From one of the first generations to be raised on rap music. It was eventually going to happen. The article hits close to home in many ways, though after years of writing younger MCs off completely I do like several newer artists.

The money quote, on page 1:

Music from the past is largely enjoyed and preserved by those who lived through it upon its release to the public and felt its impact. They first absorbed it immediately upon its creation. They’re old enough to look back on the music and its associated time period as a point of reference to where the world is in its current state. Vietnam, Reaganomics, Watergate, crack, The L.A. Riots, New York’s state of being a racial powder keg in the late ’80s – each had a soundtrack. Younger folks who dig deeper and are more intrigued by music than their peers appreciate stuff from all genres and all eras. But they’re in the minority, and although they may appreciate the music itself, they’ll never fully comprehend what surrounded it or the circumstances it was made under. Some of our “Golden Era” innovations in style have come back around – Gumby haircuts are actually popular again. But N.W.A. is no longer dangerous. Ice Cube’s penchant for getting lost in his movies and Dr. Dre’s overpriced headphones make the group seem damn near humorous in hindsight. I once played “Fuck The Police” during a college music course I taught at my alma mater; my students thought it was hilarious and fun. Only a certain demographic can truly understand why the group and song were considered so dangerous once upon a time. You had to be there to “get it.” Furthermore, rap has always been propelled by youth and rebellion, so fewer older artists in hip-hop will be revered by the youth than in most other genres of music.

LINK . . . http://www.egotripland.co...ap-j-zone/

[Edited 2/19/14 19:07pm]

Same can be said for rock n roll, punk, metal etc. Time moves on, msuic changes, people grow old. It happens... it's natural. N.W.A are a godo group, but also popularized gangsta rap. And with their ''message'' brought thousands of knockoff gangsta tunes that are around even today.

And why m ention just N.W.A? there were way better and more important groups anyways. Time moves on, people change, music changes. That's for ANY genre, the music will still always be there though. And new people will always discover it.

the generation gap was manufactured by the industry

it never had to be one

it's all about context, wording, and presentation of things

for the past 27 years, we have been told that HIP-HOP was created for the young

but the truth is that HIP-HOP was created to give voice to the voiceless.....

adults created the genre

Scorp said:

adults created the genre

Adults created Barney the purple dinosaur and Teletubbies too.

Gunsnhalen said:

Same can be said for rock n roll, punk, metal etc. Time moves on, msuic changes, people grow old. It happens... it's natural. N.W.A are a godo group, but also popularized gangsta rap. And with their ''message'' brought thousands of knockoff gangsta tunes that are around even today.

And why m ention just N.W.A? there were way better and more important groups anyways. Time moves on, people change, music changes. That's for ANY genre, the music will still always be there though. And new people will always discover it.

That was . . . well . . . kinda the point, guns. The author makes it. And he didn't just mention NWA. Did you read the entire article?

Scorp said:

the generation gap was manufactured by the industry

it never had to be one

hip-hop/rap is suffering from the same problems that plagued hard-rock during the second half of the '80s...

the PROBLEM IS: hip-hop/rap has been suffering from this problem for more than 10 years already

JoeTyler said:

Scorp said:

the generation gap was manufactured by the industry

it never had to be one

hip-hop/rap is suffering from the same problems that plagued hard-rock during the second half of the '80s...

the PROBLEM IS: hip-hop/rap has been suffering from this problem for more than 10 years already

But that's the point of the article: That hip-hop, like rock before it, is coming to grips with generation gaps.

And on a rare point of disagreement with Scorp: the generation gap is not manufactured. The context of different experiences produce different sounds and approaches from one biological generation to the next, even within the same genre.

The differences may be exaggerated, but they're there. It's why I may look at today's rap and say, "it's been done," and my 20something colleague listen to 80s/90s rap and say, "this is old and corny." With both of us being right, and both of us being wrong, to some degree.

There are dumb records like "Versace Versace Versace", but there were dumb hits in the 80s too. DMC had a point about albums having a balance. But DMC also had some of the most simple rhymes ever written. For younger listeners, they don't look to records like "Versace" as the best current rap anyway.

I recommended some "old school" albums to a local rapper born in the 90s who was searching for some inspiration, and It Takes A Nation Of Millions completely missed him because he is used to Eminem-level complexity for rhymes aloft hi-fi expensive sounding production.

Cinny said:

I recommended some "old school" albums to a local rapper born in the 90s who was searching for some inspiration, and It Takes A Nation Of Millions completely missed him because he is used to Eminem-level complexity for rhymes aloft hi-fi expensive sounding production.

Chuck D's flow and lyrical style was equal parts prosaic and poetic, complex but not layered like Em. So I could see how what I'd consider the Greatest Hip-Hop Album of All Time didn't register with an MC in his 20s.

namepeace said:

Cinny said:

I recommended some "old school" albums to a local rapper born in the 90s who was searching for some inspiration, and It Takes A Nation Of Millions completely missed him because he is used to Eminem-level complexity for rhymes aloft hi-fi expensive sounding production.

Chuck D's flow and lyrical style was equal parts prosaic and poetic, complex but not layered like Em. So I could see how what I'd consider the Greatest Hip-Hop Album of All Time didn't register with an MC in his 20s.

It was a double whammy because the beats did not do anything for him either.

Cinny said:

namepeace said:

Chuck D's flow and lyrical style was equal parts prosaic and poetic, complex but not layered like Em. So I could see how what I'd consider the Greatest Hip-Hop Album of All Time didn't register with an MC in his 20s.

