R.etards A.ttempting P.oetry or R.emarkable A.merican P.oetry?

Originally posted by sapien82
Word to your mother !

everyone should know that rap is the music , Hiphop is the lifestyle /culture

the 4 elements of hiphop

rap (MC) , turntablism (DJ) , Breakin (bboy) , Graffiti (writers )

and HipHop is strong even though Rap music has been abused the other 4 elements have also been touched by corporate media and the government and mainstream poisoning !

Dont forget the fifth element.... the beat makers.




I have been a HUGE hiphop head for years and I can tell you I HATE almost every single rapper that makes his way onto tv. There seems to be no talent in mainstream music nowadays. It's all just random bull#. I saw some ATSers have some good taste in hip hop though. Immortal technique, Bus driver

Rap can be crap or it can be poetry. Itt all depends on the artist.

I would like to share a couple songs by artists named apathy, aesop rock, and atmosphere Enjoy a few extremly poeitc songs...

Apathy - Checkmate

I set my moves up strategically, enemy kings are taken easily
Knights move four spaces, in place of bishops east of me
Communicate with pawns on a telepathic frequency

Aesop Rock- None Shall Pass

And I will remember your name and face
on the day you were judged by the front house cast
and I will regoice in your fall from grace
with a cane to the sky like none shall pass

Atmosphere - If I was Santa Clause

And if I was Santa Claus, I'd fight for the cause
Wouldn't expect nothing in return
I'd give you everything you want, I'd be everything you need
So you can take my hand and I can take the lead

To anyone who hasn't heard these artists before, listen and enjoy they are three of my Favourites.

To the OP a very well put together thread. wasn't sure if I was going to like it after I saw the title, but I have a feeling you and I see eye to eye on this.

Very good write up and thoughts.

All musical genres are buried beneath a thick layer of mediocrity. Hip Hop is no different. The content in most pop music, which hip hop is a large part of, is completely vapid. Most artists, in music or otherwise, are too busy giving people what they want—romanticism, promises of the American dream etc—and not in the least bit what they need.

The reason I think HipHop was attacked by the media and was taken and portrayed as promoting guns and violence and the degredation of society because its core foundation was the exact opposite its about building social awareness and uniting people of every different background through the foundations of hiphop. It has the power to do great things and this is clearly evident in the hiphop communities all over the world and the government know this , I think that they know that we know its a useful tool to bring people together so they try to pass it off as something dirty and evil

Originally posted by seven6two
rap has done so much harm to the american youth, its kinda sickening...the cultural shock of this movement has dumbed down more teens than we may ever know...now there is some good in a real sense of the word rap/hiphop out there, but it still pushes the annoying gangster and or woe is me image...speaking of rap, anyone remember that "my president is black" song from 2008? that one seriously got me annoyed constantly when everyone was so happy (white or black) and they were singing aloud and cheering of the beginning to the end

Have to vehemently disagree with you here. You're saying the good rap / hip-hop still pushes the gangster/woe-is-me attitude. That sounds to me like what you perceive as the "good" stuff is still juat the "hip-pop" crap, pushed by the music industry with an agenda. What I consider good rap us the exact opposite - speaks out against gangs, violence, and feeling sorry for oneself, in favor of taking control, of one's own life, doing good in the world, amd rejecting negativity-enforced control systems.

Incidentally, I never heard the "my president is black" song that you mentioned, but it sounds like something that would probably go hand-in-hand with tha garbage rap you've been exposed to.

reply to post by boncho


The Man with the Iron Fists? I have yet to see that movie, but I do have the soundtrack. I'm not into kung-fu flicks that much but my dad is

reply to post by curiouscanadian777


Thanks a bunch!

Have you read this article by chance? - The Secret Meeting that Changed Rap Music and Destroyed a Generation

I don't know how much truth is behind it, but it's still interesting, nevertheless.

reply to post by Rexamus


Listening to Aesop Rock is like reading a book written in a language that's foreign to your own! It's not completely nonsensical, but definitely abstract and I can pull some meaning from his songs. Alternative hip hop is like a diamond in the ruff.

reply to post by seven6two


I agree with you. Teens are trying to imitate and idolize these popular icons and it's leading them astray.

