I'm young enough to remember when Mtv changed the music game. Word to Dallas Penn, videos already existed before the channel made them the prerequisite for any fledgling musician(s). But what that television station did was provide not only an outlet for groups to realize the physical manifestations of their audio creations, but also to give the fans an opportunity to put human beings to the sounds they enjoyed. Video killed the radio star, indeed.
On a side note, Michael Jackson & John Landis personally changed the video game immediately following. Do your homework if you ain't already knowing.
The music racket had been one-upped, & there was no turning back, like when vinyl pushed 8-track off the proverbial cliff, & pissed on him as he slipped into darkness.
Fast forward a couple of decades, & the World Wide Web did a similar move to the music industry, almost making the CDs, that once made the cassette obsolete, irrelevant. Here we are, faced with a mechanism capable of information transfer at a staggering rate & unimaginable reach. Communicational boundaries were literally erased, as people all across the glorious globe could now be connected with one another with essentially no effort at all. Once mankind truly had a grasp on the Internets full potential, nothing was safe from it's voracious ability. I seriously doubt that anyone could've foreseen the effect the Web would have on the entertainment industry, much less civilization as we knew it. Experts once thought that, with the up rise of the 'Nets, the music & movie companies would fall under, due to the 'Nets sheer strength. In theory, one would be hard pressed not to agree. Any & everything a person could want had become available online.
The 'Net created introverts where there were none previously. Shopping, entertainment, social activity, porn, all available at one's fingertips [||]. But, as the smoke clears, the industry that seems to have sustained the most injury is music. Downloads, file shares, album leaks, all play a part in the customers willingness to abandon physical LP's & opt for digital downloads, illegal or otherwise. & who would ignore such luxury? When I was younger, a trip anywhere required 5-7 CDs (at least!) & my Discman, regardless of my destination. Those of us who took our music seriously back then would even shell out upwards of a hundred bucks for the anti-shock or non-skip models. Now, a little bitty box can adamantly hold the majority of my musical library, with me not so much as setting foot inside of a record store. & if you want to get dry snitch-y about it, without so much as spending a dollar, either. The consumer, being catered to, never stopped to think about the artist, & how our decisions may effect them. Which brings us to today's flailing music market, where yesterdays mega-star is only moderately compensated & easily dismissed, regardless of talent. Not only can anybody "produce" an album, but the playing field has been leveled, & accessibility & visibility aren't the parameters of success any longer. YouTube (& the like) can & will make or break a nigga these days.
Now, thanks to the 'Nets, any music, especially the wack, overrated, unnecessary kind, is available on demand. This has the record industry--especially Hip Hop--in a frenzy. Theoretically, there's no reason to buy music anymore. Albums get preleased(c) before their time, & unless you're Jay-Z, Eminem or Black Eyed Peas, the amount of sales is affected. Although that sounds bad, it's actually not. With all music being basically free, we, the fans/consumers are able to sample what's out there & only focus on what we like.
I don't have to second guess ripping Mos Def's latest offering, right after I sneaked a peek at why even Combat Jack likes Gucci Mane. I can find out what the big deal is with Pac Div just as quickly as I can download (then trash bin) Lil Boosie. Point is, no star shines brighter than the next, unless we decide that. & with the opportunity to sample a little bit of everything on the veritable buffet table, the truly talented will undoubtedly be pushed to the forefront. & once CD's become completely obsolete (which they will--mark my words), the industry will be forced to start from scratch; more skill, less marketing.
While this may have an adverse effect on the amount of wack juice that we get exposed to, it also eliminates the radio-factor & let's the listener be in total control of the audio experience. Honestly, the only times I even think about radio is on holidays, to create a festive atmosphere for whatever the hell it is we're celebrating. I think that we've all concluded how much of a dichotomy the 'Net is. So, why not love it as much as we hate it, like an alcoholic parent.
[tony's note: the same evolution is happening to libraries as well. go figure...]
Showing posts with label music. Show all posts
Showing posts with label music. Show all posts
Tuesday, November 24, 2009
Sunday, July 19, 2009
Hip Hop 101 (summer school class)
Hip Hop is dead........
I would've figured that phrase ran its course by now. No Dice. Every time some cat praises Soulja Boy for his musical accomplishments, 18,000 out-of-work myspace rappers sound off in unison that he's the reason they gets no shine. As if their lack of skill isn't the culprit. Or their complacent, arrogant anonymity is working in their favor. Too many indians, in my opinion. Might be time to clean house, Trail of Tears-style. & coming in a close second to the deceased Hip Hop propaganda, is the sentiment that it needs to be saved. Which, to me, is equally as confusing. How? From who(m)?
See, at first, Hip Hop had no ties to the secular world. It was celebration music, only available only to card-carrying members, that eventually picked up steam & became scantily rebellious as it partied the night away in abandoned buildings & city parks. Once that introductory crowd had gotten comfortable with its care-free, disco-inspired roots, we began to see that we had a voice. Not only one for house party call & response, but one to be reckoned with on a social level. Yes, motherfuckers started hearing us. Then, it became obvious to all with eyes & ears that we weren't going nowhere.
In a gradual, modest change of direction, it became war music. Something to fight the powers that be to. Like so many poets/radicals before us, we rallied against our oppressors & battled The Machine to be recognized, as a people. Just as Martin would have continued to do if he hadn't been assassinated mid-struggle.
As we began to gain momentum, we became hungrier, demanding more fuel for the movement. We couldn't just fight the power, endlessly, without some sort of entertainment between fist-pumping & chest-pounding. & we'd had enough of their stories; by now, it was time for our own. Tales from the hood. Around the way stories that we could relate to, in our language. The language of Hip Hop.
After so much entertainment, though, we needed a dose of reality. In retrospect, we essentially chose to keep it real, as opposed to keeping it right. Be it positive or negative, our narratives carried on with the traditions of African folklore, creating legends & myths, angels & demons, to keep us occupied & away from the very same realities we existed in. &, at the same time educating each other about our perceptions & experiences.
Now, we find ourselves in the midst of renaissance. Passing of the torch. Changing of the guards. Today's Hip Hop is spearheaded by change, not unlike the change brought forth with the inauguration of Barack Hussein Obama. The revolution has revolved, & the circles are now straight lines, pushing forward. Evolution. Adaption. The time for us to remain the same never existed; we'd just created our own optical illusions with redundancy.
The next stages of Hip Hop will undoubtedly be challenging, if only for the fact that transformation isn't easily digested. It means leaving behind stuff we've learned, people we've met, all things familiar. Its time for a leap of faith, in hopes that the youth are truly our future, in Hip Hop & beyond. Whether or not we agree with the philosophies, accept the costumes or subscribe to the new belief system is a moot point. Very soon, tomorrow will be today & since we can't beat 'em, we might as well join 'em. Now, the old(er) heads who were there at Hip Hop's inception can sit back & reap the benefits of a crop well planted.
I take this shit seriously. Long Live Hip Hop.
I would've figured that phrase ran its course by now. No Dice. Every time some cat praises Soulja Boy for his musical accomplishments, 18,000 out-of-work myspace rappers sound off in unison that he's the reason they gets no shine. As if their lack of skill isn't the culprit. Or their complacent, arrogant anonymity is working in their favor. Too many indians, in my opinion. Might be time to clean house, Trail of Tears-style. & coming in a close second to the deceased Hip Hop propaganda, is the sentiment that it needs to be saved. Which, to me, is equally as confusing. How? From who(m)?
See, at first, Hip Hop had no ties to the secular world. It was celebration music, only available only to card-carrying members, that eventually picked up steam & became scantily rebellious as it partied the night away in abandoned buildings & city parks. Once that introductory crowd had gotten comfortable with its care-free, disco-inspired roots, we began to see that we had a voice. Not only one for house party call & response, but one to be reckoned with on a social level. Yes, motherfuckers started hearing us. Then, it became obvious to all with eyes & ears that we weren't going nowhere.
In a gradual, modest change of direction, it became war music. Something to fight the powers that be to. Like so many poets/radicals before us, we rallied against our oppressors & battled The Machine to be recognized, as a people. Just as Martin would have continued to do if he hadn't been assassinated mid-struggle.
As we began to gain momentum, we became hungrier, demanding more fuel for the movement. We couldn't just fight the power, endlessly, without some sort of entertainment between fist-pumping & chest-pounding. & we'd had enough of their stories; by now, it was time for our own. Tales from the hood. Around the way stories that we could relate to, in our language. The language of Hip Hop.
After so much entertainment, though, we needed a dose of reality. In retrospect, we essentially chose to keep it real, as opposed to keeping it right. Be it positive or negative, our narratives carried on with the traditions of African folklore, creating legends & myths, angels & demons, to keep us occupied & away from the very same realities we existed in. &, at the same time educating each other about our perceptions & experiences.
Now, we find ourselves in the midst of renaissance. Passing of the torch. Changing of the guards. Today's Hip Hop is spearheaded by change, not unlike the change brought forth with the inauguration of Barack Hussein Obama. The revolution has revolved, & the circles are now straight lines, pushing forward. Evolution. Adaption. The time for us to remain the same never existed; we'd just created our own optical illusions with redundancy.
The next stages of Hip Hop will undoubtedly be challenging, if only for the fact that transformation isn't easily digested. It means leaving behind stuff we've learned, people we've met, all things familiar. Its time for a leap of faith, in hopes that the youth are truly our future, in Hip Hop & beyond. Whether or not we agree with the philosophies, accept the costumes or subscribe to the new belief system is a moot point. Very soon, tomorrow will be today & since we can't beat 'em, we might as well join 'em. Now, the old(er) heads who were there at Hip Hop's inception can sit back & reap the benefits of a crop well planted.
I take this shit seriously. Long Live Hip Hop.
Friday, May 15, 2009
West Coast vs. East Coast>>>Hip Hop Today
Rest in peace Tupac A. Shakur. Rest in peace Christopher Wallace Sr.
With all due respect out of the way, I miss that coastal rivalry. True, we lost the two spokespersons from each coast, but I'll be damned if we didn't get some good hip hop out of it. The trade off doesn't balance out, but somethings in life have to happen. In most arguments, the blame falls on P. Diddy & Marion Knight alike. Look at both of them now. If you're a believer in Karma, who do you think REALLY started it all?
Most (who're old enough to remember) will agree that the 90's were the best years for rap. That was a more distinct time in Hip Hop music. At a glance, one could tell where a person was from, rappers & civilians alike. If the appearance didn't clue you in, their speak gave them away. Baggy jeans, a Carhartt hoodie & Timbs, you knew automatically that he was from somewhere on the East Coast. No questions, no confusion. If you saw Dickies, White T-shirt/pendleton & Chuck Taylor's, no doubt dude was from the West Coast (Cali, usually). Not to discount the mid west or down south, but back then they made a different kind of noise. But, they did make noise none the less. The music was as different as the uniforms.
In the "Golden Era", it was all about territory. All about representation. With this state of mind in full swing, it was only a matter of time before the two biggest gangs in hip hop, Death Row & Bad Boy bumped heads. It stated with the predestined pairing of 'Pac & Biggie, but that's a story for another blog.
Words like "finna" only got as far as the mid west, before it stopped. East coast cats wouldn't dare defile their slanguage with such bamma grammar. Nor would they sport the footwear that Snoop made look so fly. They were about their winter wear, triple gooses & various sports garbs. & the music was a clear reflection of the organized confusion that was their lives. You could hear the hunger & thirst in their speech. No doubt, you know a East Coast cat when you saw/heard him.
