MY LOVE 4 HIP-HOP

[VIsqo]

Thats what I said about Will after Lost and Found....

[JumpinJack AJ]

It's not just rap that's in a state of dysfunction. R&B is in the same state because it basically mirrors what the rappers are doing.

I feel u. R-N-B isn't in danger the same way....but it's definitely been in a stagnate state. The difference is that labels (big and small) are giving legit R-N-B and Soul artists a chance. And the lackluster R-N-B records are no where as near as bad as Rap's. R-N-B artists also haven't sold out like some of Hip-Hop and Raps. These rap cats will do anything for a dollar..anything 4 a car...anything for a girl that is out of their league 2 give them attention. R-N-B artists have also stayed a bit more consistant. The sad thing the genres have in common is that ADD commercial music fans have zero loyalty 2 those who have had hits in the past. There is no reason that Boyz II Men, Toni Braxon, Silk, Brandy, etc aren't still having big hits.

In the past few months, i've been going back and finding the albums and singles that i've always wanted since they are only gonna get harder and harder 2 find. Some of them are going for really high prices since all the classic artists of the 90's usually have a dedicated fan base willing 2 spend top dollar on out of print albums and singles.

Who knows what the future holds. I hope that people who call themselves music fans just keep supporting the artists and buying their albums 2 show that there is a demand for talented artists with heart.

[Turntable]

I'm not saying they don't have heart...but they certainly don't have it in their music...which makes it one dementional crap 2 me. I like artists that i can get 2 know thru' their music...not artists that i'll never truely know thru' their music. Violence and stuff may be part of their enviornment, but that's not all they have been exposed 2...so why don't they spice up their music and talk about something else once in awhile.

But Aj, thats exactly where you go wrong with yuour argumentation. About 90 procent (Cant fron on dissing Soulja Boy and them. There is nothing like Skills left.) of the artists you are dissing (Nelly, Ja Rule, UGK (Them anyway)..even Lil Wayne,lol, to name a few) do just what you say here. You just dont take the time to listen to all theyr stuff. I can name you a big load of songs where they show diffrent sides (I would even send you some of them). Not saying I like them all, just saying you doing them wrong.

Edited April 17, 2008 by Turntable

[Jazzy Julie]

My music collection is probably 70% RnB, i only really got into hip hop properly in 99 so i missed the golden era. I go back and buy old albums a lot of the time. And more recently ive got more into pop and disco.

ive just gone to check and the last few rap albums i bought were Kanyes, Jeffs and Lost and found, wow i just dont buy rap anymore. :shakehead:

[dparrott]

Yo AJ, you getting into rap sounds a lot like me, same time frame, rappin/beatboxin with your friends, everything. Some of my first tapes were Raising Hell, Bigger & Deffer, Big & Beautiful and JJ+FP's DJ..Rapper. I liked R&B in the early 90's (BBD, Boyz II Men, etc.) with hints of hip-hop but still focused on good singing and being more upbeat.

My musical range goes from Metallica to rap, from british rock (Radiohead, etc.) to wild experimental stuff. I get in moods to listen to different music, and weather and time of day factors into the decisions.

[Hero1]

Yeah if you were brought up on hip-hop from that era it's very hard to listen to the commercial stuff today.. I don't think "generation y" realise the diversity that used to be around

[JumpinJack AJ]

I'm not saying they don't have heart...but they certainly don't have it in their music...which makes it one dementional crap 2 me. I like artists that i can get 2 know thru' their music...not artists that i'll never truely know thru' their music. Violence and stuff may be part of their enviornment, but that's not all they have been exposed 2...so why don't they spice up their music and talk about something else once in awhile.

But Aj, thats exactly where you go wrong with yuour argumentation. About 90 procent (Cant fron on dissing Soulja Boy and them. There is nothing like Skills left.) of the artists you are dissing (Nelly, Ja Rule, UGK (Them anyway)..even Lil Wayne,lol, to name a few) do just what you say here. You just dont take the time to listen to all theyr stuff. I can name you a big load of songs where they show diffrent sides (I would even send you some of them). Not saying I like them all, just saying you doing them wrong.

I get what u are saying...and i DO listen 2 everything. I'll give anything a chance. I'm not listening 2 Ja-Rule albums from start 2 finish and then dissing him, but i preview new music at FYE all the time. I actually own all of Nelly's albums. This one girl i was talking 2 like him...so i bought all of his albums for like 75 cents a piece on half.com so that i could make a mixtape of all of the songs i could bare...ha ha. So in some cases, i actually have peeped entire albums. U could say that only previewing an album dosen't give u proper perspective of an album, which is true. But 99% of the Hip-Hop albums that chart, leaving u thinking "if i've heard 1, i've heard them all" after ever few seconds.

[Turntable]

It doesnt sound original, but they all show diffrent sides of them quit often. Not lesss than Hammer and cats like him did. Like I told you, I can send you tracks, no problem. And you shouldnt just focus on albums, caus Mixtaapes are there too.

And as far as Nelly goes.. You actually listend to all the albums and you still trying to say that he NEVER shows personality and diffrent sides than the Party Boy that he's known for. I mean, the tracks might be wack, but that has nothing to do with what he shows on them.

