"And it don't stop..." OFFICIAL Hip-Hop Discussion Thread

A friend of mine just opened my eyes to Chiddy Bang. These guys made that feat with MGMT 'Kids'.

Listen to it, it's cool.

 

Don't mean to turn this into the Sam Adams thread but this song (which I don't even like) is going to become this Summer's anthem. Guaran-fuckin-teed.



White guys from Boston getting the summer anthem wha!?

New Kids, LFO, Sam Adams...

Walkin on, walkin on, walkin on brokennnn glasss...

 

A little old but still a good song. I am getting more into the intellectual rap lately. I still like some of the mainstream stuff don't get me wrong, but the shit is really starting to get way to repetitive.

 

I know someone mentioned Fashawn earlier and I wanted to throw this song out there. It's called Samsonite Man and the beat is fucking crazy, I can't get enough of it.



Also, I was shocked when I heard this song not just because it has Royce Da 5'9" rapping with Phonte (one of my favorite rappers ever) singing the verse, but it's also produced by DJ Premier, in my opinion the best producer ever. The song is just smooth and easy to vibe to.

 

Asher Roth might be from Philly, but he's a good example of what happens when a white guy has a hot summer track. And then fizzles.

 

So I used to be not the biggest fan of hip hop. The old thread on the RMMB however changed that. I'm still kind of new to hip hop but I have been listening to this song a lot lately.

 

Both of them are Swedish, although you can hardly tell. The beat is sick.

 

HOLY SHIT

I just got back from a Wiz Khalifa concert--he played a song off Kush and Orange Juice which drops soon--but FUCK can that man put on a show. Small venue, 100 at most, but he had the place in his hands. 10 feet away from him too, pretty cool.

If you haven't heard him, go get his mixtapes now--that guy can perform.

 

Awesome, that song I posted. I can so hear some Lupe in him. Glad to hear he puts on a good show!

 

Major props on that link! I've been listening to that non-stop lately. Definitely a hypnotizing beat.

Speaking of foreign hip-hop, what is some of the best out there?

 

I'm suprised that this hasn't come up yet:



Wu Massacre came out yesterday, and I've been listening to that. What do you guys think about it? Also, it is not a Wu-Tang Collaboration-it is a collaboration of Method Man, Raekwon, and Ghostface, with RZA producing. So keep that in mind when reviewing, that the full clan is not present (RIP ODB)
My thoughts:

-12 tracks. 2 of those skits. The album weighs in at just under 30 minutes, so I think that it's more of a mixtape, but call it what you want
-The songs themselves feel short, and rushed.
-I feel like they didn't have to craft a story out of Wu Massacre. It just feels...rushed, like they had to get it out by a certain date.

I am a little disappointed, but it's not like I don't like the album. I do really enjoy it, and I guess an upside is that you can just whiz through it so quick. They have some great work on there, especially the song I posted above (even though it doesn't compare to the original).

I feel another weakness is that while these are the juggernauts of the Wu on this album, it's just not the Clan. They each bring their own personality to a track, all of them. So I can't really compare it to some of the classic Wu CD's. Say what you will about it.

 

So my recent post in the most influential people of 2009 sparked some hate. If you could not tell by my avatar, I dig Lil Wayne.

I just maybe want to start a conversation in the relevant thread.

Obviously, if you are posting in this thread, you appreciate hip hop in some way, right? So if you love Aesop, or Sage. Or maybe you dig Jay-Z, maybe 50? How about Eminem? Or maybe you are really old school and really appreciate the Dre, Snoop or possibly even Tupac himself?

Or maybe you are really fucking lame and dig plies. Whatever, what is with the hate on Lil Wayne? Dude has come from a very impoverished upbringing, made a shit ton of money rapping. Seriously? The only hate I ever hear of him is oh his raps don't make sense or he calls himself the "best rapper alive".

But quite frankly if you do not understand what he has done to rap. You are really missing the whole point. Say it is commercialization, say it is whatever. If you can't give Weezy props, than you are the exact reason he does what he does.

By the way I am white as a cracker, so call me a wigger.

