Why are so many rappers so self absorbed ?. There are countless rap/hip hop songs about how cool/tough/screwed up they are. It's a bit boring with LL Cool J banging on about how he's a hit with the ladies (I do know what LL Cool J means, I think), or the endless diatribes from Eminem about his mum. I know there are also a whole load of songs that are about a whole load of other subjects, but the only ones non-rap fans hear on the mainstream are the 'look at me' ones that sound so annoying.
Well, it used to be said that this was only an Urban phenomenon ( i.e. only Black folks ,latinos, etc. in the inner city) thought and lived that way. *sighs* There are several reason all of which I'm giving my OWN personal opinion on the matter. And despite being the most color blind dreadlocked fella you'll ever know, YES indeed some cultural issues are involved. One reason could be plain and simple, MONEY. As some rappers have said b4 the things that keep the world going are sex and checks. The big wigs at these major recording labels are no dunces. There's a market for da "bling bling" and big ol' @sses. So why stop ?? Picture some major labels pushing cleaner rappers out there. Yeah Will Smith worked, but for how long??? He had to battle 2pac, Notorious BIG, and others in sales back then. Which brings me to this next "philosophy".Most in the inner cities have had to live life tough. Yeaaahhh there are PLENTY of people who don't give a damn, get their hand outs from MASSAH Uncle Sam and lounge on the couch and the street corners. But there are those that are hard core, work their tails off to get to the top, and it's historically proven that hip-hop/rap artists have done that. The use of the media (recording industry, TV videos, etc) exposes this and as each generation comes up, they see these rappers coming up from some sort of "struggle". They rap hard core because that's again, how some labels WANT them to be (as many underground rappers object to in their lyrics vs. their mainstream counterparts), or they are extremely angry at the past, present, and possible future plight of life in the inner city. The 'Look at me' issue that is brought up could be cultural. Being a Black myself I will admit that most in the culture LOVE to show off. Reason could be that the people never had much chance in the nation's history (well from 177?-1950s maybe beyond) to be in the spotlight for something that mainstream. And so we like to be seen. Many comedians point this fact out as well:Coming in late for events, yelling with passionate emotion (especially during sex!!) , talking loud at the dinner table,boisterous church services,etc. It's genetically and culturally a fact that all cultures have a form of passion and Black have a more open form at times. Notice I say most cultures, because I'm not ignorant to the fact that other cultures have passion as well, showing it in various ways. My minister has been to church services in the Appalachia region, we are talking rustic!! But the fact is, they praised the Lord in their own way, traditional bluegrass ,knee slappin music. But they showed passion for God and the faith, which is all that mattered. It all boils down to knowledge, which many don't seem to want to obtain. I appreciate this thread being started because even if Doctor Stamen hates this hip-hop/rap culture , this person is still seeking knowledge on the issue. Many philosophers will explain that the most important word to learning is WHY? When people start asking this question more, they'll be able to make sound decisions on issues big and small. I hope more can reply to this thread because there are so many opinions on hip-hop/rap.
it's getting stupid though, 30 year old men rapping about their ice and how cool their cars are. rap music hasn't evolved a bit since 1991. A few groups here and there do some interesting things but much like country, the genre is creatively dead. it should have gone from the funny bravado to the more topic orineted Disposable Heros of hiphopricy/consolidated type of thing. Instead it just got stupid.
What do you mean rap hasn't evolved since 91 back then the songs were mostly about living on the streets and violence now its less threatening with people like Nelly doing like party songs instead of gangster rap.
I'd say it has devolved, which is a form of evolution, so I'll have to disagree. Dead on, there's only so many ways you can rap about bling bling, tricks and hoes, and muth******************as. The image is the sole reason for it's popularity it seems. By the way, great post Thoma gol. I think I tend to go more for the product of their upbringing vs. product of their race. White rappers who grew up in crappy conditions are going to be more similiar to their black counterparts vs. the white rappers that grew up in middle class suburbia. Likewise I'd bet black rappers who grew up in middle class suburbia are going to be more like their white counterpart vs. the black rappers who grew up in the hood. Though with every nature vs. nurture argument, it's a little bit of both. Race though definately plays a part in it because as we all know... in best Reggie White voice... "black folk are gifted in worship, celebration, and expression." Off to listen to a good ol' jam about my adidas. Yeeaahhh Beeyotch!
Part of it is the battle culture that developed in the late 70's/early 80's in all areas of hip hop. Crews of rappers, writers, dancers and DJs would compete each other, usually for nothing more than respect and that's carried onto year 2002 as rappers are still battling each other in rhyme. As for the decline in creativity in the genre, I agree that there's very little worth listening in mainstream hip hop, but that's not too differnet from what's happening in rest of music. The artists that are in the forefront are the ones who market themselves the best, not necessarily the most talented. But there's still a strong creative movement in the underground and semi-underground. I wouldn't call the genre dead - it's just not like the early 90's when you could hear Public Enemy and BDP on the radio. At the same time, with the internet and so much information available in general, you can get your music from places other than Clear Channel or Viacom.
while NWA kickstarted the gangsta rap thing, in the late 80's there was a social movement starting in hip hop where many rappers wore the African choker and wore African garb. Much of the lyrics were politically charged or provided social commentary. This movement died around '93 when SNoop and Dre "blew up" and since then most rap has been about blunts, beating women, killing gay people or killing eachother. One has to wonder why Eminem or Jay Z can play to packed stadiums while De La Soul and Slum Village are playing in tiny clubs if the genre hasn't de-volved. Yeah I'm into DJ Premeir, I'm into KRS One, I'm into Slum Village....but that style of hip hop makes up about .01% of the industry....something Chuck D and Krs One constantly bemon to this day. Hell read the latest Source and there is an interview with Big Daddy Kane complaining about this.
