Looking at an Album as a Whole: Nas' Illmatic

Let me take you back to 1994. You had Melle Mel, Kurtis Blow, Big Daddy Kane, KRS One, and you even had the Notorious B.I.G. all representing the Tri-State area in hip hop in a big, big way. But then, April of ’94 came and New York City had a new face to represent their rap culture. Gone were the days of dance records that were just trying to get radio play and gone were the popular times of ragga-rapping where quick, whimsical delivery by the rhymesayers wouldn’t allow the audience to comprehend the words (Marshall). In April of 1994 the rap game changed. And this is all because of the release of the debut album coming from Queensbridge’s own, Nas. His album Illmatic, which only sold 330,000 copies in its first year of being released has gone down as easily one of the greatest albums of all time; And in my opinion, the best rap record ever.

            At the time of its release in ’94, the West Coast rap scene had really taken a stranglehold on the emerging genre that was hip-hop. N.W.A was as popular as ever, Tupac was still on top of the game (despite multiple jail sentences at the time), and Snoop Dogg’s trendy debut was brand new. And while there were plenty of other rappers representing the New York City Metropolitan area, Nas truly created a new definition on what rap was becoming. Starting the recording at just the age of eighteen years-old Nas delivered incredible, never before heard, multi-syllabic rhyme-skills that has stood the test of time for almost two decades. His phrases within his tracks such as “Life’s a bitch and then you die;” “I'm an addict for sneakers, twenties of Buddha, and bitches with beepers;” and many others have become cliché amongst the rap community today.  His style is only comparable to that of the rapper who came before him, Rakim, who hailed from Long Island. However, never before had someone painted such an intimate picture of  “the projects.” Queensbridge, which is the largest public housing area in the United States, created his persona of a laid back but also very hardcore Heineken-guzzling, weed-smoking, high school dropout whose poetic justice busted through the darkness of his environment. Check the skills here on the sixth track of the nine song-plus intro- album, Memory Lane:

Only nine songs deep, Nas proves quality is always greater than quantity. 

           It seems as though the cover of the album itself could symbolize the entire essence of Nas’ attitude and life style up until this time. Perhaps a portrait of what a young-street Nas looked like, you get this image of a kid’s no-nonsense face. Potentially implying Nas’ wise understanding of the culture in Queensbridge while only at such a young age. He details what he has seen and accomplished while living there:
        
    “I dropped out Cooley High, gassed up by a coke-head cutie pie/ Jungles survivor fuck whose the live-er/My man put the battery in my back, a difference from Energizer/ Sentence begins indented with formality/ My durations infinite, moneywise or physiology/ Poetry, that’s a part of me, retardedly bop/ I drop the ancient manifested hip-hop straight off the block/ I reminisce on park jams, my man was shot for his sheep coat/ Childhood lesson make me see him in my weed smoke/ It’s real, grew up in the trife life, the time of white lines, the hype vice/ murderous nighttimes and knife fights invite crimes”

            This is only a snippet of one of his many songs on this album that display his immaculate ability to paint with his pen and a pad. To go along with his incredible lyricism, the album was produced by a few of the greatest rap producers of all time including DJ Premier, Pete Rock, and Q-Tip. The combination of said artists made this album one of the most acclaimed of all time and it is still to this day the only album to receive the “5 mic” rating given out by The Source. Nas’ formula of street-school credential lyrics, while displaying a Rakim-like encyclopedic knowledge of rap rhyming, proved to be a timeless success that we hip-hop heads can point to as the quintessential rap album forever. One of my particular favorite references or recollections of the impact of Illmatic to other rappers comes from The Game who states in his song “Hustlers” “Ripped the package of Illmatic and bumped that/For my niggas it was too complex when Nas rhymed/I was the only Compton nigga with a New York State of Mind.”
            Coming from a generation where Eminem was the initial hip hop artist who got my ears broken into the rap industry (born in '92), seeing the impact of Illmatic was more difficult to understand. So for a second, close your eyes and imagine hearing what Nas put out on this record, actually being back in 1994. The breakthrough in overall hip-hop recording simply must have been astounding to hear a brand new sound come from the East Coast that proved superior in all aspects of the genre. Sure, there have been other good accounts of what has transpired in the hood, but never before was there such a pure MC who, when on the mic, had us all laying back with our heads in motion to the rhythm of such beautiful rapping-style poetry. After listening to this album again and again, there is only one thing to say to legend Nas; “The World Is Yours.”


