During “All of the Lights” Kanye told everyone to shine their cell phone lights and I was able to capture this cool shot.
Kanye West played the New Orleans Arena on December 5th and I was lucky enough to attend this concert so you won’t have to. I won’t lie, the $59 ticket price tag along with opener Kendrick Lamar are two factors that heavily contributed to my decision to purchase a ticket. I never know when to show up for a concert that isn’t a festival, so after work that day, I browsed the internet to find out if there was an act going on before Kendrick Lamar. No concert review for this even had a mention of Kanye’s opener, but I did find out that his set list was a staggering 28 songs long. “Great,” I thought, “I’m not getting home until the middle of the night.” Continue reading →
Rap has traditionally has struggled with the treatment of women in lyrics and videos. Hand Job Academy is about to turn your antiquated notions of female rappers upside down. They are unapologetically women and they put periods front and center. Prepare yourself for the video after the jump. Continue reading →
I’m starting a new movement called the Campaign to End Flouncing. To celebrate this new political network that is sure to sweep the internet, I’m gonna hit you with some lyrical dopeness. Enjoy.
Cormega photo via the excellent photoblog G M D Three. Please go check him out!
Is there any other music scene that obsesses over mass appeal quite like hip-hop does? There’s a whole ecosystem of rap terminology related to fame. Now you’re famous? You just blew up. Having trouble getting radio airplay? Man, they’re sleepin on ya.
So who are the all-time most slept-on MCs? Me personally, I still absolutely love the mid to late 90s rhymes, so my list is big on East Coast mixtape heavy hitters and battle MCs. These are the best of the best, the ones who should have been household names, but no, you just had to have your PM Dawn and Kriss Kross.
(Warning: This is not an invitation to post awful Kriss Kross or PM Dawn videos in the comment section. If you do, I will personally ridicule your questionable taste. This is the GOOD HIP-HOP THREAD, not one of the many, many threads devoted to lame guilty pleasure music! I’m serious.)
In no particular order:
1. Ras Kass
Ras Kass has been putting out albums and mixtapes for years now. The L.A. rapper definitely has a hardcore cult following, but despite a Tupac-esque snarl and wicked vocabulary, he’s never been able to really break out. It may partly have to do with the fact that a lot of his songs reflect on deep, centuries-long themes such as colonialism and racism. For some reason, rap was way more political in the 90s.
2. Cormega
Oh, what could have been. Cormega was actually an original member of The Firm, along with Nas, Foxy Brown and AZ. The Queensbridge rapper unfortunately had a falling out with Nas early on, then left the group, then had a legendary beef with him, then went to prison for a little while. What a shame. Cormega has one of the greatest rap flows of all time. His voice is super nasally and actually kind of soft in a way that conveys a certain vulnerability that all the great rappers have had at one time or another (Tupac and Li’l Wayne come to mind).
3. Kool G. Rap
They call him Giacanna because he’s about as close to a rap godfather as there will ever be. Kool G. Rap had a few minor hits in the early 90s, then saw his brand of cocaine raps blow up with Pac and Biggie. Today basically EVERY rapper from Rick Ross to Young Jeezy to Waka Flocka Flame can thank him for taking rap to new heights of drug-trafficking braggadoccio. Also, he has an absolutely DOPE New York flow that’s deep and rich and funky.
4. Big L
This is probably one of the saddest rap stories of all time. Big L was young and on top of the world, with his debut album getting love… and then in 1999 he was shot to death in his Harlem neighborhood. To this day there are hip-hop heads who still haven’t gotten over it — with good reason. Check him out freestyling with a young Jigga and see if you can really tell which one would be the star.
5. Jadakiss
Jada has had one semi-big hit (“Why”) but the man is always named when talking about rap’s most slept-on. His rhymes are so rough and gravelly it’s like the devil himself is coming out the speakers. Jada may never have the mainstream appeal of Jay-Z or Kanye, but good luck finding another rapper with this level of street cred. He’s also got some of the most famous rap freestyles of all time… fast forward this video to the :30 when Kiss takes it to another level.
6. Memphis Bleek
Here’s another Roc-A-Fella veteran who never quite blew up. Even Jay-Z has said he could never understand how Bleek wasn’t a bigger name. Here he is on “Change the Game.” Bleek comes on at the 1:00 mark and just destroys it.
7. Third Degree
Third Degree was a group of rappers from San Antonio with pretty much a strictly Texas following (I’m pretty sure they’re no longer recording together). I have no idea how I discovered them (probably on some Houston mixtape). Anyway, I love them and how could you not? They named one of their mixtapes after their love of gold teeth, rapping and the Purple Drank: “Grills, Skills and Purple Spills.” Texas rap is just criminally underrated.