The song Young Jeezy did? Blah. It's funny because Barack Obama is just as "black" as he is "white", considering he has an English mother and Kenyan father. Hypodescent just places him in the "black" category, along with personal preference among some, but not all, of Obama's supporters.

reply to post by MystikMushroom


Pop music has been watered down so much that it's almost unbearable to tolerate these days; and thanks for the Flobots recommendation, I'll check them out.

reply to post by Infi8nity


Haha, nice verse. You must be a ghostwriter for Gucci Mane

Exactly, most pop music now is just catchy background noise that appeals to the masses.

Thanks for the compliment. A.Word.A.Day really helps to expand your vocabulary, you should try it.

reply to post by Domo1


Seems like mahatche answered your question lol. It's multi-faceted, because society, the consumer, the industry and the artist are all influencing the degradation of this genre.

reply to post by mahatche


Great explanation!

reply to post by sapien82


Knowledge Reigns Supreme!!!

reply to post by ChefG


A documentary on PBS? That sounds interesting, do you remember the name of it?

reply to post by SecretFace


You just haven't been introduced to the right artists. Many artists who have originally had roots in hip hop have managed to transgress the boundaries of that genre and incorporate Jazz, folk music, punk rock, trip hop, electronica, etc into their music. I can gladly list some more artists if you want me to.

reply to post by eleven44


I subscribed to your YouTube channel a while back, keep up the good work.

Aesop Rock, Eyedea and Abilities, The Jokerr (not to be confused with Tha Joker, that god-awful... you know what, I should stop there), Prince Ea, Pharoahe Monch, Atmosphere, Astronautalis, and (hed) P.E. (I know, technically not considered hip-hop, but they have enough of it for me to place it in this category) are among the most intelligent and thought provoking artists of ANY category/genre. For someone to place all rap/hip-hop into the first category is blatantly ignorant, in my opinion.

reply to post by tinhattribunal


I read that letter. Whether or not it's true, I don't know, but it's incredibly disturbing. I linked curiouscanadian777 to the same letter.

reply to post by ModernAcademia


I don't like the direction Lupe Fiasco is heading in right now, but that's just me.

reply to post by openeyeswideshut


Hip hop heads unite haha. Apathy, Atmosphere and Aesop Rock are insanely dope MCs.

reply to post by LesMisanthrope


You concisely summed up exactly what I was trying to say! People are confusing their wants with their needs.

reply to post by dogstar23


Speaking of Obama lol

reply to post by IEtherianSoul9

The Man with the Iron Fists? I have yet to see that movie, but I do have the soundtrack. I'm not into kung-fu flicks that much but my dad is

Go watch it with your dad, if you like the soundtrack and he likes kung fu movies there will be something you both can appreciate from it.



Cheers.

B

reply to post by IEtherianSoul9


You should check out this video

www.youtube.com...

It's called planet rock - crack and the hiphop generation , more proof that the government have actively targeted hiphop by using narco terrorism to destabalise communites and degrade society !

reply to post by IEtherianSoul9

"degrading society by perpetuating ignorance, misogyny, and juvenile delinquency"
People said that about rock n roll when it first came about. And I used to hate rap because my parents did. The problem is there's too much awful rap out there and it seems to be this that gets all the attention, the ones lacking the actual ability to rhyme are the biggest ones.
If you want some truly unique rap listen to George Watsky.
He combines hip hop with almost every genre and actually started out as a poet, as a teen. I'll admit I love the likes of dre and snoop and that, and tupac had a bad reputation but he was truly one of the best!

reply to post by openeyeswideshut


Four owls!!!! British hip hop at its best

reply to post by IEtherianSoul9


Theres a huge difference between Hip-Hop and Rap. Hip-Hop is poetry. Rap is just another kid who decided to pick up a pen, talk about booties, boobs and money just to get rich, neglecting the poetic side of the genre. Im severely disappointed in todays music. -___-

reply to post by Wongbeedman


two tone records , putting UK hiphop on the map ! Glasgow represent ! 141