1. Everybody wants to be a gangsta
There was once all varieties of MCs rhyming approximately all aspects of existence. Hip-Hop used to be a laugh. Hip-Hip was once social aware. Hip-Hop used to political and militant. Hip-Hop used to be grown and horny earlier than Jay-Z made the word famous on his tune, mixtape downloads “Excuse me Miss”.
Hip-Hop has usually been gangsta. Many credit Schoolly D with making the primary Gangsta rap file, “P.S.K.” Ice-T came out with “6 N inside the morning”. Boogie Down Productions launched “Criminal Minded”. And how could each person fail to mention “the most dangerous institution”, N.W.A. And their infamous conventional report, “Straight Outta Compton”.
What I’m announcing is that Gangsta rap is not new and most of the so-known as gangsta rap acts these days all sound the equal (irrespective of in which they may be from) and aren’t nearly as suitable and reducing aspect because the pioneers of that sub-style inside Hip-Hop.
Bottom-line: Hip-Hop desires to diversify through returning to its true tradition of telling memories that reflect a selection of perspectives and no longer simply the identical ol’, equal ol’, “shoot ’em up, bang, bang” mentality and life-style.
2. Hip-Hop is driven more by using business achievement than cultural integrity
Hip-Hop is not a subculture, it’s a enterprise. But the fact is Hip-Hop is indeed a tradition that has been commercialized, consequently, compromised. Corporate America, whether you’re speakme approximately company-owned file labels, magazines or cable channels, are in entire manage of Hip-Hop.
Hip-Hop is big enterprise and is making a variety of people loads of money. But how lots of folks that benefit from Hip-Hop are in reality true to the maintenance of the way of life? And how lots of the profits are being recycled lower back within the communities everywhere in the world that gave beginning, raised and praise the culture like a proud discern?
Bottom-line: Hip-Hop, as a subculture, desires to be resurrected and moved ahead in having an impact on the arena socially, politically, religiously, economically and no longer simply exploited to make grasping opportunists wealthy.
3. BEEF
Let me start out with the aid of saying that there’s a big difference between “red meat” and “fighting”. Beef is what happens on the streets and even within the boardroom. Battling is competition; what takes place in sports for instance and of course Hip-Hop music. Battling is the muse of MC’ing.
Battling separates the thorough MCs from the “Sucker MCs”. There had been mythical “battles” all through Hip-Hop records; KRS-ONE & BDP vs. MC Shan & The Juice Crew, L.L. Cool J vs. Kool Moe Dee to name a pair.
But pork is every other entire can of “phrases”. Beef can (and has) spread out of doors of records and onto the streets. Beef, actual beef, is about extra than words. Beef may be dangerous and need to be taken extreme. Beef is dangerous to Hip-Hop as it damages the way of life’s credibility and hinders its true rationale. Hip-Hop as a culture and rap as a form of song was no longer founded on “greasy communicate” and violence.
Bottom line: Beef can also garner a few publicity and from time to time, tragically declare lives however it does nothing to uplift Hip-Hop way of life and the groups it represents.
4. The maximum popular MCs are often the maximum puffed up
You can ask modern average fan to listing their 10 favourite MC’s and as a minimum half of the ones they call are common at fine or downright wack. The MCs who get the maximum attention in radio, print and tv are frequently not MCs at all; they’re rappers, or I bet you may say, entertainers that rap. Your preferred rapper may also have a success tune getting a hundred’s of spins a day on the radio however that does not always suggest that she or he is a true MC.
Most rap songs performed at the radio are the weakest lyrically. Most of the elements of Hip-Hop are absolutely absent from the song movies that serve as a visual for the songs. These entertainers benefit from an expansion of things that placed them at the vanguard of Hip-Hop. But regularly lyrical prowess isn’t this type of factors. Meanwhile a number of the first-rate MCs that have mastered the art of MC’ing (see #9) get hold of little to no advertising from corporate America and their fantastic abilities are heard and witnessed by few.
Bottom line: True MCs who’re in the sport for the love of it have to be extra seen and the extra famous MCs who dominate the charts and style the covers of magazines should mission themselves and be challenged to step their rhyme sport up.
5. Hip-Hop journalism desires to step their recreation up
I’m a creator. I grew up an avid reader of Hip-Hop themed publications. There become a time when I thoroughly enjoyed studying those guides ready anxiously for the brand new issues to hit the newsstand or be delivered in my mailbox.
But the final 5 years or so, the “Hip-Hop press” has permit the tradition down. For example, the 2 biggest and maximum a hit magazines (I may not name them. You recognize…) in my view have perpetuated, instigated and contributed to pushing on-going beefs among rap crews. And those publications themselves have engaged in on-going beefs among every different!
This doesn’t take place in other publications except you’re talking about the tabloids. And if it does manifest within other courses, the ramifications aren’t as unfavourable to the overall properly being of the “profiles” featured in their pages or the readers of their courses.
Plainly, the Hip-Hop press has a responsibility to the way of life it covers. It must venture the lifestyle while celebrating it. The Hip-Hop press should not lower their journalistic standards or “dumb down” just to sell magazines. I hate to say this, but a number of the high-quality pieces I’ve study on Hip-Hop have come from mainstream courses which honestly haven’t any authority to talk on matters of Hip-Hop.
Bottom line: At times, the Hip-Hop press comes across caricature-ish and for lots of us that grew up in Hip-Hop, we assume and deserve higher. The younger era of Hip-Hop desperately need better (although they do not recognise it). There are remarkable writers inside our way of life however we all need to present Hip-Hop in a shining mild even as being goal. The Hip-Hop press has a credibility problem (and I ain’t talking about road cred).