Out West, it was all about affiliation, colors & sets. You might not have banged, but your brother did. Or your uncle. The only team one could rep was the one connected to their turf. My dad refused to let me wear Mariners or North Carolina gear growing up. He was smarter than most Dads. The bustle of the hustle wasn't the same as the East Coast, but it was a bustle even still. In the traditional laid-back attitude California is known for, block tales & hood stories were painted vividly. Street survival. Some even called it "Gangsta rap".
In the midst of the whole West vs. East conflict, the respective artists went out of their way to make music for their hoods. Mobb Deep, NaS, Wu-Tang, & dozens of others repped the NY sound without fillers. No bounce, no snap, no funky worm reconstructions. Strictly boom-baps & sampled loops. Then you had the bassline heavy, funk-inspired synths of the West Coast. Snoop, Tha Dogg Pound, Ice Cube, to name a few, were determined to separate G-funk from whatever it was that you listened to.
Think about it; when people say the 90's was THAT time in hip hop, this is why.
Unlike now. Now, everybody is a clone of somebody who's copying someone else who stole another guy's whole steelo. Originality & individuality died, not Hip Hop. The few who do think outside the box may as well be trapped in one, according to the general consensus. But basically, if you've seen one rapper today, you've seen them all. Most songs sound so similar nowadays, that it's not even really important what state is tattooed on their backs. All that matters are record sales. "It ain't where you from, it's where you at" has never rang more true than this very moment.
YouTube & Myspace aren't helping matters either.
I remember when rap dudes would say they don't listen to other rap songs, especially while they're recording their own. Now, scouting the competition is mandatory, like an NBA game. I wonder if Clint Black has to know what single Kerry Underwood released before he decides on his?
I'm sure somebody saw this coming but didn't get the memo out fast enough. Assimilation usually results in forced commonality. "Why be different if noone else is?" You can literally cut & paste hip hop artists with one another, & the fans wouldn't be the wiser.
So, the next time someone says "the 90's was the best decade in rap music", ask them why? The music or the culture?
Both answers would be right.
With all due respect out of the way, I miss that coastal rivalry. True, we lost the two spokespersons from each coast, but I'll be damned if we didn't get some good hip hop out of it. The trade off doesn't balance out, but somethings in life have to happen. In most arguments, the blame falls on P. Diddy & Marion Knight alike. Look at both of them now. If you're a believer in Karma, who do you think REALLY started it all?
Most (who're old enough to remember) will agree that the 90's were the best years for rap. That was a more distinct time in Hip Hop music. At a glance, one could tell where a person was from, rappers & civilians alike. If the appearance didn't clue you in, their speak gave them away. Baggy jeans, a Carhartt hoodie & Timbs, you knew automatically that he was from somewhere on the East Coast. No questions, no confusion. If you saw Dickies, White T-shirt/pendleton & Chuck Taylor's, no doubt dude was from the West Coast (Cali, usually). Not to discount the mid west or down south, but back then they made a different kind of noise. But, they did make noise none the less. The music was as different as the uniforms.
In the "Golden Era", it was all about territory. All about representation. With this state of mind in full swing, it was only a matter of time before the two biggest gangs in hip hop, Death Row & Bad Boy bumped heads. It stated with the predestined pairing of 'Pac & Biggie, but that's a story for another blog.
Words like "finna" only got as far as the mid west, before it stopped. East coast cats wouldn't dare defile their slanguage with such bamma grammar. Nor would they sport the footwear that Snoop made look so fly. They were about their winter wear, triple gooses & various sports garbs. & the music was a clear reflection of the organized confusion that was their lives. You could hear the hunger & thirst in their speech. No doubt, you know a East Coast cat when you saw/heard him.
Out West, it was all about affiliation, colors & sets. You might not have banged, but your brother did. Or your uncle. The only team one could rep was the one connected to their turf. My dad refused to let me wear Mariners or North Carolina gear growing up. He was smarter than most Dads. The bustle of the hustle wasn't the same as the East Coast, but it was a bustle even still. In the traditional laid-back attitude California is known for, block tales & hood stories were painted vividly. Street survival. Some even called it "Gangsta rap".
In the midst of the whole West vs. East conflict, the respective artists went out of their way to make music for their hoods. Mobb Deep, NaS, Wu-Tang, & dozens of others repped the NY sound without fillers. No bounce, no snap, no funky worm reconstructions. Strictly boom-baps & sampled loops. Then you had the bassline heavy, funk-inspired synths of the West Coast. Snoop, Tha Dogg Pound, Ice Cube, to name a few, were determined to separate G-funk from whatever it was that you listened to.
Think about it; when people say the 90's was THAT time in hip hop, this is why.
Unlike now. Now, everybody is a clone of somebody who's copying someone else who stole another guy's whole steelo. Originality & individuality died, not Hip Hop. The few who do think outside the box may as well be trapped in one, according to the general consensus. But basically, if you've seen one rapper today, you've seen them all. Most songs sound so similar nowadays, that it's not even really important what state is tattooed on their backs. All that matters are record sales. "It ain't where you from, it's where you at" has never rang more true than this very moment.
YouTube & Myspace aren't helping matters either.
I remember when rap dudes would say they don't listen to other rap songs, especially while they're recording their own. Now, scouting the competition is mandatory, like an NBA game. I wonder if Clint Black has to know what single Kerry Underwood released before he decides on his?
I'm sure somebody saw this coming but didn't get the memo out fast enough. Assimilation usually results in forced commonality. "Why be different if noone else is?" You can literally cut & paste hip hop artists with one another, & the fans wouldn't be the wiser.
So, the next time someone says "the 90's was the best decade in rap music", ask them why? The music or the culture?
Both answers would be right.
Wednesday, May 13, 2009
"See, what had happened was...."
We can all agree that Hip Hop has kind of fizzled to a stand still, can't we?
The dinosaurs of Boring Rap have let out their dying roars & apparently it hasn't moved a soul. Much less a party. We can blame it on various factors, or a cacophony of them all, but the fact remains that the newness of our beloved culture's soundtrack has worn off.
At times, it would appear that without asinine beefs, mediocre filler-turned-singles, & WSHH, hip hop would soon become what Jazz became to our grandfathers. A watered down, over-saturated, poor example of the genius it was once facilitated.
Fif is all but musically dead in the water (at least as of right this moment). The proverbial elephant in the room (pun intended) has withstood the onslaught known as Curtis Jackson, only to get pushed to the wayside a week after dropping the most anticipated (?) album of the first half. Lil' Wayne has begun his migration to the other side (sonically, not sexually as some think). Jay-Z is at home trying to get Bee pregnant. Lucky Bastard. NaS is on his way to baby momma #2, & while we all know that pain makes for the best inspiration, he has bigger things on his plate than satisfying our need for good Hip Hop.
Now, there's only so much we can do with a severe creative drought staring us right in our Hata-Blockaz.
What we can do is hope that the impending wave of creative juices [||] washes away the bad taste left behind from a year of garbage music. With Kissanova's album making some relevant & much needed noise, & Eminem d/b/a Slim Shady's latest release getting ready to touchdown, we can only pray that the next batch of MC's follows the path being laid.
As he did last year, Dwayne Carter seems to be pioneering the next phase of Rap music, stretching it beyond the boundaries set by his multi-million selling Tha Carter 3. Kanye's been dropping bits & pieces of a post-808's man on a mission via guest spots on various songs sans Auto-Tune. Alongside Slaughterhouse's Joe Budden, Joell Ortiz, Crooked I & Royce da 5'9", the "hip" may soon be rejoining the "hop" of our movement. Stars on the rise, Charles Hamilton, Kid Cudi, B.o.B, Drake & Curren$y are slowly but surely availing their promising talents, giving less & less life to the phrase "hip hop is dead". Even Asher Roth is giving hip hop a good look right now, depending on your vantage point.
Whatever it was that first pulled "you" into Hip Hop, be it Run DMC, NWA, Redman, Fat Joe, Common, Luke Skyywalker, UGK, rest assured that the circle of mediocrity has just about reached the rollover point. Everything happens in cycles, & we've seemingly reached the maximum capacity of meh we can tolerate.
See, what had happened was, Hip hop went to the hospital, because it was sick. It stayed for longer than we thought, so we assumed it was dead. But, on the contrary, it was receiving the biggest make over ever. We've suffered through our SB Tellem's, Flo Rida's, D4L's & the ilk.
A new day is finally on the horizon. & it looks as if the operation is almost complete.
The dinosaurs of Boring Rap have let out their dying roars & apparently it hasn't moved a soul. Much less a party. We can blame it on various factors, or a cacophony of them all, but the fact remains that the newness of our beloved culture's soundtrack has worn off.
At times, it would appear that without asinine beefs, mediocre filler-turned-singles, & WSHH, hip hop would soon become what Jazz became to our grandfathers. A watered down, over-saturated, poor example of the genius it was once facilitated.
Fif is all but musically dead in the water (at least as of right this moment). The proverbial elephant in the room (pun intended) has withstood the onslaught known as Curtis Jackson, only to get pushed to the wayside a week after dropping the most anticipated (?) album of the first half. Lil' Wayne has begun his migration to the other side (sonically, not sexually as some think). Jay-Z is at home trying to get Bee pregnant. Lucky Bastard. NaS is on his way to baby momma #2, & while we all know that pain makes for the best inspiration, he has bigger things on his plate than satisfying our need for good Hip Hop.
Now, there's only so much we can do with a severe creative drought staring us right in our Hata-Blockaz.
What we can do is hope that the impending wave of creative juices [||] washes away the bad taste left behind from a year of garbage music. With Kissanova's album making some relevant & much needed noise, & Eminem d/b/a Slim Shady's latest release getting ready to touchdown, we can only pray that the next batch of MC's follows the path being laid.
As he did last year, Dwayne Carter seems to be pioneering the next phase of Rap music, stretching it beyond the boundaries set by his multi-million selling Tha Carter 3. Kanye's been dropping bits & pieces of a post-808's man on a mission via guest spots on various songs sans Auto-Tune. Alongside Slaughterhouse's Joe Budden, Joell Ortiz, Crooked I & Royce da 5'9", the "hip" may soon be rejoining the "hop" of our movement. Stars on the rise, Charles Hamilton, Kid Cudi, B.o.B, Drake & Curren$y are slowly but surely availing their promising talents, giving less & less life to the phrase "hip hop is dead". Even Asher Roth is giving hip hop a good look right now, depending on your vantage point.
Whatever it was that first pulled "you" into Hip Hop, be it Run DMC, NWA, Redman, Fat Joe, Common, Luke Skyywalker, UGK, rest assured that the circle of mediocrity has just about reached the rollover point. Everything happens in cycles, & we've seemingly reached the maximum capacity of meh we can tolerate.
See, what had happened was, Hip hop went to the hospital, because it was sick. It stayed for longer than we thought, so we assumed it was dead. But, on the contrary, it was receiving the biggest make over ever. We've suffered through our SB Tellem's, Flo Rida's, D4L's & the ilk.
A new day is finally on the horizon. & it looks as if the operation is almost complete.
Wednesday, April 29, 2009
The Prom Queen Has A Hot Revolver!
I just bought I brand new pair of Skull Candy earphones yesterday. Actually, they're a replacement for the first pair that I blew out. I like my music real loud. So, ceremoniously, I spent the majority of last night raping the Net for it's free wares. Like any fun-loving American should do from time to time. Usually, when I'm on download mode I don't listen to any of the songs until I'm satisfied or I fall asleep in my recliner. But, like my loud music, I love coffee, maybe too much, so a full day's consumption had me too wired to sleep.