Just for educational purposes......

 

Marshall, Wayne. "Hearing Hip-Hop's Jamaican Accent." Http://depthome.brooklyn.cuny.edu. Brooklyn College, NY Spring 2005. Web. 5 Apr. 2013.

Nas. “Memory Lane.” Illmatic. Columbia, 1994

Nas. “One Time For Your Mind.” Illmatic. Columbia, 1994

The Game. "Hustlers", The Documentary. Interscope, 2005.

MCJOSH313. "Nas -The World Is Yours Uncensored HQ." YouTube, 27 June 2012. Web. 6 Apr. 2013.

Trevor01s. "Nas Illmatic-memory Lane." YouTube, 21 July 2007. Web. 6 Apr. 2013.

Weiss, Jeff. "Nas: Illmatic Music Review." http://pitchfork.com/reviews/albums/17497-illmatic/. Pitchfork, Get On Down 23 Jan 2013. Web. 5 Apr. 2013.

Beyond the Words: Production, Tone, Images, Music Video and Format

BEYOND THE WORDS: Production, Tone, Images, Music Video and Format

When hip hop music videos started being shown on MTV in 1989, Run DMC hosted the first episode of Yo! MTV Raps. Run DMC hosted this show in the pilot episode bringing hip hop to a broader audience than its rival television station BET.

Their first video “Rock Box” was the first ever music video to air on MTV and paved the way for other groups. The music video is a mix of hard rock with a rap flow over top of it.

The funky style of this music video and of the group in general made a huge impact on the world of videos especially being the first one shown on national television.

In contrast to the old school flow of “Rock Box”, a more modern example of music portrayed through video is exemplified in Trinidad James’ song “All Gold Everything” he says “gold all in my chain/ gold all in my ring/ gold all in my watch/ don’t believe me just watch”. He wants you to know how incredibly rich he is by showing off his blinged out style. In the music video for this song it goes through the lyrics and shows off his gold chains, rings, watches etc.

He even wears a shirt with the word “RICH” written across it to prove his main point. With cars in the background and his boys flashing cash, he’s clearly trying to show off.

Contrasting to Trinidad James’ braggadocios song about his flashy bling, Kanye West’s song “Made in America” featuring Jay-Z and Frank Ocean gives thanks to those who paved the way for them to be able to make their come up. They thank Martin Luther King and his wife as well as Malcolm X and his wife for their help in the civil rights movement and then they of course thank God, Jesus, Mary and Joseph for the religious support in the hard times they had growing up. The music video doesn’t show the artists like any other video production would, but instead we see Black youth and adults alike in the streets of New York happy and celebrating their freedom and life in America. The importance is placed on these people because these artists on this track were once average citizens just like them but because they had the opportunity to make it big and live the American dream they now sport nice clothes and are criticized by audiences for doing it big.

Hip Hop and America: Violence and Values

           Violence has always plagued America, and many genres of music have depicted such violence in their own ways. But none receive as much criticism for doing such as Hip Hop does. Hip Hop is often credited with glorifying unnecessary violence and promoting a life of inappropriate behavior.

          In 1992, the Rodney King Riots took place in Los Angeles, CA as a reaction to 4 police officers being aqcuited of charges of "police brutality" where they beat Rodney King after a high-speed chase. Many rappers took this as a chance to reflect on the events and possibly cash in on the times. Rappers such as Dr. Dre, The Game, and Redman wrote songs or even albums dedicated to the riots. Below is actually a 38 second skit Redman included on his album in regards to the riots.

But besides national events such as this, violence and Hip Hop has gone hand in hand since Grand Master Flash's "The Message." Violence has been internalized on a personal and local level for thousands of Hip Hop artists. Millionaire rappers down to backpack rappers rap about feuds with neighboring rappers, gangs, labels, etc. quite possibly because violence and feuds sell records.