6. Radio & TV has but to step their recreation up
Radio and tv programming as it pertains to Hip-Hop is wack. The most popular Hip-Hop show on TV (You realize what I’m speaking approximately) is the wackest. And it’s not because of the hosts or the younger, ill informed target market. The blame might be unfold across the board among the producers and the company organizations who’re accountable for setting the display at the air.
I don’t want to pick out on one specific television display. The point is radio and television do a horrible task of ways they present Hip-Hop tradition to the loads. And, frankly, advertisers don’t care; all they need are the eyeballs to something they’re peddling.
Bottom line: Radio & Television need to create greater formats and programming that commemorate all of the elements of Hip-Hop in order that more eyes and ears will see and hear the numerous faces and sounds of Hip-Hop and not just the regularly bad stereotypical stuff.
7. The more youthful era doesn’t realize or well known the pioneers of the sport
When I become a teenager, I loved Big Daddy Kane but I additionally cherished and favored the soulful sounds of Marvin Gaye. I changed into a scholar of tune, pretty informed about history and now not simply hung up on the contemporary track on the radio. Many of my peers were the equal manner.
On Nas’ new record, “Hip-Hop is Dead”, one in all my favourite songs is “Carry on Tradition” wherein Nas challenges, “Let’s see who can quote a Daddy Kane line the quickest.” The more youthful era want to be greater knowledgeable approximately Hip-Hop pre-2004. I love fire-spittin’, Lil’ Wayne, or the charismatic, T.I., however there may be been quite a few Hip-Hop earlier than the new school or subsequent faculty of Hip-Hoppers.
I’ve always said that the pioneers of the game do not get the right platform that they deserve. That’s why I like VH1’s Hip-Hop Honors. It’s not the high-quality way to pay tribute to the MCs of the past however at the least the manufacturers are attempting.
Bottom line: The pioneers of the sport paved the manner for the MCs that you see now. The MCs of today, radio, tv, print and simply the average Hip-Hopper on the road must pay homage to the legends. The way of life has a records and that history is the foundation from which the destiny of Hip-Hop have to be constructed upon.
Eight. Live performances are loud, crowded and wack
You might be a hardcore Hip-Hop fan however you will need to admit that the live Hip-Hop performance is awful. It hasn’t continually been this way. As a remember of fact, in its quick records, Hip-Hop is known for its performance element. There had been notable performers within Hip-Hop and lots of those performances have been witnessed in the park earlier than they reached the Grammy degree.
Nowadays, MCs just do not have a clue of what it takes to meet an target audience. There’s so much wrong with Hip-Hop performances nowadays. The music is simply too loud. There are manner too many people on stage. MCs are too cool or too hard to bounce or honestly groove with the tune. The level display just lack true exhilaration and creativity. Often what you’ve got is a bunch of fellows on stage as if they’re standing on a avenue nook. Is that the best they could provide you with? I think no longer.
Bottom line: MCs haven’t shown proper Hip-Hop heads nothing in the event that they can’t placed on a strong display. MCs spend a lot of time on the road bringing their music to the people however they actually need to spend greater time operating on their performance once they hit the degree.
9. “Real” MC’ing is a misplaced art
If I had to come up with a percentage, I might say that best approximately 25% of MCs these days can actually rhyme. Some have little or no ability at all. The MCing element within Hip-Hop is the maximum celebrated however the least mastered. Now I love beats and I get hooked on a catchy hook, but back in the day, after I heard a report, I zeroed in on the MC. If he or she could not rhyme, my ears closed speedy.
Too many songs are chorus/hook and essentially not anything else. The MC in reality is the voice of the tradition. What is stated and how it is stated is important. A MC need to be able to articulate his or her message truly and assuredly. A actual MC might now not compromise his or her lyrical prowess to make a success document. Jay-Z, as an example, has made many hits and but he hardly ever disappoints lyrically. Biggie was like this as properly.
Bottom line: MCs of today need to take a look at the MCs of the past and the super ones that are still doing their aspect. These MCs are the authentic masters of wordplay.
10. The girls are being denied the opportunity to polish and continue to be degraded and driven to the historical past.
The women of Hip-Hop nonetheless haven’t gotten their due. We can speak about every other song genre and some of its biggest names are females. Maybe it’s the character of Hip-Hop and rap track. But to have that role might be selling Hip-Hop way of life quick.
If you observed returned, ladies had been celebrated in Hip-Hop. Now an excessive amount of of Hip-Hop degrades its very own women just for the sake of doing so. Hip-Hop not often makes the distinction between a whinge and a lady anymore. Bitch or Hoe are two phrases which have appeared to officially update the words woman, female or lady within the Hip-Hop lexicon.
Whatever happened to calling a girl a chick or honey?
Some feminists would not like the ones terms however at least they are spoken as a compliment to women. Most ladies are angry through being called a bitch or a hoe. Of path, in recent times some women embrace those derogatory phrases, seeing themselves on this manner and calling each other by these names.
But I may not virtually reside on how guys deal with ladies in Hip-Hop. That’s a file this is been played typically. I trust those who say that the degradation of ladies in Hip-Hop is encouraged by means of society’s remedy of girls. But Hip-Hop can also be a main have an impact on in converting that.
What I’m definitely stricken by as far as girls, is the truth that there are just not enough ladies in the sport on the mic. Who’s representing for the ladies? I don’t thoughts pronouncing that some of my favored MCs are ladies. MC Lyte, Queen Latifah, Lauryn Hill…These girls and others are great MCs of their own proper. Foxy Brown and Lil’ Kim each can pass toe to toe lyrically with everybody in the game; beyond and present!
