What does "24k Magic" by Bruno Mars mean?
What does "24k Magic" by Bruno Mars mean?
You may be wondering if there's a deeper meaning to this song, and I hate to disappoint you by telling you that there really isn't. It's a fun song, and Bruno Mars is everything you love about him in this song, and one of those things is a good time. Unfortunately for those who like more "meat" to their lyrics, "good times" don't usually mean "good lines" as far as depth goes.
But that's all right. As with any song or anything that a human being creates, there's something to be explained and something to be learned here, so let's get to it.
The Meaning
Intro
In the intro of "24k Magic," a heavily vocoded voice sings, "Tonight, I just wanna take you up / Throw your laser beams up sky high / Let's set this party off right." This stanza is meant to begin the party and to prepare the audience for the rhymes and rhythms coming up.
Chorus
In an unusual move (considering that most pop artists start with a verse and then go into the chorus), Bruno Mars begins his song with his chorus. He sings, "Playa's, put your pinky rings up to the moon"; they're raising their pinky fingers in mock pretentiousness as they begin to enjoy their partying.
Mars calls out, "Girls, what y'all tryna' do? / 24 karat magic in the air." These lines may not specifically refer to anything but instead seem to be focused on giving an atmosphere conducive to partying. The "24 karat magic" refers to the fact that money is what makes this partying possible. Twenty-four karat is the purest kind of gold, and Bruno Mars is enjoying the good times his wealth enables him to have.
He finishes the chorus singing, "Hit the toast you playa / Oh, look out!" It's time to raise glasses and to salute the night ahead.
Verse 1
Here Mars sings, "Pop, pop, pop, it's show time / Show time," to signal the beginning of the event. He sings, "Guess who's back again / Oh, they don't know? Go on. Tell 'em / I be they know soon as we walk in." It's been a while since we heard from Bruno Mars, but he's back in full force now.
Next he sings about what he's wearing and warns others to not "look too hard" because they "might hurt yourself." He's wearing "Cuban links" and "designer minks," as well as "Inglewoods finest shoes." He's "on fire" and claims to be "[k]nown to give the color red the Blues," suggesting even the color of fire's going to cool off and feel sad about being replaced.
Pre-chorus
Here in "24k Magic," Bruno Mars sings, "Whoa, shit, I'm a dangerous man with some money in my pocket / So many pretty girls around me, and they wakin' up to rock it." He's loaded, and he's ready to do crazy things with his money. The women around him are attractive and want to dance. Lastly, he sings, "Why you mad? Fix your face, ain't my folder y'all be jockin'." This line is confusing, and Urban Dictionary's definitions of "jocking" don't seem to help, but at the very least, he's telling the haters to back off; he wants them to know that they aren't bothering him.
Verse 2
Bruno Mars dedicates the second verse to "the hustlers," "gangsters," "[b]ad bitches, and your ugly ass friends." Mars asks if he can "preach?" He explains, "I gotta show 'em how a pimp get it in." Apparently the way "a pimp get it in" is this: "First, take your sip, do your dip / Spend your money like money ain't shit." He concludes his list with "Be too fresh." He accredits "Jesus" and sings, "Hashtag, blessed / They ain't ready for me." He claims, seemingly tongue-in-cheek that his skills, musical talent, and charisma were a special design by God.
Bridge
The bridge is mainly focused on the music with little going on lyrically despite the large number of words. Mars sings lines like, "Everywhere I go, they be like / Oh, so playa." He's recognized by others; they know him when he comes.
He then breaks "it down" with the lines, "24 karat, 24 karat magic / What's that sound?" and, "Don't fight the feeling, invite the feeling." It's time to let money talk and to have a good time.
Deeper Thoughts on "24k Magic" by Bruno Mars
If you've read my blog for any amount of time, you know that I stay very objective in the lyric analysis portion, but I found it so difficult this time. "24k Magic" is so empty of any meaningful or difficult lyrics that it kept me from enjoying explaining this song at all.
That being said, I would like to share something that I posted to Twitter while explaining it, and I'll expand what I said a little:
In "24k Magic," Bruno Mars wants us to believe that he's going to show us how a "pimp get it in" and have a good time, but the only pimp here is the music industry that's using him to create substance-less flash-in-the-pans and to make money for a bloated, irresponsible music industry.
"24k Magic" is an excellent example of a song that's designed entirely to create a loose, party feeling with nothing important to say. There's a time and a place for these songs, so I don't condemn the song itself, but it's certainly not a piece of art and is, rather, a product made by a music industry capable of using writers, designers, and producers to "manufacture" something they think will sell, rather than to "create" something beautiful or honest about what life is really like. Intsead, they sell the idea that life can be a party if one has enough money or enough "24k Magic."