It was a double whammy because the beats did not do anything for him either.

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The truth of the matter is is that I havent been excited for a new hip-hop album since Nas' "Life is Good", and that was a new album by an established mc. A tiny amount aside, there hasnt been any real, genuine rappers that can spit unless you go underground, but the average kid nowadays either doesnt have the patience to look, or is ignorant to the..."not mainstream". Now we got some halfwit numbskull named French Montana who has a song and its hook is the idiot repeating "Nigga I aint worried bout nothin!", and THAT is declared as the hotness nowadays. Hearing that track seriously angered me. By and large, the kids are listening to some bullshit, but its what is presented to them.

Im about to turn 28 tomorrow. Im in a peculair spot where I witnessed some of THEE best rap during my super-young years in due part to having an older brother. I was there when "doggystyle" was first released, and I was also there when Gang Starr blew my young mind with "Moment of Truth". I feel like I was born in a good time to where I can decipher between the good and the terrible, even though music is absolutely subjective. Man, I even remember the Juice Soundtrack, and dont get me started on my love for A Tribe Called..

But Ive also seen rap turn into what it is. It seems about 70% of the time, these guys arent rhymin, they lack flow and basically talk with a hint of "swag" in their voice and the fucking hook is what makes the song hot. And I just dont understand that. The rap I grew up on had a guy in a booth speaking from the heart, telling stories which may or may not have happened, spilling some true, unabashed poetry. And as someone mentioned earlier about giving a young mc a PE album...what did you expect? I dont know this kid, but Id imagine hes used to the extremely over-produced, almost plastic-sounding hip-POP that sadly seems like is here to stay. Public Enemy, as much as I hate to say this, are almost dinosaurs in the kids' eyes (if theyve even heard of them, Flava Flav's idiocy aside).

And Eminem, talk about a tragedy. My main beef with Em is that hes bulletproof when he wants to be, but garbage most of the time. He can say some of the most insane shit ive ever heard put to wax ("I met a retarted kid named greg with a wooden leg..") to release a fart on a cd called "I think my dad's gone crazy". Hes SOOOO inconsistent, but ill give him a little credit for trying to keep one foot in the commercial, and the other in the underground. Man, I couldnt even get through the Marshall 2 lp, and decided to give it a chance since Recovery was pretty good in spots. If only he could see himself through my eyes or perhaps yours, maybe he would realize that hes truly capable of bringing the lyrics back to the forefront for the next round of hip-hop youngsters. Its become too much of a formula, and Slim is the face of the genre since hes regarded as the "best" amongst his peers.

And I could go on about the rock world too. Rock music in general is where my heart truly is. And you know, it seems like its easier to bring something a little fresh to the rock table even if your music isnt necessairily ground-breaking, and youde have a good chance of getting away with it too because theres endless possibilities, and so many styles and influences to choose from. Raps almost pigeonholed itself because its succumbed itself to that damn hook i keep talking about. Nothing else matters in the track. Even the beat takes a backseat. As much as I dont want to say this (because I hate the man), Kanye is a progressive mind with hip-hop. At least it sounds like hes putting in an effort, whether its good or not. You also got dudes like Kendrick Lamar who Im starting to familiarize myself with, and maybe even Drake although its a bit hard for me to take him seriously. Im just tired of having to search for good music when back in the good ol' days, it was there in massive amounts for the taking. Or maybe Im too cynical.

In my opinion, this track is about as great as hip hop will ever get. Everything else is an increasingly lower set of peaks and valleys. Seriously, we need to let go of hip hop and move on to something else.

When is the next great musical movement going to come out the black community? Maybe it will come from somewhere else. There isn't a music genre that seems less inspired and tired than hip hop. And that's coming from a hip hop fan.

lrn36 said:

In my opinion, this track is about as great as hip hop will ever get. Everything else is an increasingly lower set of peaks and valleys. Seriously, we need to let go of hip hop and move on to something else.

When is the next great musical movement going to come out the black community? Maybe it will come from somewhere else. There isn't a music genre that seems less inspired and tired than hip hop. And that's coming from a hip hop fan.

it's not going to happen, culture has now been obliterated and when u don't have a culture, you have nothing

our value systems as people on this planet is shaped by the culture we are raised up under

no we are just winging it

Scorp said:

lrn36 said:

In my opinion, this track is about as great as hip hop will ever get. Everything else is an increasingly lower set of peaks and valleys. Seriously, we need to let go of hip hop and move on to something else.

When is the next great musical movement going to come out the black community? Maybe it will come from somewhere else. There isn't a music genre that seems less inspired and tired than hip hop. And that's coming from a hip hop fan.

it's not going to happen, culture has now been obliterated and when u don't have a culture, you have nothing

our value systems as people on this planet is shaped by the culture we are raised up under

no we are just winging it

We simply cannot say that definitively. Hip-hop fermented for at least a decade before this video came out. Jazz didn't just materialize as a "musical movement." Nor did the blues or rock and roll. I usually don't quote Wynton Marsalis, but he said of an art form, it doesn't come to you, you come to it. We don't know what types of new movements are bubbling below the surface. It's not as if hip-hop were born into a "stable home" in terms of "culture."

I don't disagree that the next new movement in music can't be seen from the horizon. But the "culture" from whence hip hop came was centuries in the making. I have faith something else will come along. New movements have arisen from bleak circumstances.