IF A CONDOM CONDOM COULD TALK

SITTING DOWN WITH WILLIE D

My little brother is a poet, and we push each other constantly. One day he was “putting me on” to new music by playing “When Sparks Fly” by Vince Staples. He was enamored with the concept, where Vince personifies a gun. It was beautifully written, dark and almost seductive in my opinion. However, it wasn’t as unique as my brother thought. In 1996, Nas released “I Gave You Power,” a track that later inspired Tupac’s “Me and My Girlfriend” that same year. Both tracks were like audio cinema, and although I won’t share which one I think is better, I was happy to share them both with my brother. Nothing’s new under the sun, bro.

Because I pulled the reverse Uno card, my brother said, “You do it!” He challenged me to personify something by writing as any object I chose. As a joke, we settled on a condom. I love writing conceptual records, so the challenge was welcomed.

Once I started writing from its point of view, I couldn’t stop. It turned into a whole song. That’s what I love about my writing process. Most times I don’t know where I’m going to end up, and this time the verse became intimate: a story of love and neglect. Unfortunately, that’s a story many jilted lovers can relate to, so the song’s true concept is easy to miss until the last bar reveals it. The next morning, I hopped in the van and recorded it.

A song like that needed a video, so I reached out to Dr. Baquet of The Clinic Nola about filming at her clinic, and I brought in BOG Vonnie, a talented recording artist and HIV advocate. Shadow Da 1st played the lead male character. You may know him as the friend I reunited with at my recent high school reunion. Not only is he a first responder, he’s also a very talented artist and actor. Plus, I put my momma in the video, and she killed it. In one week, a challenge became a conceptual song and video warning about the dangers of unprotected sex.

What surprised me most was what happened after it dropped. Writers, rappers, poets and singers started hitting me up asking how they could try a challenge like that. It got me thinking about a Writer’s Club: once or twice a month, we all get on together, I drop a prompt, and everybody writes to it in the same room. Would you join? Tell me in the comments. I’m reading every one.

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Written & Performed By: Samantha ‘3D Na’Tee’ James
Cast: 3D Na’Tee, BOG Vonnie, Shadow Da 1st, My Momma
Special Thanks To: Dr. Baquet and The Clinic Nola