MURDER WAS THE CASE THAT THEY GAVE ME … Part I of II
HIP-HOP VS. HIP-HOP
It’s debated time and time again. Is Hip-Hop dead? If so, how and when did she die? If not, how can you explain the change? What does all of this mean going forward? Legends have died, music and trends have come and gone, and all along, the way in which Hip-Hop is defined has become more and more blurred. Can Hip-Hop be shoved into some late night video or does that deflower all that is Hip-Hop? Is it even that serious? Maybe we just haven’t been asking the right questions. I elaborately present to you the first side of two extreme arguments:
(PROSECUTION) “Hip-Hop is Dead” vs. (DEFENSE) “Hip-Hop is Alive”. YOU be the judge …
Disclaimer: If extreme and poignant statements typically cause discomfort, consider this your warning.
Written By Nicole Camack aka K-Mack
I first present the Prosecution:
PROSECUTION’S ARGUMENTS FOR “HIP-HOP IS DEAD”:
Point blank – Hip-Hop is dead. We are prepared to prove that Hip-Hop died in the 90’s and will identify who killed her – and yes, everybody played their part. Hip-Hop started in a post-Civil Rights era where people hungered for freedom and expression. It is no coincidence that Hip-Hop evolved through the remnants of the Civil Rights movement as a movement in and of itself. Of course, in order to prove that Hip-Hop is in fact dead, one must first know exactly what Hip-Hop is, because it is easily confused. Hip-Hop is innovation, being conscious to what’s going on around you and verbalizing such in your own unique way. It’s being the voice when everyone else is silent; it’s a culture, and a movement that spawned many diverse elements in its origin. If you lose creativity, integrity, some level of consciousness, and uniqueness, then you lose Hip-Hop. 20-30 years ago, you had the B-Boys, the graffiti, the DJing, and the MCing. Every element of Hip-Hop helped to define who she is, or shall I say, who she was. I pose the question, where are these elements today? Take a moment to think. Think back to that time, the time of Grandmaster Flash and the Furious Five, Big Daddy Kane, EPMD, Rakim, and several others. This is how it should be done. This style, is identical to none-and seems to be nonexistent today. In this new millennium, the conscious elements are drowning in a sea of banging beats and tides of contagious choruses. The main goal before was to get a message out, or at least stand up for your personal beliefs. That has been replaced with commercializing oneself just enough to sell ringtones. Check albums sales – who’s going platinum these days? (crickets). Getting spins on the radio because your beat and chorus overcompensate for your lack of skill has driven record sales down as people have actually started to witness Hip-Hop’s death in the music realm, helping to prove my point.
Now I know the critics say okay, if Hip-Hop IS in fact dead then who killed her? The answer is everyone. Record Labels, Artists, TV, Radio, and fans. Starting with record labels and executives who have these contracts with the artists – the bottom line is their bottom line – it’s a business, man. They need the artists they have signed to sell records so that they can be profitable. In order to do such, they must appeal to the masses. This means commercializing the artists aka compromising the integrity of intention. But it doesn’t stop here. The artists, contract or not, have a decision – they can always say no, but they don’t. Fame, money, street red – whatever the motivation, they’re still making the songs. The least they could do was offer some type of diversity or balance on their album. No one wants to be the outkast in radio and TV, so they follow the masses (hence the name “mass” media). They desensitize and brainwash by showing repetitive themes in the songs and videos – money, hoes, drugs, the latest dance craze, etc. And let us not forget the fans who are actually requesting and/or buying these songs, and/or blazing it in the car in some mix CD they compiled. (Because it would be fallacious to think that since you only downloaded it to play in your car and didn’t buy the song/album, that that does not constitute your support). And yes, Hip-Hop is more than just music, but one must admit that Hip-Hop music is the main vehicle of the Hip-Hop culture today. The movement it once was seems to have come to a staggering halt at the grimiest street corner.
And while we’re on the subject of bitches and hoes, analyze this: if Hip-Hop is so alive and thriving, why must I desperately search for an album – a song even – that has some morsel of consciousness? Why is this no longer the norm? I thought this was Hip-Hop people? Why is it okay to deem some women B’s and Hoes (since of course the argument is that not all women fit this category, just the ones that act like it)? But that may be a bigger argument since I guess you would also have to ask why it’s so widely accepted to use the term ‘Nigga’ (since of course it’s okay if it’s used by Blacks as some term of endearment – and not, for example, in the form of a noose on a tree at a predominately white high school).
