Good article. Thanks for the link Nevoc.

Any article that talks about ghetto revivals and chicken noodle soup is good in my book.

Just like the quality of rap albums

I'm sure there's a strong correlation between the two.

I think this is a positive. Its no coincidence that when hip-hop wasnt as popular, groups like De La and Tribe represented it. And when it got big, Young Joc and D4L represented it.

well, nowadays, who really buys albums? the ones that do are suburbanites who have a cult following to 50 cent and co.

On other forums I have a very hard case to argue when I tell them I buy my mp3s (legal, better quality, etc) while most others give me the rolleyes and they just say "dude, just download it from ____ like everyone else, I get it 4 cheap, ha ha you suck" So that just tells you the mentality of some people

I remember back in the day, like 10 years ago, I used to go to coconuts every Tuesday to cop whoever came out. That stopped along time ago though. Ah Nas is right.

hip hop used to talk TO people...now it just talks ABOUT people.

shit is wack. seriously when kids from the burbs come up and ask me to play some real hip hop (like rick ross) when i'm playing gangstarr it makes me throw up a little in my mouth.

the whole scene has been pimped and perversed so far past what i've grown to know that it's blinding to me.

Most rap today is just pure garbage no originality no creativity just recycled garbage. David banner is correct America is sick and they love drugs, sex and violence. Do we blame the rappers or the record companies?? Artist need to get paid and the record companies want sales so they tell or suggest to the artist what to rap about. there is just no balance in the industry just one side straight gangsta, we all know not every rapper is a thug it's just not true but they do glorify thug life and then try to have credibilaty by getting arrested. All paper thugs with no real heart, Nas is right Hip-Hop is dead!!!!!

Wow, that article was pretty crazy. Incorrect in some areas, totally on-point in others, lacking accuracy but also droppin some straight poignancy. That shit with D Banner at the close was good--is life imitating art or art imitating life? Both obviously, but to use another cliche, what is good is not always popular and what is popular is not always good.

In other words I think hip-hop got itself into a shitty position by chasing the dollar--not that I blame the artists for doing so--and now they're paying the price by having no choice but to put out vapid, brainless shit if they want to keep up their coinage. In the end they still actually have a choice--make records like you're PE or De La and it's 1990, and you'll of course make that same kind of cash--much less than they're making now. Most of them probably just aren't willing to take a pay-cut.

It's better to die this way.....For them to re invent themselves.

Nice article. I'm not surprised. Music sales in general are declining. With rap music there's too many one hit wonders. People rather buy or dl that one popular song than the whole album.

Albums sales will always drop when a cat can sit in front of his laptop and now download the hot 2 or 3 songs off the album... Back in the day when cd's first came on the scene, we really didn't know if we we're gonna get a classic album or a bunch of bullsh*t... Now with iTunes, Rhapsody, emusic.....et. al.... We don't need the entire album any more...

We might not see another cat sell 10 million records ever again (domestic, that is)...

^^^ You're right on that one!

Great points. I was too young to appreciate hip-hop's greatest era in it's prime, but it's easy to see that the whole genre is nearing an end.....or at least a revamp.

Take a look at some of the top 40 singles of late......no lyrical talent. Amazing you can make millions repeating "Laffy Taffy" "Walk It Out" or "Two Step" hundreds of times in three minutes. When we're senior citizens, are these the kinds of songs that the "Oldies" station is going to play because of their lasting musical impact?

This leads to an important question. What's going to be the next move? Will true hip-hop die in light of Fergalicious and Sexyback type joints, or will hip-hop revamp itself and rise back to the top?

sincerely glad to hear that you're buyin mp3s - kudos to you!

i think there's still a large group of people who buy albums (like myself), but honestly i'm more selective about the full-lengths i cop...

i read in some report that the highest selling CD last year was only like 3 or 4 million - and it was a Disney disc, High School Musical.

10 mil? those days are DEFINITELY done.

Go Nas!

I think that group is a dying breed if current trends continue. I also like buying albums, but that's largely because I was raised on the format. Twenty years from now, why would a 15 year-old kid really want an entire album when they can just buy the tracks they want? Hell, why would a 15 year-old do it NOW?

