It’s So Hard to Say Goodbye (“Re-post”)
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Originally posted June 10, 2009 on my previous blog
Everybody sound the same, commercialize the game
Reminiscin’ when it wasn’t all business If it got where it started
So we all gather here for the dearly departed-Nas, Hip Hop is Dead
Nas said it before and I want to re-affirm that Hip Hop is dead. I was kicking it with my man E tha 5th earlier and we spoke about it. E’s a Jr. High Social Studies teacher and he educates his students on the history of Hip Hop. He shows them documentaries and films so they can see the contrast between what Hip Hop is/was and what they have now. He and I both agree Hip Hop has passed. Now you might say, “who the fuck are you two, to proclaim hip hop is dead?” Much like people asked the same question when Nas said it. If you give me a few minutes I will plead my case and TRY to be quick about it (note: I failed at the quick part). I’ll question authorities including my own, provide examples of others that have also gone the way of the musical do do, and show how the music has changed into something different and left Hip Hop for dead.
1) Who are we to say Hip Hop is dead? Our credibility as coroners pronouncing hip hop dead is just as credible as anyone who says that it hasn’t. There is no one person or place solely responsible for its life so there is no one person who can proclaim it’s dead (hypocritical? perhaps). If Kool Herc said it was dead would that be acceptable? Probably not. You might call him a crazy old coot or something like that and say that he’s out of touch and doesn’t know what he’s talking about. Even if he does recognize hip hop better than anyone born after 1975.
2) Hip Hop is/was not immortal? “Others” have died, who’s to say Hip Hop is not included. Think about it; Scat Jazz, dead; Be-Bop and Doo-Wop, dead; Motown Sound, dead; Classic Rock, dead; Psychedelic Rock, dead; Funk, dead; R&B, on life support (when’s the last time you heard a really good ballad? [resucitate ballads, bitch asses!]); Grunge Music, dead; Heavy Metal, dead; and last but not least…Hip Hop, dead. There are MANY others. My list is not all inclusive. I am simply trying to show that these genres and sub genres of music have died and live on only in our memories and in vintage recordings. How would you feel if someone kept telling you that your loved one is not dead when you know for a fact that they are? We cling to urban legends like Elvis lives and Pac lives…but I hate to inform you, sadly, they do not. They are in fact dead. It’s not an easy thing to come to grips with, but it’s true. It’s never easy losing the love of your life and acceptance sometimes takes time to settle in.
3) Evolution happens. Hip Hop music has changed and evolved into something else. I’m not going to get into how I feel about the quality of its change, that’s irrelevant here. Hip Hop purists agree that the culture’s fundamentals were rapping over a break, moving a crowd, pushing the envelope and telling vivid stories and narrating urban lifestyles. Hip Hop at its origin had boom bap. It was thoughtful. Rhythmic. Almost tribal. It had little expectations of success outside its circle so it was very far removed from commercialism. It was culture. It was what you did without even trying to do it. It was survival. DJs uplifted the downtrodden through music and parties. Graffiti was artistic expression, no matter what the authorities said. Murals commissioned by the minority’s minors. B-boys and girls had a stance and when they danced they were the mimes of the inner cities, mesmerizing us with precise and passionate moves. Our lyrics were the news presented by the town criers, known as Emcees. Couriers of Motivation who Moved Crowds with ease. Sure there was Ego Trippin but that was ok…oftentimes it was no more than great public debates where we flexed and professed our intellects and masterfully defended our dissertations. Our own way to encourage esteem and praise. It was Too Poetic and coerced us to have a healthy command of language while adding our own entries and Vocab that Merriam would never understand. Hip Hop’s scribes crafted our version of Fantasias, Hamlets, and Allen Poe type stories.
When Hip Hop roamed the earth the pride lands were bountiful and inviting to all? Even though it was male dominated, it was not exclusive to men only. Women also had a prominent place in Hip Hop. Misogyny aside, again, another day, another argument. Ladies did have a voice and even when we found them attractive, they were respected. There were songs praising Black Women and admiring all the beautiful feminine flavors of Ice Cream. Sometimes we even joked around by calling each other Buddy. Much, if not all, of that has changed now. Again, evolution happens. What we have before us now is not Hip Hop, it’s derivative. For you Darwin folks, you understand that while there may be some things ancestral, it still is not the same. Man is no longer an amoeba and this thing called Rap is no longer Hip Hop.
What we have today is relative to what Hip Hop was, but it is not Hip Hop; it’s different. It has changed. It’s commercial. It’s a product. Very little about it is cultural. Subject matters have shrunk. Whereas at one time there was a Message, a Mic Fiend, someone hollering Fuck Tha Police, or talking bout the Tricks their Minds Play, or an Around The Way girl named Bonita, or a 6 AM raid, or a lady giving the Silent Treatment, or an MC getting R-A-W, or a cry to Don’t Believe the Hype, or some fellas telling a Sobb Story, another cat proclaiming love for his Dear Momma, Ladies stating their claim to being First, a query are you Friend or Foe, and depending on your answer you were told whether or not you should Protect Your Neck. Unbelievable representations of Where I’m From, what block, what borough, what state, what region, what set, there were many different voices, telling many different and sometimes Freaky Tales. Hey Young World, this world is yours and your world does not create Hip Hop. No group in Gen X could have made a Temptations or an Ohio Players record. Pop Culture resides and lives within a generation. Our generation could not revive the Motown sound no more than your generation can revive or continue what was Hip Hop. You are children of a culture, not clones. You must forge your own paths and make your own legacy. For what you are doing is not Hip Hop. I haven’t heard a story in a while. I haven’t heard a woman that doesn’t reference her pussy in years. I haven’t been urged to Fight any Powers. Lift any spirits. Reminisce over those lost. Encourage or empower the youth. No insistence that I Must Learn. Just the same tired swagger, licking the same ol lollipop…day and night…
Indeed, Hip Hop has died. Those who know it and lived it all say this ain’t it. And while there are still some remnants scattered about and artists who fight the good fight to keep it alive, young, fresh, and new; their efforts are valiant but border futile. What we were and are is very different than what you live and breathe on your (yes your) radio stations every day. It’s not Hip Hop. And you should love what you create, but know it and be honest about what it is…and what it is not. There is no need for a generational war within Hip Hop; it’s bad enough we had a regional war complete with casualties. Why fight over something that is not yours? We cannot claim we participated in the civil rights movement and you cannot claim rights to Hip Hop. Hip Hop will forever be loved, never be forgotten, and its music is always welcomed to incite a good time. Hip Hop aged gracefully and should command the respect of its offspring. We can all revel in what we are and what we were. For when we pass, Hip Hop will truly and completely pass with us…leaving behind monumental memories and an astounding legacy. All we ask is as it passes, Reminisce over it/us and pour out a little liquor.
And I’ll take with me the memories To be my sunshine after the rain It’s so hard to say goodbye to yesterday
