Not another 'state of hip-hop today' thread

Captain Awesome · 12-03-2009, 03:18 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Jester

What's wrong with rapping about bling, whores, guns or coke?

What's not wrong with it? It's pointless and meaningless. Rap is an artform the goal was to break the mould not fit around the same crap just to make yourself millions. Gangster rap can be entertaining the same way vin diesel movies are entertaining but they're runining rap. Everyone thinks it's about black gangsters, it was never about that. Intelligent lyricists are naming themselves after drug dealers just so they can make more money. It's disgusting.

Don't get me wrong there is gangster rappers that i liked but only if they are talented as lyricists (eg big pun, royce 5'9 ect). But even when they are talented as lyricists they are wasting their talent. Rap (like all music) is a way to express yourself. When they start talking about guns and coke they're talking about stuff they've seen in movies they're acting tough throwing up a facade to keep the idiots buying their music.

Rap is there to express thoughts, feelings and opinions. Not to brag about your chrome rims and how awesome a drug dealer you are. If they're so great at being gangsters they wouldn't need to rap for a career. They're all fake and they are pissing all over the hip hop culture.

You want to know how to tell if someone is a good rapper? read their lyrics. If they mean something written down then great. If they mean nothing written down then i don't give a **** how catchy the song is, they have failed as a rapper.

"You're only making them dance, you're not moving them."

anticipation · 12-03-2009, 03:41 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Captain Awesome

What's not wrong with it? It's pointless and meaningless. Rap is an artform the goal was to break the mould not fit around the same crap just to make yourself millions. Gangster rap can be entertaining the same way vin diesel movies are entertaining but they're runining rap. Everyone thinks it's about black gangsters, it was never about that. Intelligent lyricists are naming themselves after drug dealers just so they can make more money. It's disgusting.

Don't get me wrong there is gangster rappers that i liked but only if they are talented as lyricists (eg big pun, royce 5'9 ect). But even when they are talented as lyricists they are wasting their talent. Rap (like all music) is a way to express yourself. When they start talking about guns and coke they're talking about stuff they've seen in movies they're acting tough throwing up a facade to keep the idiots buying their music.

Rap is there to express thoughts, feelings and opinions. Not to brag about your chrome rims and how awesome a drug dealer you are. If they're so great at being gangsters they wouldn't need to rap for a career. They're all fake and they are pissing all over the hip hop culture.

You want to know how to tell if someone is a good rapper? read their lyrics. If they mean something written down then great. If they mean nothing written down then i don't give a **** how catchy the song is, they have failed as a rapper.

"You're only making them dance, you're not moving them."

do you know what cognitive dissonance is? gangster rap was and is essential to hip hop, everything that preceded pioneers like NWA, Kool G Rap, and to a lesser extent EPMD is not necessarily the end-all be-all of rap. these mc's were the catalysts for those blaxploitation films you're talking about, they provided the stereotypes that the middle and upper classes try to emulate so desperately. their lives were filled with inner city violence and narcotic trafficing, so for you to say that they are betraying some banal, idealistic notion of hip hop that you hold by rhyming about their own experiences is ridiculous. the subject matter of a rapper's music is immaterial, it is how well they convey their message that determines their worth.

music_phantom13 · 12-03-2009, 04:58 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Captain Awesome

Rap is there to express thoughts, feelings and opinions. Not to brag about your chrome rims and how awesome a drug dealer you are. If they're so great at being gangsters they wouldn't need to rap for a career. They're all fake and they are pissing all over the hip hop culture.

I don't even know how to respond to the stupidity of that statement.

Engine · 12-03-2009, 06:45 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Captain Awesome

You want to know how to tell if someone is a good rapper? read their lyrics. If they mean something written down then great. If they mean nothing written down then i don't give a **** how catchy the song is, they have failed as a rapper.

Quote:

Originally Posted by anticipation

the subject matter of a rapper's music is immaterial, it is how well they convey their message that determines their worth.

So at least you two agree on that - and so do I. Good lyricism is key.