CArrie Underwood from American Idol last year has sold over 5 million domestically...

She's a country singer...

Do you guys really think that the wack side of Hip-Hop is gonna die anytime soon? I'm thinkin that its still at its peak. Although album sales are down, its because hip-hop music has historically had the lowest income listeners, so they obviously are gonna download rather than buy LPs when they got that option. As far as wack artists coming out, its still at its peak. Everyone knows that they can just throw some dumbass catch phrases together with a dumb ass hook and it'll sell like no other. Case and point: Mims. He came out with "I Did You Wrong", dope joint, I was buckin it like crazy. Nobody wanted it. Then he came out with the wack as can be "This Is Why I'm Hot" and people had it for dinner. And that was as of recent. These cats arent goin away even though album sales are down. Wack artists are findin other ways to make dough.

So sad but true. Last two CD I speciffically went out to a store and purchased: Natasha Bedingfield - Unwritten & Amel Larriaux - Morning. Last physical CD I bought online: GangStarr - Full Clip. I'm am about to buy Evette Michelle - My Dream when I find a price I like.

One hip hop CD, and even that one was an 8 year old compilation of even older tracks!

my normal crowd is the 18-35 club crowd, but occasionally the club is booked for private birthday parties ($1000 a night yeuck), and often times these parties are just hiphop and country mixed (this is the 3rd coast), but one i did the otherday made me think

this party was for 2 13 yr olds, and i rolled up expecting to play wall to wall hippity hop with a small break once in a while. To my surprise most requests were for stuff like panic/clutch/all american rejects, chemical romance etc. Yes i did play radio versions of the JT and akonm stuff but some of these kids knew thier old stuff, even had a sex pistols request as well as some sabbath (lil jimmies favorite).

so i can only assume from this that the younger generation are not listening to hiphop as much. Also in the club i am seeing more people asking for eurodance than a year ago. However this weekend Johnny J was rocking an old school set and this girl came up and asked for hiphop, i gently explained that he was playing hiphop, to this she said he was not and wanted to hear Justin T, well i guess rtetards are everywhere, we cannot choose who comes in just take the money and smile.

Stones Throw, Ubiquity, Rhymesayers and a couple other underground labels are the only thing that can save hip hop now. The minstrelization has been exposed!

its taking a nose dive cause it all sucks. (We fly high..... BALLIn!!!) I mean wtf does that mean? The lyrics have no significant meaning. As simon would say "its complete rubbish"

the industry should start a cheap media flatrate you'll have to pay to use a computer and download and pay artists according to their downloads (however that is matched)

NEVOC,

excellent post! you got my vote for best topic. great responses from everyone here as well.

im sorry in advance for this essay which is for me, a moral imperative.

"The McDonald's of Music"

by brett rock

1rst things 1rst. beware of what you heed from FOX NEWS. they are the HULK HOGAN of the american media system which is more like pro wrestling than like actual news these days. everything they do is manipulated and they have a political agenda that is completely self serving.

i dont think sales are down because of social change unfortunately. that would be GREAT and IDEAL! but, david banner has a valid point and there are way too many factors involved in music sales nowdays to say it came from one specific place. we all know this.

the minstrel is a great paralell to the state of prepackaged pop-rap that is spoon-fed to the public today. its an act, entertainment that creates income- thats what they care about period. rap has become another corporate tentacle for making a profit- not art.

i think this is a microcosm of the dumbing of america that has been happening for over ten years socially and politcally. the less people know, the easier it is to control what they want or what they think they want.

i am however, absolutley tickled in shear delight to see this music indusrty take a rightfully deserved kick in the eggs. its fantastic :) AND ITS THIER OWN FAULT :) :) :)

i agree that the pop-rap is garbage. if thats what they want from me as a dj, you can hire someone else because i refuse to contribute to music that is thoughtless and mind numbingly
oblivious to any of the responsibility it has to its own history and current livelyhood.

i hope its a slow painfull death and these mostly talentless rappers can go back to flipping burgers or dealing drugs or whatever.

