Song Meaning

David Banner's "Intro" isn't so much a song as a gauntlet thrown down. The female voice that opens the track delivers a stark philosophical challenge, a modern-day koan: "If you are what you think and you think what you hear then what are you?" It's a brutal deconstruction of identity in the age of mass media, suggesting we're all just walking, talking echo chambers, regurgitating the noise around us. The immediate follow-up, "Sex, drugs and video games," isn't a non-sequitur, but rather the pointed answer to the question. It’s a bleak assessment of the contemporary id, a trinity of readily available distractions that define so many. The lyric’s power lies in its open-endedness. It’s not a sermon, but an interrogation. Banner doesn't offer easy answers or moral platitudes. He simply presents the listener with a mirror, forcing them to confront the influences shaping their perceptions and desires. Are we truly individuals, or merely products of our environment, our minds colonized by the constant barrage of external stimuli? The line about thinking what you hear is particularly cutting, hinting at the insidious power of suggestion and the way narratives, often manufactured and manipulative, can take root in our subconscious. Ultimately, "Intro" serves as a potent prologue. It’s a call to critical self-awareness, a demand to question the very foundations of our beliefs. By framing the album with this challenging statement, Banner sets the stage for a deeper exploration of the themes of identity, societal influence, and the search for authenticity in a world saturated with superficiality. The brevity of the spoken-word section only amplifies its impact, leaving the listener grappling with its implications long after it ends.