HipHop Isnt DeadBut Its DyingHeres 10 Reasons Why

1. Everybody wants to be a gangsta

There used to be all kinds of MCs rhyming about all aspects of life. Hip-Hop used to be fun. Hip-Hip used to be social conscious. Hip-Hop used to political and militant. Hip-Hop was previously grown and sexy before Jay-Z made the phrase popular on his song, "Pardon me Miss".

Hip-Hop is definitely gangsta. Many credit Schoolly D with making the first Gangsta rap record, "P.S.K." Ice-T arrived with "6 N each morning". Boogie Down Productions released "Criminal Minded". And how could anyone neglect to mention "the most dangerous group", N.W.A. and their infamous classic record, "Straight Outta Compton".

What I'm saying is that Gangsta rap is not new & most of the so-called gangsta rap acts nowadays all sound exactly the same (regardless of where they're from) and so are not nearly as good and cutting edge because the pioneers of that sub-genre within Hip-Hop.

Bottom-line: Hip-Hop must diversify by time for its true tradition of telling stories that reflect various perspectives and not just the same ol', same ol', "shoot 'em up, bang, bang" mentality and lifestyle.

2. Hip-Hop is driven more by commercial success than cultural integrity

Hip-Hop is no longer a culture, it is a business. But the truth is Hip-Hop is indeed a culture that is commercialized, therefore, compromised. Corporate America, whether you're discussing corporate-owned record labels, magazines or cable channels, come in complete control of Hip-Hop.

Hip-Hop is big business and is making a lot of people lots of money. But how many of these who profit from Hip-Hop are in fact true to the preservation of the culture? And just how much of the profits are increasingly being recycled back the communities worldwide that gave birth, raised and praise the culture just like a proud parent?

get more info -line: Hip-Hop, as a culture, needs to be resurrected and moved forward in having an impact on the world socially, politically, religiously, economically and not just exploited to make greedy opportunists rich.

3. BEEF

Let me start out by saying that there is a huge difference between "beef" and "battling". Beef is what goes on on the streets and also in the boardroom. Battling is competition; what happens in sports for example and of course Hip-Hop music. Battling is the foundation of MC'ing.

Battling separates the thorough MCs from the "Sucker MCs". There have been legendary "battles" throughout Hip-Hop history; KRS-ONE & BDP vs. MC Shan & The Juice Crew, L.L. Cool J vs. Kool Moe Dee to mention a couple.

But beef is another whole can of "words". Beef can (and has) spread beyond records and onto the streets. Beef, real beef, is about more than words. Beef could be dangerous and should be studied serious. Beef is dangerous to Hip-Hop because it damages the culture's credibility and hinders its true intent. Hip-Hop as a culture and rap as a kind of music had not been founded on "greasy talk" and violence.

Bottom line: Beef may garner some publicity and sometimes, tragically claim lives nonetheless it does nothing to uplift Hip-Hop culture and the communities it represents.

4. The most used MCs are often the most overrated

You can ask today's average fan to list their 10 favorite MC's and at least half of the ones they name are average at best or downright wack. The MCs who obtain the most attention in radio, print and television are often not MCs at all; they're rappers, or I assume it is possible to say, entertainers that rap. Your favorite rapper may have a hit song getting 100's of spins each day on the air but that doesn't indicate that he / she is really a true MC.

Most rap songs played on the radio are the weakest lyrically. Most of the components of Hip-Hop are completely absent from the music videos that serve as a visual for the songs. These entertainers benefit from various factors that put them at the forefront of Hip-Hop. But often lyrical prowess isn't one of these factors. Meanwhile lots of the best MCs which have mastered the art of MC'ing (see #9) receive little to no promotion from corporate America and their great talents are heard and witnessed by few.

Important thing: True MCs who are in the overall game for the love of it should be more visible and the popular MCs who dominate the charts and grace the covers of magazines should challenge themselves and become challenged to step their rhyme game up.

5. Hip-Hop journalism needs to step their game up

I'm a writer. I grew up an avid reader of Hip-Hop themed publications. There is a period when I thoroughly enjoyed reading these publications waiting anxiously for the new issues going to the newsstand or be delivered in my mailbox.

But the last 5 years roughly, the "Hip-Hop press" has allow culture down. For instance, the two biggest and most successful magazines (I won't name them. You understand...) in my opinion have perpetuated, instigated and contributed to pushing on-going beefs between rap crews. And these publications themselves have engaged in on-going beefs between one another!

This doesn't happen in other publications unless you're talking about the tabloids. And if it can happen within other publications, the ramifications are not as detrimental to the overall well being of the "profiles" featured in their pages or the readers of their publications.

Plainly, the Hip-Hop press includes a responsibility to the culture it covers. It will challenge the culture while celebrating it. The Hip-Hop press shouldn't lower their journalistic standards or "dumb down" just to sell magazines. I hate to say this, but some of the best pieces I've read on Hip-Hop attended from mainstream publications which genuinely have no authority to speak on matters of Hip-Hop.

Bottom line: At times, the Hip-Hop press comes across cartoon-ish and for a lot of us that was raised in Hip-Hop, we expect and deserve better. Younger generation of Hip-Hop desperately need better (even if they don't really realize it). You can find great writers within our culture but most of us must present Hip-Hop in a shining light while being objective. The Hip-Hop press has a credibility problem (and I ain't talking about street cred).