Somewhere between my wife's snoring & the bird's morning tweet, I ran through the entire catalog of joints I already had & those I currently ripped. &, to my shock & awe, Lil Wayne was a good 40% of my music. I didn't realize (remember) how much I liked him until almost every other random track had some type of Wayne affiliation. It started with "Prom Queen", then "Hot Revolver". Then backtracked to "P.M.W." to "Go D.J." & some older songs I had previously that he featured on. I started thinking about all the times I cracked wise on dude; the "Marilyn Monroe" stud, the Frankenstein scar tat on his forehead, his liquid jeans (whadup Kay Bee!?), his dreads that look as if they're ready to awaken & crawl out from underneath his filthy headgear, etc. But, all that is just comedic relief to how uncomfortable I feel when I look at him. He's a scary looking guy, more so than even Michael Jackson himself.
Yet & still, he's a creative son of a bitch. That is fact-based, undeniable truth. From where he started with Hot Boyz to his explosion of a solo career to him veering off into the unknown with Tha Carter 3, to his upcoming alternative (some call it rock, but obviously they need to step their genre knowledge up) release, homie gives you music to listen to. & after all, isn't that what WE pay THEIR salaries for?
I've never supported a rapper because I thought he was handsome [||], or because I had an interest in his views on global warming & terrorism. I buy the album because I need something to wash dishes to. Or to preoccupy me between meals. My taste in music grows in leaps & bounds yearly; most rap dudes been muttering the same rhetoric for years, thus I don't look/listen for something new, per se. Now, I'm interested in the song structure itself: instrumentation, subject matter, cohesion, musical personality if you will. Wayne doesn't let me down, even as he moans into a vocorder about girl problems & drug addiction. There's an undeniable passion to what he does, even if one doesn't agree with his methods.
To all those that "hate" Wayne for one reason or the next, first I ask that you find the best blaze in your hood, put the kids to bed, roll up & zone out to Tha Carter 1&2. 3 is purely optional. Then, if it's accessible, download "Prom Queen" & "Hot Revolver". Now granted, the weed may/may not help the situation, but it should remind you why for a whole year (2007-most of 2008) he was the B.R.A. (If you know that acronym, you can't deny what I'm saying). Now, he just might possibly be the posterboy for what Hip Hop is to become, like it or not.
Unadulterated artistic expression by any means necessary.
Forget the guitar, the hideous outfits & ridiculously ignorant talk show speeches.
Listen to the music.
Somewhere between my wife's snoring & the bird's morning tweet, I ran through the entire catalog of joints I already had & those I currently ripped. &, to my shock & awe, Lil Wayne was a good 40% of my music. I didn't realize (remember) how much I liked him until almost every other random track had some type of Wayne affiliation. It started with "Prom Queen", then "Hot Revolver". Then backtracked to "P.M.W." to "Go D.J." & some older songs I had previously that he featured on. I started thinking about all the times I cracked wise on dude; the "Marilyn Monroe" stud, the Frankenstein scar tat on his forehead, his liquid jeans (whadup Kay Bee!?), his dreads that look as if they're ready to awaken & crawl out from underneath his filthy headgear, etc. But, all that is just comedic relief to how uncomfortable I feel when I look at him. He's a scary looking guy, more so than even Michael Jackson himself.
Yet & still, he's a creative son of a bitch. That is fact-based, undeniable truth. From where he started with Hot Boyz to his explosion of a solo career to him veering off into the unknown with Tha Carter 3, to his upcoming alternative (some call it rock, but obviously they need to step their genre knowledge up) release, homie gives you music to listen to. & after all, isn't that what WE pay THEIR salaries for?
I've never supported a rapper because I thought he was handsome [||], or because I had an interest in his views on global warming & terrorism. I buy the album because I need something to wash dishes to. Or to preoccupy me between meals. My taste in music grows in leaps & bounds yearly; most rap dudes been muttering the same rhetoric for years, thus I don't look/listen for something new, per se. Now, I'm interested in the song structure itself: instrumentation, subject matter, cohesion, musical personality if you will. Wayne doesn't let me down, even as he moans into a vocorder about girl problems & drug addiction. There's an undeniable passion to what he does, even if one doesn't agree with his methods.
To all those that "hate" Wayne for one reason or the next, first I ask that you find the best blaze in your hood, put the kids to bed, roll up & zone out to Tha Carter 1&2. 3 is purely optional. Then, if it's accessible, download "Prom Queen" & "Hot Revolver". Now granted, the weed may/may not help the situation, but it should remind you why for a whole year (2007-most of 2008) he was the B.R.A. (If you know that acronym, you can't deny what I'm saying). Now, he just might possibly be the posterboy for what Hip Hop is to become, like it or not.
Unadulterated artistic expression by any means necessary.
Forget the guitar, the hideous outfits & ridiculously ignorant talk show speeches.
Listen to the music.
Wednesday, April 8, 2009
R.I.P.?
So, for some years now, I've been hearing the repeated chant of everyone's favorite phrase; "Hip Hop is Dead". When, exactly, did this event take place?
If it DID occur, I'm pissed at whoever organized the funeral, because I damn sure wasn't there. How come TG didn't get invited to the largest celebration's of life & death of arguably the most awesome life force ever? I've been a part of it since the late 70's. Damnit, I deserved to pay my last respects in person, more so than a lot of other "fans". I'd heard rumors swirling for a couple of decades, but I didn't know for a fact that it was even sick. I knew something wasn't right with it, but I never imagined that Death lurked on the horizon. They say the good die young & by that mantra, it all makes sense. Yet again, I ask you, when did Hip Hop die?
Was it when Run DMC performed on stage with Aerosmith, forever fusing Rock & Rap? Though the two genres are distinctly different, they have more similarities than most choose to acknowledge. "Walk This Way" introduced the two genres to each other, & they have been seemingly inseparable ever since. Just ask The Beastie Boys.
Maybe it was the exact point that Death Row Records meandered it's way onto every video show, radio station & boomin' system for years, audaciously challenging the notion that good Hip Hop can't come outta the West coast.
What if mainstream America really did have it's vengeful sights set on taking yet another one of "our" creations, distorting it for their own purposes & force feeding back to the unknowing public. Unless I'm mistaken, Public Enemy warned us about such events in the late 80's. Many, many moons later, watered down lyrics & subpar soundscapes are tossed at us like monkeys with their poop. & to this day, most of our heroes STILL don't appear on no stamp.
Perhaps the first time you heard Soulja Boy you also heard a trumpet playing that soldier funeral song. Some go as far as to finger him as the last nail in the coffin, Superman dance & all. As fickle & tempered as hip hop fans are, they all seem to be in compliance about his house nigger antics spelling certain doom to our beloved culture.
& even still, the hipster onslaught is viewed as the last chapter in a book of meteoric rise & fall. Rap as we know it has been face-lifted, rearranged & shoved into a pair of liquid jeans & tie-dyed muscle shirts to the dismay of a nation.
For what it's worth, I think Hip Hop is an animal of change; a chameleon of artistic expression that one can never truly label. Constant change as opposed to permanent expiration. An energy like that can't ever be extinguished.
& if the "dead" statement holds any truth, then surely there's plenty of fault to be spread around. The death of Record Labels. The birth of easily accessible Internets. The influx of mediocrity and gimmick. The insatiable greed & lust for dividends. The miseducation of a people. The proverbial list is endless................
If Hip Hop is dead, as so many detractors keep lamenting, then when did it happen? & who's head is to be had?
If it DID occur, I'm pissed at whoever organized the funeral, because I damn sure wasn't there. How come TG didn't get invited to the largest celebration's of life & death of arguably the most awesome life force ever? I've been a part of it since the late 70's. Damnit, I deserved to pay my last respects in person, more so than a lot of other "fans". I'd heard rumors swirling for a couple of decades, but I didn't know for a fact that it was even sick. I knew something wasn't right with it, but I never imagined that Death lurked on the horizon. They say the good die young & by that mantra, it all makes sense. Yet again, I ask you, when did Hip Hop die?
Was it when Run DMC performed on stage with Aerosmith, forever fusing Rock & Rap? Though the two genres are distinctly different, they have more similarities than most choose to acknowledge. "Walk This Way" introduced the two genres to each other, & they have been seemingly inseparable ever since. Just ask The Beastie Boys.
Maybe it was the exact point that Death Row Records meandered it's way onto every video show, radio station & boomin' system for years, audaciously challenging the notion that good Hip Hop can't come outta the West coast.
What if mainstream America really did have it's vengeful sights set on taking yet another one of "our" creations, distorting it for their own purposes & force feeding back to the unknowing public. Unless I'm mistaken, Public Enemy warned us about such events in the late 80's. Many, many moons later, watered down lyrics & subpar soundscapes are tossed at us like monkeys with their poop. & to this day, most of our heroes STILL don't appear on no stamp.
Perhaps the first time you heard Soulja Boy you also heard a trumpet playing that soldier funeral song. Some go as far as to finger him as the last nail in the coffin, Superman dance & all. As fickle & tempered as hip hop fans are, they all seem to be in compliance about his house nigger antics spelling certain doom to our beloved culture.
& even still, the hipster onslaught is viewed as the last chapter in a book of meteoric rise & fall. Rap as we know it has been face-lifted, rearranged & shoved into a pair of liquid jeans & tie-dyed muscle shirts to the dismay of a nation.
For what it's worth, I think Hip Hop is an animal of change; a chameleon of artistic expression that one can never truly label. Constant change as opposed to permanent expiration. An energy like that can't ever be extinguished.
& if the "dead" statement holds any truth, then surely there's plenty of fault to be spread around. The death of Record Labels. The birth of easily accessible Internets. The influx of mediocrity and gimmick. The insatiable greed & lust for dividends. The miseducation of a people. The proverbial list is endless................
If Hip Hop is dead, as so many detractors keep lamenting, then when did it happen? & who's head is to be had?
Tuesday, March 31, 2009
The (cyber)World Is A Ghetto
I was tooling through the slums of World Star Hip Hop the other day & when I was done gazing at the wondrous peaks & valleys of Ms. LaStarya & mindlessly partaking in the gratuitous amounts of nigganomics & coontrocities, I realized something; this is the urban legend that ignorance is built upon. A utopia of shuck & jive unlike any other known to Niggerdom. If I had no other avenue to which my "hip hop" sweet tooth was to be satisfied by, I'd be assed out, misguided, bamboozled, hoodwinked, etc.
Every other recording is a beef. Or a response to a beef. Or an outsiders point of view of some other beef. Or some lame duck has-been being interviewed about their pointless objectivity towards this weeks dead horse. As if hip hop needs more niggas dishing out opinions & personal philosophies. Somewhere in the muck & mire of testosterone, one can occasionally luck up on some funny ass mishap video, scantily clad thoroughbred or random dude freestyling in his mom's living room about how many ways to Sunday he'll blow holes through you. No Dice. If I want to see babies lip syncing the words to "We are the World", or some dude being dragged through a mud pit on the back of a Chevy pick-up, I'll visit YouTube on my lunch hour. I don't believe that WSHH intended to become the ghetto of the 'Nets, but it's now what BET once was between the wee hours of 2-4 a.m. 24 hours a day.
& correct me if I'm wrong, but are there ever any other races featured besides black folks? I can't recall ever stumbling over a white guy strumming his guitar or showcasing his kickflip/railslide prowess. I might have come across a gyrating white chick or two, but in that case the last thing I was looking for was skin tone. The videos, professional or user submitted, all look the same anyway; thousands of thugged out blunt rollers wearing eye-covering baseball hats & Elton John amounts of jewelry with the requisite unemployed pole straddler. & with rap music becoming so complacent & unoriginal, I usually don't even look at the artist's names unless there's valid reason to waste my time. Cats can talk all the "hipsters must die" shit they want, but that's the last thing I see on World Star. I wouldn't mind the hippie hop interlude to break up all the threats of violence, acts of stupidity & stretch-marked boobery.
