Questions of a Bored Blogger

I apologize for the lack of material on this page as of late. To be honest, I'm a little bored with hip hop right now. But I do have a couple of questions that I would like your feedback on. With that being said:

1. Will the delay of Lasers help or hurt Lupe Fiasco going into the new year?

I am a huge fan of Lupe. Shortly after Food & Liquor dropped, he came to perform at my college. I talked to anyone who would listen, weeks before the show, about how great this guy was, plus it was $5 to get in. I ran across campus after working a double shift just to get in and less than 100 people showed up. After all the annoying label controversy, I've been waiting patiently like the rest of his stans for the album to drop. I don't think I care anymore when it comes out.

Don't get me wrong. I don't think his fan base will go anywhere but I feel like a golden opportunity was missed. Aside from Enemy Of The State, there isn't a lot of music that's been released to keep the fans at bay. Not to mention Friend of the People was shelved indefinitely. I respect the fact he doesn't want to be a slave to Atlantic but releasing old songs isn't doing it for me.

2. Does anyone really care if Detox comes out at this point?

I know I don't. Moving on.....

3. How the hell is Jay-Z going to market Jay Electronica?

I was excited and surprised that he actually signed with Hov but, he faces the same problem any other record label would. For an artist who is so anti-mainstream, I wonder how he will pull that off? Did anyone else feel odd that he's in a Mountain Dew commercial? I mean you gotta get paid but it seems contradictory to his image.

Then again look at B.O.B......
4. Why is Diddy still trying to make music as an artist?

I appreciate Diddy's hustle to make money and expand his empire but isn't trying to still be a legitimate artist taking 12 steps back? Last Train to Paris sold well not because of his talent, but thanks to his glorified background singers, Auto-tune, and more features than one of his terrible Biggie collabo cds. Not to mention Kanye did a better job with 808s & Heartbreak . And lets not forget the ridiculous catch phrase, "Get on or get off" which was only done to make it appear as if he didn't care how many units he sold in case it tanked. I don't care how much it sold, it's still garbage. How about you direct that energy to putting out Red Cafe's cd?

If  I'm wrong let me know . Any other questions bugging you about  music? Am I the only one bored?

The Perfect Song

I listen to a lot of music especially while driving because I'm trying to find the right song to match how I'm feeling. It's a very tedious process without a cd changer but I have it down to a science at lights.

Moving on....

While listening to 'Assassin' by John Mayer for the millionth time, I realized something. The real important tracks on a cd are ones that you don't skip months after the album has lost its luster. Its' the track you can put on repeat for months straight.

For instance, 'Allure' by Jay-Z is a great song not necessarily because he's saying anything super-lyrical, but the feel is very nostalgic. I really feel I'm there in that Blueberry 5- I don't wanna blink twice to get there though-while the haunting hum from Pharrell lingers in the background. Transporting a listener into your mind through a song is a talent.

Though N.E.R.D's 'Seeing Sounds' cd was great as a whole, 'Laugh About It' really stood out to me. The way the drums hit (808's?) with the guitar melodies always gets me hype. Very catchy refrain and easy topic to follow.

And who could forget Nas' Second Childhood? Nas and Premo are classic. People are still doing that same stuff in that song over a decade later. SN- Lost Tapes is the greatest album Nas has ever made next to Illmatic. 

But that's what great music is supposed to be, timeless. That's when I feel I get my money's worth. Maybe the reason people don't buy cds anymore is not just because of music's availability on the internet, but rather people don't see much music out there worth spending $15-$20 on. I was watching this video of Lupe Fiasco at a University discussing how record sales don't define success. He goes on to say that Soundscan was a tool that was originally used exclusively by record labels to track where their money was going.

I wonder what would happen if numbers didn't effect who we listen to? Are we listening to artists purely because they sold a lot of records? Is Rick Ross a better rapper than Mos Def because he sells more? Are we afraid to listen to an artist that no one knows because someone didn't cosign them first?

I wonder who would have won the beef between Nas and Jay-Z if Nas had more commercial success.........

Published with Blogger-droid v1.6.5

When Hip Hop Isn't Enough

Most of us have rituals that we perform day in and out. We can set our watches to it. But those repetitive motions become well....too repetitive. We have to take a break from it in order to keep our sanity as well as gain a fresh perspective on the situation.

Hip Hop is no different.....

The game is not always going to be positive. And we are not always going to have a new/favorite artist' CD to wait to drop no matter how many mixtapes you listen to. You get tired of the same rotations on the three or four radio stations you listen to. And you are tired of rediscovering old CDs in your collection to get you in the mood to deal with traffic on (insert traffic-jammed highway here). If you are like me, that means its time to explore a different genre. Here are some albums that don't get old very easily (especially while driving).

1. The Way I See It - Raphael Saadiq
 Many people who are over thirty remember this guy. This former front man of the group, TonyToniTone has always found ways to make his sound different over the years. For the youngins, this is the guy who did a track on Rick Ross' Teflon Don. On this CD, Saadiq departs from more traditional R&B for a sound from the past. With melodies heavy with guitars, drums, and harmonies from back-up singers, there will not be much to distract you from the well written songs. I guarantee you won't skip through a track until the second or third go around. I know its almost three years old, but its good music. 


