (Coincidentally, Kendrick would later sample this song on his 2024 diss track aimed at Drake, "Euphoria").

The first verse belongs to Danny himself, and he starts by challenging other rappers that he perceives to be "all talk", to bring something new to the table. He then paints a somewhat graphic image of riding around in the back of a car, smoking weed while receiving head from an attractive woman, having sex with her, and promptly "put[ting] her out [his] schedule". He than proclaims his talent: "rapping with that special flow", before declaring that the only way one of these lesser rappers could "blow up", meaning make it big, would be with the help of plastic explosives. He then takes a moment to boast about his fashion sense, before comparing his success as a rapper to his proficiency as a drug dealer. He rounds out the verse by saying that, having made it out of the hood, nothing could compel him to go back: "I wish a motherf***er would".

This is followed by a hook, performed by Kendrick Lamar. Here he comments on his critical acclaim: "they say I got the city on fire", before modestly, or possibly sarcastically, denying this and offhandedly dismissing it: "that's a goddamn lie". He repeats the title of the track: "really doe, like really doe", either to emphasise his point, or to question it.

After the first hook, Ab-Soul comes in, comparing himself to an occultist writer, before playing on the word "goat", as a reference to the animal's place in Satanic rituals, as well as an acronym for "Greatest Of All Time". He goes on to brag about how much he makes, and that he's going to have wild sex with an unspecified woman. He then recalls two instances where authority figures have tried to put him down, but he has overcome them. One is from his childhood, his mother, who grounds him for taking her wedding ring to show-and-tell. He contrasts this grounding with his current lifestyle: "now I'm getting high as f***". The other is from adulthood, where his boss threatens to report him for failing to perform his job, but he manages to navigate around being reprimanded by using his skills as a songwriter. He goes on to play on two meanings of the word "rider", one referring to someone involved in gangbanging, the other referring to a document artists use to request items from a booker. Here, he uses it to demand Fanta, possibly to make lean with, and Hennessy, to get some groupies drunk. Then, he describes the designer clothes he's known to wear and his ties to gang life, finishing off by declaring himself a prophet and bragging about how well off he is, but saying that he isn't satisfied with what he's got, finally ending by echoing Danny's closing line: "I wish a motherf***er would".

Next, the hook returns, followed by a bridge, also by Kendrick. Here, the beat fades out, while Kendrick's voice echoes around the left and right channels, giving the impression of a predator circling its prey. His lyrics conjure a sinister image of people huddled in a dark room, praying for salvation as the apocalypse draws near. He taunts these poor souls, questioning whether they have lived lives honest enough to be worthy of salvation: "life is like an appetite of truth or dare, I double dare ya", sneering that their lives will end in vain, suggesting that they haven't.

The chimes return as he begins his verse with a series of boasts about his wealth, claiming that he makes a million dollars in his sleep, bragging that he can go wherever he likes and buy luxury cars. He then compares himself to John Gotti, the New York mafia boss. He uses this comparison to portray himself as a ruthless killer dead-set on destroying any rappers who would stand against him. He continues this line of thinking in the following bar, this time as a "revenant", back from the dead to end the lives of his opponents - and leave no trace. He goes on to proclaim his own formidability, firstly by stating: "this booth is not used to fakin'" - he only speaks the truth on the mic - then comparing his ability to make music to a crack dealer distributing dope to his customers. He mentions his fiancée, Whitney Alford, describing her as "way beyond basic", and the security that she brings to his life, comparing it to "insurance". He then plays on the word "watch", saying that he's had the same one for four years, a reference not only to him dismissing the common trope in hip-hop of bragging about material possessions, but also his position at the top of the game. He ends his verse with another reference to how much money he makes, and: "when I'm done is when the rain stops". This final line plays on the homophones rain/reign, reiterating his dominion over hip hop, as well as portraying him as a force of nature.