Jester · 12-03-2009, 07:19 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Captain Awesome

What's not wrong with it? It's pointless and meaningless. Rap is an artform the goal was to break the mould not fit around the same crap just to make yourself millions. Gangster rap can be entertaining the same way vin diesel movies are entertaining but they're runining rap. Everyone thinks it's about black gangsters, it was never about that. Intelligent lyricists are naming themselves after drug dealers just so they can make more money. It's disgusting.

Don't get me wrong there is gangster rappers that i liked but only if they are talented as lyricists (eg big pun, royce 5'9 ect). But even when they are talented as lyricists they are wasting their talent. Rap (like all music) is a way to express yourself. When they start talking about guns and coke they're talking about stuff they've seen in movies they're acting tough throwing up a facade to keep the idiots buying their music.

Rap is there to express thoughts, feelings and opinions. Not to brag about your chrome rims and how awesome a drug dealer you are. If they're so great at being gangsters they wouldn't need to rap for a career. They're all fake and they are pissing all over the hip hop culture.

You want to know how to tell if someone is a good rapper? read their lyrics. If they mean something written down then great. If they mean nothing written down then i don't give a **** how catchy the song is, they have failed as a rapper.

"You're only making them dance, you're not moving them."

You don't have to be involved with those kinds of things to find them interesting or intriguing.

There is no concrete "THIS IS WHAT RAP IS ABOUT" standard, that's bullshit.

If you can only rap about things that you have truly experienced and been a part of, then the genre has become limited and therefore sucks.

You're stuck on "people rap gangsta rap to make money," which is totally irrelevant.

Gangsta rap isn't ruining rap. It's the lack of creativity by rappers.

There's no topic that should be excluded from music. Especially rap.

pourmeanother · 12-03-2009, 08:31 PM

I agree with Jester in some respects. I got just as tired out of "bitches and hoes" stuff as the next guy or gal around here, but in my opinion it's all about the way they deliver that package.

What I dislike is the guys who boast- for example, about how much money they have: "I've got so much money I make it rain. When times is tough I get the quarters out and make it hail. When I got some nose candy I 'hit the slopes' and make it snow". Yawwwwwn;

However, drugs, guns, and women can be very interesting topics. A former dealer sharing a story about himself on the streets slinging rocks can be interesting. A guy having an encounter with a trick can be interesting. Atomsphere "Always Coming Back Home To You" at one point focuses on Slug being handed a gun from some guy, and not knowing what to do with it. Stories- I like story time.

Although, I have a tendency to tune out lyrics lately... I can like a song for a month before I ever really pay attention to what it's about. Goes to show that for some people rhyme, word play, production, and beat are just as important as content.

Jester · 12-03-2009, 08:44 PM

Well, the ego and the brag is a huge part of the hip hop culture.

As far as gangsta rap goes, I just think that dismissing a topic because it's become abused is stupid.

edit: By the way, I've seen some of your posts, you seem to be pretty big on Atmosphere. Dope, man.

pourmeanother · 12-03-2009, 09:13 PM

Your definitely right, I can't discount that. I just find myself less interested in the brass nature of some guys. I think that the over the top **** can kill it sometimes (not the good kind of killing it haha). I mean, watch this:

Yeah, definitely all about Atmosphere... pretty much single-handedly revitalized my interest in hip-hop/rap about 6 year ago.

Jester · 12-03-2009, 09:23 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by pourmeanother

Your definitely right, I can't discount that. I just find myself less interested in the brass nature of some guys. I think that the over the top **** can kill it sometimes (not the good kind of killing it haha). I mean, watch this:

Yeah, definitely all about Atmosphere... pretty much single-handedly revitalized my interest in hip-hop/rap about 6 year ago.

Well, to be fair, there are people who can make anything look stupid.

What's your favorite Atmosphere album?

pourmeanother · 12-03-2009, 09:53 PM

Funny you ask, I was just mulling this over the other day. Each album brings different themes to the table: introspective, angry, upbeat, dark, etc. So, it's easy for my "favorite" Atmosphere album to change depending on my mood, my environment, the season, and so on. Slug and Ant are both consistent in that they never totally fall flat for me, and they are constantly adapting and changing. Ant's beats jump all around- from percussion to piano to soul to this to that...