2. BLACKsummers' Night- Maxwell
Aside from the popular songs that women I know sweat over, I was not a huge fan before this album. What I like most about this album is wide arrangement of live instrumentation used. There are lots of transitions and instrument solos well after most of the songs that keep me listening instead of skipping to the next track. I especially like the trumpets. Don't ask me why....

3. Sade- Any CD She Makes
I find myself driving a lot late at night with no traffic. Putting her music in really helps me unwind and think. I can honestly say that I have never heard a bad song from her. Her and her band make great music. Not to mention she is well respected and sampled in the hip hop community. Soldier of Love  was her first album in a decade and people still went to buy it.

What are some of the artists you listen to when hip hop gets annoying? Paramore? Coltrane? Phil Collins? ( Yeah I said it. He's good music and still sells out stadiums.)

Use those fingers for something other than picking your nose. Yeah, I saw you.......

Wanna build buzz? Go to Jail

There was a time when a rapper being incarcerated meant the end of his career. Your label pulled out of the deal. You lost whatever endorsements you had. And fans were forced to listen to whatever material was out or hope that some unreleased tracks were leaked. But the line is not so black in white apparently. Over the last couple of years there have been many high-profile rappers who have been locked up, guilty or not. One of the greatest strengths of hip hop is the ability to evolve and be creative. The marketing side is no exception.

I wonder sometimes if these rappers go to jail on purpose. Because the industry has gotten so good at marketing them while they do their time. Its like they never left. For example, Lil Wayne was just released from jail after completing a year. Weeks before going in, he recorded new music videos, guest appearances, and even had a full length CD released while behind bars. Add in his weekly letters to his fans and you have a brilliant marketing plan. Gucci Mane and T.I. (who is doing another 11 months for probation violation with No Mercy on the way) have also yielded success from this.

But some are not as lucky and are not able to regain the shine they once had. G.Dep did a year in jail and did dropped him from 8 album deal. Due to Beanie Siegel's jail woes, The B. Coming  fell short of expectations.  The now deported Shyne has been in jail so long that he seems a little out of touch with the times.  Though Siegel and Shyne have managed to secure major label deals, the damage is done. But with all the success, why is so hard to stay out of jail? Is it the result of trying to live up to their street credibility, or are the Hip Hop Police really out to make examples of these guys?

Maybe there should be a contractual clause in all record deals for rappers to relocate to the suburbs upon completion of their first album. It worked for 50 cent....

Bow Wow: Look Past The Name

Yeah I know what you're thinking.....but bear with me.

I, like many, have written this guy off for many years because..well..he has not done anything worth talking about for a while. All I remember is a little boy with cornrows rapping to little girls. Though he is the butt of many jokes now, not many people were selling records like this guy did at that time. Like it or not he deserves respect for that. But success is sometimes a double-edge sword. He did it so well as a little kid, that no one really sees him as a credible MC-including himself at times- Exhibit A. Now he's pigeon-holed himself. He even retired from the game once upon a time (no one noticed). With a couple of albums tanking the last couple of years who would disagree?

Which brings me to now....

Despite his troubles with his place in hip hop, he still believes that we haven't see the real him. He's been really consistent with that message for many years now. I think that he is still trying to find who he is and that my friends is hip hop- the ability to grow and reinvent oneself.  Each of us, including rappers, try to find a piece of ourselves in the music. That's why we stay up to ridiculous hours on the Internet listening to new songs or why we pull Cd's out of our collections and listen to them again. We are searching for that feeling we got the first time. I think Bow Wow is doing that as well. He's still hungry despite the skeptics and critics. That's why he's got the deal with Cash Money.

Maybe he deserves a second chance to prove himself worthy of the respect of his peers. Look how many chances we give Kanye after he makes a total ass of himself (making dope music does help) I'm not saying that I will buy a CD but I am curious  to see if he can make a lane for himself on such a crowded roster.

Valid point? Waste of time? Floor is yours.

Nicki Minaj: Hype or Hip Hop?

To be honest, I haven't listened to a lot of her music (except a couple of songs from videos I see on TV). Like most people, I know enough to give my two cents on her position and what her existence means. Before I wrote this, I wanted to give her an honest chance by listening to some of her music. It wouldn't be fair to write my opinion based on limited info and no actual body of work. Since Pink Friday is not out yet, that leaves mixtapes as my only option. So I went on datpiff.com, searched her and the first one that came up I listened to, Beam Me Up, Scotty.

Upon listening, the first thing I notice was her confidence. She honestly believes she is the best which is a typical asset of most rappers. Even if you don't have everything you are bragging about in the song, it gets the listener's attention . Combine that with well known beats, familiar samples, and you get the gist. I really set out listening to this thinking that maybe there is something about this girl I'm missing. Is there more to her than this hyper-sexualized, random persona? Maybe there is more potential than her top singles indicate.

