A hip hop song by
DJ Webstar. It was performed by rappers Young B. and The Voice of Harlem. There is also an accompanying dance.
In the great tradition of hip hop, Chicken Noodle Soup combines the lyrical and rhythmic power of insightful poetry with profound social commentary reflecting the societal, economic and educational realities of Harlem and other communities like it.
The chicken noodle soup symbolizes a cheap meal and speaks to the economic distress of the community while “the soda on the side” represents the allure of unhealthy “feel good”
sugar foods and calories highlighting directly poor nutrition and the need for instant gratification indirectly (by contrast most families with greater education would serve
milk or
water with the soup).
It has been argued that the
rain can mean almost anything metaphorically, but that the depth of the metaphor is that it is a recurring maladaptive behavior repeated over and over by members of the community. “Let it
rain, then clear it out. Let it
rain, then clear it out.” No effort is made to
stop the
rain from coming in. It’s allowed and then “cleared out” in perpetuity.
