Beyond the smoke: "Inner shamanism"
The instantaneous power of his lyrics, the silences on stage, the strange precision of his speech. Red Eye seems possessed. “The moment I enter the track, the world disappears,” he says. His concentration is not just a skill. It’s like he’s possessed by something and is letting it go – in other words, he has the air of an “inner shaman.”
Not "concentration" but "seance" - what's happening on stage
Anyone who has seen Red Eye’s live performance will notice the extraordinary way he “enters” the stage. His body remains perfectly still, his eyes are wide open, and his words flow out like a waterfall. It’s as if his consciousness has “switched” to another layer. Red Eye himself has said this many times in interviews. “It feels like I’m being ‘called’ to the stage. I’m going over there (to another dimension).” This is more like a ritualistic trance than a musical performance. At that moment, hip-hop is no longer entertainment for him, but a medium.
Cannabis and its role as a "switching device" for consciousness
He openly talks about marijuana not as a way to get high or escape, but as a tool to concentrate. “By going into the smoke, I actually become clearer,” and “Rather than getting carried away, I ‘descend’.” Red Eye’s view of marijuana is different from American stoner culture, and is instead strongly influenced by the Japanese and oriental element of “returning to the inner self.” Like the Shinto ritual of burning hemp to purify the place, or the Zen monk smoking a cigarette before meditating, smoke is a “switch for concentration” and a “key to crossing boundaries.”
A style that engraves "thoughts" rather than "words"
Red Eye’s raps are clearly different in the way he chooses words. Rather than the “coolness” and “rhyme play” common among young rappers, his words place emphasis on conveying the vibrations of sound and “thoughts.” For example, the following lyrics – “Inhaling smoke, sinking consciousness, the coordinates of life floating” – are poetry, prayers, and supplications. For him, lyrics are not something to be heard, but something to “pass through” – a shamanic transmission of energy.
Red Eye's focus is not "individuality" but "ritual"
It is easy to explain concentration as a “talent” or “personality.” However, Red Eye’s concentration is different in that it is structurally “ritualized.” The internal routine (breathing/smoking), isolation from the outside world (eyes/posture), and reproduction of internal images (lyrics/visualization) are very similar to the steps that ancient shamans take to invoke a “state of possession.” In other words, his concentration is not an “effort,” but a ritual to enter a trance state.
Red Eye is not "sucking" but "lowering"
For him, marijuana is not just a hobby. It is a device for altering consciousness and a spiritual device that brings concentration. By inhaling it, he does not leave the earth, but rather “sinks” deep inside. Deep inside, he picks up words and delivers them to us through the microphone. This may be the work of a modern shaman-poet in the form of hip-hop.