Remember that episode of Dave Chapelle when the internet was a shopping mall? He never visted WSHH. It would've been niggas standing around smoking trees, watching stripper's bounce they assets for quarters while cats were getting knocked out to hip hop fight songs. The South Side of the mall, of course.
The unexplainable part about it is that I can't turn away. It's like a slow-motion car wreck. Or better yet, unprotected sex; once you start, it's hard to stop. Maybe they put crack in the transmission. Or the logo has hypnotic qualities. Whatever it is, I feel sorry for the impressionable tweenager who lives by the unremarkable standard set by this site.
I would hate for some adolescent from Zumunda to find WSHH & think that this is the best that American hip hop has to offer. It's no wonder that foreign countries are (& have been) so quick to blame the good ol' USA for the social problems they have. As far as OUR presentation goes, look at Exhibit A. There are dozens of good hip hop sites that give you the full gamut of the culture, & in case you've been under a rock or in a cave, WSHH ain't one of them.
Every other recording is a beef. Or a response to a beef. Or an outsiders point of view of some other beef. Or some lame duck has-been being interviewed about their pointless objectivity towards this weeks dead horse. As if hip hop needs more niggas dishing out opinions & personal philosophies. Somewhere in the muck & mire of testosterone, one can occasionally luck up on some funny ass mishap video, scantily clad thoroughbred or random dude freestyling in his mom's living room about how many ways to Sunday he'll blow holes through you. No Dice. If I want to see babies lip syncing the words to "We are the World", or some dude being dragged through a mud pit on the back of a Chevy pick-up, I'll visit YouTube on my lunch hour. I don't believe that WSHH intended to become the ghetto of the 'Nets, but it's now what BET once was between the wee hours of 2-4 a.m. 24 hours a day.
& correct me if I'm wrong, but are there ever any other races featured besides black folks? I can't recall ever stumbling over a white guy strumming his guitar or showcasing his kickflip/railslide prowess. I might have come across a gyrating white chick or two, but in that case the last thing I was looking for was skin tone. The videos, professional or user submitted, all look the same anyway; thousands of thugged out blunt rollers wearing eye-covering baseball hats & Elton John amounts of jewelry with the requisite unemployed pole straddler. & with rap music becoming so complacent & unoriginal, I usually don't even look at the artist's names unless there's valid reason to waste my time. Cats can talk all the "hipsters must die" shit they want, but that's the last thing I see on World Star. I wouldn't mind the hippie hop interlude to break up all the threats of violence, acts of stupidity & stretch-marked boobery.
Remember that episode of Dave Chapelle when the internet was a shopping mall? He never visted WSHH. It would've been niggas standing around smoking trees, watching stripper's bounce they assets for quarters while cats were getting knocked out to hip hop fight songs. The South Side of the mall, of course.
The unexplainable part about it is that I can't turn away. It's like a slow-motion car wreck. Or better yet, unprotected sex; once you start, it's hard to stop. Maybe they put crack in the transmission. Or the logo has hypnotic qualities. Whatever it is, I feel sorry for the impressionable tweenager who lives by the unremarkable standard set by this site.
I would hate for some adolescent from Zumunda to find WSHH & think that this is the best that American hip hop has to offer. It's no wonder that foreign countries are (& have been) so quick to blame the good ol' USA for the social problems they have. As far as OUR presentation goes, look at Exhibit A. There are dozens of good hip hop sites that give you the full gamut of the culture, & in case you've been under a rock or in a cave, WSHH ain't one of them.
Monday, March 23, 2009
So you think you can rap?
So you think you can rap? Who cares?
There's a million eager young bucks who can boast the same thing. MC's are a dime a dozen. Everbody & their cousin has a studio, with some off the wall in-house producer willing to bet the farm that they can end your favorite rapper's career with little effort. They're floating aimlessly through Myspace & broadcasting in "real time" on WSHH &YouTube, giving the listening public 99 reasons why they are the shit (no Lil' Wayne) & nobody else is. If everyone's the best rapper alive, then what's the seventh degree of separation among the lot?
Is it the lyrics? In todays lukewarm market, credible skill is an asset easily overlooked. Where it was once the selling point of an artist's package, it's now dismissed & unnecessary. Let's all take a moment to thank the good folks at Soundscan. The focus has shifted from lyrical prowess to song structure &/or hook repetition. With that formula in hand, one can easily craft the next sing-song summer hit with no song writing talent whatsoever. Needless to say the industry is flooded with rappers of this ilk.
Is it the marketability? The MC's back story is now as important, if not more so, as the content of the music itself. Jay-Z inadvertently coined the phrase "we don't believe you, you need more people", unaware that it would soon become a mantra for all rap cats to live by. Hip hop heads were satisfied with a story line, fictitious or otherwise if the soundscape was equally as compelling. It wasn't that they might have been lying (on not), but more that we were entertained for however long they held our attention. If you found out some information on said artist that backed up his verbal illustrations, it was a bonus, & added to their mystique. Now, if a rapper says it, it better be true, or risk humiliation & a decrease in fan base activity. In order to sell albums, there must be a demographic to sell to. Choose wisely.
Is it the business-end? Shopping artists as a brand is far for new, but when did it become mandatory? When Chubb Rock wasn't "treatin' them right", he could have easily opted to sell big & tall menswear on the side. But, he never did. Big Daddy Kane could have become the spokesperson for Smooth Operator condoms, & Kool G Rap might've started a line of Ill Street fedora's & patent leather wingtips. Those business deals never materialized because that wasn't what the art was about. It was about the music, not the hustle & it's spoils. Now, a full fledged marketing campaign must accompany any artist's complete album, Myspace hits numbers & possible product development. Be prepared to have an action figure made in your likeness, or suffer the consequences.
Is it the image? Image is everything. There's a reason why a lot of rappers look like rappers, be it rough, rugged & raw or pretty boy facade. To an extent, one must look the part, especially in a field so rife with actors. But, the old adage says "never judge a book by it's cover". Take away the menacing, gold-covered snarls & the overly extensive skin ink, & what's left is the ability (or lack of) to rap, plain & simple. That can be a negative for the guy who simply yearns to rap & not star in a movie or be the face for an athletics apparel company, but it can be a positive for the guy who could care less about the quality of music & who's in it only for the payoff. Rarely do the hustle & the flow meet in a comfortable place of fair exchange. If you look like Lupe Fiasco & rhyme like Beanie Segal, that may confuse people.
The easiest avenue for any young hopeful who's serious about his craft would seem to be the independent route. But, that could severely limit exposure & opportunity. On the other hand, it creates a lane for the artist to be themselves, free to express from the soul as opposed to for the company logo. I've often heard that in life one should follow their heart, but in the "music" industry, be sure not to wear it on your sleeve.
So what separates the MC from the rapper, the hipster from the superstar? A mean freestyle game just isn't enough nowadays & a silly dance routine can make or break even the hungriest rookie lyricist. What more can be said or done to show that the ability to make music, make money & still love the art can be done simultaneously? Selling souls for record sales is big business, & hopefully we can bring it back to the essence sooner than later.
So, do you still think you have what it takes to be a rapper?
There's a million eager young bucks who can boast the same thing. MC's are a dime a dozen. Everbody & their cousin has a studio, with some off the wall in-house producer willing to bet the farm that they can end your favorite rapper's career with little effort. They're floating aimlessly through Myspace & broadcasting in "real time" on WSHH &YouTube, giving the listening public 99 reasons why they are the shit (no Lil' Wayne) & nobody else is. If everyone's the best rapper alive, then what's the seventh degree of separation among the lot?
Is it the lyrics? In todays lukewarm market, credible skill is an asset easily overlooked. Where it was once the selling point of an artist's package, it's now dismissed & unnecessary. Let's all take a moment to thank the good folks at Soundscan. The focus has shifted from lyrical prowess to song structure &/or hook repetition. With that formula in hand, one can easily craft the next sing-song summer hit with no song writing talent whatsoever. Needless to say the industry is flooded with rappers of this ilk.
Is it the marketability? The MC's back story is now as important, if not more so, as the content of the music itself. Jay-Z inadvertently coined the phrase "we don't believe you, you need more people", unaware that it would soon become a mantra for all rap cats to live by. Hip hop heads were satisfied with a story line, fictitious or otherwise if the soundscape was equally as compelling. It wasn't that they might have been lying (on not), but more that we were entertained for however long they held our attention. If you found out some information on said artist that backed up his verbal illustrations, it was a bonus, & added to their mystique. Now, if a rapper says it, it better be true, or risk humiliation & a decrease in fan base activity. In order to sell albums, there must be a demographic to sell to. Choose wisely.
Is it the business-end? Shopping artists as a brand is far for new, but when did it become mandatory? When Chubb Rock wasn't "treatin' them right", he could have easily opted to sell big & tall menswear on the side. But, he never did. Big Daddy Kane could have become the spokesperson for Smooth Operator condoms, & Kool G Rap might've started a line of Ill Street fedora's & patent leather wingtips. Those business deals never materialized because that wasn't what the art was about. It was about the music, not the hustle & it's spoils. Now, a full fledged marketing campaign must accompany any artist's complete album, Myspace hits numbers & possible product development. Be prepared to have an action figure made in your likeness, or suffer the consequences.
Is it the image? Image is everything. There's a reason why a lot of rappers look like rappers, be it rough, rugged & raw or pretty boy facade. To an extent, one must look the part, especially in a field so rife with actors. But, the old adage says "never judge a book by it's cover". Take away the menacing, gold-covered snarls & the overly extensive skin ink, & what's left is the ability (or lack of) to rap, plain & simple. That can be a negative for the guy who simply yearns to rap & not star in a movie or be the face for an athletics apparel company, but it can be a positive for the guy who could care less about the quality of music & who's in it only for the payoff. Rarely do the hustle & the flow meet in a comfortable place of fair exchange. If you look like Lupe Fiasco & rhyme like Beanie Segal, that may confuse people.
The easiest avenue for any young hopeful who's serious about his craft would seem to be the independent route. But, that could severely limit exposure & opportunity. On the other hand, it creates a lane for the artist to be themselves, free to express from the soul as opposed to for the company logo. I've often heard that in life one should follow their heart, but in the "music" industry, be sure not to wear it on your sleeve.
So what separates the MC from the rapper, the hipster from the superstar? A mean freestyle game just isn't enough nowadays & a silly dance routine can make or break even the hungriest rookie lyricist. What more can be said or done to show that the ability to make music, make money & still love the art can be done simultaneously? Selling souls for record sales is big business, & hopefully we can bring it back to the essence sooner than later.
So, do you still think you have what it takes to be a rapper?
Wednesday, March 18, 2009
Earl Simmons Superstar
Very few MC's achieve the fleeting status of Hip Hop Legend. In the dimly-lit alleys & back streets where "real" hip hop is the necessary way of life, there exists a band of man who, for all intents & purposes, are virtually untouchable inside the booth & the outside world as well. Uber-fans & followers, Stans if you will, defend, protect, & shout praises of these more-than-mortal men no matter the circumstance. The ultra elite core of these lyricists no longer walk among the living; Tupac, Notorious B.I.G., Big Punisher, Big L & Pimp C, to name a few. All passed on before their true apex was realized, yet their legacies live indefinite through the fans & bodies of work we've been blessed with. Of the living icons; Jay-Z, Eminem, Ice Cube, Scarface, NaS, LL & several others, one man stands alone on the cusp of hip hop immortality.