8. Rah Digga
Rah Digga was (and still is) the total package. She had the dope voice, the dope flow AND the dope look. And she did it all without being a chickenhead like Lil Kim or Nicki Minaj. She was knocking on the door of superstardom in the late 90s as a member of Flipmode (Busta Rhymes’ posse) but for some reason it never quite came togther. Anyway, I love her. R.D., I’m single now. Call me!
9. Keith Murray
What a great voice. I always kind of lumped him in with EPMD, Redman and Def Squad and I guess he sorta got lost in the shuffle of dope New Jersey rap flows. It’s too bad because he has some sick, sick rhymes.
10. Papoose
Papoose was born about 15 years too late. He would have been HUGE in 1992! He’s a pure battle rapper. (Warning: Old Man Rant coming up!) Unfortunately these days the rap game is all about who can sell the most ringtones, so things like lyrical skills don’t really matter. Here he is alliterating his way through the entire rap alphabet.
Not all rap is just endless metaphors and wordplay. The “story rap” packs its narrative into a 3 minute single. Here are some of my favorite story raps. I even tried to pull from different regions and styles. NYC is heavily represented of course. That’s mainly because of Nas, Mos Def and Gang Starr, who all seem to love doing story raps. But don’t forget the Dirty South and West coast. They’re representin’ too.
“Crime Story” by DMX
An armed robbery goes wrong, so the scofflaw is forced to hide from the police. While in hiding, the protagonist reflects on his life and decides his only option is a suicide mission against the precinct house. Note the cameo by a young Ja Rule.
“I Gave You Power” by Nas
Nas is probably one of the rappers most closely associated with story raps. This one is written from the POV of a gun. It’s a risky narrative strategy but I think it works. And unlike an actual gunshot wound, the song’s nice jazzy 90s beat doesn’t hurt.
“It Was a Good Day” by Ice Cube
A day in the life of Ice Cube, rapped over top of a thick Isley Brothers sample. Sometimes everything really is alright. As Mr. Cube would say, sometimes you just need to “put that ass to sleep.”
“Betrayal” by Gang Starr feat. Scarface
Between Gang Starr’s Guru and Scarface, these are two of the greatest rap voices ever. On this track Scarface tells a story about an athletically-gifted kid who tries to live a clean life until “a group of knuckleheads came through jumpin.”
“The Heist” by Big L
Big L teaches us how to set someone up for a robbery/mugging. Maybe if OJ listened to this he wouldn’t be in prison now. Oh well.
“Crosstown Beef” by Medina Green feat. Mos Def
This track was on the classic “Soundbombing 2” album. No one remembers who Medina Green even was, but he and Mos came up with a great one here. This is pretty much exactly how I imagine it feels to be caught up in gang drama.
“Memory Lane” by Nas
From the classic Illmatic album, Nas takes us back to his childhood. He was only like 18 when he wrote this, though, so I suspect he’s really just an excellent storyteller.
“Back in the Day” by Ahmad
I couldn’t name one other song by Ahmad, but this song is pure win. He even makes references to Gazelles and Turkish links. A perfect ode to 80s rap innocence.
“Once Upon A Time” by T.I.
From T.I.’s “Fuck a Mixtape” mixtape, this is a story rap where someone is heard asking T.I. why doesn’t do story raps no more. Awesome, I know. Also, T.I.’s story about an encounter with a strange visitor to your stash house is damn interesting.
“I’ve Committed Murder” by Gang Starr feat. Mos Def and Macy Gray
Do you hate your job? Is your boss a raging asshole? If so, listen to this slice of revenge fantasy. Macy Gray is practically perfect in this song.
“How to Break Up With Your Girlfriend” by Jean Grae
Instead of killing people, how about we just cut them loose? Jean Grae teaches you how to end a bad relationship. I feel like Chuck Finley could have used this one.
“Me and Jesus the Pimp in a 79 Granada Last Night” by The Coup
One of the greatest song titles ever created, this one is an absolutely epic story about the evils of prostitution. Human misery has never sounded quite this good.
“Int’l Players Anthem (I Choose You)” by UGK feat. Outkast
Andre3000 steals the show on this one. His verse is just incredible. Going back through his various hook-ups and girlfriends, he walks us through his new Grown Ass Man shit. Then Pimp C (RIP!), wearing enough fur to destroy PETA singlehandedly, takes us through his random sexual conquests and disregard for traffic safety. This is sure to be a hit at your next wedding reception!
