TobyMac's Ill-M-I Song Meaning
81Ill-M-I is a TobyMac song that makes little sense to the first time listener. After searching the web you will find that there is very little information regarding the meaning of the lyrics. Mac has said in interviews that the song is about the Pharisees, and draws from Jesus’ scathing remarks (in Matthew 23) about people who act like they are righteous, but are actually hypocrites. In this article, I will attempt to explain the meaning of the song line by line. Enjoy! Feel free to add your comments about the meaning of the song below. (The lyrics to the song will be italicized for clarity.)
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Other Song Interpretations
- "This Land is Your Land, This Land is my Land" The Communist Side of Woody Guthrie
This land is your land, this land is my land" lyrics that are sung by many Americans today. Little do they know the song has communist roots. - A Christian Interpretation of Dave Matthews Band's Lie in Our Graves
Are you a Christian who sometimes wishes you could listen to secular songs, but feel bad about doing it? Well here is a song by Dave Matthews that can easily be interpreted with a Christian meaning.
Ill-M-I, Ill-M-I, Ill-M-I, Ill-M-I and you
I’ve got a problem and so do you
Illuminati comin' thru
The Illuminati were a group of people
who referred to themselves as the enlightened ones. Sounds a little snobbish
huh? Mac is warning about self righteousness and pride coming through.
Flow like
the Cassius, swing like the Clay
Cassius Clay is the real name of a pretty famous boxer who uttered some very similar words. Mohamed Ali “float like a butterfly sting like a bee” Basically he is saying that this rap is of high quality but it has a message that hits hard.
One day, I'm'a make the whole world pay
The whole world will one day be judged for their sins.
With k.o.'s
and okay we bash clots-n-dot-dash
You
got that right, I'm'a rock the Morse code tonight
Basically, the message is not going to be an easy one to understand. It is going to have to be decoded.
Transmit
'n throwin' fits 'n paparazzi like zits
Get flipped out and squeezed fresh like juicy sun
kissed
The purpose of the song is to “flip out and squeeze fresh” “paparazzi like zits”
And what are paparazzi zits? Toby Mac is referring to those who practice righteousness with the sole purpose of gaining attention. Like the Pharisee’s of his day they are no better than zits.
And
if I miss with my missles you're still gonna sizzle
If you don’t hear the message, well that’s too bad, there is a punishment.
'Cause I frizzle fry radiation style worldwide
Toby is using a clever cultural reference to say in effect “I’m evangelizing”.
Frizzle Fry is an album on which the number one song was “John the Fisherman”.
Mac is using this analogy to say that he is a “fisher of men”.
You got your
pipeline clogged man get that puppy routed
You are missing the point. You don’t have a real relationship with Jesus.
You got the style down and since you don't know about it
You act like you are righteous but you aren’t, you’re just performing.
Who's the loser (I am) because we come in numb love
Who is not righteous? Me! That is the attitude people should have, one of humility, not pride. Because the message is one of love and forgiveness.
And choicer and did I mention looser (no you didn't)
And it is better and easier because we no longer have to follow all of the rules of the old law.
Then I do sir, producer, hit me with the juice
God, give me the Holy Spirit.
Much obliged
got the head of a moose
Thanks, I need it, (speaking of himself) I have a huge ego. (My head is as big as Moose’s)
So mount me on the wall of your livin' room
So humble me, use me as an example
Sure to bring the boom
That will make people talk
Speakin' like a zoom deep into your tomb
Speaking like a “zoom” ,as in, “zoom
in”, to your heart. Jesus said in Matthew 23:27 "Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you
hypocrites! You are like whitewashed tombs, which look beautiful on the outside
but on the inside are full of dead men's bones and everything unclean
And if you
feel the vibe glide true it's on you
If this is you, its your
responsibility to change it
And if you need to drive right through it's on you
If its not, good!
And if your screamin' "moi non plus" it's like
Moi non plus, is French for me
neither.
