AllOne Illustrates His Namesake with 'Anima Mundi'
Written by: Ryan Dobby - June 2019
Edited by: Travis Ryan
In an age of flashiness and bravado in hip-hop culture, it’s an incredible breath of fresh air when an artist comes along and takes the art of true spoken word in the direction it severely needs to go. That can certainly be said for AllOne in his new video for “Anima Mundi” (Grammatik Remix) off of his latest Whole Sum Parts, produced by DJ Second Nature and directed by Chris Rodriguez.
Spattering a cacophony of rhymes that hit on topics ranging from the endless thoughts that bombard the brain of this true rhyme savant to his worthiness of praise, being mentioned in the same breath as some of his biggest influences, and a whole lot more—AllOne takes us on an incredible journey into the mind of a true lyricist and poet. Rapping at machine-gun pace with an eloquence that can only be derived from his years on the scene, it’s evident that he has truly put in the time to make tracks not only for the lovers of the genre, but the thinkers, the free spirits, the downtrodden, those seeking inspiration, and newcomers alike.
To break down each line would do the track injustice; its understanding is really known in the mind of its creator, but it’s as open to the interpretations of the listener as any true art form—which is fitting for a song whose title translates to “world soul”. But with lines like “Humbled feelings by a jury of peers, my journey appears as a flurry of cheers and injurious jeers, am I worthy of ears?” and “We do seek beauty as we lose sleep to dreams/Muses speak, we too drink creative juices leak from cherub’s eyes/Out of my mind, out of this world, didn’t plan it right, I’m saturnine, has a ring to it - am I sadder? Nein! Just rarely satisfied,” it’s hard not to catch a true, unfiltered glimpse into the mind of the artist.
Using the beauty of simplicity to lend more focus to the words, Rodriguez’s direction—the opening and ending splashes of colored smoke to the single light bulb and psychedelic flashes as AllOne lays out his mastery—works perfectly in tandem with the music and prose. To take from a previous introduction piece on this site because I just can’t it say any better: “He is constantly making connections between themes, words, and emotions in ways that are well outside the box.” And with the ending line “You’ll see an entire legacy, a mosaic,” this reviewer is certainly excited to watch that legacy continue to unfold and expand upon itself. But see for yourself! I’d say it’s absolutely worth the watch: