The State of Hip-Hop

Today is the day that the straw broke the camel's back. I desperately need to address how utterly ridiculous, ignorant and unimportant hip-hop music has become. If you research me and my background, you will find that I was fully immersed in Hip-Hop for over five years, recorded two albums, one being released locally, and even had my own Independent Hip-Hop record label called 2shy Records which had a large stable of artists. Present day, I am completely annoyed and angered by where the state of Hip-Hop has been taken and with the artists in the spotlight of the genre. I need to try to point out how irrelevant this music is and how unimportant the content of each song and album truly is.

First of all, as a young boy, I looked up to artists such as Michael Jackson, Prince and George Michael. I was a huge Michael Jackson fan, had the glove, red thriller jacket and the special sunglasses in which I would wear out in public and look like an idiot. One day I heard RUN DMC and was completely in awe of the sound and new brand of music. I quickly bought all their albums, discovered other artists such as LL Cool J and embraced the Hip-Hop scene. I lived in a small country town so I was pretty much on an island as far as the culture of Hip-Hop, but I was still able to at least purchase the albums and experience the lyrics and feel of the songs.

We have come a long way since the days of RUN DMC, LL Cool J, Kool Mo Dee & Digital Underground. The Music back then was about battling MC's in a test of lyrical talent, block parties, moving the crowd and expressing themselves in ways young black American's could not have done in the past. If you look back at the pioneers of Hip-Hop and how they rapped and what they talked about, sometimes you laugh and realize it doesn't stand the test of time, but other songs are just as cool. Over the years the talent of today lyricists has increased ten fold. Emcees such as Jay-Z, Eminem, Lil Wayne, Notorious BIG, Tupac and 50 Cent have all provided unbelievable metaphors and have demonstrated a very imaginative play on words which is clever and inventive. With the increase of talent and support from the world in embracing this culture and genre of music, the artists have gained unprecedented numbers of fans and a very broad and global audience.

Here is where Hip-Hop went wrong; the uprising of the west coast gangster rap. Artists and groups such as NWA started a trend where image and shock value was much more important than the quality of music. Don't get me wrong, NWA had some great songs such as 100 Miles and Running, Express Yourself and Always into Sumthin, but at the same time it was a change that in my opinion would destroy Hip-Hop for the masses.

With the success of NWA and artists from the group such as Dr. Dre and Ice Cube branching out into solo efforts, other artist looked to the gangster mentality and style as a positive rather than a negative. I am not saying Dre and Cube are the sole reason Hip-Hop is garbage today, but they were huge contributors of the nonsense that is now a reality in 99.9% of all new and popular rappers / Hip-Hop artists.

Today's Hip-Hop artist / Rapper have to have the following things in order to make it; "street cred", a criminal background, "bling," and obscene amounts of "hoes". Why is it that you have to have all these negative traits to become relevant in this genre? This is singularly the stupidest genre of music ever. If you can rap, and move someone with your lyrics, what does it matter what your background is?

What prompted this rant is that today I was reading on MTVnews.com that Rick Ross (a very popular MC) is involved in a scandal in which he allegedly was a prison guard when he was younger. This completely outraged the Hip-Hop community. MC's are discussing the ramifications it may or may not have on his career. Are you F**king serious? The same type of story came out a while ago about Akon and how he had portrayed himself to be a ring-leader of a car theft organization and how he used to run chop shops and was incarcerated for a period of time. His name of his first album was entitled "Konvict." He started his own record label called Konvict records and has told everyone who would listen on how much of a thief and criminal he was when he was younger. It has since come out that he had never done any jail time and never been the ring-leader of a car theft organization in which he still refutes. If someone said I was a criminal and had done jail time, I would attack them with everything I had to clear my name and not be associated with trash like that, yet stupid artists like this embrace it and make up stories on how they were such gangsters and thugs.

Artists like Jay-Z, Biggie, Birdman, 50 cent, T.I. and too many other artist to name claim to have been drug dealers and coke slingers and add that to their persona. If you used to be a drug dealer and/or gangster and you are proud of that, you are a complete dope and waste of human flesh. Being a criminal, being locked up and being a menace to society has never and will never be looked at as a good thing. 50 cent was a good rapper / lyricist yet couldn't gain traction in the industry until he was shot nine times, all of a sudden he is the next great thing because of his past near death experience. Same thing goes for Tupac, although he was popular before his shooting, he skyrocketed into the upper echelon of Hip-Hop after that shooting. This same story has been told a thousand times and society accepts this and buys into the fact that these rappers are such tortured souls who pour their heart out on albums...nope, not so much.

