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Watch to Queue Points #16 "'The Ballad of Omar,' Rick James and the Times We Are In with Dapper Dan Midas"

“I don't wanna say nine-trey

Cause my man Extra P said don't say the years

So, it's for eternity, know what I'm saying?”

- Q-Tip from “The Chase, Part II”

When you mention a year in a song, it’s a final act. That song is now forever associated with the year you reference. Also, it can date a song that, for the artist, is an eternal piece of art. It’s our belief that there’s really no down side to including the year in a song, it actually serves as a memorialization of sorts.

With the 2022 release of Joey Bada$$’s 2000 the Queue Points crew began reflecting about songs that featured a year in the title. 

In 2020, Baltimore MC, and Queue Points fav, Dapper Dan Midas (DDm), released his album The Ballad of Omar. Track three on the album, “1995,” situates us in DDm’s reality as a grade schooler grappling with his sexuality and navigating the potential perils of what it meant to be Black, gay and searching for connection.

Both George Michael and Prince were considered pop icons in the 1990s. Michael's song "Freedom '90" was released in 1990 and is about breaking from the past. Prince's song "1999" was released in 1982 and is about the end of the world. 

While both songs are about different things, they have had a large impact on pop culture and music history. "Freedom '90" was seen as a statement against the 1980s, while "1999" was seen as a warning about the future. 

Despite both songs being anchored in specific periods of time, both songs are still considered iconic and important to Pop culture and music history. They are two of the most well-known songs from that era, and continue to be popular today.

So, it’s okay. Go ahead and say the year.