"The game used to make you sell ya soul. Now it gotta' come wit' a dance."Something that has definitely changed over time, and I'd argue it was for the worse, is the style and content of the rap music that sells or gains popularity. It's incredible. I'm not exactly sure that many people realize the vast difference in talent and quality of what used to propel a rap artist to fame as opposed to what actually makes it happen now. There are many arguable reasons why this is so, and ofcourse we would be naive to believe that the industry wouldn't evolve over time. However, I'll immediately admit that in a lot of ways it is rather disappointing the direction it has taken.
- Joe Budden, 5th Gear on Mood Muzik 3
This is not to say that the popular rappers these days don't put out music worth the listen, but there is a noticeable lack of soul, dedication, and value in the genre that moved a generation. I'd like to reemphasize that the soul is seemingly gone.
This isn't a new comparison that I'm about to make, but a necessary one to make early on for the purpose I want this blog to hold. Now, does the below album cover look familiar to you?
To be completely honest, I don't expect many people to know about it. This is completely from my experience and what I have been surrounded by. Nasir Jones, previously known as Nasty Nas, now just Nas, recorded this demo tape when he was 18 years old. His age is the least important factor, rather, the content of this demo tape is. The material on this tape will later be recorded onto Illmatic, which was his debut album in 1994. I don't care who you are, but in ANY real Hip Hop fans top 5 (or 10) albums of all time, Illmatic is undoubtedly a complete classic from Track 1 to Track 10. From "The Genesis" to "It Ain't Hard to Tell," Illmatic is an amazing album. (sidenote: I listen to most of it at least once a month, every month)
A lot of his material on Illmatic was on the Nasty Nas demo, rapped on different beats and different rhythm, but still in his legendary flow.
Today, it almost offends me that what does become popular are songs with dances. Really? That's down right offensive if we notice the kind of work that was put out by passionate Hip Hop icons compared to "Crank that." It's sad, but the priorities in the Hip Hop industry have seriously shifted. Music generally categorized as "Hip Hop," is no longer the same.
Luckily we still hear, sprinkled throughout the vast selection of music we have access to thanks to new technologies, music worth acknowledging in light of the Hip Hop movement that was so prominent in the past.
I think hip hop has a problem on its hands. Its rooted in a culture of poverty where success is 2 things(in no particular order) 1. Respect 2. Making money aka Not being poor anymore. Any artist who comes from that needs to balance the two. As u can imagine there will be
ReplyDeleteconflicts built into the way the market for music works, those 2 values that define success in the hip hop realm are often at odds with each other.