He is neither dead nor alive, tiptoing the fine line between sanity & lunacy. This man is Earl Simmons b.k.a. Dark Man X.
If ever an MC could be described as walking dichotomy, it's him by a landslide. Many rappers are caricatures of the lifestyle they profess, but DMX is the truth manifested. His face is a real-time emoticon, his voice the soundtrack to a struggle, his life an open book for any reader prepared to bask in it's tumultuous wisdom.
His debut opus, 1998's It's Dark & Hell Is Hot, is still heralded as one of hip hop's finest moments. It's music, racked pain & anger, was still able to deliver club joints & anthems flawlessly. Needless to say, not many rap artists can cover such a vast spectrum with unbridled emotion as he did. Thanks to Ruff Ryder Records & accompanied by Swizz Beatz, Earl had the world barking like a dog & howling at the moon while it collectively wiped away it's tears.
The Hell he spoke of was/is his life. We've followed him there & back countless times, only to be continuously mystified by his outrageous antics & self-fulfilling prophecies. Not quite invincible, but unstoppable by all definitions of the word. Now, we see the tortured soul at it's lowest point, shackled, mute & motionless. But as any great man will tell you, the bottom must be reached before proper propulsion upward can be ascertained.
The next obvious step should be the retrieval of said greatness, the resurrection of the man doomed to be King. The average human would have succumbed to the powers that be by now, & surely hung himself years ago. But not X. His life story reads like a graphic novel of crime, lust, drugs & violence, yet, the end is still pending. Years after his introduction & subsequent rise & fall from grace, DMX is still regarded as one of the best to ever do it. As long as blood pumps through his heavy heart, the opportunity still exists to pick up where he should have never left off. If one individual can rise from the ashes & breath the passionate creativity back into our cherished art form, it would be him. Not since Tupac has an MC so willingly bared his soul & revealed his wounds to be the sacrificial lamb of a generation. The people weren't prepared for his coming the first time, but in a [hip hop] world now overflowing with anarchy & revolt, his return should be more than welcome.
That is, of course, if he's finally got his mind right. Solitary confinement affects men in different ways. Some argue that drugs & fast living have rendered the once & future king a shell of his former self. Others blame his affinity for law breaking as a stumbling block to an otherwise noteworthy career. Only time will truly tell if his storms have been weathered, or left him washed up on the shores of irrelevance.
The question then remains; is he finally ready to accept his rightful role in the history books or will his re-re-release into the free world mark the tragic end of his legacy*?
*Also check out:
Flesh Of My Flesh, Blood Of My Blood (1998),
...And Then There Was X (1999)
The Great Depression (2001)
Grand Champ (2003)
Year of the Dog......Again (2006)
He is neither dead nor alive, tiptoing the fine line between sanity & lunacy. This man is Earl Simmons b.k.a. Dark Man X.
If ever an MC could be described as walking dichotomy, it's him by a landslide. Many rappers are caricatures of the lifestyle they profess, but DMX is the truth manifested. His face is a real-time emoticon, his voice the soundtrack to a struggle, his life an open book for any reader prepared to bask in it's tumultuous wisdom.
His debut opus, 1998's It's Dark & Hell Is Hot, is still heralded as one of hip hop's finest moments. It's music, racked pain & anger, was still able to deliver club joints & anthems flawlessly. Needless to say, not many rap artists can cover such a vast spectrum with unbridled emotion as he did. Thanks to Ruff Ryder Records & accompanied by Swizz Beatz, Earl had the world barking like a dog & howling at the moon while it collectively wiped away it's tears.
The Hell he spoke of was/is his life. We've followed him there & back countless times, only to be continuously mystified by his outrageous antics & self-fulfilling prophecies. Not quite invincible, but unstoppable by all definitions of the word. Now, we see the tortured soul at it's lowest point, shackled, mute & motionless. But as any great man will tell you, the bottom must be reached before proper propulsion upward can be ascertained.
The next obvious step should be the retrieval of said greatness, the resurrection of the man doomed to be King. The average human would have succumbed to the powers that be by now, & surely hung himself years ago. But not X. His life story reads like a graphic novel of crime, lust, drugs & violence, yet, the end is still pending. Years after his introduction & subsequent rise & fall from grace, DMX is still regarded as one of the best to ever do it. As long as blood pumps through his heavy heart, the opportunity still exists to pick up where he should have never left off. If one individual can rise from the ashes & breath the passionate creativity back into our cherished art form, it would be him. Not since Tupac has an MC so willingly bared his soul & revealed his wounds to be the sacrificial lamb of a generation. The people weren't prepared for his coming the first time, but in a [hip hop] world now overflowing with anarchy & revolt, his return should be more than welcome.
That is, of course, if he's finally got his mind right. Solitary confinement affects men in different ways. Some argue that drugs & fast living have rendered the once & future king a shell of his former self. Others blame his affinity for law breaking as a stumbling block to an otherwise noteworthy career. Only time will truly tell if his storms have been weathered, or left him washed up on the shores of irrelevance.
The question then remains; is he finally ready to accept his rightful role in the history books or will his re-re-release into the free world mark the tragic end of his legacy*?
*Also check out:
Flesh Of My Flesh, Blood Of My Blood (1998),
...And Then There Was X (1999)
The Great Depression (2001)
Grand Champ (2003)
Year of the Dog......Again (2006)
Tuesday, March 17, 2009
The Start of the Ending
Theoretically speaking, nothing lasts forever. Everything must renovate at some point or face certain extinction. Cultures & lifestyles are no exception to the rule. By such a standard, where exactly does hip hop fit in the grand scheme of things?
What started as a prominent declaration of a new youth movement has, over a few decades, become a watered down, generic doppleganger of what it once was. No doubt about it, the pioneers of hip hop/rap music never intended for their legacy to fall into the hands of the light-hearted & lacklustered. Even as it began in parks & abandoned building ditch parties, no one could have foreseen the pillage of a culture so rife with potential. But, no dice. Look where we are now; right where we weren't supposed to be.
Not to compare the hip hop momentum with that of the civil rights movement, but many people sweat, bled & cried for our adorned hip hop to locate it's rightful place in American history. It's as pivotal as the disco era, as poignant as the Harlem renaissance, yet, it gets flanked by most critics & tossed back into the gutters from which it was born. Who's to be held accountable for such atrocity? The ringtone raps, the microwave music, the enormity of the internet, the "hustle" aesthetic, & the "industry" all play a large part in what seems to be an inevitable collapse of the system.
If EVERYBODY is a rapper, then who's left to be a fan? If ANYONE can make & post a video, then who's producing them? The world is changing right before our eyes. Print magazines are falling by the wayside. Record companies are turning to online outlets to sell music. Pretty soon, instead of buying tickets to enjoy an act live on stage, they'll just hold global performances via the Net. & with so many mundane rap acts profiting off of the mindless drones they cater to, it's only going to be so long before hip hop implodes on itself like a black hole, viciously sucking in everything around it.
Hip hop was designed to teach, reach & preach. If it inspired a little emotion along the way then that's a bonus. But, somewhere along that way, it was forgotten that this is for us, by us, & if it ever needs maintenance, it has to be by the originators of it; us. No longer can we stand idly by & allow those of unpure heart to mistreat something so sacred.
Hip hop isn't record sales, funny clothes, gaudy jewelry, crime scenes or the playground for life-like caricatures to romp & frolic. It's the culture that raised us, the lifestyle that taught us, it's the reason I'm writing this at this moment. I keep hearing hip hop is dead, but I disagree. It just needs a massive amount of TLC before it's too late.
If it happened to jazz, disco, etc., then who's to say that we're not the next to go?
What started as a prominent declaration of a new youth movement has, over a few decades, become a watered down, generic doppleganger of what it once was. No doubt about it, the pioneers of hip hop/rap music never intended for their legacy to fall into the hands of the light-hearted & lacklustered. Even as it began in parks & abandoned building ditch parties, no one could have foreseen the pillage of a culture so rife with potential. But, no dice. Look where we are now; right where we weren't supposed to be.
Not to compare the hip hop momentum with that of the civil rights movement, but many people sweat, bled & cried for our adorned hip hop to locate it's rightful place in American history. It's as pivotal as the disco era, as poignant as the Harlem renaissance, yet, it gets flanked by most critics & tossed back into the gutters from which it was born. Who's to be held accountable for such atrocity? The ringtone raps, the microwave music, the enormity of the internet, the "hustle" aesthetic, & the "industry" all play a large part in what seems to be an inevitable collapse of the system.
If EVERYBODY is a rapper, then who's left to be a fan? If ANYONE can make & post a video, then who's producing them? The world is changing right before our eyes. Print magazines are falling by the wayside. Record companies are turning to online outlets to sell music. Pretty soon, instead of buying tickets to enjoy an act live on stage, they'll just hold global performances via the Net. & with so many mundane rap acts profiting off of the mindless drones they cater to, it's only going to be so long before hip hop implodes on itself like a black hole, viciously sucking in everything around it.
Hip hop was designed to teach, reach & preach. If it inspired a little emotion along the way then that's a bonus. But, somewhere along that way, it was forgotten that this is for us, by us, & if it ever needs maintenance, it has to be by the originators of it; us. No longer can we stand idly by & allow those of unpure heart to mistreat something so sacred.
Hip hop isn't record sales, funny clothes, gaudy jewelry, crime scenes or the playground for life-like caricatures to romp & frolic. It's the culture that raised us, the lifestyle that taught us, it's the reason I'm writing this at this moment. I keep hearing hip hop is dead, but I disagree. It just needs a massive amount of TLC before it's too late.
If it happened to jazz, disco, etc., then who's to say that we're not the next to go?
Outside the Box
Rap is going the way of it's distant, slightly more tolerated cousin, country music. Case in point; they sing about love (usually unbridled &/or forbidden), inebriation (whiskey ain't henny, but I'm sure it does the trick), ostracizm (every good MC has the whole world against them), fondness for their transportation (replace a horse with any car most of us can't afford), & disdain for authority (fuck the police...........am I right?).
Granted, many genres of music tackle similar issues, but it's in a more round-about way, sometimes so subtly insinuated that you wouldn't have ever known what the song was about if your 15 year old cousin didn't tell you. For the most part, hip hop, like country, sticks to a basic diet of several main subject groups & anything outside of that box is either asinine or amazing (depending on who you ask).
Could it be that hip hop is running out of things to say? Highly unlikely. Such a free spirited form of expression can always find an aspect of life to dissect & display to the world. Rappers rhyme about what they see & what they know, which is vaguely similar whatever hood, project, ward or borough you're from. When a young, virile Dwayne Carter said "tha block is hot", he was talking about YOUR block specifically.
But hip hop, namely rap, seems to find a comfort zone inside the confines of what it knows; money, cars, clothes, hoes, drugs & violence. The most skilled lyricist can take these basic elements & create some of the most beautifully crafted art ever heard over the appropriate sonic canvas. Other rappers, for lack of skill or lack of trying or a cocktail of the two, seem to be boxed in by these topics. Any attempts to think outside of that box result in an awkward flail at creativity. No dice. The fault we find in them is automatic & easily recognized; they suck & shouldn't be rapping to begin with.
But for those whose lyrical prowess is far beyond their mediocre & lame counterparts, should we expect more? Do we accept more when it's presented to us, or turn it away for fear of change? Take Kanye's "808's & Heartbreaks", minus his emotional outbreaks & self-righteous hissy fits. Was it not embraced by the hip hop community because it was the proverbial jagged pill? Or was his reach one of such magnitude that he lost our attention indefinitely? For the record, I didn't like it because I didn't like it, but that takes nothing away from his musical genius (however crazy the dude appears). Without expansion, there is only contraction, & that goes for the horizons of the human mind as well as anything else.