Edited April 18, 2008 by Turntable

[TopDawg14]

Yeah if you were brought up on hip-hop from that era it's very hard to listen to the commercial stuff today.. I don't think "generation y" realise the diversity that used to be around

Tim you hit the nail right on the head. I think the loudest chorus of boos are coming from hip-hop fans who experienced the Golden Age. I'm 32 and I remember RUN-DMC's "Peter Piper". I remember going to the movies to see Beat Street. I remember the first time I heard Eric B. & Rakim's "I Ain't No Joke." I remember artists like Main Source, Del The Funky Homosapien, Poor Righteous Teachers, etc. So yeah it's becoming impossible for me to digest this garbage when I remember just how great & diverse the music was in the 80's and early 90's

[Turntable]

Well Hip Hop is a youth cultur, not a people of middle age cultur. This new stuff isnt even made for you, that stuff back in the 80's and 90's was made for you. You guys should face it, ya'll start to sound like your parents when it comes to music.

Edited April 18, 2008 by Turntable

[JumpinJack AJ]

Hip-Hop has grown up. It's nearly 30 years old when it comes 2 getting mainstream success. It isn't gonna stay in the same place. Commerical rap holds itself at a low standard that young kids who don't know any better will embrace. Commercial rap isn't going anywhere. Lil' Wayne's music isn't any different now then it waz when he started. FP's has. Sure, he's the same person, keeps his rhymes respectable, and still laces his stuff with comedy...but Rock The House was on one level and Lost + Found is on another. That's growth...that's progression. Commercial rap is always gonna be stuck in the same place. The trends may change, but i'll always be mindless, passion-lacking garbage.

You are talking all this mess like Hip-Hop isn't for older people and that only adds to what i say when i talk about the younger generation not knowing what good actually is. Why don't u hit up FP, Chuck D, LL and tell them they need 2 hang up the mic cuz they are 2 old. Ridiculous. That faces are the same when it comes 2 Hip-Hop. Not many new faces have entered the scene in the past decade. The game has just changed. Dope artists adjust from selling 10 million albums to going gold. They go from working with big name producers to becoming the producer themselves...or working with a very small circle of producers. They go from having videos on MTV to having them on the internet. Hip-Hop is alive and well and more than half of the people keeping it alive when it comes 2 music are the people who were holding it down in the 80's and 90's. This new stuff is not Hip-Hop. It's not strengthening the culture or bringing the culture 2 the masses. What 50 Cent does, is totally disconnect from the movement. Losers like Lil' Jon can keep doing what they're doing. What i'm missing is when dope artists got mainstream success and good music got radio play. U can be content with commercial Rap eclipsing real Hip-Hop music on the charts all u want...but i'm always gonna fight for good music....for real music. That's what deserves 2 be played and succesful.

Time 2 listen 2 "Lost + Found."

[Turntable]

You stilll dont get it. There is Hip Hop for grown people, but mainstream Hip Hop is and allways will be for the youth at that moment, reflecting just what the youth at that moment wants, good or bad. And, for real, you think LL is making songs with J. Lo and Will is releasing Switch as a signle caus he wants YOU to buy his album? They wants the kids to buy theyr album, they want all the people who buys 50's damn album to buy theyr albums. Why you think LL is working with 50, caus he's trying to keep it real for your generation? Why do you think Hammer came back with a hyphy record? Why you think the Peas got a pop singer in theyr band with solo ambitions? Why you think Yo Yo and Flava Flav do those damn shows? My point exactly. And for once, react to all my points and stop ignoring half of them, like when I told you that the do show heart. I even made you an offer. Its just a chicken move not to react on that if you ask me, might get surprised aint it?

Hip Hop is a culture for the urban youth. Its not made (not saying you cant enjoy it) for suburban middle agers. Its for the urban youth. And as sad as it is, statistics say that 90% of the urban youth like the subjects of todays commercial Rappers. Kid N Play did ther thing when Hip Hop was fun, when people wanted Hip Hop to be fun. These days the main target group for Hip Hop doesnt want Fun-Rap, and Hip Hop being nothing but a reflection of the wishes of the Urban Youth at that part in time 50 is just as much Hip Hop as Kid N Play was then. Hate it or love it, but its the truth. I dont like it myself, but its a fact.

By the way, your compariosn is weak. Will is been releasing albums over the last 20 years, its not like he made allot of progress in his first three albums.

Edited April 18, 2008 by Turntable

[JumpinJack AJ]

It's not for the youth...it's for people. Real artists make music for people...not kids, not adults...they just make it. FP isn't catering 2 pre-teens or anything like that. Just because alot of the people supporting what breaks in2 the mainstream are ignorant youth doesn't mean LL is making music for ignorant youth. And kids aren't buying the music...they are downloading it. Mostly the 20-plus crowd are the ones going out their and buying CDs/albums. I see u trying 2 make some point but i can't say that i agree with it. That's just the way it is. And there is no "weak compairson" that i made. U comparing Kid N' Play to 50 Cent was ridiculous. My Rock The House/Lost + Found comparison was putting yours in perspective. If u are think mine was weak, u are totally missing the point about your own.

U saying that "Hip-Hop" is for "urban youth (for face value, that's what they want u 2 think...which is total BS) and not for so called "suburban middle-agers" makes just about as much sense as me saying that Hip-Hop (an American culture and music style that is now worldwide), is not for teenagers from overseas. A statement like that probably wouldn't sit well with people who fit that bill and have a true passion for the music.