Wait, so is Hip-Hop Dead or not?

It's been two months since the last new ATF post, and nearly a month since I wrote this. I'm sure we're so sporadic nobody's even checking for us anymore, but posting this still beats letting it rot in my e-mail.



Thursday, Dec. 21, 4:17 a.m.

I spent the last four months knee-deep in Division III football, and after yet another Mount Union title, I've got free time to blog with the ATF crew again.

I figured my triumphant return would cover all the things that have been on my mind since my last post -- how beats, the good ones, seem to be becoming more musical, all the legitimate hip-hop I'm suddenly finding on TV, the rarity of a complete album anymore these days. In a way, I guess this covers it.

I finally decided I wanted an iPod earlier this fall. I had a little scratch, so I went and bought a 500-song Nano. I got a ways into a list of the best 500 songs I owned before I realized that would never do. So I pawned the Nano off on my wife and ordered the 30-gig, 7,500-song joint. I am now gleefully aware that someday I'll be able to hold my entire music collection in the palm of my hand. I also have started to figure out that it's going to be next Christmas before I get close to having all my CDs loaded on there. I'm at about 1,000 songs now, and that's mostly just stuff I already had on the computer for one reason or another.

It boggles the mind how huge hip-hop is. I'm not exactly being picky with the songs I put on the iPod yet (I discovered some Ozomatli/Dilated joint on there I'd never even heard of, much less knew I owned), but one can only imagine. And I know plenty people that have bigger music collections than I do. I'm having fun going way back, and throwing Just Ice on there. It was Stezo's turn on iTunes, but some newer, more popular artists weren't on there. (Tabi Bonney with the D.C. summer anthem anyone?)

Anyway, the gynormity (hell yeah, we can pretend that's a word) of hip-hop goes right along with what everyone seems to be talking about: Nas' declaration, through the title of his latest album, that Hip-Hop is Dead.

Even though he obviously believes in his own hip-hop still, Nas has brought to the forefront a longstanding debate. And there's no way we're going to touch on all of it here on All Thangs Funky. But since the album represented my first pre-ordered CD from iTunes (which makes Murs & 9th Wonder, Hi-Tek and the re-issue of AmeriKKKa's Most Wanted the last CDs I ever bought) and the full-time switch over to the digital format (except for vinyl, baby!), all these thoughts crescendoed for me when I took my first two listens to the album Tuesday night and Wednesday.

Already my favorites are Carry On Tradition, Where Are They Now, Who Killed It? and the Hope acapella ... So it meets the 3-song rule! The fact that Nas flipped a whole song in the "Heeey, copper, you won't catch me, copper" voice is gimmicky but still ill, a la Boots Riley's all-fake-British accent joint We Are The Ones. Hopefully Hope springs eternal with the acapella. At first I thought it was dumb, but made so people would hear the words. Then I realized the remix potential for that song, and I about lost it. DJ Mentos, where you at?

As far as the overall lyrical performance, Nas has always been a bit of a contradiction, but the great ones always are. Lyrically, though, Nas is as good as ever. Just like Kweli's Beautiful Struggle, even if the beats and rhymes don't match up to a perfect package, I won't feel guilty about supporting that kind of thought-provoking lyricism.

I hadn't trolled the internet for a while, but I happened upon some discussions about Hip-Hop Is Dead, mostly regarding the Young Jeezy vs. Monie Love radio interview (YouTube, son!) and came away posting these thoughts, among others:

As is often mentioned ... you can help define hip-hop by how you buy it, how you listen to it and how you pass it on, either by word of mouth or to the next generation. The same way Elvis and Bob Marley sell a rack of records each year, I'm sure Raising Hell, Paid in Full and A Nation of Millions will still be goingstrong a decade from now.

There was also this:

The best thing is, I wouldn't recognize Young Jeezy if he was sitting right next to me. And I have a two-year old and a 7-month old that probably won't know him from Adam either, but they'll surely know who Nas, Eric B. & Rakim, PE, Run DMC, etc. are, just like we knew who our Dads listened to (mine loved some P-Funk and early Prince ... yes, really. God status in my home)
I came to grips with this a long time ago. Hip-Hop isn't dead so much as you have to work harder to find it. ClearChannel and Viacom probably aren't going to assist you. This music has grown so much that you can't put it all under one umbrella anymore. Hendrix and Slayer and Melissa Etheredge all play "Rock" music, and Hip-Hop is the same way. We waste a lot of time trying to say which forms of Hip-Hop are legitimate ... bottom line is what I think (and I wholeheartedly agree with Nas) is hip-hop isn't exactly what someone else thinks is hip-hop.

You guys made a lot of good points above, none better than whoever said just let these guys keep talking, they're playing themselves.

You'd be mad too if music was your livliehood and Nas just reminded everyone that you suck at it.

Nas hit it on the head late in the album ... if you have to ask why he thinks hip-hop is dead, you're probably part of the reason it died.

Word 'em up.

Last but not least, next time someone argues with you about record sales defining what's good, tell them that makes Vanilla Ice one of the all-time greats. Guaranteed that shuts them up.

Hip-Hop Is Dead

(links to several reviews in mainstream publications, most glowing)

Hiphopmusic.com (Funny take on the Jeezy interview, surely one of many)

Anyway, that's what's up ... or what was up a month ago.

I've got a lot in the crate, so the Crew and I should be back much more often, but you never know with this crew.

-- TiVo