And since when did production and dance become the determining factor as to whether or not your song is widely accepted and rotated? It is so easy to know every hook and corresponding dance to a song without ever consciously wanting to due to the over-concentration in the media. I can’t even dance, but I know how to Superman that ho, Do the heisman on that ho, Lean wit it and Rock Wit it. The next time you hear a song take the beat away and read the lyrics out loud – is it still a hot song? Does it make sense then? Do you sound illiterate? Apathetic? Meaningless? Just plain dumb?
It’s a classic case of the dumb & dumber. It’s not just these numbed down, simple songs that have killed Hip-Hop music; it’s also the dumber: the boasters, the storytellers that describe their drug, gun, and money schemes, even after their first album. To talk about things you don’t yet have on your first album and things you no longer are involved in (if ever you were actually involved in them) on later albums is devaluing the same people that Hip-Hop is supposed to support, especially the youth, the new generation. Some may argue that it’s just music, but the fact is that in our society it is more than readily available, so with the highly persuadable meeting the high influencers, shouldn’t Hip-Hop want to put out a more positive message, or at least show growth and progression? When was the last time an Executive (or anyone else in a company of tremendous influence) distributed a press release stating something to the bells of, “I know that I’ve made it now to the point where I have so much money I don’t know what to do with it, and yes, even though I could be set for life I want everyone to know by going on record and stating that yes, I still engage in illegal activities” - Is anyone thinking Enron … or T.I…? This is exactly the trend going around and I’m not sure how much farther away from Hip-Hop that can get! What will it take for everyone to see that so many people have tried to make it rain lately that Hip-Hop is drowning in it? Where are the Noah’s Arks? It’s Common sense, people. Hip-Hop was already ‘bling’ed to the point of blindness; we should now aim to be the mos def to hopeless hooks without meanings that are killing her softly but not peacefully. Hip-Hop was halted in her tracks, raped of her integrity, deprived of her roots, blinded from the bling, drowned from the rain, stabbed in the back, slaughtered for beef, hollowed out (of her soul), pimped out and left on the corner neglected and not supported and ultimately left to die an untimely death.
And if that’s not dead, I don’t know what is. I am Hip-Hop, so if not already considered dead, I wouldn’t want to live that way; it’s got to stop somewhere, so just pull the plug.
Written By Nicole Camack aka K-Mack
Short Recess but best Believe DEFENSE Arguments coming up next …
43 Comments so far
I saw a interview where Curtis Jackson was blaming the internet for slumping record sales. It’s the garbage that being released NOT the internet.
K-Mack nice piece of writing.
damn bitch ass nas and hes gay ass cd hiphop is dead started this gay shit….smh thats why his shit never sells b/c hes a bitch ass nigga…
hip hop was dead ALONG TIME AGO SON! after 2000 it was dead…
^^^^^^^^^^^ What a dumbass….Hip Hop is ALIVE you have BET,MTV the radio and dumb ass people who dont know what real hip hop is They let these weak lame dudes in the game
How many booty shakin,shawty,my drink,my chain,my rims,my dance songs can we have..its like the lamer the song is the more some people like it,,
i dont think nas iz a gay bitch ass rapper but i think he named hiz album hip-hop iz dead 4 the shock value. jus look at the name of the nex album…”NIGGA”…wtf. at this point i think he jus wants 2 shock people. how can jay-z, the roots, lupe, t.i. ghost face and nas all drop albums last year, not 2 mention 1000 wayne mixtape, how can hip hop b dead. i think nas duznt lik the fact that hiz kind of hip hop iz no longer the most popular version of hip hop. think about it…this may b the first time that nas haznt been on the top 10 hottest rappers list. i personally lik nas but jus b/c hiz not considered top 10 hottest by the masses duznt meen hip hop iz dead.
P.S.
how the hell can hip hop b dead and the God MC iz better than hiz ever been. American Gangster NOV. 6
nice read..but on some real shit how many times are you guyz gonna ask that question?
I think it is useful first for us to realize that Hip Hop is not just a musical Genre but a Lifestyle. Hip Hop is a culture and I would contend that Hip Hop Culture is not only alive but permeates almost every aspect of our lives. Hip Hop drives markets not only in America but abroad.
Let us then differentiate between Hip hop and Rap music. The main difference is that Hip Hop has meaning, Rap music is strictly entertainment. 99 % of rap music is garbage right now.
