Toppa Top 10: Ten Essential Ninjaman Tunes

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April 11, 2012


1. “Murder Dem”
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Extended double entendre, clash lyrics distilled with a sweet but unlikely melody—”Murder Dem” has all of the elements of a great Ninja song, and it’s arguably his best known tune. It’s hard to imagine Ninja sitting around and studying ’60s girl group songs, but “Murder Dem” hinges on an ingenious flip of Mary Wells’ Motown classic, “My Guy.”  Likewise, Phife Dawg of A Tribe Called Quest co-opts Ninja’s “Murder Dem” intro (I tell yuh if yuh come wid yuh competition come straight way/Cause yuh come sideways rudebwoy—phenomenon a won) as his way of introducing himself on The Low End Theory‘s “Jazz (We’ve Got),” a watershed moment for that rapper and group.