Watch the official video for Biz Markie's "Just A Friend", his most successful Pop single, reaching the #9 position on the Billboard charts. The song inserts the 1968 hit "You Got What I Need" by Freddie Scott.
Statistics as of January 4, 2022 at 9:11 AM EDT
total # of views - 76,402,400
total # of likes -885K
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total # of comments -43,974
Edited by Azizi Powell
This pancocojams post showcases a video of & lyrics for Biz Markie's hit pop rap "Just A Friend".
The content of this post is presented for historical, entertainment, and aesthetic purposes.
All copyrights remain with their owners.
Thanks to Biz Markie for chis musical legacy. RIP. Thanks also to transcriber of the song lyrics, and the uploader of this featured video.
-snip-
This is a complete reprint of a pancocojams post that was published March 19, 2013 with the addition of a few selected comments.
****
INFORMATION ABOUT BIZ MARKIE
From http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Biz_Markie [retrieved on January 5, 2022]
"Marcel Theo Hall (April 8, 1964 – July 16, 2021),[3] known professionally as Biz Markie, was an American rapper, DJ, and record producer. Markie was best known for his 1989 single "Just a Friend", which became a top 40 hit in several countries. In 2008, "Just a Friend" made No. 100 on VH1's list of the 100 greatest hip hop songs of all time.[4] Markie was sometimes referred to as the "Clown Prince of Hip Hop".[5][6][7]
SUMMARY OF THE VIDEO SCENE BEFORE THE RAP BEGINS
[unofficial transcript by Azizi Powell]
A group of Black young men are seated on a park bench telling “your mama” jokes. (This is a friendly exchange and not a real rippin [insult] contest).
Biz Markie –“Yo, your moms is so poor that she went to McDonalds and put a shake on layaway.”
[laughter]
2nd man- “Well, your mother is so old that she knew Central Park when it was a plant.”
[laughter]
3rd man – Your mom’s hair so nappy that she needs to take pain killers to comb it.”
[laughter]
Two attractive young womens strut toward the park bench.
One of the men says: “Oh, yo, yo. Look at that, man.” The men make other admiring comments about the women who stop at the park bench. One of the comments is “Ooh, You got what I need”.
The women leave, and one of the men says “Oh, it’s all of that baby? More comments are made, but Biz Markie says “Yo, yo, forget about them girls. A couple of the men say “Why? What’s up?
Biz Markie says, “I got a little story to tell you”
And then begins his rap.
****
LYRICS - JUST A FRIEND
Songwriters: IBRAHIM, CAIREL ADRIN BIN/ISHAK, JOHAN BIN/HALL, MARCEL THEO PKA BIZ MARKIE/LIZAARD, LEAF
Have you ever met a girl that you tried to date
But a year to make love she wanted you to wait
Let me tell ya a story of my situation
I was talkin' to this girl from the U.S. nation
The way that I met her was on tour at a concert
She had long hair and a short miniskirt
I just got onstage drippin', pourin' with sweat
I was walkin' through the crowd and guess who I met
I whispered in her ear, "Come to the picture booth
So I can ask you some questions to see if you are a hundred proof"
I asked her her name, she said blah-blah-blah
She had 9/10 pants and a very big bra
I took a couple of flicks and she was enthused
I said, "How do you like the show?"
She said, "I was very amused"
I started throwin' bass, she started throwin' back mid-range
But when I sprung the question, she acted kind of strange
Then when I asked, "Do ya have a man," she tried to pretend
She said, "No I don't, I only have a friend"
Come on, I'm not even goin' for it
This is what I'm goin' sing
You, you got what I need but you say he's just a friend
And you say he's just a friend, oh baby
You, you got what I need but you say he's just a friend
But you say he's just a friend, oh baby
You, you got what I need but you say he's just a friend
But you say he's just a friend
So I took blah-blah's word for it at this time
I thought just havin' a friend couldn't be no crime
'Cause I have friends and that's a fact
Like Agnes, Agatha, Germaine, and Jacq
Forget about that, let's go into the story
About a girl named blah-blah-blah that adored me
So we started talkin', getttin' familiar
Spendin' a lot of time so we can build up
A relationship or some understanding
How it's gonna be in the future we was plannin'
Everything sounded so dandy and sweet
I had no idea I was in for a treat
After this was established, everything was cool
The tour was over and she went back to school
I called every day to see how she was doin'
Everytime that I called her it seemed somethin' was brewin'
I called her and a guy picked up, and then I called again
I said, "Yo, who was that?" "Oh, he's just a friend"
Don't gimme that, don't ever gimme that
Jus' bust this
You, you got what I need but you say he's just a friend
And you say he's just a friend, oh baby
You, you got what I need but you say he's just a friend
But you say he's just a friend, oh baby
You, you got what I need but you say he's just a friend
But you say he's just a friend
So I came to her college on a surprise visit
To see my girl that was so exquisite
It was a school day, I knew she was there
The first semester of the school year
I went to a gate to ask where was her dorm
This guy made me fill out a visitor's form
He told me where it was and I as on my way
To see my baby doll, I was happy to say
I arrrived in front of the dormitory
Yo, could you tell me where is door three?
They showed me where it was for the moment
I didn't know I was in for such an event
So I came to her room and opened the door
Oh, snap! Guess what I saw?