NAS IS WRONG! hip hop is alive. BUT, what these guys are talking about IS NOT HIP HOP! yes, they rap, yes they are mostly young black men, BUT NO, IT IS NOT HIP HOP . the culture of hip hop has 4 basic elements, and as much as FOX NEWS would like the public to think, being black is not one of them.

ideally, i would hope to see the actual foundation of the culture get the appeciation it rightly deserves.

hopefully, this is the first step in the right direction since things may be coming full circle as revolutions always do, hence the term.

Is that what you think most of the rappers were doing before they got in the game?

no, i was ranting. but more than a few, im sure, probably had a normal job and struggled like your avaerage american. what comes out thier mouths are just words not truth necessarily. its an entertainment business designed around profit. i know plenty mc's from all walks of life and backgrounds who i have much respect for. some make it, some dont and its not normally based on talent which is more my issue. it just seems that there is so much focus on these cats who are the industry standard and are the reason for the opinions stated in that article. i got fired up after reading it but i stand by what i have say. rap is hip hop in the general public eye because most dont bother too look at the hip hop culture critically. i think its a superficial perspective that people have that allows this industry to survive in the manner in which it has and it is hurting all music in general by consnistantly lowering the standards as time goes by. people just see rap videos and assume thats what hip hop is which is not necessarily true.

not intentionally trying to offend anyone, but if i do then so be it. and if you happen to flip burgers, i can respect that and it wasnt a shot at you. we all have an opinion and thanks for reading mine.

this is why i've been listening to pre 2000 hip hop for years now. it's been dying slowly.

Thats what i think; not all but a big chunk of them are scum

Hmm....being as i havent listened to the radio in years cause of all the garbage "hip hop" they play i smile when i hear news like this. Yes i know there are many factors as to y sales have declined and whatnot but u have to admit that a big part, i would say, is that the music just plain sucks. I mean when compared to the underground shit, lyrically mainstream rap is just horrible. Same shit being said over and over and over. I dont know how many underground hip hop fans we have on the forum but check out some j-live, lone catalysts, little brother, lightheaded, the procussions, illogic, 3582, the list goes on and on. To me its these artists and groups that keep my love for what i consider true hip hop alive in a time where labels are trying to feed us the shit they think hip hop has become. Personally i hope its a quick death cause the sooner shit like all the lils these & youngs thats disappear the better.

i can't wait. Im so sick of it all these lil young peices of shits!!!!!!!

@ brett rock

I was just asking, as I wasn't offended by your opinions. Its just funny to see how people say one thing and don't really mean it, like Micheal Richards (Kramer) and swear Hip Hop artist always represent a certain life style, like Bill O'Reilly thinks. Always interesting to see what people are really thinking.

@ dj skiggz

...............

Based on your prior comments, that doesn't surprise me one bit.

I'm 40 years old (going on 41 damn) and I have followed rap from the when it first burst out on the scene. I remember listening to rap even before I became a DJ in the mid 80s. Back then I found hip hop electrifying and invigorating, something completely refreshing and new. When rap was still young through the 80s and mid 90s you would here all kinds of different messages in popular hip hop. It saddens me now that popular rap is so predictable and formulaic. I long for the days when PE, KRS-1, Eric B. & Rakim & X-Clan could be heard on the radio and in the clubs.

Wow, I think this is the biggest response I've ever gotten on a post.

^ I am jealous of you older cats cuz you guys were spoiled by greatness, such as krs, rakim, big daddy kane, etc. I was never old enough to see what type a music a club was played back then, but they played stuff like that right?

What does my generation get when we flip on the tube? Some damn chingy and young joc and jibbs

Haha I love little brother, but I feel their next steps are heading towards the general mainstream

i knew rnb/hip-hop club scene was going to fiinish n i knew it like last year or something....thts y i started slowly movin on to house scene...still alive

House Music!!! Nothing But Love Baby........

hmm sheeds i guess i can see what ur saying with the little brother comment..here is the problem though...is that a bad thing if they keep their style? im sure some of u know of mc juice, for those who dont hes a dope freestyler though havent heard anything lately i will admit. When he finally put out an album it was garbage u could tell from his previous stuff that his style went mad commercial. Now on the other hand u got cats like rhymefest who i think while still making the club type tracks kept that underground type lyricism. It also sucks when people hate on underground cats if they start to get more commercially known. Thats a dilemma on its own its like we wanna see real hip hop get more recognition but then we hate on it when it does calling it "commercial". So when it all comes down to it i feel that mindsets are gonna have to change. Sigh all this just makes me think back to the good ol days....