 

He's one of, if not the most overrated rappers alive. No one is saying isn't talented, everyone knows about Tha Carter I and II, and to a lesser extent III, and Da Drought mixtapes, etc, but it's every other fucking song he's on. He won't leave me alone.

You're going to use that? 95 percent of rappers come from just as bad, if not worse situations than him. You think Jay had it easy? Em? 50? Get real dude.

What exactly has he done? How has he really changed rap? If you say he brought rap mainstream or something equally as retarded I will punch you directly in the dick.

I'll call you a dumbass fanboy until you stop sounding like my girlfriend talking about Wayne.

 

I'm just going to say one thing. I will not respond to something like this. Do you see the blatant insults there? Do you see the absolute lack of substance? I can understand wanting to respond to my post. But I'm talking about why do you hate Weezy, I'll explain why I love Weezy. But call me a dumb fanboy, or try to insult as opposed to have a conversation, you will get no response.

But everyone, please do give Eck a big round of applause. He tried to be tough on the internet, he even mentioned his 'girlfriend' but sadly he still is an ass. So back to the conversation, what do y'all have against Weezy?

 

I actually liked him a lot. Tha Carter II/Da Drought mixtapes still get played a lot in my car.

Here's a pretty good breakdown. Reasons to like Wayne: Tha Carters, Da droughts, Tha block is hot. Reasons not to like Wayne: Young Money Entertainment, Autotune, being on every fucking song on the radio, being an attention whore.

And substance? Where exactly was the substance in your post? You pointed out Wayne came from nothing to being a fucking superstar. News flash dude, almost every fucking rapper has the same exact story.

This coming from the guy who started the "Ask a sociopath" thread? Hey how'd that cry for attention work?

 

Alright let's cool the anger and have an actual discussion because I think it is a good one. To start off, I am a fan of every kind of rapper Virty mentioned. I love Aesop Rock, Snoop, 50 Cent, Tribe, Kanye, and yes, Weezy. They all bring something very interesting to the table and represent various facets of rap.

Weezy is like a baseball player who is a great hitter but completely undisciplined. He can't help but swinging at everything. Obviously he makes some terrible choices on what to go on and sometimes has some really awful swings. Seriously, the sheer amount of output Weezy has had over his career is almost overwhelming. Every once in a while though, Weezy connects and absolutely destroys tracks. He isn't about subject matter. As far as I know, he has made exactly one song that was actually about something (Georgia Bush), had a clear message, and remained focused. Otherwise, he represents what a huge chunk of rap which has gone completely post-modern; the rap is about how good of a rapper the rapper is. Weezy's message is simple; let me tell you about how awesome I am. Where the genius comes in is how he does it. Most rappers who try to do what he does just talk about how good they are on the mic. Wu Tang did it back in the day through the kung fu metaphors, likening their rapping ability to a master swordsman. Weezy is similar except his metaphor is that he is a MONSTER...FROM OUTER SPACE. Call the metaphor silly if you wish, and hey it kind of is, but the way he delivers it is, at times, brilliant. "Ok you're a goon, but whats a goon to a goblin." Line from A Milli. Combine the line with the sound effect he throws in and the message is clear. Go ahead and talk about your hustlin and how you shot and robbed people...I'm going to fucking EAT YOU ALIVE. It's just so over the top in every way that it becomes incredible art.

The second source is the flow. When people critique rap, this is often something very neglected. The typical rap critic will say "oh he doesn't talk about anything." Fine, that is one aspect of rap, but the other is flow. When Weezy is at his best, he sounds SO FUCKING GOOD. A good way to think of it is to pretend he is speaking another language. It sounds so good because he is so skilled with manipulating the language to make it sound the way he wants to. Read the lyrics of some of his best songs. The alliteration is through the roof. It's not just about the last word of every sentence rhyming. It is about contorting and massaging words to sound similar to another in a distinct pattern. He alters his voice and tone at the perfect times for maximum impact. And this is mostly through assembled freestyles! Say what you will about his subject matter but the only rappers I can think of who have comparable flows are Eminem and Royce da 5'9. While other rappers used and discarded the auto-tune, Weezy kept it going and it continues to work for him because it only enlarges his image as something super-human.