There is nothing educational about “Cranking dat Soulja boy” and anyone who would suggest that there is, is either highly ignorant or in deep denial. I am not suggesting that you should not purchase his album because if thats the kind of entertainment you like then you should definitely buy it. I’m just suggesting to broaden your perspectives and don’t get on someone just because they actually have a message in their song.
Is Hip-Hop dead?… maybe, however as we move forward, I think the better question is, How can we revive it?
One of the best things I read in my lifetime. I’ve been talkin alot of the same stuff she talkin wit my friends
as long as I have a PLAY button, it’s alive!
Are the “FANS” alive/Dead is the question
NUMBER 10 YOU AINT NEVA LIED.
AS LONG AS I HAVE A PLAY BUTTON ITS ALIV!LOL
I THINK EVERYONE WANTS TO CALL HIP-HOP DEAD BECAUSE EVERY RAPPER IS NOT FROM THE SAME REGION.WHAT I MEAN IS SOMEBODY IS BRINGING A DIFFERENT STYLE FROM THE (EAST) (SOUTH) (WEST)
AND THE (MIDWEST).RAPPERS HAVE DIFFERENT STYLES AND STYLES AND MOST PEOPLE JUST DONT WANT TO HEAR THAT.WHETHER IT IS JUST DANCING FOR ENTERTAINMENT OR SPEAKING THE TRUTH ON OUR WORLD TODAY.ALL OF THESE PEOPLE ARE MAKING MONEY AND TRYING TO STRIVE THEIR WAY TO THE TOP.
DID YALL REALLY THINK HIP-HOP WAS GOING TO BE THE SAME FOREVER?
ITS A EXCELLENT QUESTION. THEIR IS A NEW GENEREATION OF HIP-HOP COMING AND PEOPLE ARE ENJOYING IT.IM HAPPY EVERYONE DOES NOT HAVE THE SAME STYLE OR IT WOULD BE WHACK.
WE REALLY NEED TO STOP THIS BECAUSE ITS GOING TO END UP TEARING HIP-HOP APART FOREAL.WE NEED TO JUST STICK TOGETHER.
jus wonderin.. if hip hop is dead.. wat do u call da 50 cent we lissen 2?? da kanye west ?? da lil wayne ?? da cassidy ?? da ti ?? …………………. ??? ALL DESE GUYS R NOT 90S.. DEYR 2000 N LATER.. n i aint tryna all da hatin comments on dese rappers like dey wack or hes gay lol or none of dat .. jus answer da question.. wat do u call dese ppl n da music dat dey do ???
i aint tryna **HEAR** …
LIL WAYNE IS GAY #14.DONT YOU EVER TRY TO CALL HIS PUNK ASS HIP-HOP.KISSINDG GROWN A MAN.YO MAMA NEED TO SLAP YOU SILLY.
hip-hop is not dead but in a comma cause of drug over dose as long as real rap fans keep crystal meth(solja boy) ,crack(hurricane chris)etc from hip hop it lives. the truth is money is killin hip hop now 90% of rap is about money.
ya its dead..i cant even bring myself to listen to the majority of the songs that are out there today…its all the same..
hip hop got shot, but sum people out there is performing sum major surgery
i’m gettin sick of the negative comments about “soulja boy” and “chicken noodle soup” type songs. they are not killing hiphop, they didnt come out and act like they were the shit, or the nicest. they make fun music for kids. damn cant the kids have sum shit to dance to. the kids cant listen to 50 cent, they cant watch most videos cuz they all feat. strippers. i dont play that music but i’m sure sum parents would love there kids 4yr bday party to have a soulja boy contest or sumthin fun. let them bubble gum artist live
hip hop starting gettin sick when “real” rappers starting pullin bitch ass publicity stunts and starting fake beef and making subpar albums that got hyped from that fake artist. at one time there was so much real shit droppin we used to cop everything.then sumwhere sum bitch type rappers started to creep in, and we kept buyin. they we realized these rappers are robbing us. we fell for the hype and lost the substance. now the substance aint fuckin wit us no more and barely comes out to play. until we show the substance thats what we want, and show the fake hype bullshit they cant live here, hip hop will be dying slowly
yo in my opinion, Hiphop died Sept 13th 1996
yo i agree with #19, but also to me hip hop was done a while ago.. all this shit u hear about t.i 50cent lil wayne thats all RAP not HIP/HOP and for the record the soulja boy music is wack and that music should be called Dance Music thats the genre it should be not hip hop or rap..this article i agree with no one doesn’t write about meaning or shit that makes ur mind think anymore….but this is a circle of live music is changing im sure hip hop will revive its self in a whole diffferent way..
