“36 Months,” and the Magical Return of Knoxville’s Lil Iffy
By: Chapman Suther
Knoxville’s hip-hop staple Lil Iffy returns with a new single, “36 Months,” a reference to the amount of time spent in “retirement” by Wil Wright, the mastermind behind the Harry Potter-themed rap act.
After releasing several albums, steady touring — including a 2013 Bonnaroo performance — and acclaim from MTV-U and similar outlets, Lil Iffy decided to step away from the act, with one final performance at Knoxville’s Scruffy City Hall on New Year’s Eve, 2015.
Wright has been nothing but stagnant in his time away from his Lil Iffy persona, focusing on his family, writing career, and other music projects, which are as varied as Lil Iffy is unique.
The new Lil Iffy track comes in alignment with his return to the stage at this weekend’s Second Bell Music Festival, at Knoxville’s Sutree Landing Park.
Read our full story for everything you’ll need to know about the festival.
The new release from Lil Iffy slips straight into the main drum loop so smoothly it seems to trick the brain to think you are hearing a second play-through even if it’s your first listen. The immediately infectious beat from long-time Iffy producer, Tom Ato, features a thick bass kick, broken up by a chorus of finger-snaps, while a faint melody is outlined by what could be a synthesized wind instrument. Nine seconds in, the bass drops in as deep as it can go, accompanied by an energetic, newly awakened Iffy: “It’s been a few months since we turned it to eleven on ’em.”
The beat firmly rooted, the bass line takes focus to shape the progression and movement of the song. A flurry of vocal clicks, grunts, and other noises are also introduced here as atmospheric embellishment to the main beat loop. Here, Wright summons the first verse, proclaiming excitement to be back working as Lil Iffy, thankfulness for the continued passion from fans, and pride in being able to stay true to his visions as an artist. “Doesn’t it have a nice ring to it, to be reunited,” quips Iffy.
At just under a minute of play, a snare roll leads into a clearing as the bass and kick cut out, letting the synth melody take forefront. Here is the first vocal portion of the chorus, with doubling and pitch-shifting effect to lower the voice to demonic levels.
“36 months, lived to the letter, man
Back to the front, doesn’t get any better, man?
Steppin’ on necks till we get to a better plan
You can live forever if the people won’t forget ya, man.”
The chorus continues with Iffy’s true voice taking over and repeating these lines over a droning, fuzzed-out version of the main beat. As the fuzz clears, the synth melody again takes center focus — with higher-pitched Kanye-style vocal ad-libs dreamily promising that “you can live forever.”
Lil Iffy resumes his sharp reminder of his abilities on the second verse, a brief and tight delivery about reaping the rewards of staying focused and not succumbing to disillusionment. The chorus enters again, growing wider, fuller, and more varied as the song nears the tail end of the nearly-three-minute run time.
A unique, talented, and fun artist, Lil Iffy helps to keep the magic in music. This track is worth checking out for any hip-hop listener, as is his full discography, for rap fans and Harry Potter enthusiasts alike.