If I'm not dodging the question like I did ^there

... I guess my favorite is probably Lucy Ford or God Loves Ugly. 1a and 1b, really. Seven's Travels, despite having some standout tracks, has never really ranked as high with me. The more recent albums are great, just a peg or two below those two for me. There are some great EPs, but can't compare those to the full lengths.

How about yourself?

12-03-2009, 08:31 PM	#36 (permalink)
pourmeanother Saaaad Panda Join Date: Dec 2008 Posts: 852	I agree with Jester in some respects. I got just as tired out of "bitches and hoes" stuff as the next guy or gal around here, but in my opinion it's all about the way they deliver that package. What I dislike is the guys who boast- for example, about how much money they have: "I've got so much money I make it rain. When times is tough I get the quarters out and make it hail. When I got some nose candy I 'hit the slopes' and make it snow". Yawwwwwn; However, drugs, guns, and women can be very interesting topics. A former dealer sharing a story about himself on the streets slinging rocks can be interesting. A guy having an encounter with a trick can be interesting. Atomsphere "Always Coming Back Home To You" at one point focuses on Slug being handed a gun from some guy, and not knowing what to do with it. Stories- I like story time. Although, I have a tendency to tune out lyrics lately... I can like a song for a month before I ever really pay attention to what it's about. Goes to show that for some people rhyme, word play, production, and beat are just as important as content. __________________ Life is just blah, blah, blah You hope for blah And sometimes you find it, but mostly it's blah And waiting for blah And hoping you were right about the blahs you made And then, just when you think you've got the whole blah'd damn thing figured out And you're surrounded by the ones you blah Death shows up... anddd blah, blah, blah.

12-03-2009, 09:13 PM	#38 (permalink)
pourmeanother Saaaad Panda Join Date: Dec 2008 Posts: 852	Your definitely right, I can't discount that. I just find myself less interested in the brass nature of some guys. I think that the over the top **** can kill it sometimes (not the good kind of killing it haha). I mean, watch this: Yeah, definitely all about Atmosphere... pretty much single-handedly revitalized my interest in hip-hop/rap about 6 year ago. __________________ Life is just blah, blah, blah You hope for blah And sometimes you find it, but mostly it's blah And waiting for blah And hoping you were right about the blahs you made And then, just when you think you've got the whole blah'd damn thing figured out And you're surrounded by the ones you blah Death shows up... anddd blah, blah, blah.

12-03-2009, 09:53 PM	#40 (permalink)
pourmeanother Saaaad Panda Join Date: Dec 2008 Posts: 852	Funny you ask, I was just mulling this over the other day. Each album brings different themes to the table: introspective, angry, upbeat, dark, etc. So, it's easy for my "favorite" Atmosphere album to change depending on my mood, my environment, the season, and so on. Slug and Ant are both consistent in that they never totally fall flat for me, and they are constantly adapting and changing. Ant's beats jump all around- from percussion to piano to soul to this to that... If I'm not dodging the question like I did ^there ... I guess my favorite is probably Lucy Ford or God Loves Ugly. 1a and 1b, really. Seven's Travels, despite having some standout tracks, has never really ranked as high with me. The more recent albums are great, just a peg or two below those two for me. There are some great EPs, but can't compare those to the full lengths. How about yourself? __________________ Life is just blah, blah, blah You hope for blah And sometimes you find it, but mostly it's blah And waiting for blah And hoping you were right about the blahs you made And then, just when you think you've got the whole blah'd damn thing figured out And you're surrounded by the ones you blah Death shows up... anddd blah, blah, blah.

12-03-2009, 08:44 PM	#37 (permalink)
Jester Music Addict Join Date: Jul 2009 Posts: 752	Well, the ego and the brag is a huge part of the hip hop culture. As far as gangsta rap goes, I just think that dismissing a topic because it's become abused is stupid. edit: By the way, I've seen some of your posts, you seem to be pretty big on Atmosphere. Dope, man.