What you tryin' to do when you can't fade the true one
You need to check yourself again, and
remember, your glory will never surpass that of Jesus. No matter what you do.
Eruption
type volcanics I got the vocal spurtmatic
This is straight from the heart, the message mimics Jesus’ message.
Suction cup hands upside the slammin' daily planet
Got me on this one, I can’t figure it out. Anyone know?
I do windows (on school days) spill Jim Jones (type kool-aid)
I’m cleaning things up, revealing false prophets and pretentious righteousness, (most of us know about the mass suicide created by Jim Jones)
All these primrose (style bouquets) I clip those (for doomsday)
All of these people who think they
have it together, Im knocking them off their pedestal.
Got
succulent flavor, the uprisen Savior
Manifestin' thru these mics, blastin' out your
graveyard
This is straight from the word of God,
I’m pointing out your “graveyard”
Savor
every bite that TOBYMAC gave ya
Turn and tell your neighbor this ball-o-dirt is
goin' into labor
Listen: God could return at any moment.
Matthew 24:7-8 For nation will rise up in armsagainst nation, and kingdom against kingdom. And there will be faminesand earthquakesin various places. Allthese things are the beginning of birth pains.
Ill-M-I is an incredibly artful song, full of metaphors and analogies. I hope my analysis has brought you a little more understanding. If you have any questions, ask them below and I will try and provide a timely answer.
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wow, great job picking that apart.. quite impressive! :) btw thanks for being a light online for Jesus!
Suction cup hands upside the slammin' daily planet
I think this one is about him trying to get God's message out and sticking to the truth to give it to the world because The Daily Planet is the newspaper that That Clark Kent worked at and suction cup hand could be sticking to it of staying connected to the good news of Christ because Superman was a savior and Jesus is the savior and bringer of Good News.
"Suction cup hands upside the slammin' daily planet"
So i don't know what he is saying but the Daily planet is the newspaper that Superman worked for... but spiderman also worked for a newspaper company and the suction cup hands would make more sense there... it sounds kind of like a metaphor for a hero in disguise maybe? idk its marvel and dc comics though, that much I get
Thanks. On wikis seers someone said Toby meant he was part of illuminati, but I knew that couldn't be true. I just needed evidence. Thanks!!!
That's good. This song is debated among many, because it seems as if tobymac is bad, but through this, we can see how christian it really is. Also, now if people hear this song on the CD (I have WTDC) and think it's bad, the easiest way to explain it is through this website!!!! UR Awesome, but God is awesomer!!!
First you did an amazing job with decoding it! But I'm am uneasy about the song and the lack of explanation from the song writer. Toby Mac has been a favorite of mine but the mystery he put out for confusion is not cool. Second the name of his savior didn't come out in the song and he was not clear on what side he stands for.... I don't know about this. I will just continue to keep my eyes on Jesus and ask for discernment. Thanks for your studies!!
Thanks for posting this because it has been puzzling me for months. basically since I got the CD, but i knew I could trust the words that Toby Mac sings beacsue he's a true chrisitan I was just a little confused there for a min.
WOW, that was horrible. You just completely added your OWN interpretation to the most random lyrics. "Hit me with the juice" means give me the Holy Spirit? How does juice relate to the Spirit of God? this is a song that, no matter what you say, is NOT CHRISTIAN. I don't care what any one says, tobyMac singing this song was a huge mistake. I'm not judging his walk with God, since his music has improved highly since then, but this song is leading people astray and causing confusion, which a Christian shouldn't be inflicting on others. This is a cover of a song by Soul Junk. Ask soul Junk what it's supposed to mean-don't add your own meaning to it.
we all know that this is a cover song did by Soul-junks in 2000? toby just covered it.