LL Cool J is ok though, his early stuff is pionering. If he brags it's only cause it's true, Ladies do love Cool J(ames Todd Smith).
Re: Re: A question for rap fans For the same reason Avril Lavigne plays to packed stadiums while true punk bands are relegated to the open mic nights. It's never about supply and demand - it's about what works best for Viacom/Clear Channel/Ticketmaster. I agree with you that the genre has taken a step back - but seeing what's happening in rest of pop music, I'm not as bothered. Sure, worthy artists aren't getting on TRL or playing two nights at Madinson Sq Garden. And I wish DJ QBert or Del Tha Funkee Homosapien were on heavy rotation on MTV, but that's not going to happen. As I've said before, there are more avenues for non-mainstream artists now than 10 years ago. You no longer have to be Top 40 to be commercially viable. You see artists like De La Soul and Mos Def crossover without going pop. It was impossible to get tickets to the Jurassic 5/Nappy Roots show a couple of weeks back in NYC and I assume it'll be the same way for The Roots when they play 5 shows up in here next week. Good stuff is out there. They may not get the exposure they would've gotten in '91 and they may be harder to find, but they're around. And remember that in 1991, MC Hammer and Vanilla Ice were the two biggest rappers as far as mainstream America was concerned. I'd say Jay-Z and Eminem are an improvement.
Re: Re: A question for rap fans Ted, that's James Todd Smith -- remember, the J is for James. I agree with you, Ted, that rap is not good the way it used to be, and that's why I stopped listening to it regularly somewhere in the mid 90s almost a full decade ago. It's all about thuggery, power, violence, and yes, beeyotches and ho's now. Like MyHouse, I'll be more than happy when the seemingly endless "thug" era finally dies a much deserved death. In the meantime, we got to keep alive the memories of guys like Jam Master Jay, who helped make hip-hop fun, energetic, creative, all without being "soft" or "weak", and hope other creative talents come into the genre and give it new life.
I just wanted to take a second to let everyone know that perhaps for the first time, Lucid and Ted Cikowski actually appear to agree on something. Rap... wow. What happened. I really starting "strongly disliking" rap lol... when it became nothing but a giant show-off fest full of choppos. You know, guys that are doing stuff that just for the attention and to show off and whatnot - putting ridiculous trim and $hit on cars, pointing out how cool they were and how great their cars were. Granted, in all honesty I am aware that it is somewhat of an inferiority complex and actually a psychological condition. But still, as a music fan, it's just not enjoyable and is rather annoying. Thoma Gol is right. Some of it is cultural. But then, some of it is really just... IMO... stupid. Comparing the old days with Doug-E-Fresh and the rap acts to today is like night and day. Yeah, some of the old school told stories but others were festive and party like. Nowadays, there's a few of the party like scene but still, despite the beats and catchy phrases and what-not, today's artists still only rap about one thing: themselves. It's a shame, but nowadays I just don't listen to rap really. Whether or not it's evolved is beyond me really - it's almost to the point where I hear one lyric and automatically fast forward the track or switch the station. I conclude that that it's just not the music for me, so maybe I shouldn't understand it. Of course that is a polite way of saying I think rap today is crap...
Skipshady is dead right. Rap hasn't stopped evolving, it's just that the stuff that has moved on in a good way isn't well known. People know the name "The Roots" but apparently they don't do anything to find out more. And he had another good point...the good stuff is out there. You have to look a little harder for it, but it's out there in droves.
This is really ironic, considering all of the self-promoting sig lines that Alex_1 has had over the years.
Party songs aren't an evolution. Those have been around since the old skool. Remember "La-di Da-di"? I'd have to agree with the posters that said that Hip Hop has been largely stagnant since the thug era came in.
Excuse me, miss? Anyway, yes, I still have a large collection of CDs that date circa 1987-95. These days, I got friends who work for labels so I get free stuff. I think the genre has devolved, but what do you expect? There's hardly any politcs or any hard thinking involved when you listened to the lyrics. I miss those political lyrics, or at least the ones that got you thinking more.
At both of my jobs the topic has come up even from the more "thuggish" co-workers how iffy the current rap/hip-hop genre has been. I remember back in the day when there was HIGH expectation for a new cd coming out, but now, since the quality (in some's opinion) has dipped, they just wait till one of the boys gets it instead of getting it themselves. Some fellas have even brought out the older hip-hop/rap because it sounded so much more genuine.