Often times rappers are not seen as real unless they practice what they preach. Rappers such as DMX are seen as "real" due to their very real rap sheets. Rick Ross is criticized as a rapper because he reportedly wanted to be a corrections officer. So why is violence considered a good thing in Hip Hop? Why is settling differences and making peace a bad thing in regards to this genre of music?

NWA was a definite catalyst in the promotion of violence and war of the streets. Whether serious songs, or party songs, many contain the concept of violence towards competing rappers, anonymous people, or the police. AS songs such as these became popular, so did the theory of violence as a necessary evil of Hip Hop.

The question is: Is violence necessary in Hip Hop? how many songs would be out if you eliminated the theme of violence? I personally don't find fault in storytelling, therefore the rapper has the freedom to discuss what he pleases. Other's find the violence discussed to be negatively affecting our culture. 

Who's a Sellout? Going Mainstream

We've all had that one artist that we love make a song that was a complete disappointment. You sit back and question whether the artists even wrote the song because it is so unlike him or her. Its one of the most depressing feelings and might even make you feel like the rest of the songs were just as fake.In todays world of Hip Hop selling out is a huge problem that artists face. Selling out has now become part of the game. Once an artist gets their name out there, they have to decide how far away they will stray from their original style and how many offers they will take with the new found fame.

With selling out becoming such a big part of Hip Hop, we now have to decide where to draw the line. Which artists should be named a sell out? and how do we know when their music has gone mainstream? In the end it all comes down to each fans opinion, and whether they believe the artists has sold out or not. It all depends on the original picture of the artists and whether the fans think they have forgotten where they came from.

There are many different ways that artists can sell out and many different things that artists have done that dont really support the image they have made for themselves. When looking at all the different ways you always need to consider whether the artist did it to remain relevant or if they did it just for the money. Because in the Hip Hop game today artists have to stay on  a fine line between fading away and becoming old news or selling out.

One way artists tend to stray close to mainstream music is when they begin to talk about all the clothes money and cars they have. No one likes to hear the same old song about fucking bitches in your Ferrari while drinking expensive Champagne....It gets old quick. But is this a strong enough point to accuse someone of becoming a sellout? For example, I could name thousands of Lil Wayne, Rick Ross, or Birdman songs about all their money and you would agree with me that these songs are sellout songs. But what about artists like Kendrick? Personally I dont think he has gone mainstream at all but even Kendrick has spit lines such as "Girl I'm Kendrick Lamar AKA Benz is to me just a car" so does this make him a sellout?

How about other means of selling out? Is Ice Cube a sell out? If we look at the image that he puts out as a rapper we see a hardcore gangster screaming "Fuck The Police" But then who is the man that appears in "Are We There Yet" that Ice Cube doesnt seem like he is "Straight Outa Compton" at all. So did he sell out by making that movie? Thats up to you.

 

                                        VS.

Oh but it gets worse. What happens when a classic artist that has made a huge impact on the world of Hip Hop makes his own Reality show?? Public Enemy was a group that left a gigantic mark on the world of Hip Hop with songs such as "Fight The Power" that inspired millions of people to rise up and stand together supporting eachother. But its hard to take any message Flava Flav says seriously after seeing the multiple seasons of "Flavor of Love"

So at the end of the day it all really depends on how accepting of a fan you are. Deciding whether your favorite artist has sold out or not depends on how many things that dont follow the original image of the artists that you are willing to deal with. There will always be artists that you cant accept selling out and artists that make one bad song and never get listened to again. 

MC Stylist: Finding Your Voice

   Many rappers and hip hop artists in today's world have a very hard time "making it big" because they cannot find that style and voice that makes them appealing to the public.  Voice is such a huge factor that plays in a rappers career because people have to want to constantly listen to it.  For instance their have been rappers who have had one hit wonders with a goofy song or a cool beat but could never keep their career sustained because they did not have that sick ass voice and style that kept the audience wanting more. However, certain artists contain that style or unique voice that sets them over the top and helps them to start a big time career.  

