I'm still checking the feedback from my last blog. Didn't know you guys would feel so strongly the Music City. In other Hip-Hop news, Max B was found guilty on 9 of the 11 charges he faced... Yes it was murder, and yes his prostitute, I mean, girlfriend testified against him. Although I've been seeing Free Max B shirts, I can't find any reason to show support, but instead to not trust the women you sleep with.
Now onto the topic.
How many of you heard Jay-Z's new single? If you haven't, it's called D.O.A. (Death of Autotune). Jay put it out last week, and it's fuego in my opinion. Ironically, the Best Rapper Alive got some less than warm feedback from it. DJ Webstar (Remember him? Chicken Noodle Soup?) was the first to speak out against it, and he'll be the first I'll address.
Webstar went as far as to call Jigga out on his age and saying how a 40-year old can't relate to a 17 or 22 year old. He even talked about "lettin' the young niggas eat" or some bs. Ron Browz and T-Pain also addressed the song; however, T-Pain felt honored about it, and Ron Browz's response simply said that the streets should decide if autotune on a track is hot (which I agree with). Other people have chimed in saying the song was wack or whatever. Honestly, I think they're more offended than anything.
I find it ironic how even after American Gangster dropped, people still hailed him as the greatest rapper... ever. People were jocking Jigga so hard, claiming he beat Nas in that legendary beef, and basically everything he puts out is gold and no one could touch him. Now that he dropped D.O.A., people wanna say he's "old" and "irrelevant". He's been "old" and "irrelevant". He's a 40-year old multimillionaire that people like us can't relate to. Now I'm not gonna use that against him.
I'd be lying if I said I wasn't a Jay-Z fan (though there were some times I hated him), but it seems like Jay's getting the Nas treatment now. Think back to 2006-2007 when Hip-Hop Is Dead dropped. All of a sudden, Nas wasn't a good MC anymore. He was just old. That's what's happening to Jigga anymore. This brings up a question: Does Hip-Hop have an age limit? Think about it.
Even though the younger generation are the primary consumers of Hip-Hop, rap music has been around since the 70s. There are people in their 60s rappin' now (sometimes it's funny. Sometimes it's sad). My point is since when did age mark relevance? I understand that people of different generations are out of touch with each other, but how many of you guys can relate to Lil' Wayne? to Rick Ross? to Kanye West? Hell, to Gucci Mane? These are people of our generation and I can't relate to any of them. I don't have money. I'm not famous (in my mind at least). I'm not a dope boy, and I'm not on drugs. All I have to say about it is the oldheads have stories to tell that we could all use, but don't use someone's age as a reason not to listen to them. Chances are, they went through what you're going through. I'll go into detail on that another day though
Another question: Why are only the MCs of yesterday making statements that everyone's thinking? Nas said Hip-Hop was dead 2 years after people all over the streets and the Internet were politicking saying it was dead, but the mainstream said he was old. When Jay-Z said R.I.P. Autotune, people were already annoyed with the oversaturation of the autotune use (It's not for everybody so stop it). In my opinion, this generation has no leaders in the mainstream, just followers who call themselves leaders. People are afraid to stand up for something and are willing to sell their souls if it means they'll get a fast buck. To all you so-called rappers who call themselves the voices of the streets or whatever, if you really wanna be the voice of the streets, play your position and tell what the streets is thinking and what they're going through, not how fly you are or whatever.
Now to address the whole Autotune thing.
First off, in response to Webstar, I think we gotta worry more about Gucci Mane, Soulja Boy, and OJ da Juiceman as far as people who don't "let the young niggas eat". Ron Browz is right. The streets should judge what's hot and what isn't. Autotune's ok when used moderately. Zapp & Roger revolutionized it. T-Pain made it cool again, and Lil' Wayne made everyone else think they could use it. I like Z&R, and I liked T-Pain's use of it. Even Kanye's was tolerable, but when everybody and they're mama uses it, that's when I get a lil' disturbed. I mean, Young Berg, Baby, Lil' Kim and R. Kelly (The so-called King of R&B, the @#$%&?+ pied piper of R&B) were just examples of the overkill in autotune. some say people who can't sing shouldn't use it. I say if you can sing, why use it? Also, not everyone sounds good on it. Others just don't know how to use it. And for the record, I have no plans on using Autotune. I'm not a singer, but even if I was, I'd rather rely on my natural voice (unless the music's that trippy lol)
To sum it up, autotune's not for everybody, or everything. Unless you're seriously skilled with it, don't use it. And also, when you talk about a rapper's statement, don't always rely on age. Sometimes it's valid; other times it makes you look ignorant.
I'm done for today. Peace
Next: Hip-Hop Gone Emotional Part 2: The J in J Dilla Stands for Jesus
Just for laughs, but T-Pain wins the Guiness World Record for pushing black people back the furthest by pushing us back to the stone age, beating out Soulja Boy's record which only pushed us back to the pyramids
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