#18…if talking about slapping hoes is for the kids(Soulja boy) then they should be allowed to buy porn at age 12…shut up man i swear think before you say something stupid…
To me honestly rap was hot when shit was underground now its so mainstream its weak. Theres thousands of dope ass underground artist ya never ever heard of. Rap died when they sold there soul for money and fame. It is always about the people though, So I don’t think hip-hop is dead because the 5 elements is still going strong as fuck. Its world wide so how can ya say its dead? Hip-Hop is about Peace, unity, love and having fun.- Afrika Bambaataa
True Hip-Hop is dead. Today it’s more or so Hip-Pop with the fruity ass soulja boy dance and just a bunch of retarded shit that KMack has obviously stated, it was a good article.
Rap is still alive though, which gives me faith.
when ppl think of hip hop theyre probably referin to pac n biggies music..eg juicy n dear mama etc..songs like that had morethan just pointless rhymes..they alwayz had a message..since its not bein done like that nomore then i guess the hiphop that pac n bigg created is dead..so mayb pac n biggie made hiphop wut we all think it should be..b4 those 2 rappers atleast 4me hiphop sucked and now that there gone hip hop sucks even more.only way hip hop ever gets exicting is if a rapper comes along n tries to duplicate tupac n biggies version of hiphop..eg..50cent and eminem.but we want it 2 be so much like pac n biggies version of it, that we reject anyone who doesnt do it like that. i think we’ve gotta allow these rappers to showcase theyre ownn versions of it. it might not sound good but atleast its their own versions of it.
hip hop:is alive, but i think we SHOULD STOP TALKING BOUT IT AND LIVE IT,THERES TO MUCH TALKING ABOUT ,JUST LIVE IT………
Hip Hop consist of more than just rap music ppl.
The other side, Part 2: “Hip-Hop is Alive” now posted: http://realtalkny.uproxx.com/2007/10/topic/topic/editorial/part-2-murder-was-the-case-that-they-gave-me/
Stay Up Yall!
all ya keep talking about hiphop is dead, it was shot and it done and shit like that. to me the more we don’t support hiphop and are hiphop artist., and saying negitive thing about it it will never be the same. and like i said in my other post hiphop ain’t dead, it’s just dehydrated and if we has hiphop fans don’t find water for to grown, then it will never stay live for music to be played.then once hiphop fell then we can say that hiphop is dead, but it wouldn’t be the blame of hiphop. it will be the blame of hiphop fans who don’t support hiphop. i mean you don’t hear pop, r.b, alternative, fans dissin the music that they listen to. they support there music and that what it all about, but hiphop fans are always different when it come to supporting hiphop as a group. but it seem like im the only one who feeding hiphop with the positive water that it need to grow. instead of trashing it and feeding it with negitive junk like you people on this website are doing….ya should learn who to have faith in hiphop.
The fact that cd sales are declinning tells me that rap artists aren’t putting out good music.They need to become more versatile with their subject matters.All this biting is killing orginality, hip hop won’t continue to live if everybody keeps doing the same thing.We need Mc’s not one dimensional rappers
if hip hop is dead then why does this website even exist!
number 4 is rite nas is rite is dead
Hiphop aint dead I hate when niggas say that yeah you question Hiphop when niggas like Soulja Boy, Sean Kingston,Mims, etc are selling . But we still have Joell Ortiz,Lupe Fiasco,50 Cent , Kayne West, Common, Talib Kweli etc; Hiphop is far from dead it’s just lacking creativity niggas need to put Weezy in his place over best rapper alive, niggas have let Wayne get away with shit taking shots at Nas & Jay-Z niggas have let Wayne get to comfortable thats why his got alot of dickriders.
If Hiphop is dead this site and loads of sites like this wouldn’t exist and if Hiphop is dead what do you have in ya Car Stero, CD Play, Ipod etc ….
Hip-Hop Is Dead. And until hip-hop comes back alive, it is still dead ’til this day. I can go by saying that Hip-Hop is dead because overall like Nas said on the last track “Hope”,it got notin’ to do with old school, new school, it’s not about east coast, west, dirty south, it’s about us…” Oh by the way, all ya’ll bad luck prayers, haters think that Nas-Hip-Hop Is Dead ablum was gay, motha fuck ya’ll haters. Hip-Hop Is Dead album was #1. Nas got five #1 albums including Hip-Hop Is Dead. Also “Carry On Tradition” is one of the songs that speak for itself.
