Innovative Minds

What makes a talented rapper?

Mental agility, rhythmic diction and most definitely> a way with words.

Notable poets, radio personalities and writers have a pronounced Mercury and the sign Gemini activated in their birth chart.

Mercury, ruler of gemini, is the planet of the mind. The way you think, speak, write and learn are an expression of Mercury in your birth chart.

A gifted rapper will have a strong Mercury and the chances are high that they may have a sun in Gemini, but assumptions like that, while many times true are not so simplistic. An observation I have seen is that a rapper will also have their Mercury be connected to Jupiter (By aspect, reception, rulership). Mercury and Jupiter are planets that are opposite in nature - Mercury’s function is to categorize and analyze (zoom in), while Jupiters function is to synthesize and zoom out. Jupiter tends to create a flow state and when connected to Mercury (the mind) allows that process of what I would consider channelling words to occur.

What do the most influential rappers of our time have in common?

Lauryn Hill, Nicki Minaj, Busta Rhymes, Jay Z and Missy Elliot have a pronounced Mercury in connection to Jupiter in their charts, but their Mercury Out of Bounds which is what suggests their influence and innovation. The talent of these Mercury out of bounds artists speaks for itself. They illuminate what it would be like for Mercury to “run free and wild”.

What is an Out of Bounds Planet?

When we look at the birth chart and see the degrees of the planets (i.e. ☉ 10’34 ♑// sun 10’34 Capricorn) we are looking at the longitude. When looking into the latitude of a planet, it is based on the distance either North or South of the celestial equator. This degree is called the declination. In a brief explanation, the Sun - as the ruler of the skies - sets the stage for the entire solar system. The Sun’s declination indicates our seasons. At the Sun’s highest declination is the Summer solstice and the most southern declination is the Winter solstice.

This image is a solargraph of the suns movement at the same spot through an entire year in 2014, Budapest. Photo Credit: Elekes Andor

A planet that goes beyond the degree of the Sun’s max declination has a special function. As the Sun represents conscious awareness, a planet that goes out of bounds expresses itself in a way that is not like the rest of the sheep in this world. A planet out of bounds does not function by the rules of what is expected. It’s function is to innovate, though innovation has it’s challenges as out of bounds planets also suggest an experience of being misunderstood and ‘rebellious’.

Mercury Out of Bounds

While taking a lot of time in the past two years to attune myself to out of bounds planets, I have noticed that Mercury out of bounds tends to be more uncommon that the other personal planets (mars, venus, moon).

Nicki Minaj, Lauryn Hill and Missy Elliot are great examples of out of bounds Mercury. Firstly, using language and the voice as an instrument is already a type of genius that is often mind blowing. They are of the most influential rappers of all time, but they are also women. As hip hop is notoriously male dominated, their influence is a type of innovation that paves the way for other female performers.Thus is the nature of OOB planets and in the expression of Mercury it is ground breaking language, constant inspiration and ways of using the voice.

If you are interested in learning more about Out of Bounds planets, check out my lecture that I prepared for the Astrology Meetup NYC in July 2019. This class is recommended for adv. beginner students and will enhance your chart analysis skills.