A fella tongue-kissin' my girl in the mouth,
I was so in shock my heart went down south
So please listen to the message that I say
Don't ever talk to a girl who says she just has a friend
Just A Friend lyrics © Warner/Chappell Music, Inc., CAK MUSIC PUBLISHING, INC
-snip-
http://www.lyricsfreak.com/b/biz+markie/just+a+friend_20018799.html
[Note: I corrected three very minor typos in this transcription: the word "correct", the word "guess", and the word "understanding".)
****
EXPLANATION OF SOME OF THE SLANG FOUND IN THIS RAP
"[ask you some questions] "to see if you are a hundred proof"=
to see if you're for real
"I asked her her name, she said blah-blah-blah"= "Blah-blah-blah" is a substitute for the girl's name which Biz Markie isn't sharing.
"She had 9/10 pants" = She wore pants that were a size 9/10.
"I took a couple of flicks" = I took a couple of pictures (with a camera).
"I started throwin' bass, she started throwin' back mid-range" = Biz Markie and the girl started singing together.
"it seemed somethin' was brewin' = "it seemed like something was going on in the background".
"Yo, who was that?" = "Yo" here [as well as in the introductory video scene] means "Hey".
Jus' bust this = [in the context of this rap], means "let's continue with this rap".
"Oh, snap!" = in Standard American English, this is the equivalent of "Oh shucks!", but the word "snap" substitutes for another word that means "crap" (manure).
-snip-
Additions & corrections to these slang explanations and are welcome.
****
SELECTED COMMENTS FROM THIS VIDEO'S DISCUSSION THREAD
[Numbers added for referencing purposes only.]
Nunyo Bizwax, 2021
"Rap was so much more lighthearted back then. It wasn’t all
about being a gangster. It had more soul to the music back then, way more
uplifting."
**
Reply
JOJO, 2021
"It wasn't rap. It was true Hip Hop. Rap is for the
gangsters. Hip hop was for the artist."
**
Reply
Nunyo Bizwax, 2021
" @JOJO not entirely true. I like a lot of rap and
I’m definitely no gangster lol i, I’m a white boy from canada"
**
Reply
Kryptic Unlimited, 2021
"you trippin bro rap now is way more lighthearted, creative,
and bright than it was back then. This was a one of a kind tbh"
**
Jay_Trip, 2021
"I love how people call this song "corny" when this
was in 1989 sh-t* flowed differently back then
-snip-
*This word is fully spelled out in this comment.
**
Reply
oskar, 2021
"i mean.. compare this to the D.O.C's No One Can Do It Better
released in the same year
**
Reply
Jason Voorhees, 2021
"I mean by today’s standards it’s kinda corny, not bad though"
**
Reply
Rebel XD, 2021
"I dunno, I am from that era and I personally been spittin'
since 1987, and I've always thought it was corny af. My opinion of course, as
we all have them. Corny doesn't have a specific time frame or era. I think it
was more so the singing and the video that made it corny for me. The subject
matter was solid, though, as I'm sure it is relatable to some people. And also,
I would like to clarify - corny isn't always a bad thing. In fact, the
exploitation of "corny" sh-t* can be brilliant and actually appealing
as it usually induces laughter and feelings of "get the f—k* out of here'
type joy. He was always corny to me, but that is what made him was so appealing
to people - for whatever reason."
-snip-
*These words are fully spelled out in this comment.
**
Reply
Jay_Trip, 2022
" @Rebel XD Man I respect that comment cus when I said
corny I didn't exactly mean it was a bad thing I was just saying it is corny
but it was Biz markies kinda thing and he was well known for it"
**
Reply
microphone is on 🎙
"it was corny even in 1989 lol idk whatchu talkin about lol with his Beethoven wig ðŸ˜ðŸ˜ðŸ˜ but we LOVED it!!! we’d wail “YOUUUUUU’!!! YOU GOT WHAT I NEEEEEEEDD!!!” "
**
johnniewalker23, 2021
"RIP Biz, thank you for this track that everyone can sing along to and serves as great advice too! You will be missed."
****
ADDENDUM #1
This rap is about a guy "being played" by a girl. "Being played" means "to be taken advantaged of". In this context, a girl only pretending to be seriously interested in a man and acting as though she is only seeing him, but actually cheating on him with another man.
Yes, one of the Your mama rips in the beginning of the video talked bad about nappy hair, but there wasn't anything vulgar about those rips. And the closest that that rap got to anything sexual was "tongue kissing". Also check out the fact that the girl who was playin Biz Markie was in college, and not baby's mama.
Times change, and not always for the best.
***
ADDENDUM #2
From https://www.watchtheyard.com/kappas/throwback-check-80s-nupes-biz-markies-just-friend-video/ Black Greek Throwback: 1980s Nupes Twirling in Biz Markie’s ‘Just a Friend’ Video
[complete article; no author or date cited]
"You’ve heard the Biz Markie’s “Just A Friend,” but did you ever realize that the music video features members of Kappa Alpha Psi?
“Just A Friend” was Biz Markie’s most successful single that reached the #9 position on the Billboard charts in 1989. The music video follows Biz as he falls in love with a girl and finds out she is cheating on him with a man on a nearby college campus. Biz goes to surprise the girl at her university and walks in on what he describes “A fella tongue kissin’ my girl on her mouth” in her dorm room.
As Biz is walking through the campus there is a whole scene at the 3:40 mark with a bunch of Kappas doing cane routines around him on the yard. They are rocking peak late 80s style and holding it down for their brothers with their Kappa Kanes!"
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