“Nothing is Stopping You”: Big Sean’s Hall of Fame Shows Our Potential in The Midst of Fear Mohith Subbarao Follow Dec 8, 2019 · Unlisted

Fear is tricky. This built-in emotion allows us to stay alert in times of perceived danger, informing us to flee a possible murderer or study for a final exam. Fear allows us to survive, which happens to be necessary for our happiness and the continued existence of the human race. As society has progressed and desires to survive have evolved into desires to thrive, this fear inversely devolves from a necessity to a liability. Many of our lives have become more industrialized and privileged, and as a result we no longer live with just the fear of death but also the fear of failure and ridicule. The fear that once kept us safe can now keep us trapped in complacency, unhappiness, or even nihilism. When we let ourselves become accustomed to this fear over a span of years or decades, we forget our ability to take action. Big Sean understands these fears intimately on “Nothing is Stopping You”, off his second studio album Hall of Fame, an anecdotal and aspirational opener that implores us to seek the fullness of our potential in spite of our terror.

“Nothing is Stopping You” by Big Sean

Whereas 2011’s Finally Famous was Big Sean’s celebration of the hustle that got him signed to Kanye West’s record label G.O.O.D Music, Sean has used subsequent records as a platform to inspire those still dreaming. “Nothing Is Stopping You” is a bold and anthemic statement of this new intention, opening up 2013’s Hall of Fame with both an acknowledgement of the self-doubt that is fundamental to the human experience and an urgent call to action for the goals that matter most.

The song opens in abrupt fashion with a pitched-down repetition of the titular phrase, sung with grandness by Pharrell and James Fauntleroy. Pitched-down vocals such as these often signal a detached or even demonic essence, yet the slow-moving pace of the intro coupled with the calming bass guitar and minimalist high-pitched piano keys creates a reassuring atmosphere that immediate engulfs you into the song’s hopeful message.

Big Sean’s message starts with his story.

“I know I’mma get it, I just don’t know how / Heart up on the stage, body in the crowd / Parents always tried to keep me home / But I can’t get paid from the crib, so I’ll be gone ’til we on / What’s up, Finally Famous / I had it on my jacket way back in high school / Know I wanted to be in them night clubs and not all off in that night school / So me and my n****s real life’d it, every week we did them cyphers / At the radio, had a crazy flow, man the city ain’t heard s*** like this”

Before catapulting into references to his first album and lighthearted wordplay about his aspirations, Big Sean first and foremost acknowledges his fear. While it may seem like a throwaway introductory line, not knowing how to accomplish one’s goals can drown us into an overwhelming sea of confusion and existential angst.

Yet throughout the song, Big Sean’s vocal delivery remains steady, confident, and playful. The gliding piano keys, the repetition of the rising orchestral strings, and the overpowering and seam-breaking drumbeat build a musical trampoline for Big Sean’s trademark bouncy flow. This unison of vocals and instrumentation reminds us as listeners that there is a lot of fun, adventure, and spontaneity to be had on the unpredictable twists and turns of our path.

One of these twists could change our life forever.

“I woke up early on a Saturday / Said I’mma cash my check and hit some a** today / Hit the bank, my n**** called me like: ‘Go rap for Ye / He at the station, rap that s*** that you rap everyday’ / Man, that s*** sounds stupid / Then I hung up on his a***, then called him back like ‘F***, let’s do it’ / I didn’t even cash my check, man can’t believe my a** pursued it / I didn’t even have no gas but somehow God just lead me to it / Like, ‘Let’s do it’”

Sean recounts how his aspirations led him to the opportunity to rap for his mentor and idol Kanye West. While initially brushing it off, seemingly using humor as a defense mechanism to hide his fear, he decides to take this chance. Big Sean would eventually make it to be one of the biggest hip-hop stars of the 2010s, thanks to the eventual teaming up of him and Kanye. They would spend the entire decade creating innovative club hits and emotionally affecting gems. Recounting this miraculous set of events at the end of the first verse, Big Sean finds solace in the mystifying nature of spiritual support. He has no explanation but to thank God for inspiring him to push past invisible barriers when he was on the verge of giving up.

But rather than solely revel in his own glory, Big Sean understands the importance of giving back.

“Now I’m running late for sound check / And I heard the line’s already to the lot, walking out the station / And that’s around the time that I got stopped, by this shorty tryna rhyme / Manager said we ain’t got time, but time to time / You gotta make time when it’s time for karma to come back around / I say ‘Aye dawg, What you got?’, ‘Aw dawg, Big Sean, thanks a lot / Um, alright, it’s that young renegade, man they been afraid / Tryna follow me get in a maze, Leave you Minute Maid / … Tryna stack my dividends, get my mom a new crib and them’ / And a bunch of synonyms about how he was living and I even let him finish it / I mean I can’t lie he was alright, but at his age, s*** so was I / So I give him my email on a fly / And if his song’s good I’ll reply”

With truly visceral and heartwarming storytelling, Big Sean depicts an anecdote of giving an unnamed aspiring rapper a chance to rhyme. This verse acts as a metaphorical stand-in for the countless musicians out there listening to this very song hoping to be the next Big Sean. As Sean switches from his own perspective to the young kid’s perspective, as does his rapping. In a seamless transition, Sean uses a higher-pitched and adolescent-like voice along with a hungry and somewhat insecure vocal delivery to portray the young musician. When he finally switches back to his own point of view, you are left deeply moved by a journey that has come full circle for Sean — from idolizer to idolized, from mentee to mentor, from fearful to fearless.

The song closes with a set of outros from both Big Sean and his mother. As that pitched-down titular phrase plays out as a hum-like backdrop and the extravagant drum beat softens, Sean admits his fear that comes with the uncertainty of personal pursuits. Before he has a second to let his worries breathe, his mother’s voice arrives to remind him of all the blessings he has in his life to keep him stable during such uncertainty. These closing words leave us still knowing that our fear is valid and very real, but that we have the capability, support, and responsibility to shoot for that which makes meaning the bedrock of our being.

This song begins a new trajectory for Big Sean into aspirational anthems for the young, hopeful, and scared — anthems he would continue to make on songs like “One Man Can Change The World” off 2015’s Dark Sky Paradise and “Sacrifices” off 2017’s I Decided.

In a 2013 YouTube video uploaded by Sean himself, he described his desire for starting this foray into uplifting and encouraging music.

“[‘Nothing Is Stopping You’] not only tells my story of how my dreams started unfolding, but seeing the same dreams in somebody else. This is a song for the dreamers, man.”

When we reflect on our dreams, we can feel the fear electrify throughout our pores, as each shock tells us to give up and break down. However, this torture begins to recede when we continue to take one step forward despite everything in our body telling us how crazy and ill-advised we are for continuing to plant our feet. We make little step by little step until that fear becomes the distant acquaintance we have lost touch with. Eventually, we can look back on this fear and wave to it with acceptance and empathy. We understand that the fear is just trying to keep us safe, but we also know that it no longer serves us. We are grateful for it and we let it go.

It’s not stopping us.