Grillless

Back in the Day, it was fairly easy to pick out the “sellouts” and artists that were commercial yet lacked any real talent. It was, for the most part, mutually agreeable upon whom to give the gas face too, and who was safe from such disrespect. Back in the Day, artists like Hammer and Vanilla Ice, though able to run arena shows, couldn’t get any props from any block within the city limits of any said arena they played. Back in the day sold out shows didn’t equal street cred, in fact the opposite was true. Now, I don’t remember if these cats actually had sold out shows at arenas or not, but for the sake of my argument, I am assuming they did. What is true is that even in nice Toronto, you were asking for trouble if you wore a Hammer t-shirt. Now that’s a great story involving HDV that I’ll save for another time.

These days, it isn’t always so easy to draw these type of lines. Most definitely, it is still true that a large proportion of talented Recording Artists get dissed by the majors, even cats who have a catalogue are shown the door or encounter closed doors. It seems to be getting worse with these labels becoming super labels and then mega labels in turn. The media is even spinning types like Vanilla Ice as talented from their generation, as media seems bent on being history revisionists for the masses, makes me wonder who’s controlling the ropes.

However these days, an artist or song will receive some commercial success and it isn’t wack, sometimes these songs are really good. Also, however these days, is the fact that the rap loving public isn’t so polarized, so an artist may be hot to some while others would disagree. So while the same radio stations play the same songs and artists, a new dichotomy has emerged. Rap music no longer has a single voice. Gone are the days of lamenting for real success, as in when will hip hop go from underground and be welcomed by mainstream, and this has been replaced by who can bang out the dopest track the fastest. Hip hop has gone mainstream and a second reactionary underground has emerged. The new underground is diehard and unlike the old one, the underground loving public’s voice completely rejects anything that smells of pop.

So this new underground voice may have the same slogans as before, and in fact use the same slogans as before, but the difference is, the old underground disseminated what was and what wasn’t, and wanted in. The new underground disseminates what is and isn’t and is radically entrenched on the edge, completely rejecting the idea of welcoming the establishment.

So here we are, I’ll use a very specific example, 50 Cent. This guy was underground, has street cred (no, I’m not talking about the drug type of street cred) and went pop. He is hated and loved. Does he have banging tracks? Some will say yes and some will say no. The iconic-in-their-ability-to-polarize Hammers and Vanillas have long gone but the public sentiment of villian still remains. This sentiment even affects groups like Public Enemy. Artists that have stayed true have their share of haters, in modern times. So are we in an age of hate? Not exactly.

It’s just harder to spot the villians.

Years ago, I had my list of all time rap records. At the time it was a list of albums, and I’m sure Tribe was on there, BDP, etc. but over the years I have forgotten who exactly was on my list. This is because I had one of those moments, one of those moments where you realize your philosophy was wick-wick-wack, definitely an eye opening experience if you will.

Back then I was working at a well known place inside a well known stadium (which recently had a name change). The names don’t matter, but what matters is that I had come in that day, excited to tell my co-worker my epiphany, for I had just made my list of the best of the best, and I felt it was comprised of strong selections, Rap Music’s “Must Haves”.

My friend is one of those types, a fellow person who digs the music, you know the ones, you meet them everywhere, and you have that feeling, that shared experience of the love for the music, you don’t have to speak it.

So, after many discussions about hip hop, I related my list to him, and he smiled and nodded at each and every one that I spoke of that day. What he said afterward has affected me to this day, and I live by these words.

Today I can’t remember exactly, word for word, what was said. I live it now, it is a part of me. Essentially, the words were this: You cannot name the “Best of the Best” because the “Best of the Best” is still to come. In other words, don’t make your top 10 list just yet, because the history of the music is still being written.

Now, this was well before the “Hip Hop Is Dead” ideology that’s going around today; we’re talking early nineties here. However, the philosophy of a living, breathing culture still exists, you just have to find it, and find it within yourself.

Now that is something you can share.