"as YOU can GO, beLOW zeRO" — he’s creating iambs out of words that don’t naturally fall into that pattern: i.e., he stresses ‘zero’ on the second syllable instead of the first, where the stress naturally falls.

His pronunciation of “zoo” is one of the cooler things I’ve ever heard: a “z” with the smallest possible nondescript little vowel syllable attached to it. There is no way on earth to communicate the musicality of the refrain that ends that song in print.

So I’m finally getting around to reading this Anthology of Rap NPR business, it’s pretty hilarious and interesting. But yeah it’s nice to see an outsider appreciate the brilliance of ODB