I'm sure it would be much easier to digest different direction if it were more accessible & less random. Uniqueness in music can be tolerated, but the process has to be unveiled in baby steps, as opposed to being force fed. Individuality is a quality admired by many, but too much too fast & it becomes something to shun & shy away from. Rarely is it personal, but more of an automatic response to the unknown. People enter dark areas slow & apprehensively because they have no idea what may be waiting for them inside. That's the cautious nature of any functioning brain.
Simply put, minds remain closed without a reason to open. Hopefully the next wave of MC's will understand that. Hip hop is freedom. As long as that ethos is remembered, then no, hip hop won't ever run out of things to say.
Granted, many genres of music tackle similar issues, but it's in a more round-about way, sometimes so subtly insinuated that you wouldn't have ever known what the song was about if your 15 year old cousin didn't tell you. For the most part, hip hop, like country, sticks to a basic diet of several main subject groups & anything outside of that box is either asinine or amazing (depending on who you ask).
Could it be that hip hop is running out of things to say? Highly unlikely. Such a free spirited form of expression can always find an aspect of life to dissect & display to the world. Rappers rhyme about what they see & what they know, which is vaguely similar whatever hood, project, ward or borough you're from. When a young, virile Dwayne Carter said "tha block is hot", he was talking about YOUR block specifically.
But hip hop, namely rap, seems to find a comfort zone inside the confines of what it knows; money, cars, clothes, hoes, drugs & violence. The most skilled lyricist can take these basic elements & create some of the most beautifully crafted art ever heard over the appropriate sonic canvas. Other rappers, for lack of skill or lack of trying or a cocktail of the two, seem to be boxed in by these topics. Any attempts to think outside of that box result in an awkward flail at creativity. No dice. The fault we find in them is automatic & easily recognized; they suck & shouldn't be rapping to begin with.
But for those whose lyrical prowess is far beyond their mediocre & lame counterparts, should we expect more? Do we accept more when it's presented to us, or turn it away for fear of change? Take Kanye's "808's & Heartbreaks", minus his emotional outbreaks & self-righteous hissy fits. Was it not embraced by the hip hop community because it was the proverbial jagged pill? Or was his reach one of such magnitude that he lost our attention indefinitely? For the record, I didn't like it because I didn't like it, but that takes nothing away from his musical genius (however crazy the dude appears). Without expansion, there is only contraction, & that goes for the horizons of the human mind as well as anything else.
I'm sure it would be much easier to digest different direction if it were more accessible & less random. Uniqueness in music can be tolerated, but the process has to be unveiled in baby steps, as opposed to being force fed. Individuality is a quality admired by many, but too much too fast & it becomes something to shun & shy away from. Rarely is it personal, but more of an automatic response to the unknown. People enter dark areas slow & apprehensively because they have no idea what may be waiting for them inside. That's the cautious nature of any functioning brain.
Simply put, minds remain closed without a reason to open. Hopefully the next wave of MC's will understand that. Hip hop is freedom. As long as that ethos is remembered, then no, hip hop won't ever run out of things to say.
Monday, March 16, 2009
The Art of Life
Being a rapper used to be one of the top aspirations for children. Right alongside doctor, astronaut, actor & football player. Pose the question "what do you want to be when you grow up?" to a child, & most assuredly their was a 50% chance that rapping was somewhere on his/her agenda.
Maybe it was all the "shiny" things associated with the career that drew the child's interest. For some, it might have appeared a chance to garner the attention they couldn't receive elsewhere. Others may have been genuinely talented & were prompted to focus on a field where they would surely flourish. All had personalized reasoning, yet the same goal in mind. To be a rapper. Now, with a new generation eyeing the future with hopes & goals in mind, rapping is slowly backsliding on their list of "things to do".
Frankly, it seems that being a rap star today is a tad bit too dangerous for the average cat. That may explain the influx of drug dealers & hardened criminals that saturate today's already mediocre market. What was once a performer's platform is now a con man's game. A hustle that knows no talent or skill. In most cases, even if you don't like their music, you do however "respect their grind".
At one time, in order to achieve success in hip hop, crew affiliation was mandatory. But, when did gang affiliation become a necessity? Even in hotbed cities of gang activity where hip hop was still a prevalent lifestyle, rarely did a person "cuz" or "blood" on wax. It was generally considered taboo, & although one's street ties might have been acknowledged, not often was it trumpeted in song. For those who grew up in gang territory, you know that the LAST thing you wanted to do was tell people where you were from.
& it's one thing to rhyme about the urban, war-torn environments that envelop us, but it's another to refuse to separate the art from the life. This is merely cliched observation, but other genres of musical art aren't consumed by street level violence. Why hip hop then? What's so glamorous about thug life that it out-glamorizes the good life? Time & time again rappers boast of a better living situation than they had growing up, but what's the point in moving out of the "hood" to start another one in the Valley?
When Marvin Gaye was shot & killed it caused a worldwide gasp. When Souljah Slim was murdered holding his daughter, it was accepted as an undertone of the rap life. We (hip hop fans) are accustomed to the rapidly changing faces of our beloved art form, but when we begin to grow so indifferent & complacent about the violence plaguing us, a red flag should be raised.
It's not that the music isn't any good or substantially entertaining. It's when the already blurred line between fact & fiction is completely erased that problems arise.
Do we blame the artists? The labels? The bloodthirsty fans? The lack of parental fortitude? Or do we just sit back, churn out more conspiracy theories & let the chips fall where they may?
Perhaps some questions aren't truly meant to be answered.
Maybe it was all the "shiny" things associated with the career that drew the child's interest. For some, it might have appeared a chance to garner the attention they couldn't receive elsewhere. Others may have been genuinely talented & were prompted to focus on a field where they would surely flourish. All had personalized reasoning, yet the same goal in mind. To be a rapper. Now, with a new generation eyeing the future with hopes & goals in mind, rapping is slowly backsliding on their list of "things to do".
Frankly, it seems that being a rap star today is a tad bit too dangerous for the average cat. That may explain the influx of drug dealers & hardened criminals that saturate today's already mediocre market. What was once a performer's platform is now a con man's game. A hustle that knows no talent or skill. In most cases, even if you don't like their music, you do however "respect their grind".
At one time, in order to achieve success in hip hop, crew affiliation was mandatory. But, when did gang affiliation become a necessity? Even in hotbed cities of gang activity where hip hop was still a prevalent lifestyle, rarely did a person "cuz" or "blood" on wax. It was generally considered taboo, & although one's street ties might have been acknowledged, not often was it trumpeted in song. For those who grew up in gang territory, you know that the LAST thing you wanted to do was tell people where you were from.
& it's one thing to rhyme about the urban, war-torn environments that envelop us, but it's another to refuse to separate the art from the life. This is merely cliched observation, but other genres of musical art aren't consumed by street level violence. Why hip hop then? What's so glamorous about thug life that it out-glamorizes the good life? Time & time again rappers boast of a better living situation than they had growing up, but what's the point in moving out of the "hood" to start another one in the Valley?
When Marvin Gaye was shot & killed it caused a worldwide gasp. When Souljah Slim was murdered holding his daughter, it was accepted as an undertone of the rap life. We (hip hop fans) are accustomed to the rapidly changing faces of our beloved art form, but when we begin to grow so indifferent & complacent about the violence plaguing us, a red flag should be raised.
It's not that the music isn't any good or substantially entertaining. It's when the already blurred line between fact & fiction is completely erased that problems arise.
Do we blame the artists? The labels? The bloodthirsty fans? The lack of parental fortitude? Or do we just sit back, churn out more conspiracy theories & let the chips fall where they may?
Perhaps some questions aren't truly meant to be answered.
Wednesday, March 11, 2009
Generation Next
There's a lot of debate about the current state of hip hop music. It seems to be boiling down to "the young" vs. "the old". Although hip hop itself can't necessarily be defined as nostalgic, in a sense, those that have been participants since it's inception, fans & artists alike, are upwards of 35-40 years old. So in a culture still relatively young, there can exist "old" heads, per se.
Hip hop has always been synonymous with youth. After all, the last trend set by old people was moving to Miami. The dress code, the attitude, the language of hip hop is all derived by whippersnappers with something to prove. Through various outlets, if one wanted to get closer to the youth, hip hop was usually an avenue.
When I was a kid, rap music had many forms. Of course there was always the requisite "street music", which is self explanatory. More fanfare & propaganda than knowledge & enlightenment. But, there also existed an equal dosage of educational music. One could easily learn about the roots of African American culture (X-Clan, PRT, KRS-one, etc.), the evils of American society (Ice Cube, Paris, Public Enemy, etc.) or just digest a general cacophony of intellectual thoughts (Rakim Allah, BDK, King Sun, etc.). It was the perfect balancing act in a world so full of negative exposure.
My generation wanted to wear Ankh's & crosses made of faux-leather & wood, as opposed to platinum Jesus pieces. There was actually a time where even cooler than being a D-Boy (or bag) or a Boss Nigga, was being a strong Black man. Standing for something, thus not falling for anything. The Black community was a sacred place to be recognized & protected, not sanctioned & raped by crime & addiction. Tragedy Khadafi, who once went by the moniker Intelligent Hoodlum, released a song in the early '90's called "Black & Proud". The title says it all. Those were the types of songs pumping at house parties. Youngsters wanted to be rappers because they felt they had something to say & "now" was the time to say it.
That's not the case any longer. There isn't a whole helluva lot that [insert rapper] can teach the youth outside of drug manufacturing/distribution & violent behavior. What kid in their right mind wouldn't want to be a rapper, since it's made out to be a glamorous, amorous lifestyle rife with guilt-free greed? I understand that art can be a hustle, but without equal acknowledgment of both parts, it subsequently becomes one or the other. & regardless of purist arguments, hip hop is becoming a robotic merchant of mental death.
Without stimulation, any muscle will surely atrophy & die. Without music to challenge our thoughts & ideals, how long will it be before we're not even required to think? Maybe Kanye & Lil Wayne have the right idea. Fresh & unique trumps mundane & boring any day of the week.
We can't go back in time, but the future is ours for the molding.
Hip hop has always been synonymous with youth. After all, the last trend set by old people was moving to Miami. The dress code, the attitude, the language of hip hop is all derived by whippersnappers with something to prove. Through various outlets, if one wanted to get closer to the youth, hip hop was usually an avenue.
When I was a kid, rap music had many forms. Of course there was always the requisite "street music", which is self explanatory. More fanfare & propaganda than knowledge & enlightenment. But, there also existed an equal dosage of educational music. One could easily learn about the roots of African American culture (X-Clan, PRT, KRS-one, etc.), the evils of American society (Ice Cube, Paris, Public Enemy, etc.) or just digest a general cacophony of intellectual thoughts (Rakim Allah, BDK, King Sun, etc.). It was the perfect balancing act in a world so full of negative exposure.
My generation wanted to wear Ankh's & crosses made of faux-leather & wood, as opposed to platinum Jesus pieces. There was actually a time where even cooler than being a D-Boy (or bag) or a Boss Nigga, was being a strong Black man. Standing for something, thus not falling for anything. The Black community was a sacred place to be recognized & protected, not sanctioned & raped by crime & addiction. Tragedy Khadafi, who once went by the moniker Intelligent Hoodlum, released a song in the early '90's called "Black & Proud". The title says it all. Those were the types of songs pumping at house parties. Youngsters wanted to be rappers because they felt they had something to say & "now" was the time to say it.