One more repetition of the hook ensues, followed by the final wordplay-laden verse by Earl Sweatshirt. He opens with the same line previously said by both Danny and Soulo: "wish a motherf***er would", immediately followed by him establishing that he's not going to put up with any nonsense from lesser emcees: "had to put my foot down". He follows with a comment on their insubstantial lyrical ability: "your jaw full of dust", which doubles up as a reference to powdered narcotics. He continues the double entendre with the next line, ending: "are we locking it up?", referring firstly to these rappers suddenly going quiet when he challenges them, and secondly to the tightness in the jaw associated with use of stimulants. At the moment he says this line, the beat "locks up" for a moment, before starting again as he continues his verse. He dismisses his opponents as nothing more than a rodent to his bird of prey, and warns them that disrespect will "get [them] checked like the top of the month", playing on two meanings of "check", one referring to putting someone in their place, the other to a payslip. He goes on to acknowledge his past immaturity, but assures us that he has grown to a point where he is wise enough to hide his worst behaviours: "and I never pass my momma no blunt". He states that he has no problem getting rid of people who weigh him down, illustrating this by describing the ease with which he recently ended a relationship. Towards the end of the verse, he delivers a string of taunts, beginning with a threat to strike these other rappers with a golf club, followed by claims of his own serenity, comparing himself to a monk on a mountain, then mocking an unspecified opponent for being cuckolded by him, all before delivering one final, outrageously audacious jab: "I'm at your house like, 'why you got your couch on my chucks?'". In this line, Earl flips a common request to keep shoes off of furniture on its head, instead demanding that they keep their couch off his high tops. After he delivers one sneering "motherf***er", which echoes as the beat fades, the song ends.

So, looking at the song as a whole, we see some common themes across all four verses. They each proclaim their own lyrical greatness: Danny describing his flow as "special", and asserting that other rappers would need explosives to make as big of an impact as him, Ab-Soul professes himself the GOAT and a prophet, Kendrick portrays himself as a mafioso and a vengeful spirit, here to be the reckoning of hip-hop, and Earl paints himself to be as dangerous as a bird of prey, and as serene as a Buddhist monk, all through clever wordplay delivered with a confident cadence. Each of them talks about their relationships with women... mostly problematically. Danny uses a woman for gratification and ditches her, Ab-Soul attempts to get groupies drunk in order to use them to the same ends, Kendrick talks about the stability his fiancée offers him, but calls her his "b****", and Earl displays a remarkable lack of affect towards an ex, having dumped with her because she didn't provide him with enough excitement, and pursues a woman who is already in a relationship in order to get a one-up on her man. Drugs are a recurring motif, with Danny depicting himself on a cocktail of intoxicants and comparing his lyrical chops to his past proficiency as a dealer, Ab-Soul proffers a reference to lean when describing his wild lifestyle, Kendrick uses cooking crack as an analogy for creating music, and Earl illustrates his personal growth through the lens of learning to hide his drug use from his mother. Each of them presents a dark, combative side on this track, all of them eager to establish themselves as the leader of the pack. Who did it best? That is for the listener to decide.

Although it is doubtful that the song was actually intended this way, given the fact that Danny referred to them as "The Four Horsemen", and given the apocalyptic tone of the bridge, I thought it might be interesting to try and ascribe each of the rappers to the role of one of The Horsemen. The first is The White Horse, who is often interpreted to represent conquest. There is an alternative interpretation, however: that he represents the Antichrist, a false prophet. Given the Satanic imagery Ab-Soul employs at the start of his verse, as well as his claim to be a prophet at the end of it, I think he is the perfect candidate to take this position. The second is The Red Horse, who typically represents civil war. While none of the verses here match that characterisation particularly closely, I would suggest Danny Brown for this position. His inflammatory remarks at the start of his verse: "show me something I ain't seen before", could be seen as an attempt to incite a "rap civil war", and he also employs imagery of explosives and guns in his verse. The Black Horse is next, typically thought to represent famine. He is typically depicted holding a set of scales, which has led to a secondary interpretation of him as a judge. Earl Sweatshirt makes a reference to: "never be[ing] an honour to judge", which is the closest any of the rappers come to any of the characterisations of the third Horseman, so I elect him to take this place. Only the fourth Horseman remains: Death. Kendrick Lamar is well suited to this position; not only does he describe himself as a revenant with murderous intent in his verse, but in his bridge he also taunts the quivering huddle of people with the nearness of their end.

While the individual parallels may not be perfect, I do think that this song's foreboding atmosphere and calamitous storytelling do earn the rappers their epithet: The Four Horsemen.