“thumbdrive” by lil busy isn’t a long song at one minute fifteen but it packs a lot of ideas musically and in terms of sentiments and feelings expressed. There is a sense of menace in the low end synth line that draws out with a tone like the electronic version of a brass instrument. This contrasted with the vocoder and the contemplative string part, urgent background wail and bursts of white noise conveys a sense of pressure from inside the songwriter’s head and from the expectations of others. Singing about he’s putting lots of dreams on a thumb drive reveals he has learned to operate through slender means in order to realize aspirations and holding on to his work not even on a portable hard drive but a thumb drive. One imagines working on the music at a friend’s place, at the library, at a college computer lab, wherever he can put in some focused time while keeping his mind on the end goal and hoping it’s going to take him places in a world that up to now has only offered challenges, stumbling blocks and discouragement yet what do you do when you have a creative or personal vision you’re pursuing? Give up? This song isn’t about the “grind,” it’s about that impetus that some people have to work on their art when it’s not easy, when it’s not convenient and under severe limitations on their chosen art form and doing the best they can with what’s available. The production is hip-hop style but the sound palette has more in common with a darkwave or IDM yet this song doesn’t fit into a narrow, established genre and its cross genre aesthetic is part of its appeal. Listen to “thumbdrive” on Spotify and connect with lil busy on Instagram linked below.
Queen City Sounds and Art 
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