When I was running my record label, I would listen to the lyrics of all my artists and also what was popular on the charts etc. I would get so damn tired of listening to the same thing over and over and over again. Here is what rap albums consist of; take you favorite artist, group etc and follow along on their albums. First you have to have a song on how much of a gangster or how bad they are and how people need to give them the respect they need and deserve. Second they have to have a song in which they talk about their material possessions such as cars, rims, platinum jewelry and "bling." Next they have to have a song on how many women they have had sex with and how they are so pursued by random women that they have to dismiss numerous girls (that must be so difficult on them). Lastly they absolutely have to have a song on how much weed they smoke or how much drugs they have sold in their past. If they really want to take it to the next level, they'll have to write a song about how they are such a gangster and how they have killed before and/or been to prison. If you include all those songs on your album, you are on the fast-track to stardom my friend. Eck!

Although I mentioned Eminem earlier on, he doesn't totally for into the stereotypical role of today's Hip-Hop artist. He does have songs about doing drugs and how he has a somewhat criminal background, he is at least able to break ground with some of his songs and lyrics that other artist are not doing today. He sure doesn't help Hip-Hop's cause however because he is also one of the people who put out the same old garbage artists and cliché songs for the world to hear in people such as 50 Cent, G-Unit, Obie Trice etc.

This is one of the major reasons I got out of the Hip-Hop industry and focused on my true love of rock music. In rock, now one gives a damn about where you came from or what your background is. With Rock n roll, no one cares if you have had a criminal past or grew up in a privileged lifestyle. If you rock, you rock and people will enjoy it and become a fan. Rock artists don't care to create a persona of being anything other than an artist because they want their music to be taken seriously and accepted before the actual band.

Lastly the other major thing that has gotten out of control are the personal attacks and battles in which rappers are relying on to boost record sale and make a name for themselves. Back in the day, when Hip-Hop first started to blow up, lyrical battles were a major part of the culture. Mc's would battle each other as to who the better lyricist was and who could move the crowd better. After the battle they would shake hands and give each other respect. Today's battles are so different because not only is the content getting so personal and out of context, it is taken so seriously that people are being killed over them. Whoever is on top is a target for the lower echelon of artists to diss and battle to try to gain popularity. 50 cent and Eminem are constantly being called out, 50 Cent does a lot of the same however, but the freestyle disses and battles take a turn when they talk about each other's children and their "snitching". Eminem and Benzino had a battle in which Benzino rapped "tell Haley to watch her back at the candy store", and how she would end up like Jon Benet Ramsay. Benzino addressed how he was a real gangster and how Eminem doesn't know what it's like to stand in front of a judge on a grand jury indictment due to his crack dealing past. I am so impressed with Benzino, he is a scary criminal...no, you are a joke, a clown and a complete piece of garbage.

Benzino is a clown and I have zero respect for him and a person. That is the typical battle however, they talk about how "real" they are and how if attacked, they will take it to the streets and inflict violence on their opponent. There was never a greater example than when Tupac and Biggie were feuding and both ended up dead. Good job Hip-Hop fans; keep adding fuel to the fire and encourage such stupid and illogical behavior. I could go on for days about how meaningless and maddening today's Hip-Hop scene is, but it would just be recounting hundreds upon hundreds of idiotic artists saying and believing they are true gangsters and representing a life in which no one in their right mind would want to have grown up in.

These rappers who take such pride and embrace the "Hood" or "projects" in which they grew up and love don't live their anymore. If being "real" and from the streets is so important to them, why aren't they living their anymore? They are too busy buying multi-million dollar houses, cars for hundreds of thousands of dollars and putting the biggest wheels on their cars they can possibly fit. Mark my words, a few years from now when they are no longer number one or as popular they will be filing for bankruptcy and losing their house...just ask Scott Storch.

I see the youth of America buying into this ridiculousness every day by trying to dress like their gangster idols and speak in an ignorant fashion which is no where near what would be considered intelligent. I wish parents would explain the ignorance of believing being a criminal is cool and how these rappers and Hip-Hop artists are complete and utter garbage to their children. It's not like it is even hard to rap anyway. I was recently talking to a friend of mine and he compared rapping to soccer. Everyone can kick a ball; some do it better than others, but everyone can do it (no offence to any amputees). When I was running my record label, I had waited for weeks for an artist to add a verse on another artist's song, finally I decided to do it myself. I made an unbelievable verse, added a solid hook and called it a day. I gained somewhat of a local fame for my rapping and singing and my originality; because I didn't follow the formula stated in the above paragraphs.

One day I decided I didn't want to be a part of this genre of music and didn't want to be identified with the industry and completely gave it up. I was tied of the emphasis on being a thug or gangster, tired of the same songs being written over and over and I was tired of everything sounding the same. I used to "Get it" when it came to Hip-Hop, now I do not nor do I ever want to again. I wash my hands of this stupid trend and genre and hope it dies a miserable yet swift death.