Hip Hop/Rap Fanatics Unite!

[Retrogamer0001]

Anyone else consider "Changes" by Tupac a shining example of what progressive rap/hiphop has the potential to be? One of the best rap songs ever written, in my opinion.

it's a great song. It's tough to speak fairly on it myself. I feel like I've heard it soooo many times that it's lost a slight bit of oomph to me. But at the same time, I'm never sick of it either. And I feel like it's one of the songs where every line is quotable.

My favorite 2Pac album by far is Me Against The World, which I feel similarly about to the bulk of the material on that album. If we're talking singles, I think that "So Many Tears" is probably the most brutally honest one he released:

"Disillusioned lately,
I've been really wanting babies
so I can see a part of me that wasn't always shady"

I mean, remember he was like what? Early twenties when he wrote that line?

That entire album is pure gold, and one that we'll likely never see the equal to, as far as social-mindedness goes. The age of introspective/intellectual rap seems far removed, unless you go the underground route.

[noiseredux]

That entire album is pure gold, and one that we'll likely never see the equal to, as far as social-mindedness goes. The age of introspective/intellectual rap seems far removed, unless you go the underground route.

eh. Everything goes in cycles. Whatever is hip in the mainstream is the opposite underground. And vice versa. Great hip hop exists at all times and of all styles, but it just sometimes takes effort to seek it out.

[Retrogamer0001]

That entire album is pure gold, and one that we'll likely never see the equal to, as far as social-mindedness goes. The age of introspective/intellectual rap seems far removed, unless you go the underground route.

eh. Everything goes in cycles. Whatever is hip in the mainstream is the opposite underground. And vice versa. Great hip hop exists at all times and of all styles, but it just sometimes takes effort to seek it out.

I hope you're right. I'm still waiting for this to happen with the video game industry. I don't know that we can ever see new games that compare to Super Metroid, Chrono Trigger, or Earthbound ever again. Call me cynical, but I think games like that are one-time things that can't really be improved upon. Me Against the World might be in that category.

[noiseredux]

maybe I'm just more the optimist, but I feel like great art is everywhere at all times. It's just difficult to find it all right away. Think about how many times you hear an album from a year or two ago and think "damn, if I heard that the year it came out it would have been my favorite album of the year." Same with games, movies, etc.

Don't get me wrong, in all media there's more shit than gold. But there's also more gold than folks realize, I think.

[mister j-y]

Noo Chester Watson.

[GreyD]

maybe I'm just more the optimist, but I feel like great art is everywhere at all times. It's just difficult to find it all right away. Think about how many times you hear an album from a year or two ago and think "damn, if I heard that the year it came out it would have been my favorite album of the year." Same with games, movies, etc.

Don't get me wrong, in all media there's more shit than gold. But there's also more gold than folks realize, I think.

One thing that's going wrong with the society is, that old or dead people get hyped for years and there is no room for new legends to come up...example:
Lebron James already better than MJ ever was, but he will never get that hype. He always loses MJ vs Lebron discussions...
same goes for rap music...new stars come up like kendrick lamar or cole or whatever, but people keep making it hard for them, cuz they still on thtat "tupacs a legend" shit..

[Luke]

Lebron James already better than MJ ever was, but he will never get that hype.

Last time I counted LeBron doesn't have six championship rings, and there is plenty of talk that he's already peaked.

And I don't agree with your blanket statement, as kids don't listen to Tupac and Biggie, it's Drake and Rick Ross. Soon they'll have the hype. It's cyclical.

[dunpeal2064]

Yep, just as kids don't see Chrono Trigger or Earthbound as holy grail games that all must be compared to. Uncharted, CoD, LoL, and the like are much more talked about outside of the retro enthusiast scene.

Its a good thing, if you ask me.

(and yeah, Drake is huge. Even people my age talk about him far more often than Tupac)

[Luke]

Huh. Nas wrote Gettin' Jiggy With It.

[noiseredux]

Huh. Nas wrote Gettin' Jiggy With It.

I don't remember if that was ever confirmed specifically. But yeah, Nas was ghost-writing for Big Willy back in the day.