Yeat, the daringly different rapper that became a keynote in your rotation out of nowhere, is much more than a catchy, melodic gimmick that rose to fame after virality on TikTok. With artists like Yeat, it’s easy to miss the message behind the music and get caught up in how contagious his energy is.
Last year I texted a friend about how deep, and introspective a song “Mad bout that” truly is, especially listening to it after “Sorry Bout That”. I then got a text from said friend about how the two songs are exactly like Future’s “Throw Away” and I haven’t been able to stop thinking about it since.
I know everyone has heard “Throw Away” more times than necessary, but for the sake of the article, it’s necessary to speak on why this song is so important. “Throw Away” is one of the best moments in rap history. It’s a popular belief that Future is one of the most influential rappers, which is true; but I like to attribute part of that influence to “Throw Away”. The two-part song has been the catalyst of many rappers’ careers whether they’d like to admit it or not. “Throw Away” is duality, its storytelling, misogyny, pessimism, regret… “Throw Away” IS Future. Thankfully, the ability to tell a story on both sides of the same coin has trickled down to Yeat.
“Sorry Bout That” and “Mad bout that ” don’t necessarily follow the straightforward plot that “Throw Away” does, but it’s a story worth telling nonetheless. Yeat’s “Throw Away”, which is what I’ll dub the two Yeat singles from now on, are almost identical to Future’s with the exception of one thing: it’s in backward order.
In the first half of “Throw Away” we see one of the most anarchic versions of Future to date. Future was in denial. In trying to uphold the “macho” standards many men attempt to hold themselves to, he puts on a façade. The failed relationship with his ex-fiancé Ciara left him in a miserable place. The nasty breakup led him to treat women like literal throwaways, using them for pure satisfaction and power; misogyny personified. Yeat on the other hand, pours out most of his emotions upfront. In the first half of Yeat’s “Throw Away” (“Sorry Bout That”), he struggles with thoughts of abandoning his drug use.
“She said she feel it now, I don’t even feel it though
Bitch, I be high on these drugs every day of my life
I don’t know at all if I should quit or not”
Yeat doesn’t know what’s right or wrong, but for better or for worse, he’ll never hold any of his emotions back from himself, or his fans. “Sorry Bout That” is Yeat’s biggest hit, and similarly to how we all listen to Future’s music; we’re turning up to words of turmoil.
“The amount of drugs I did today would make you cry
Yeah, I’m finna tell y’all everything, I don’t be shy” – “Sorry Bout That”.
In the second half of “Throw Away” Future realizes he was wrong, a feeling he most likely felt during the first half of the song as well. Future spills out all his wrongdoings with no remorse, and by the end of the song we find out all he wants is love. Yeat on the other hand does no such thing. After confronting his issues and seemingly being “Sorry” for the girl around him not necessarily being able to understand him, anger then consumes him entirely. In the second half of Yeat’s “Throw Away” (“Mad bout that”) Yeat lets us know the girl who once wanted to lay up with him has now left him stranded. He flexes on everyone: the girl who left him, the clones he’s spawned after his rap success, and people mistaking him for broke.
At the conclusion of Yeat’s “Throw Away” we see him come to terms with his feelings on his own terms, or to simply put it… Yeat is mad as fuck.