6. Radio & TV has yet to step their game up

Radio and television programming since it relates to Hip-Hop is wack. The most famous Hip-Hop show on TV (Guess what happens I'm discussing) may be the wackest. And it's really not because of the hosts or the young, ill informed audience. The blame could be spread across the board between the producers and the corporate companies who are in charge of putting the show on the air.

I don't desire to pick using one particular television show. The main point is radio and television execute a terrible job of how they present Hip-Hop culture to the masses. And, frankly, advertisers don't care; all they want are the eyeballs to whatever they're peddling.

Bottom line: Radio & Television need to create more formats and programming that celebrate all the elements of Hip-Hop so that more eyes and ears will see and hear the many faces and sounds of Hip-Hop and not just the often negative stereotypical stuff.

7. The younger generation doesn't know or acknowledge the pioneers of the overall game

When I was a teenager, I loved Big Daddy Kane but I also loved and appreciated the soulful sounds of Marvin Gaye. read more was a student of music, fairly knowledgeable about history and not simply hung up on the most recent song on the air. A lot of my peers were exactly the same way.

On Nas' new record, "Hip-Hop is Dead", one of my favorite songs is "Keep on Tradition" where Nas challenges, "Let's see who is able to quote a Daddy Kane line the fastest." Younger generation ought to be more informed about Hip-Hop pre-2004. I really like fire-spittin', Lil' Wayne, or the charismatic, T.I., but there has been lots of Hip-Hop prior to the new school or next school of Hip-Hoppers.

I've always said that the pioneers of the overall game don't get the proper platform that they deserve. That's why I love VH1's Hip-Hop Honors. It's not the easiest method to pay tribute to the MCs of the past but at the very least the producers are trying.

Important thing: The pioneers of the game paved just how for the MCs that you see now. The MCs of today, radio, television, print and just the average Hip-Hopper on the road should pay homage to the legends. The culture includes a history and that history may be the foundation from which the future of Hip-Hop ought to be built upon.

8. Live performances are loud, crowded and wack

You might be a hardcore Hip-Hop fan but you will need to admit that the live Hip-Hop performance is awful. It hasn't been this way. As a matter of known fact, in its short history, Hip-Hop is well known because of its performance element. There were great performers within Hip-Hop and several of the performances were witnessed in the park before they reached the Grammy stage.

Nowadays, MCs just don't possess a clue of what it takes to satisfy an audience. There's so much wrong with Hip-Hop performances today. The music is too loud. There are way too many people on stage. MCs are too cool or too tough to dance or simply groove with the music. The stage show just lack true excitement and creativity. Often what you have is a couple of guys on stage as though they're standing on a street corner. Is that the very best they can develop? I think not.

Bottom line: MCs haven't shown true Hip-Hop heads nothing if they can't put on a solid show. MCs spend lots of time on the road bringing their music to the people but they should spend more time focusing on their performance when they hit the stage.

9. "Real" MC'ing is really a lost art

If I had to create a percentage, I'd say that only about 25% of MCs today can actually rhyme. Some have hardly any skill at all. The MCing element within Hip-Hop may be the most celebrated however the least mastered. Now I really like beats and I get hooked on a catchy hook, but back the day, when I heard a record, I zeroed in on the MC. If he or she couldn't rhyme, my ears closed quickly.

Too many songs are chorus/hook and basically nothing else. The MC is really the voice of the culture. What's said and how it's said is essential. A MC should be able to articulate his or her message clearly and skillfully. A real MC would not compromise his or her lyrical prowess to generate a hit record. Jay-Z, for instance, has made many hits and yet he rarely disappoints lyrically. Biggie was like this as well.

Bottom line: MCs of today should study the MCs of the past and the fantastic ones that are still doing their thing. These MCs are the true masters of wordplay.

10. The ladies are increasingly being denied the chance to shine and continue being degraded and pushed to the backdrop.

The ladies of Hip-Hop still haven't gotten their due. We can talk about any music genre and some of its biggest names are females. Maybe it is the nature of Hip-Hop and rap music. But to possess that position would be selling Hip-Hop culture short.

If you think back, women have already been celebrated in Hip-Hop. Now an excessive amount of Hip-Hop degrades its women just for the sake of doing so. Hip-Hop rarely makes the distinction between a bitch and a lady anymore. Bitch or Hoe are two words that have seemed to officially replace what woman, lady or girl in the Hip-Hop lexicon.

Whatever happened to calling a woman a chick or honey?

Some feminists wouldn't like those terms but at the very least they're spoken as a compliment to women. Nearly all women are offended when you are known as a bitch or a hoe. Of course, nowadays some women embrace these derogatory terms, seeing themselves in this manner and calling each other by these names.

But I won't simply dwell on what men treat women in Hip-Hop. That is clearly a record that's been played often. I agree with those that say that the degradation of women in Hip-Hop is influenced by society's treatment of women. But Hip-Hop may be a leading influence in changing that.

What I'm really troubled by as far as women, is the fact that there are not enough females in the game on the mic. Who's representing for the ladies? I don't mind saying that some of the best MCs are females. MC Lyte, Queen Latifah, Lauryn Hill...these ladies among others are great MCs in their own right. Foxy Brown and Lil' Kim both can go toe to toe lyrically with anybody in the overall game; past and present!

Bottom line: Hip-Hop must uplift our women more oppose to holding them down. There should be more females MCs in the game to represent all aspects (not just the "baddest bitch" perspective) to be women within Hip-Hop culture.

Duane L Lawton is really a freelance writer and publisher of "The Rhyme Report", a series of reports that explores the song lyrics of Hip-Hop's greatest MCs. Visit [1]