A lot of times around this website I'll catch a comment about "c-rap." Or a person will say "I like some hip hop, but most of it sucks." When it comes to Prince and rap I get the impression that fans think rap is below Prince, like someone pouring malt liquor into fine Prince wine. I understand the complaints about Tony M, to me he seems like most average rappers of the early 90's of in the MC Hammer mold. Also, the end of "Prince's greatness" in man fan's eyes seems to be when he started incorporating rap into his music. Prince had been accused of following trends, and while this may be true, none of Prince's hip hop influenced songs sound like any other type of rap. It's still Prince music with that purple vibe. So my question is do some Prince feel as if hip hop is beneath Prince?

Most fans just want to hear Prince do rock/pop in the style of Purple Rain or 'punk funk' like Dirty Mind. Honestly, I doubt anyone (whether they admit it or not) wants to hear Prince play overlong jazz funk jams and definitely not hip hop.
The idea is to stick with what you're good at.

I feel that Prince is so soulful, in that his influence was James Brown, who in turn influenced hip hop as well. So to think that Prince would think that hip hop is beneath him would be silly, because both Prince and hip hop took lessons from the Godather of Soul.

WatchThemFall said:

He needs to delete every rap song... They all suck.

I wouldn't say it's beneath him, exactly. I don't want to offend fans of rap. Personally, I don't like very much rap. My primary beef with the genre is that so many songs are just samples of other songs. I HATE sampling! If you don't have a good song find someone to write one for you or fuck off! Sorry. I really do not like sampling. But I think that people are attracted to Prince's music because of his creativity. So it doesn't make sense, in my mind, for him to dip his toe in a genre of music that is not known for it's creativity. In fact, much rap music is the antithesis of creativity. Sorry again. I do like the rap in "It's Gonna Be A Beautiful Night". A final word. And again, this is my opinion, but when Prince raps it can be very scary indeed!

If rap were an essential part of Prince's sound, I would think he'd still be doing it.

This isn't to say that rap is "beneath" anything. Overall, in my opinion, it just didn't seem to come from a genuine place musically, and he was following more than leading with most of the hip-hop/rap stuff.

Anxiety said:

Hey. I am extremely white and I am hoping someone can help me out with this. What is the difference between hip hop and rap? Where did the term hip hop come from and what does it mean? Thanks.

rialb said:

Okay in a nutshell rap is the type of music, where as hip hop is not just the music but a cultural,lifestyle, attitude as well.

the3rddoctor said:

Even Pussy Control?

I like the more Funky side of Prince. That means I'm into his funk, r&b and hiphop tracks. I think that's what he does best, since he is above all a Funk singer, imo. I understand people that dont love his "hiphop era", and it tends to be people that were fans since the begining. Me, it's been the opposite story. I am a hiphop/r&b lover that discovered Prince and I am in love with his Funk music and his rap influences.

rialb said:

It's basically the same thing. Rap refers strictly to the music while hiphop is the whole culture (music, graffiti, breakdancing...).

skywalker said:

EVERY rap song...

the3rddoctor said:

Never heard Days Of Wild or Johnny?

the3rddoctor said:

'bob george' could be said to be in the 'rap' style. Would you delete that?

skywalker said:

I agree. Some of Prince's rap songs are really great musically. They don't all suck. I love Pussy Control. Maybe Prince should delete Tony M's vocals from all tracks he appears on, if he ever gets the masters back.

Thanks for the info on rap and hip hop

Beneath him? No. Beyond him? Yes.

If you're not into hip-hop/rap fine, but don't comment on it's value. You obviously don't feel it. I won't talk about the worthlessness of classical or country music just because I'm not feeling it-- I do like a few of the tunes I've heard so I wouldn't write off the entire genre. That's similar to somebody hearing My Name is Prince and writing him off.

Hip-hop has been traditionally used as a term to befit a lifestyle while rap is solely the music. However, I use the terms to differentiate between acts like 50 cents and most of what you'll hear on the radio, and groups like A Tribe Called Quest. Admittedly, the trouble in doing that is that the line separating them is blurred-- it's an arbitrary one. But I do it anyway.

WatchThemFall said:

Spoken like a true artist.

No its not beneath him but as much as i like prince he is not a good rapper

skywalker said:

No, I don't at all. Hip-hop, like other music, has become an art form, it can be used or abused at will.

skywalker said:

Hip-Hop does suck musically but it can be fun to listen to

some hip hop stuff is alright, though it isn't like other stuff you'd get from rappers like 50 cent and busta rhymes
his better ones are:

Face Down
Pussy Control
Now
Da, Da, Da
Style
Undisputed (Moneyappolis Mix)
and a couple of other i can't remember
he couldn't pull off hip hop now though.

I think he should have stayed away from anything approaching rap. He can't do it, and he hired horrible rappers to do it for him in the past. Stick with what you know, man.

nah i dont think its beneath him. the problem is, he just started throwing in rap lyrics that were no good. but if he collaborated with true hip hop artists like de la soul and just supplied the music with some of his funkdified lyrics it could work.

butterballz84 said:

You obviously aint feelin it, but it definitely does not suck musically. Ever heard a Timbaland production or a DJ Quik production? Pure Genius.