^ I agree with ya..same can be said with Consequence

and i hope Little Brother keeps their style

i still think cassidy's crack music is raw as hell

Yeah, that shit got bumped in the clubs. But so did a lot of other shit that was more dance-y like Digital Underground or Kid'n'Play or whatever, but I'd much rather listen to "Humpty Dance" (or "Doowatchyalike" if you were lucky!) or "Funhouse" or "O.P.P." than "Laffy Taffy" or whatever.

Sometimes it's hard for me to tell if it really was better back then or if I'm just being overly-nostalgic [single tear...]

Ok, you knew it was comin': Favourite Club Jams Back Then:

"Raw (remix)" Kane
"Ladies First" Latifah (I see you 45 King!)
"Humpty Dance" DU
"Fight the Power" PE
"Jamaican Funk" Michie Mee
"Let Your Backbone Slide" Maestro Fresh Wes
"Paid In Full (7 minutes of madness remix)" Eric B. & Rakim
"Funhouse" Kid'n'Play
"Nobody Beats the Biz" Biz
"O.P.P." Naughty By Nature
"I'm In Love With a Man Nearly Twice My Age" Shabba
"Around the Way Girl" LL Cool J
"Iesha" ABC
"Crossover" EPMD
"Cause I Can Do It Right" Kane

I'd keep going but I'm slightly drunk and a leeeetle bit lifted. There are good club jams that come out now too, but it seems like there aren't very many straight up hip-hop ones. Or maybe it's just that the hip-hop that gets played in the clubs these days gets a different reaction--people get more into throwin 'bows instead of doing the running man.

BRETT ROCK, Your comments are right on point. I feel the same way you do and I am especially pleased to see this empire built on lies begin to crumble.

Flipping burgers is just a general way of saying "a menial job." Unfortunately, that IS where quite a few of these rappers are going to end up. To all you soon to be obscure rappers, that $100,000 advance shouldn't have ended up your neck. It won't do you much good there. Better make sure you get a VH1 business card on the way out...

Oh and Sheeds, believe it or not, it was just straight MAGIC. The vibe was so much different then. Parties and people were just FUN back then. ONE LOVE. Don't get me wrong, it wasn't green acres or anything you had your problems back then, but they didn't end up with the coroner coming through.

And lets just say FEMALES were VERY TRUSTING back then...

old school tracks i still play (last night)
eric B for president
the party - doug e fresh
DJ hollywood - ummm tang
turn up the bass - tyrese


and a few more but head still fuzzy

I'm fly cuz I'm hot!

you ain't cuz you not!












lyrical GENIOUS

^^ whoever wrote that rhyme is obviosly the next shakespear. somebody give that guy a peabody award!

the cycle that today's music functions in: (given that some steps are skipped and repeated, not everyones exactly the same).

unknown: fresh, no rules creating a style using the tools available

local appeal: get the name out, homemade albums- this is when you have to be huungry

networking: regional appeal, small tours and club gigs

indie lable: finding a label who will give you chance and get you distributed.

major label: the beginning of the end/ lets make $$$$$$!!!!!!

M TV: looking over the edge of a cliff right before your thrown off it by the media.

back to unknown: played out has been, vanilla ice

and perhaps back through the cycle once again but with experience this time.

once its established, it gets milked and regurgitated until its worthless.

there was a time when rap music was timeless: PE, BIZ, Kool G Rap, Doug E. Fresh - these guys created a legacy that is stil here today. some still release underground music, some are out of the game. but at least they left us with something we wont forget.

do you think whats being pushed right now will be respected and appreciated like the latter?

i go to all types of used record stores:

the "hip hop" section is loaded with 12" singles from the last three years!!! you can find 5 copies anything thats been on the radio lately. BECAUSE ITS DISPOSABLE.

even 10 years ago, youd be damn lucky as hell to find a pressing of the aforemention artists.
BECAUSE ITS NOT DISPOSABLE.

why? cause thier music, even in its popular prime, still stood for something.