DA BEST OF

On this day in 1996 Lesane Parish Crooks a.k.a Tupac Shakur a.k.a 2 Pac left this earth (allegedly).  Controversy, poet, revolutionary, MC, actor, prophet, role model (fuck what anybody else says), genius 2 Pac was all of these things.  Pac brought a divine insight to this thing we call hip-hop. Son of Black Panther, raised by the streets, Baltimore School of the Arts attendee Pac was raised in a complexity that would define his life and his music. An interesting thing happened in the wake of the passing of both 2 Pac and Biggie…hip-hop matured for a brief moment in time thus making them martyrs of sorts.  Since then it seems we have lost that maturity that Pac always strived for us as a people to achieve (minus the Death Row years). Read more…

My addiction to hip-hop leads me to scour blogs and hip-hop news sites for new material on a daily basis like many of you.  Every day just like you I come across new content (music, videos, interviews, trailers) from new names pretty much every hour on the hour.  To be completely honest 80%-90% of which is totally disposable in my humble opinion (no O’Riley).  This on going frustration has led me to ask the following question: Are there too many rappers? Read more…

Self Explanatory

Hip-Hop’s favorite and most storied drink of choice Hennessy has enlisted a special group of artists for its new blog and design project.  The Blending of Art project matches some up and coming graphic design artists with some of the most eclectic minds in music today.  The mash ups have resulted in some exclusive Hennessy bottle designs not available for sale (I know right) but dope none the less.  Of the musical artists chosen are Hip-Hop’s own Q-Tip and Questlove.  I would love to see what Prodigy, NORE or Redman would come up with for a Hennessy bottle design, but hey its not a perfect world.  Check out The Blending of Art Blog here.

Her beats is bangin, her hooks did it, her lyrics hitting, her timeless look did it, there’s a certain feel to her music I hope yall get it.  She is an ageless goddess and Hip-Hop’s favorites mistress Ms. Sade Adu.  Sade delivers painfully savvy lyrics of heartbreak with a voice as smooth as Glenlivet and ginger ale.  Lyrically like many hip-hop artists Sade penned verses of her inner struggles and insecurities in songs such as “King of Sorrow”.

Previously #10 #9 #8

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Rick James the original party animal was Motown’s secret weapon for through the late 60s and 70s and also I return trip in the 80s.  Like many MC’s today got into the game by establishing himself as a ghostwriter for several acts such as Smokey Robinson and The Spinners.  Rick James was known equally for his blues/funk sound and his wild life style.  The majority of Rick James’s career consisted of hit records, wild parties, coke binges and tons of controversy.  Along with pumping out his own hits Rick James also pimped produced songs for Teena Marie along with Eddie Murphy, The Mary Jane Girls, Billy Dee Williams and many others.    On a personal level Rick James lived a lifestyle that made Pac look like Wayne Brady. Read more…

In my endless pursuit to be as anti-MTV as possible, I had to go out of my way to be the antichrist to their now annual flagship Hip-Hop feature.  The Hottest MCs In The Game list was recently released and heavily debated.  One thing MTV never fails to do is confuse Hot with Good.  This years lists reads like the Miami Heat’s roster 3 stars and a bunch of garbage men (no Danny Manning).  So in an effort to vent my annual disappointment with the list I racked my satirical brain to come up with some kind of list of my own.  So I came up with “The Top 10 Greatest Unofficial Official Hip Hop Artist of All Time.” A list of artists that are non-rappers who carried the style, attitude and sound of Hip-Hop throughout the history of black music.  Over the next 10 days I will countdown to the #1 greatest unofficial official hip-hop artist ever.  So get your popcorn ready (no T.O.) and enjoy the history lesson

Reasonable Doubt def one of the greatest hip-hop albums ever made and my personal favorite.  This documentary tells the stories behind some of the songs and how the songs were made.  I hope the book Decoded is half as good as this. Parts 2, 3 & 4 after the break

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The year was 1991 the hottest game out was Sonic the Hedgehog, Jeffrey Dahmer was eating man meat (pause), Magic announced he had HIV, the hood was hurt that Mike Tyson was getting sent up and everybody’s soul took a hit when Myles Davis passed.  It was a very grayscale kinda year for the streets.  But there was a light beginning to illuminate that would bring out of the darkness the ills and realities of the streets of every ghetto, hood and or projects.  As Ice Cube put it in Boyz In The Hood “they don’t know don’t show or care what goes on in the hood” but this light out of Queensbridge Housing Projects would be responsible for everybody hearing what was going on.  In 1991 a 19 year old Nasir Jones “Nas” cut a demo that would be the beginning of a revolution in hip hop.  Need I say more….The rest is history……..Download Nas’s original demo from 1991 after the jump….

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Let me just start this post by stating I have the upmost love, respect, admiration and appreciation for one of the greatest MC’s of all time and champions of Hip-Hop KRS ONE.  But recently KRS along with other notable hip-hop pioneers have taken a stance to boycott the National Museum of Hip-Hop. This position is not being taken because of misrepresentation, lack of support, corporate involvement…but because of ………..MONEY.  You read correctly the pioneers taking part in this boycott are shunning the institution because they are not being paid for their representation in it.

The irony of this is that these pioneers have criticized their hip-hop offspring for their “commercialism” and “materialistic” approach to the art form they created.  I understand that some of hip-hop’s forefathers and mothers may have fallen on hard times and did not get to enjoy the fruits of hip-hop in the abundance that today’s artist do.  BUT when an institution is being built in your honor out of appreciation how could you not be grateful and humbled by that. This is especially odd considering KRS’s involvement in the organization.

Conventional wisdom would tell these pioneers to use this opportunity to educate a younger generation of their works and accomplishments. Or simply put: use it to make themselves relevant again.  I as a fan and idiot savant (I am fully aware of what that means) of hip-hop I fully support the National Museum of Hip-Hop. I would hate to believe that I have more appreciation for hip-hop than some of its pioneers……….Discuss