THANK YOU! I believe we have a few siblings in Christ that are acting just how the songs describe them.RELIGIOUS! You should know that Illuminati has plagued all our media.It is fed by selfish desires. My son is an expert in detecting all its signs in cartoons, TV shows, movies, ads and all over. This song is anointed to open our eyes to this spiritual reality. I read it with that in mind and it takes a whole different meaning! We must stand against the devil and resist him. Wake up! Thank you Toby and may the Lord continue to use you!
I think you did a fantastic job interpreting these lyrics. In fact, had the suction cups/daily planet line not stumped you, I may have even thought you were Toby himself in disguise. lol I do agree with the other posters about the suction cup/daily planet line that it refers to him sticking to the truth and spreading the news of our superhero/saviour Jesus Christ. One thing that I always heard when I listened to this song even before I understood it completely is the ILL-M-I line.....I have always thought that Toby meant it as "ILL AM I and YOU?" Basically saying that he is sick about the direction this world is going and then asking the listener if they agree. Which is basically the same thing as you stated by saying "I've got a problem and so do you." I am a youth leader and have teens of my own so I try to stay up with all of the latest artist that the kids are listening too and just recently decided to study them a little more. Of course I have always encouraged the kids not to listen to the likes of Little Wayne, Kanye, Jay-Z, Drake, Lady Gaga and such but after some in depth search and watching several videos and noticing all of the hand gestures refering to the Illuminati and Lucifer, I am completely disgusted and intend on doing a lesson and enlightening these kids on just what their favorite artist stand for. This is even deeper and more dangerous than just the sexual, violent and materialistic lyrics of the song. I have had some parents combat me with that their kids only listen to the beat and don't pay attention to the words anyway but there are too many subliminal messages in these songs to be so careless with our children. Thank You again and I intend to use this song and your lyric break down as part of my lesson.
Hey thanks for explaining this song to me. I just heard it today and I was totally confused. I looked at the comments on youtube for this song and most of them were saying how tobyMac is part of the illuminati. It really bothers me because they probably dont even know any of his other song. I also saw this website that was saying how tobyMac sings for the devil. I got me kind of worried but your explanation really helped
(sorry if there are any spelling mistakes. I cant spell very well plus Im alittle dislexic so i cant always tell if its right or not)
sorry i spelled dyslexic wrong told you i cant spell
Suction cup hands could be a reference to Spiderman with Daily Planet Superman.
PEOPLE WAKE UP!!!! I say this out of love guys. He has OCCULT IMAGERY on almost EVERY one of his albums. Why else do you see all of those all seeing "EYE" pictures on his album covers??? Why is he singing about the "illuminati?" Do you think it could be because he is mocking everyone that has not made the connection? I hope the author of this article is just an optimist and not intentionally trying to delude the readers from researching this issue properly. I am not God and therefor can not judge this man's heart but the Bible clearly states that bad fruit will come from a bad tree (Matt 7:17). THE TRUTH SHALL SET YOU FREE!!!! JUST LOVE JESUS, REPENT and RENOUNCE THE WORLD!
Matthew 7:15 "Watch out for false prophets. They come to you in sheep's clothing, but inwardly they are ferocious wolves."
Weird, I would agree he does have some occult imagery on some albums. However I have yet to Santa Claus or an Easter Bunny so i'm okay so far. Just having an eye on a picture shouldn't really make you freak out, at least not as much as the obvious pagan celebrations Christianity has embraced with open arms and no discernment. Before attacking this song you should look into your own beliefs a bit deeper. Here's one for you as well, JESUS CHRIST is not the name of Jesus.
Also btw the lyrics of this song are ILL M I. As an I AM ILL. I don't think an "illuminati" would make fun of their name in a song to this extent.
Also I have been to plenty of different concerts with Toby Mac and have listened to him speak at different occasions. He definitely has a business side but he also seems legitimately a flawed human trying to worship God the best he knows how, what more can we ask?
your an idiot
gabrielle Henderson 17 months ago
Thank you for explaining this song to me! I was just listening to it the other day and I had no idea what he was talking about!
(not clue on the suction cup hands)