His biggest problem is the sheer quantity of work his has put out. Sometimes, he isn't feeling it and he flat out sucks. That is when is flow isn't working. But when his flow is on, watch the fuck out. He will completely manhandle the beat. This is why some his best songs have very average, typical beats. His best tracks aren't complex musically because that's when he loses his flow and it begins to sound forced. When it is a simple beat with a simple bassline that he can ride for a while, he gets into an incredible zone where the words just spill out of his mouth and create an incredible sonic experience, driven home by his punchlines. Having a topic would only distract from this experience because you have to think about what he said 30 seconds ago. The focus is on NOW. It is driven by short-term memory so you can stay focused on his flow without being distracted by the subject matter. His voice serves more as as instrument than anything else.

That, in my opinion, is what Weezy is all about and why very few are at his level. He fucks up often, but just as often, he takes a beat and just demolishes it.

 

I agree with everything in that post, but I think you missed a biggie when it comes to Lil Wayne hate. Lil Wayne was the Little Bow Wow of Cash Money, and Cash Money was the late 90s equivelent to Soulja Boy. I think people still associate Lil Wayne with that genre of rap. By that I mean cookie cutter, amatuer raps about how much money, cars and bling you have. Those people aren't completely wrong making that association either, because those influences are definately there. For some this perception prevents them from seeing the gems that Lil Wayne will drop from time to time.

 

Honestly that summed up my opinions on Weezy very well. I am just so against hating on him because I used to be in the same boat as everybody else. I thought he was just some idiot rapper who only wanted to rap about his money and bitches. My buddy burned me a CD with some of his less mainstream stuff because quite frankly that was all I had seen.

I'll sum up my feelings, you can hate on him for any number of his not so great songs. But he has sooo much content out there you are seriously missing out if you don't dig a little deeper. One thing that absolutely amazes me is his latest work. Yeah Rebirth wasn't that great, but everyone I have talked to says "Some rapper trying to play guitar? How lame." Yeah he is a rapper who has been doing it since he was 16, I'm not sure how long he has been playing guitar. But given the fact that most rappers are completely fine sitting around, counting their money, it is kind of cool to see some difference.

I honestly think that once he is out of jail, mind a little bit clearer from a year without some syrup. He is going to destroy everyone's perception of him. There is a huge trend right now of rap and rock mixing, he is the largest rapper out there that is trying to bridge that gap. All I know, if I were sitting in a jail cell for a year, I'd have a lot of time to contemplate my first couple moves when I got out. Difference between me and him? I'm nobody, he is one of the biggest rappers out there. If he doesn't completely give the game up, he is going to make waves.

 

So what is your opinion on 808 and Heartbreaks?

 

Either on this thread, or through a PM, can someone please recommend me their top 5 Weezy tracks? Because everything I've heard from him either sounds mediocre or just downright garbage. I'll admit that most of the rapping I've heard from her has been almost exclusively the mainstream stuff. Between his tracks like "A Milli" and his guest spots like "Forever", I've just never heard anything that has made me stop and just listen. He's never drawn me in. A recent example I can think of a song doing this is Eminem's spot on Forever which made my jaw drop. Hell Kanye and Drake even brought it in that song in my opinion and outrapped Wayne. I realize flow can be a very subjective trait, but I just don't find Wayne's appealing. I'm not exclusively geared towards quick rappers like Eminem, though he's probably one of my favorites. One of my favorite tracks is probably Kick, Push by Lupe and that is a slow, chill, smooth as shit song.

Maybe, as dubya pointed out, it's his lack of story telling by simply just talking about how great he is that turns me off. But I love me some fucking 36 Chambers, and like he also said, a lot of Wu's rhymes are talking about how dangerous they are on the mic.

I'm not exactly sure what it is that has turned me off of him, but when even Puffy is saying that Wayne is the greatest rapper alive right now, there's gotta be something there that I'm missing.

BTW: Virty, see how dubyu took the time and put in well thought out arguments to make his case instead of throwing out a few few bullet points? That's one thing I haven't seen on any of your posts on this board. If you're as smart as you say you are, show us.