Ladies and gentleman the answer is.............no Now let's get down to business since my theory seems to be confirmed. Back in 2008, while randomly navigating Worldstarhiphop (that site is addictive), I happened to find Nicki Minaj. Upon watching the video, I dismissed her as another Lil' Kim/Foxy Brown clone using that road paved by both MCs to make a name for herself. Good for her. Nothing wrong with that. Two years later we have the finished project.... yes, project. The reason that the Nicki Minaj we see bears no resemblance to the Nicki of two years ago is thanks to Lil Wayne. I strongly believe that Wayne modeled her after himself in order to sell records and to do that, you need two things: a great marketing plan and a mysterious persona that makes you so weird that no one can classify you. And it has been a complete success.

Nicki Minaj is getting attention because she has marketed herself as an artist who can not be labeled. Which is fancy way of saying, due to the fact that she is not confident that she can deliver a hot 16 on every record, she sings (autotune) a song here and there. Some of you might say, "Well, she's just trying to transcend hip hop and become an artist that has cross over appeal". To that I say, you can't transcend to the next phase til you conquer the first. I don't even think she knows who she is hence, the new personalities every other week and the bisexual undertones. Though I haven't been able to get a straight bio from anywhere online, the little that I did find points to a girl in Queens who made up personalities to deal with an abusive father and an unstable home.

But I can't blame it all on her. What female rapper wasn't influenced by Kim and Foxy? They were some of the best to do it. I just don't think you can claim the throne if there is no one there to contest you. No one there to force you to raise the bar. I read on sohh.com last week that she is afraid of what she might sell the first week. The reason is, she doubts that she will be able to top her own hype. A problem that Drake faced not to long ago ( less than 500,000 units the first week with that buzz?). Like it or not, we made Nicki Minaj by buying records from rappers with mediocre talent. So the mega-conglomerate, record companies think that this is what we want.  Nicki Minaj's true potential ( if there is any) remains to be seen. I know she will move lots of units when the album drops, but I don't see where she goes from here. Who knows? Maybe this will set the tone for one of the many underground female MCs to move to the forefront.

Maybe the less crazy Lauryn Hill will come back...... ?

Maybe we will all have no choice but to hear, "It's Barbie Bitch" for the next couple years.

What are your thoughts? Am I looking at this all wrong? Should I be happy that there is a female MC that is able to build buzz equal to that of her male counterparts once again?

Talk amongst yourselves...I'm listening

Hip Hop is Alive and Well....... Right?

Being that this is my first blog entry, it's only fitting that I start a blog about the state of it right? Since the 2006 release of Nas' Hip Hop Is Dead CD, everyone has argued if this statement rings true. Is Hip Hop really dead? Of course not. There are still many artists ( J.Cole, Jay Electronica, Blu, etc..) whom many people believe will preserve the art form. I think the real question should be: Is hip hop alive and well? 

What I mean by 'well' is, everyone who listens to hip hop music can find an artist or artists that they are into through any media outlet (radio or television). Based on that definition, I believe that though alive, hip hop is very sick. Radio stations are dominated by the same five artists 24/7 with no variety which has led me to boycott the radio being on in my car since 2005. Sure, that means that I have to carry a ridiculous amount of CD's with me or my Ipod but its a small price to pay to not listen to record-exec fueled monotony that is played out of fear of taking a risk on artists that don't fit the formula to go platinum in a week (Not everyone can or will be Lil Wayne). In the 80s and 90s you had mainstream, west coast, east coast, and underground styles of hip hop to chose from and most people were able to get played on the radio.  A lot of that had to do with many smaller/ independent record labels which meant less over all control of hip hop music as a whole.

Which leads us to the the present. I am not saying that there is not any good music out there. But I like lyrics and creativity that progresses the art form.  What I see is a lot of artists that are watered down. Artists who are not encouraged by their record labels to become better MC's. And the result is an entire industry dominated by rappers who can't rap about anything past their possessions and 'Simon Says' dance music. I know that many listeners that love their Gucci Manes and Rick Ross's will say that I am a hater. But I challenge any of the songs in their brief catalogs to go up against a Talib Kweli, Mos Def, or MF Doom lyrically. Better yet, try making a song without bragging about some car you rented and none of your listeners will ever attain. 

There is no one solution to change hip hop. Though the listener and as well as the music industry has changed, dope lyrics always trumps a hot beat. I am not trying to 'bring it back' but I don't want to listen to the same song play at the same time on three different radio stations. There is nothing wrong  with listening to music that is meant to dance and have a good time to in the club or something. But even the club closes for a couple of hours. You can't hear half the words anyway because of the mind-numbing bass, your blood alcohol level, and the equally-wasted girl that you are trying to smash in the corner. Lyricism will return to the forefront of hip hop when the consumer is ready to take a break and listen to some meaningful music. Until then I guess I'm going to keep the Roots' How I Got Over CD on repeat while I wait for J. Cole to drop.