That's not the case any longer. There isn't a whole helluva lot that [insert rapper] can teach the youth outside of drug manufacturing/distribution & violent behavior. What kid in their right mind wouldn't want to be a rapper, since it's made out to be a glamorous, amorous lifestyle rife with guilt-free greed? I understand that art can be a hustle, but without equal acknowledgment of both parts, it subsequently becomes one or the other. & regardless of purist arguments, hip hop is becoming a robotic merchant of mental death.
Without stimulation, any muscle will surely atrophy & die. Without music to challenge our thoughts & ideals, how long will it be before we're not even required to think? Maybe Kanye & Lil Wayne have the right idea. Fresh & unique trumps mundane & boring any day of the week.
We can't go back in time, but the future is ours for the molding.
Sunday, March 8, 2009
Where The Ladies At?
I miss females in hip hop. & for various heterosexual reasons, I'm almost positive I'm not alone.
I would equate the situation to high school P.E. class, on one of those days where the coach decided to separate the two sexes for some activity or test. Before this specific day, the girls were right there with us. We could reach out & touch them if need be. Even the ugly ones that, if they weren't half naked & sweaty, we'd have nothing to do with. But, as soon as they traveled to the other side of the gymnasium for a whole period, we missed them. Even though we might not have wanted them on our basketball team, or our flag football squad, we still needed that assurance to our peripherals that they're a stones throw away.
At one point in time, the female MC was shoulder to shoulder with us in the trenches of hip hop, underground, mainstream or otherwise. For every supercrew of cats ready to spit on demand, there was at least one chick that could hang with the fellas. It was almost as necessary as a logo &/or a hand sign. KRS-one had Ms. Melody, Ice Cube had Yo-Yo, Biggie had Kim (pre-botox & silicone), DMX had Eve, Busta had Rah Digga, Hova had Foxy, Joe/Pun had Remy, Master P had Mia X, E-40 had Suga-T, Wyclef had Lauryn, the list can go on for days.
It seems those roles have now been relegated to scantily clad temptresses that will shake a tailfeather for a couple of hundred bucks & a chance to be seen on BET. Granted, the occasional "video ho" uses that as a vehicle to stardom, but it's not like they're representing hip hop as much as themselves. The estrogen-fueled MC was a welcome piece to the puzzle, painting a completely different picture of the exact same thing we saw. She was our mom, our sister, our bad bitch, our bottom broad whenever the need arose. & unlike the love-struck song bird, or the broken hearted siren, the female rapper was the defiant voice letting the girls know to stand up & be accounted for.
MC Lyte's "10% Dis" took the words "hit the road, jack" & breathed new life into them. Queen Latifah called for unity & dared to ask the loaded question "who you callin' a bitch?". Who could forget that Kimberly Jones not only brought sexy back, but reminded us that women like getting head as much as men. Fox Boogie illustrated that every hustler had a wifey at home just as deep in the drama as he was. Even as the feminism trickled down to the ostentatious, & somewhat pornographic likes of Trina & Khia, it was still advancement in the direction of empowerment for sisterhood worldwide. Unfortunately, this class of hip hopper wasn't as highly regarded as their male counterparts, denoted by today's lack of a prominent female voice in rap music.
Good, bad or indifferent, females in hip hop are becoming far & few between. Whether we need them or not is a personal choice, but I think we can admit we miss them, if only a little bit.
I would equate the situation to high school P.E. class, on one of those days where the coach decided to separate the two sexes for some activity or test. Before this specific day, the girls were right there with us. We could reach out & touch them if need be. Even the ugly ones that, if they weren't half naked & sweaty, we'd have nothing to do with. But, as soon as they traveled to the other side of the gymnasium for a whole period, we missed them. Even though we might not have wanted them on our basketball team, or our flag football squad, we still needed that assurance to our peripherals that they're a stones throw away.
At one point in time, the female MC was shoulder to shoulder with us in the trenches of hip hop, underground, mainstream or otherwise. For every supercrew of cats ready to spit on demand, there was at least one chick that could hang with the fellas. It was almost as necessary as a logo &/or a hand sign. KRS-one had Ms. Melody, Ice Cube had Yo-Yo, Biggie had Kim (pre-botox & silicone), DMX had Eve, Busta had Rah Digga, Hova had Foxy, Joe/Pun had Remy, Master P had Mia X, E-40 had Suga-T, Wyclef had Lauryn, the list can go on for days.
It seems those roles have now been relegated to scantily clad temptresses that will shake a tailfeather for a couple of hundred bucks & a chance to be seen on BET. Granted, the occasional "video ho" uses that as a vehicle to stardom, but it's not like they're representing hip hop as much as themselves. The estrogen-fueled MC was a welcome piece to the puzzle, painting a completely different picture of the exact same thing we saw. She was our mom, our sister, our bad bitch, our bottom broad whenever the need arose. & unlike the love-struck song bird, or the broken hearted siren, the female rapper was the defiant voice letting the girls know to stand up & be accounted for.
MC Lyte's "10% Dis" took the words "hit the road, jack" & breathed new life into them. Queen Latifah called for unity & dared to ask the loaded question "who you callin' a bitch?". Who could forget that Kimberly Jones not only brought sexy back, but reminded us that women like getting head as much as men. Fox Boogie illustrated that every hustler had a wifey at home just as deep in the drama as he was. Even as the feminism trickled down to the ostentatious, & somewhat pornographic likes of Trina & Khia, it was still advancement in the direction of empowerment for sisterhood worldwide. Unfortunately, this class of hip hopper wasn't as highly regarded as their male counterparts, denoted by today's lack of a prominent female voice in rap music.
Good, bad or indifferent, females in hip hop are becoming far & few between. Whether we need them or not is a personal choice, but I think we can admit we miss them, if only a little bit.
Thursday, March 5, 2009
Rap Is Outta Control
What happened to the MUSIC!?
Hip hop was/is a culture rich with history (black & otherwise), style, education, beauty, self-empowerment, the list could continue for days. At some traumatic point in it's time line however, a misguided turn was made & it hasn't been the same since. Hip hop became a sideshow of sorts, full of the misfits & dramatics would one expect from their favorite soap opera (no General Hospital). When all's said & done, it would appear that the music has taken a backseat to ridiculous beefs, vicious rumor mills, & all out assaults on the movement's intelligence.
Various factors play a key role in the demise of our beloved lifestyle. Some argue that the introduction of "Gangsta Rap" was incendiary to the pride displayed by the likes of Chuck D, X-Clan, Poor Righteous Teachers, etc. But, "Gangsta Rap" was never new, it just became more popular, as do many things in society. Others criticize the Internets for making such an exclusive experience a worldwide phenomenon. Many people, exhibiting the same ignorance they denounce, blame Black people, because according to the consensus, "we cain't neva have shit!". The remaining observers never really cared to begin with and mindlessly follow every fleeting fad in the common vicinity.
It's virtually impossible to forget that hip hop is a music-based way of expression. People DO still put out quality art for the "masses". Cats still breakdance, MC's still rap, & DJ continue to promote good songs. That's unfiltered fact.
The distortion is found in the murky waters on the way to that fact. No sooner does an hip hop artist rear his head before he becomes the target of attempted character assassinations from fellow "musicians", the media, or so-called fans alike. Usually, such acts are purported without credible reasoning. & even when a viable issue is present, most times it has nothing to do with the distinction of their music. Thusly, the individual(s) acquire fame for the sake of ridiculing one another, & that becomes the take-off point of their career. Beef is the new demo tape.
The need for promotion teams & album signings is defunct. Just go to the 'Nets, say "fuck -insert rapper-", & the buzz will generate itself.
Countless rap stars are said to be gay, unauthentic, make believe, etc., & to a degree, those are all true lies. But, who cares? I just want some decent thump for my buck (or free download). The day I see Maroon 5 put out a dis vlog about The White Stripes, or something to that effect, I'll eat my words & allow the chaos to ensue without saying a word.
Hip hop was/is a culture rich with history (black & otherwise), style, education, beauty, self-empowerment, the list could continue for days. At some traumatic point in it's time line however, a misguided turn was made & it hasn't been the same since. Hip hop became a sideshow of sorts, full of the misfits & dramatics would one expect from their favorite soap opera (no General Hospital). When all's said & done, it would appear that the music has taken a backseat to ridiculous beefs, vicious rumor mills, & all out assaults on the movement's intelligence.
Various factors play a key role in the demise of our beloved lifestyle. Some argue that the introduction of "Gangsta Rap" was incendiary to the pride displayed by the likes of Chuck D, X-Clan, Poor Righteous Teachers, etc. But, "Gangsta Rap" was never new, it just became more popular, as do many things in society. Others criticize the Internets for making such an exclusive experience a worldwide phenomenon. Many people, exhibiting the same ignorance they denounce, blame Black people, because according to the consensus, "we cain't neva have shit!". The remaining observers never really cared to begin with and mindlessly follow every fleeting fad in the common vicinity.
It's virtually impossible to forget that hip hop is a music-based way of expression. People DO still put out quality art for the "masses". Cats still breakdance, MC's still rap, & DJ continue to promote good songs. That's unfiltered fact.
The distortion is found in the murky waters on the way to that fact. No sooner does an hip hop artist rear his head before he becomes the target of attempted character assassinations from fellow "musicians", the media, or so-called fans alike. Usually, such acts are purported without credible reasoning. & even when a viable issue is present, most times it has nothing to do with the distinction of their music. Thusly, the individual(s) acquire fame for the sake of ridiculing one another, & that becomes the take-off point of their career. Beef is the new demo tape.
The need for promotion teams & album signings is defunct. Just go to the 'Nets, say "fuck -insert rapper-", & the buzz will generate itself.
Countless rap stars are said to be gay, unauthentic, make believe, etc., & to a degree, those are all true lies. But, who cares? I just want some decent thump for my buck (or free download). The day I see Maroon 5 put out a dis vlog about The White Stripes, or something to that effect, I'll eat my words & allow the chaos to ensue without saying a word.
Monday, March 2, 2009
What Is "Too Old" to Hip Hop?
Hip hop has no age limit or size requirement. If you're at least "this" tall, you can roll with the culture. No problems given, no questions asked.
But Rap, the musical facet of the movement, is more micro-cosmic, with it's own set of personalized regulations. I'm not referring to "don't snitch" & "never out-rhyme your boss", those go without saying. I mean the ubiquitous guidelines that make rappers bonafide "Rap Superstars".
Youth is a major cog in that system. Think car transmission, as opposed to the entire engine. "Rap" wasn't born in some apartment by a couple of windbags watching The Price Is Right. It began on the street, in the park, at the parties. Call me old fashioned, but there's something about adult children & crow's feet that make it hard for me to believe in middle aged pseudo-gangsta rhetoric. Some are authentic of course, but others, simply put, need more people.
I think it's scientifically impossible for a 43 year old man to have "swag", much less covet endless scallywags, shoot up enemy tour buses & relieve third world Kingpins of their product. Even Arnold Schwarzenegger stopped blowing up robots & murdering alien headhunters once it was time to "Just for Men" his salt & pepper coiffure. How much "gangsta" still exists outside of the studio when you start scheduling prostate exams? Point is, we all grow up eventually, & contrary to popular belief, there's nothing wrong with that.
Rap is a career, I get it. So, instead of an annual "farewell" album, just let the music mature, as it's supposed to, & let the voice of the young generation (no Kanye West) be just that. I don't think artists should ever "retire", but their material should at least grow with their core audience. The same core audience that was there when the "fifteen minutes" began. The same core audience that will still be there when the microwave dings & the Internets suck them dry in search of the next soul to devour.
Loyal die hards don't give a shit about a ridiculous dance. They can care less if royalty & SSI checks come on the same day. They're in it for the music, as we all should be. Diamond lane time for those with experience, dig? Get the torch, light your fire, pass the torch & the circle of life continues.........
