Jump to content
 







Main menu
   


Navigation  



Main page
Contents
Current events
Random article
About Wikipedia
Contact us
Donate
 




Contribute  



Help
Learn to edit
Community portal
Recent changes
Upload file
 








Search  

































Create account

Log in
 









Create account
 Log in
 




Pages for logged out editors learn more  



Contributions
Talk
 



















Contents

   



(Top)
 


1 Music video  





2 Controversy  





3 Chart performance  





4 References  














Around My Way (Freedom Ain't Free)







Add links
 









Article
Talk
 

















Read
Edit
View history
 








Tools
   


Actions  



Read
Edit
View history
 




General  



What links here
Related changes
Upload file
Special pages
Permanent link
Page information
Cite this page
Get shortened URL
Download QR code
Wikidata item
 




Print/export  



Download as PDF
Printable version
 
















Appearance
   

 






From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
 


"Around My Way (Freedom Ain't Free)"
SinglebyLupe Fiasco
from the album Food & Liquor II: The Great American Rap Album Pt. 1
ReleasedMay 21, 2012
Recorded2012
Genre
  • alternative hip hop
  • political hip hop
  • Length4:19
    Label
  • Atlantic
  • Songwriter(s)
  • Martyn Buchwald
  • Paul Kantner
  • Peter Phillips
  • Corey Penn
  • Producer(s)
    • Simonsayz
  • B-Sides
  • Lupe Fiasco singles chronology
    "Angels & Stars"
    (2012)
    "Around My Way (Freedom Ain't Free)"
    (2012)
    "Bitch Bad"
    (2012)

    "Around My Way (Freedom Ain't Free)" is a song performed by rapper Lupe Fiasco. The song is based on a sample of Pete Rock & CL Smooth's 1992 release "They Reminisce Over You (T.R.O.Y.)".[1] It was the first single off his album Food & Liquor II: The Great American Rap Album Pt. 1. It was released as a single on May 21, 2012.[2]

    Music video[edit]

    The music video was released on June 27, 2012, on 106 & Park and premiered on YouTube the same day. The video was directed by Alex Nazari and was filmed in Lupe's hometown of Chicago. In the video, Lupe's sporting glowing, demon-like eyes and has a "crew" in 2D Animation, along with what would be a rented car, all three used as a satire for the problems within the American social, economic and political project. Rapper Trae tha Truth makes a cameo appearance in the video.

    Controversy[edit]

    "Around My Way" is based around a sample that was also utilized in the Pete Rock & CL Smooth song "They Reminisce Over You (T.R.O.Y.)", a track that has evolved into a hip-hop staple since its 1992 release. Pete Rock himself, via his Twitter account, expressed intense displeasure at the song's producers for choosing "T.R.O.Y." as the backing sample,[3] but soon afterward apologized for the outburst. According to an exasperated Lupe Fiasco, he and the label had reached out to Rock several months beforehand for his approval on using the original instrumental, which eventually had to be intricately replicated by B-Side and DJ Simonsayz; the "T.R.O.Y." song itself sampled work from Tom Scott as well, which further complicated the legalities behind sample clearances.[4]

    Chart performance[edit]

    "Around My Way (Freedom Ain't Free)" debuted at #76 on the Billboard Hot 100.

    Chart (2012) Peak
    position
    USBillboard Hot 100[5] 76

    References[edit]

  • ^ Weingarten, Christopher R. (2012-05-22). "Pete Rock Slams Lupe Fiasco for Crappy 'T.R.O.Y.' Bite | SPIN | Newswire". SPIN. Retrieved 2012-10-01.
  • ^ "Sway Exclusive: Lupe Fiasco expresses his anger and disappointment toward Pete Rock". Sways Universe. 2012-05-24. Archived from the original on 2012-09-20. Retrieved 2012-10-01.
  • ^ "Lupe Fiasco Chart History (Hot 100)". Billboard.

  • t
  • e

  • Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Around_My_Way_(Freedom_Ain%27t_Free)&oldid=1125971517"

    Categories: 
    2012 singles
    2012 songs
    Lupe Fiasco songs
    Atlantic Records singles
    Anti-war songs
    Political rap songs
    Protest songs
    Songs about drugs
    Songs written by Lupe Fiasco
    Songs written by Paul Kantner
    Songs written by Marty Balin
    Songs written by CL Smooth
    2010s hip hop song stubs
    Hidden categories: 
    Webarchive template wayback links
    Articles with short description
    Short description matches Wikidata
    Articles with hAudio microformats
    Single chart usages for Billboardhot100
    All stub articles
     



    This page was last edited on 6 December 2022, at 21:26 (UTC).

    Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License 4.0; additional terms may apply. By using this site, you agree to the Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. Wikipedia® is a registered trademark of the Wikimedia Foundation, Inc., a non-profit organization.



    Privacy policy

    About Wikipedia

    Disclaimers

    Contact Wikipedia

    Code of Conduct

    Developers

    Statistics

    Cookie statement

    Mobile view



    Wikimedia Foundation
    Powered by MediaWiki