  One great example of an artist finding themselves would be the one and only Kendrick Lamar.  His smooth lyrics and delivery helped him to break through the underground with the stellar album of good kid m.A.A.d city.  Songs such as "Poetic Justice" is a prime example of how Kendrick found his voice and style that helped him become successful.  

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yyr2gEouEMM

     One of the best examples I could find is a video we saw in class called "Bath Salt" by the ASAP MOB. This song features the successful ASAP Rocky whose style and flow has made him one of the bigger artists out right now.  The rest of his crew also raps throughout the song but they do not have that "it" factor that has allowed them to make it over the top and become successful. They have yet to find their voice and niche that can lead them to making it big.  Listen closely and try and differentiate between the voice, delivery and style that sets apart ASAP Rocky from the rest of his crew.  

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F-I1s50fkzk

 Hopefully, these two examples give you the insight as to how artists have and have not found their voices and styles which has made them unique and relevant in the hip hop world.  An artist's voice is the key component to their career and consists of delivery  flow, and style.  While you may or may not like every big artists voice you usually cannot take away the fact that is has a unique feature or style.   This particular style or delivery the artist contains makes their voice one you can pick out of twenty different artists.  For an MC to find their voice is for them to basically find their career and while it is not an easy task to be done those who do find it create a unique style that adds to hip hop as a whole.  Whether it be Kendrick's savvy flow or A$AP's unique style and particular voice they both has found their style and flow that is essential in the hip hop world.  

Analyzing What We Say

          Hip hop music was born in an era of racial tension, and political uncertainty, nurtured with the intentions of being the voice of people once unheard. The lyrical aspect of hip hop music was once regarded as the aspect that separated it from other genres. MCs took the time to mold the lyrics in a track, infusing them with various elements of figurative language, aligning the words to tell an untold story, and presenting it to the world with innovative instrumentals that relayed an intended message. Nowadays, if the beat isn't banging, no one is listening to it. Nine times out of ten, we find ourselves listening to music that we only know the hook to. Or the song is so pathetic that we just make loud obscene noises while doing the Beef It Up and violently shaking our heads in awkward directions.     

          I personally feel like I can't talk lyrical contributions in hip hop today without talking about controversially the best lyrical artist out right now. Kendrick Lamar. Out of all his songs, I have to discuss "Poetic Justice." He took a sensual Janet Jackson sample and turned it into a tale of the dangerous side of love. I find this song to be such a great representation of Kendrick's musical genius because many samples have been done using this particular Janet Jackson song, most notably Twista's "Wetter". Now, I have nothing bad to say about Twista's use of the instrumentals, but when Kendrick picked it up and used Janet's vocals to compliment his rapping, I felt like I was having a turnaround moment with hip hop music.

           Above I have provided the video to Kendrick Lamar’s “Poetic justice.” The video really helps make sense of the actual song and better explains Kendrick’s writing style.

           When you look up the term Poetic Justice, you find that it is a literary device in which virtue is ultimately rewarded or vice punished, often by an ironic twist of fate related to the character's own conduct. The lyrics below show the pure genius in Kendrick’s use of extensive figurative language in his music. I will add my two cents in parenthesis.

If I told you that a flower bloomed in a dark room, would you trust it?

(I believe the dark room is his past and where he comes from while he is the flower. )
I mean you need to hear this
Love is not just a verb, it's you looking in the mirror
Love is not just a verb, it's you looking for it, maybe

(He is telling us that love is more complicated than being as simple as a verb. It’s like he is saying that although love is a four-letter word, it embodies many meanings as well as many aspects.)
Call me crazy, We can both be insane
A fatal attraction is common
And what we have common is pain

(These lines suggest that it is easy to fall in love with someone that seems like they get it, but is it really that good of a relationship?)
I mean you need to hear this
Love is not just a verb and I can see power steering
Sex drive when you swerve, I want that interference
It's coherent, I can hear it, mmhmm
That's your heartbeat
It either caught me or it called me, mmhmm

(These lines suggest the attraction of two people be it predestined or coincidental.)
Read slow and you'll find gold mines in these lines
Sincerely, yours truly
And right before you go blind
(A lot of time people like to say that “love is blind.” This last line mimics that old saying by bringing the entire meaning of the song together. It’s saying that you have to listen and pay attention to the relationships that seem to be engulfed in love, because sometimes love has nothing to do with it, and it just becomes a fatal attraction. )