For argument's sake; Shawn "Jay-Z" Carter, 39. Calvin "Snoop Dogg" Broadus, 37. Andre "Dr. Dre" Young, 43, Joseph "Fat Joe" Cartagena, 39, O'Shay "Ice Cube" Jackson, 39, Earl "E-40" Stevens, 41, to name a few.
But Rap, the musical facet of the movement, is more micro-cosmic, with it's own set of personalized regulations. I'm not referring to "don't snitch" & "never out-rhyme your boss", those go without saying. I mean the ubiquitous guidelines that make rappers bonafide "Rap Superstars".
Youth is a major cog in that system. Think car transmission, as opposed to the entire engine. "Rap" wasn't born in some apartment by a couple of windbags watching The Price Is Right. It began on the street, in the park, at the parties. Call me old fashioned, but there's something about adult children & crow's feet that make it hard for me to believe in middle aged pseudo-gangsta rhetoric. Some are authentic of course, but others, simply put, need more people.
I think it's scientifically impossible for a 43 year old man to have "swag", much less covet endless scallywags, shoot up enemy tour buses & relieve third world Kingpins of their product. Even Arnold Schwarzenegger stopped blowing up robots & murdering alien headhunters once it was time to "Just for Men" his salt & pepper coiffure. How much "gangsta" still exists outside of the studio when you start scheduling prostate exams? Point is, we all grow up eventually, & contrary to popular belief, there's nothing wrong with that.
Rap is a career, I get it. So, instead of an annual "farewell" album, just let the music mature, as it's supposed to, & let the voice of the young generation (no Kanye West) be just that. I don't think artists should ever "retire", but their material should at least grow with their core audience. The same core audience that was there when the "fifteen minutes" began. The same core audience that will still be there when the microwave dings & the Internets suck them dry in search of the next soul to devour.
Loyal die hards don't give a shit about a ridiculous dance. They can care less if royalty & SSI checks come on the same day. They're in it for the music, as we all should be. Diamond lane time for those with experience, dig? Get the torch, light your fire, pass the torch & the circle of life continues.........
For argument's sake; Shawn "Jay-Z" Carter, 39. Calvin "Snoop Dogg" Broadus, 37. Andre "Dr. Dre" Young, 43, Joseph "Fat Joe" Cartagena, 39, O'Shay "Ice Cube" Jackson, 39, Earl "E-40" Stevens, 41, to name a few.
Wednesday, January 14, 2009
"When I grow up, I wanna be a rapper!"
How many dudes from my generation have muttered these words more than a few times as a youth:
"When I grow up, I wanna be a rapper!"
Now, this was 25-30 some odd years ago, long before the evolution of rampant ignorance that's upon us now. Yes, there once existed a day when rap music, of all things, was considered a somewhat educational experience. It taught us what our teachers couldn't, & things our parents wouldn't. I'm sure that sounds unbelievable to anybody under the age of 21, but, my right hand to God, its true.
Imagine for a second, if you will, a person rapping because he had legitimate gripes about the ills of society. Something other than the requisite "F**k The Police" propoganda, or how "B**ches Ain't S**t". And that same cat explaining to you the importance of self knowledge & brotherly love. Even harder to believe(?!), there was an era when the LESS jewelry you wore, the more respect you got.
*youngsters picking up their jaws*
Once upon a time, guns were aimed at "the man" & his wicked "establishment", both designed for the demise of our people (particularly black, but most minorities were welcome). Self-hate & loathing were signs of weakness, & quickly smothered under the fist of brotherhood revolt. This generation of unsung rap avengers were viewed as the proverbial threat to the mainstream lifestyle the world had become so accustomed to. So I guess, to a certain extent, the "F**k The Police" mantra was appropriate at the time. But nevertheless, it was the total opposite of the verbiage we are so relentlessly bombarded with at present.
Not to take anything away from today's voices, but a lot of the music today is a tad bit, umm, ridiculous in comparison. Of course, perspective is key when making such an observation. If there's no lust for knowledge, the lack of it is not at all important. & vice versa, of course. The young people whose opinions dictate what's hot or not don't have that thirst that existed a mere 20 years ago. Which, is neither good nor bad, but just extremely different from the music my age bracket was brought up on. Nowadays, you have rappers publicly saying that they're too cool to read books.
Huh?
Some MC's have gone on record acknowleding how intelligent they actually are, then admittingly "dumbing down" their music for the sake of popularity & stellar soundscan numbers. God forbid some easily influenced teenybopper takes any of their flimsy rhetoric seriously, & think that life's really all about "money, cars, hoes".
"I'm glad I'm not a rapper."
Seems like a lot of weight to bear. Too much responsibility for the average Joe Schmoe who just gets a kick out of keen phonetic construction. Far be it from me to take it so serious that I realize my every word could be either severly scruntinized or undauntingly hung-on. Aside from the moral standpoint of being a semi-role model, it just seems like the most dangerous job to have. The qualifications needed alone put up a "red flag":
*Some sort of criminal activity (past or present)
*Gunshot wounds (preferrably several, & life threatening)
*affiliation to some reputed street/prison gang
*dozens of people to protect you at all times
*street credibility (a must!!)
The list gets more in-depth, but there's barely a slot for "posesses talent", & if its on there, its near the bottom. Right above "breathes" & "needs food to survive".
As of late, many rappers have been the target of robberies (strong arm, home invasion, etc), & that seems to be a lot of stress, & very uneccessary when all I want to do is rock the mic &/or move the crowd.
It reminds me of the house party phenomenon that took place in L.A. around the early 1990's. At first, a kid would be throwing a house party, hand out flyers at the Fox Hills Mall, & have the end-all shindig the following Saturday. That scenario became the one guy the guest of honor didn't recognize being rejected at the door, only to return with a baker's dozen of dudes & shooting the party up. Innocent fun gave way to homicidal death traps. Kids went from doing the Kid'n'Play, to bottlenecking at the frontdoor, trying to escape premature expiration.
"If the party's not at Chuck E. Cheese's, you won't catch my a** there."
The violence only seems to be getting worse, with some rappers opting to use monikers that start or end with "Murder", "Killer", & think that it's okay. Imagine a 5 year old boy at Halloween asking his mom for an "Uncle Kill M. All" costume, or reciting the latest lyrics from "MC Murder-Man"'s new single. Kind of shocking, if only a little bit.
With the growth of the internet, & the ravenous tenure of the paparazzi, there's no privacy for superstars, rap or otherwise.
"So, you mean to tell me that if I decided to get dressed up, complete with $200,000 worth of jewelry on, you guys will know my every move & all my where-abouts?"
No thanks.
"My $500,000 car, with the $100,000 rims on it that I brag about so much, is in every magazine on the newsstands, & on every website?"
It's no wonder rappers don't let the world see their children's faces. That would be a Mexican Mafia-style ransom kidnapping waiting to happen.
This is in no way an attempt to stamp out some young hopeful's future. I'm just saying I'm glad I'm not a rapper. I'm much more comfortable hearing (as opposed to performing) the music in the safety of my little house, in my mediocre car, with $100.00 rims on it.
"When I grow up, I wanna be a rapper!"
Now, this was 25-30 some odd years ago, long before the evolution of rampant ignorance that's upon us now. Yes, there once existed a day when rap music, of all things, was considered a somewhat educational experience. It taught us what our teachers couldn't, & things our parents wouldn't. I'm sure that sounds unbelievable to anybody under the age of 21, but, my right hand to God, its true.
Imagine for a second, if you will, a person rapping because he had legitimate gripes about the ills of society. Something other than the requisite "F**k The Police" propoganda, or how "B**ches Ain't S**t". And that same cat explaining to you the importance of self knowledge & brotherly love. Even harder to believe(?!), there was an era when the LESS jewelry you wore, the more respect you got.
*youngsters picking up their jaws*
Once upon a time, guns were aimed at "the man" & his wicked "establishment", both designed for the demise of our people (particularly black, but most minorities were welcome). Self-hate & loathing were signs of weakness, & quickly smothered under the fist of brotherhood revolt. This generation of unsung rap avengers were viewed as the proverbial threat to the mainstream lifestyle the world had become so accustomed to. So I guess, to a certain extent, the "F**k The Police" mantra was appropriate at the time. But nevertheless, it was the total opposite of the verbiage we are so relentlessly bombarded with at present.
Not to take anything away from today's voices, but a lot of the music today is a tad bit, umm, ridiculous in comparison. Of course, perspective is key when making such an observation. If there's no lust for knowledge, the lack of it is not at all important. & vice versa, of course. The young people whose opinions dictate what's hot or not don't have that thirst that existed a mere 20 years ago. Which, is neither good nor bad, but just extremely different from the music my age bracket was brought up on. Nowadays, you have rappers publicly saying that they're too cool to read books.
Huh?
Some MC's have gone on record acknowleding how intelligent they actually are, then admittingly "dumbing down" their music for the sake of popularity & stellar soundscan numbers. God forbid some easily influenced teenybopper takes any of their flimsy rhetoric seriously, & think that life's really all about "money, cars, hoes".
"I'm glad I'm not a rapper."
Seems like a lot of weight to bear. Too much responsibility for the average Joe Schmoe who just gets a kick out of keen phonetic construction. Far be it from me to take it so serious that I realize my every word could be either severly scruntinized or undauntingly hung-on. Aside from the moral standpoint of being a semi-role model, it just seems like the most dangerous job to have. The qualifications needed alone put up a "red flag":
*Some sort of criminal activity (past or present)
*Gunshot wounds (preferrably several, & life threatening)
*affiliation to some reputed street/prison gang
*dozens of people to protect you at all times
*street credibility (a must!!)
The list gets more in-depth, but there's barely a slot for "posesses talent", & if its on there, its near the bottom. Right above "breathes" & "needs food to survive".
As of late, many rappers have been the target of robberies (strong arm, home invasion, etc), & that seems to be a lot of stress, & very uneccessary when all I want to do is rock the mic &/or move the crowd.
It reminds me of the house party phenomenon that took place in L.A. around the early 1990's. At first, a kid would be throwing a house party, hand out flyers at the Fox Hills Mall, & have the end-all shindig the following Saturday. That scenario became the one guy the guest of honor didn't recognize being rejected at the door, only to return with a baker's dozen of dudes & shooting the party up. Innocent fun gave way to homicidal death traps. Kids went from doing the Kid'n'Play, to bottlenecking at the frontdoor, trying to escape premature expiration.
"If the party's not at Chuck E. Cheese's, you won't catch my a** there."
The violence only seems to be getting worse, with some rappers opting to use monikers that start or end with "Murder", "Killer", & think that it's okay. Imagine a 5 year old boy at Halloween asking his mom for an "Uncle Kill M. All" costume, or reciting the latest lyrics from "MC Murder-Man"'s new single. Kind of shocking, if only a little bit.
With the growth of the internet, & the ravenous tenure of the paparazzi, there's no privacy for superstars, rap or otherwise.
"So, you mean to tell me that if I decided to get dressed up, complete with $200,000 worth of jewelry on, you guys will know my every move & all my where-abouts?"
No thanks.
"My $500,000 car, with the $100,000 rims on it that I brag about so much, is in every magazine on the newsstands, & on every website?"
It's no wonder rappers don't let the world see their children's faces. That would be a Mexican Mafia-style ransom kidnapping waiting to happen.
This is in no way an attempt to stamp out some young hopeful's future. I'm just saying I'm glad I'm not a rapper. I'm much more comfortable hearing (as opposed to performing) the music in the safety of my little house, in my mediocre car, with $100.00 rims on it.
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