Also it is dead because some of the wack-ass DJs. Some wack-ass Djs killed the creative, the art of DJing with scratching skills. It all started with the original turntables. Some record labels didn’t help their former and/or current artists. The media somewhat in the mix. Some of the artists lost their skills as an MC-a real MC.
The South did good since Outkast, Ludacris, T.I. and others, since 2000. Also the Mid-West like Kanye West, Twista, Common, Nelly did their thang. West coast still got Dr. Dre (Detox coming in 2008), Snoop Dogg, E-40 did his thang last year. Most said the east coast fall off. Since Tru-Life, Saigon, Papoose did tried to bring New York back, you still have veterans like Jay-Z, Nas, Busta Rhymes, LL Cool J. Like Busta Rhymes and Q-Tip said on the song they can’t hold the torch so why pass it.
The sales, the sound scans, the artists, the so-called DJs. Overall Hip Hop is dead because the creavtivity-the image, the elements of hip hop vanished.
I agree, hip hop is dead. I do give props to the artists like Jay and Kanye and a few more who’ve been doing their thing, but seriously, hip-hop is dead. I mean, it’s to the point where we cant even distinguish rap from hip-hop. Rap artists are being categorized as hip-hop artists. How can hip-hop be alive when a gimmick rapper like bow wow calls himself the prince of hip-hop?
Nowadays, if a song doesnt give you instructions on how to dance to it, it’s useless. All people need now to be played is a beat, a hook and dance move and suddenly you’re a hit, and the real HIP-HOP artists who are kicking real shit are put down.
I know everybody says Jay is washed out, which I disagree with; they’re only saying that because they’ve been conditioned to enjoy garbage ass rap music. But honestly, a true hip-hop fan should appreciate Jay. Through all the “lean with its” and “rock with its” and “walk it outs”, he manages to remain a significant figure pushing hip-hop along. How many artists you know got longevity like Jay? Not many.
i dont think hip hop is dead its just goin thru a different phase like when a kid grows up and tries new things u fans gotta accept pac,biggie,big l,big pun are gone and they cant be duplicated so u cant hold wayne,t.i.,jeezy,and them niggaz to the o.g’s level they cant never do for hip hop wat pac,biggie,nas,jay,krs-one,outkast,rakim,epmd,public,enemy,nwa,eminem,nelly,50,kanye have done for the game so just enjoy music for wat it is…
VITAMIN WATER PEOPLE TRY IT…
as long as the power is in the hands of the executives and not the listeniers…IT’S A WRAP like my lunch!
people need to dictate to radio/record execs what they want to hear rather than simply complain about what they listen to on th eradio or the videos they see on t.v.
and regarding the videos if you got a problem with the images you see check viacom they own all the major music channels i.e. BET,MTV,VH1
no daddy by teairra mari…
I Googled for something completely different, but found your page…and have to say thanks. nice read….
Yall got the internet so wont yall go on Myspace and listen to some of those songs on ppls. page…GOOD STUFF ON THERE…Dj’s are on some bullshit by playin the same artists over and over…Da Backwoodz got a song called”same song” and its sweet and true…and I aint even know who Da Backwoodz was until I found that c.d. in my girlfriends momma house collectin dust.This is just the Radio-Friendly Era that’all.Soon as fans start hearing more artists over the payola,hip hop will feel good like marijauna.And dance songs is how the shit started anyway REMEMBER?Yall already slow…Hip-Hop grew and the radio is tryna stunt the growth by ignoring local artists.”Tha Real Radio Dj Is Dead” is what you should be writing about…BREAK SOME RECORDS and thanks for the support ASSHOLES…lol
The dj’s not breaking local artists and overplaying payola artists is a bigger problem…and the bootleggers are affecting album sales more than the artists lyrics.Hip-Hop
grew better if you ask me and all your favorite artists will get old and someone will take over for them.Its inevitable.And plenty of ppl. used to trash-talk about everybody tryna sound like big and pac…now yall want em’
to do just that…go get a job,holla at purdue!!!
shit dope thread
hip hop neva died letmii explain wen people finally gott herd(voice herd)thats wen it died because if it wasnt for the right then it bacame money get mii soo it nevvaa really died it grew aka ecolved into somtin else get mii
coits alive…. maybe not commercialy
its alive…. maybe not commercialy