Braggadocia

If a guy walks up to a girl and professes how beautiful she is and shows her off to all of his friends before they even have a relationship, the typical guy would find him lame. That’s exactly how I feel about rappers who brag about their jewelry. At least half of rappers with chains don’t really own them. They’re either renting them or they were given to them for clique representation. Note: If they later are pulled from that clique, you better believe the chain is returned to its original owner. And honestly, as big as the chain is, there’s no need to show me. I see it. I’ve probably already grimaced from how gawdy and unnecessarily long it is, so I don’t need the spotlight. And the need to say how much he paid for it is beyond tacky. Newsflash. He’s not really a millionaire until that album sells. When he walks around with no jewelry, doesn’t brag, doesn’t cause huge fashion show scenes, and people still recognize him, that’s when we everyone knows he’s big.

Sexism

If a dude rhymes about how women aren’t important, considered to be hoes, and golddiggers, but has sex with that same female, he looks really stupid. If he doesn’t want the girl to pay so much attention to his jewelry and his money, he should stop flashing it. If she’s having sex with everybody he knows, why would he put such an important part of himself into her? If he could care less about women, why are there so many in his videos? Are they for his boys to enjoy seeing? The same boys who also think women “ain’t shit” too. Yes, I understand that there are some trifling women in the world who do not deserve respect. But to lump all of us in the same category really pisses me off. Draw the line somewhere. Even Jay-Z made a song distinguishing what a bitch is and what a woman is. I respect that and him (minus the braggadocia). Learn from somebody who’s considered a legend. Everybody is not the same. Just like every guy with a doorag and some Timberlands is not a thug, every female is not a bitch or a whore.

Violence

I’ve been sent home early because someone pulled out a gun at lunchtime. I’ve watched a boy get chased down and almost shot while I stood on another person’s porch. I’ve had one really good friend and quite a few people from my area either go to jail or get gunned down. I’m well aware of the way ghetto lifestyle is. I understand that people want to talk about their environment. But I don’t want to hear sixteen songs about the same subject from twenty different artists talking about “I’m bringing something new to the game”. What day is that going to be because it’s sounding a little common right now? I like The Game because he took the time to tell both sides of a story: how/why he gangbanged, what tribulations he went through, circumstances, raising a child, loving a woman, etc. But there are a bunch of artists right now just bragging about how they own and (supposedly) shoot guns. Congratulations! Guess what? His enemies have some too, so what’s his point?

Lack of Content

“Wall”, “ball”, “gun” and “son” rhyme. But can I please hear a lyricist use the dictionary again? Lil’ Flip says using a broad vocabulary is easy. Really? Well, why have I never seen him do it? Within a few seconds of a song, I can easily tell who’s rhyming words like Dr. Seuss and who’s a real lyricist (ex. Rakim, Tupac, Wyclef, Busta Rhymes, KRS One, Mos Def, MC Lyte, Queen Latifah, Big Daddy Kane, LL Cool J, Talib Kweli, Slick Rick, Ludacris, and Big Tigger, just to name a few).

This is where the biggest difference between rap and hip-hop resides. You cannot tell me you’re a hip-hop fan and all you know is Eminem and 50 Cent. Although I respect both artists’ rhyme skills, hip-hop is much deeper than that. Some artists dabble into both hip-hop and rap (ex. Nas), but a real hip-hop fan knows the four elements of hip-hop (breakdancing, rapping, graffiti, and deejaying) regardless of whether they participate in all of the above. They also know the difference between mainstream rap and underground hip-hop. Sadly, many rap artists out now don’t know the difference. They just want to get paid.

The best way to show hip-hop the utmost respect and keep rap in its proper place is for artists to do the proper research and diversify the topics. Even Jay-Z admitted he’s bored with rap and hip-hop now. I’m starting to outgrow the artists. I’ve gotten to the point where I’m only listening to my old hip-hop albums because the new stuff out is so garbage. And when the money stops, so does the music. But the artists not doing the music for the money are the real artists anyway, so who does it really hurt?