Lyrics taken from rapgenius.com

Video courtesy of youtube.com

Analyzing What We Say

Analyzing What We Say: Kendrick Lamar Edition

In today's world of hip-hop, lyrics are often overlooked due to hard hitting beats and catchy hooks. Most people do not sit down and listen to what the artist is REALLY saying. The truth behind the matter is that every rapper places his words specifically, whether it is to finish a rhyme or to convey a serious point. As fans, we have to view hip-hop as an art, because that is what it really is. Hip-hop is a vocal expression of how one is feeling, what they are doing, what they want to accomplish, and so on. 

(Kendrick Lamar, hiphollywood.com)

One artist that is very talented at expressing himself through music is Kendrick Lamar. Kendrick seems to have the perfect balance of storytelling, consciousness, and vocally appealing music. My favorite aspect of Kendrick is his ability to explain his true message through simple lyrics. 

I am going to analyze the hook and first verse of the song, "HiiiPower," like one would analyze any other piece of literature. 

Kendrick begins the song by stating "Put three fingers in the air." Some might think it represents the West side, because Kendrick is from Compton. The three fingers actually represent HiiiPower, which is a revolutionary idea by Kendrick. HiiiPower is a movement that is trying to allow people to think openly and freely. The three fingers and three 'I's' represent honor, heart, and respect. Kendrick continues on saying "Stand for something or die in the morning." This is the message of HiiiPower is a nutshell.

(Kendrick in NYC with fans throwing up the HiiiPower sign. str8NYC.com)

After a short instrumental break, Kendrick begins by alluding to Martin Luther King Jr. and Malcom X, two very influential characters in African American history. Kendrick continues on by saying "grown men should never bite their tongue." That single bar is the epitome of HiiiPower. In layman's terms, Kendrick is saying speak your mind, don't hold back.

Hip-hop is often judged for it's outrageous violence, absurd language, misogynistic lyrics, and homophobia. Well, this next line does not do hip-hop much justice, but it does prove that artists use these ideals to create true messages in their lyrics. 

Kendrick states "I got my finger on the mothafuckin' pistol, aiming at a pig, Charlotte's Web is gonna miss you." Obviously, a pig is refering to a police officer. The allusion to 'Charlotte's Web' is a clever way of relating to the listeners. Also, this line shows the harsh relationship between African Americans and police officers. 

Kendrick follows up by thrashing the government. "And everything on TV is just a figment of imagination, I don't want a plastic nation." Kendrick believes that the government is feeding us bullshit and that everything on TV is made up, or fake. Kendrick created HiiiPower to stop this "plastic nation" through self-enlightenment. 

Kendrick ends his verse by saying "While you mothafuckas waiting, I be off the slave ship. Building pyramids  writing my own hieroglyphs." In my opinion, this is the most powerful line in the song. It shows that Kendrick's skin color cannot hold him back to do great and historical things. The slave ship alludes to his skin tone, while writing hieroglyphs and building pyramids refers to revolutionary times in our history. 

Kendrick begins the hook with "just call this shit HiiiPower, n*gga nothin' less than HiiiPower." This line alludes to the movement and how there is nothing like it. The next line, "Five-star dishes, food for thought bitches," is a metaphor that compares classy, five-star dishes to the ideas and thoughts that Kendrick are 'feeding' his listeners. Next, Kendrick also alludes to the co-founder of the Black Panther Party, Huey Newton. The reference to Huey Newton shows Kendrick's support of the ideas of the Black Panther Party: against racism and for cultural expansion. Kendrick ends the hook with "throw your hands up for HiiiPower," again referring to the HiiiPower hand sign. 

Analyzing a rapper's lyrics allows the listener to get a personal feel with the artist. When the listener digs deep into lyrics, they find the true meaning within. Analyzing lyrics allows critics to look past all the "problems" with hip-hop and realize the influential power that music holds. 

(All lyrics taken from rapgenius.com)