By Jeffery Laux
Has the genre of rap died? The golden age of Hip-Hop has left the building…or has it just evolved into a new sub-genre. The continuous formula for every mainstream rap song consists of 808 trap beats, auto-tune and regurgitated vocabulary. Arguments could be made to say, Kendrick Lamar, J-Cole, ScHoolboy Q and a couple of other rappers have kept the lyricism alive but is a couple of great lyricists out of the hundreds of thousands of mumble rappers going to save the rap genre we once knew? In my opinion, rap was changed after the year of 2007. That’s when the continuous formula of each song remained the same. There have been many phases of rap as during the 80’s-90’s. The cream of the crop with rappers such as Tupac, Nas, Mobb Deep, Notorious B.I.G, Dr. Dre, Jay-Z, the Fugees, and many more elite rappers dated from that era. This has been debated over and over again and the top conclusion always labels this era as the best. As a huge hip-hop head I could agree or disagree with any critic over the debate of that era but I can say in a bold manner that the new wave of hip-hop/rap is upon us.
My favorite era of rap would have to be the late 90’s and late 00’s. Many prominent rappers appeared during that time including 50 Cent, Eminem, Lupe Fiasco, Andre 3000, Kanye West, T.I., and Lil’ Wayne. Songs of the likes of “Jesus Walks”, “Cleaning Out My Closet”, “Hot in Heere”, and “Ante Up” would define the sound of those years which would embark the childhood of mine and form the taste of many peoples love for rap for this generation.
“A Bay-Bay”, “Salt Shaker”, “Tipsy”, “It’s Goin Down” all songs that would ring a bell in the heads of kids born in the late 90’s and early 00’s. These would be labeled as fast food songs of the industry that would be played at every club and radio station in your town. The main reason I would remember these old songs is that they still ring a tune in my ear every once in while as they would contain repetitive lyrics, infectious beats, and an unforgettable voice. Just like now.
Dwayne Carter, also known as Lil Wayne has been blamed as the reason for all of the pill-popping, auto-tuning, face-tattooing, and lean sipping that is presented in current day music but that criticism should be a compliment. He gave the genre of Hip-Hop a fresh breath of life. Yeah, the music might only last on your playlists for a week or so but it entertains and keeps fans wanting more and more. Another rapper to blame for this new wave of rap would definitely be Chief Keef, a Chi-Raq (Chicago) goon that came into the game from the streets of a crime-ridden city. He invented the genre of drill music. This consists of heavy bass, dark instrumentals, and violent lyrics descriptive of either a gang affiliation or ominous childhood. Keef set up many drill rappers such as Lil Durk, Montana of 300, G Herbo, and others for fame and glory as the streets eat this sub-genre of hip-hop up.
Gucci Gang Gucci Gang Gucci Gang Gucci Gang… This has haunted the old heads each and every day of this past year. People can’t understand why a rapper can gain so much traction in the industry from being the standard stereotype of a mumbling repetitive song that does not add any value. Its seen that many new era rappers have used the same recipe for success including Lil Yachty, Lil Uzi Vert, and Lil Xan. In my most honest opinion, Lil Pump and these other rappers are not terrible artists, they are more of an entertainer typically for the younger population of teenagers that enjoy beats that smack hard in the truck and lyrics that are easily attainable to remember. He might be a god awful lyricist, but he embodies what rap has turned into during the late 2010’s.
No, it’s not the end of true lyricism in rap music as you can listen to K-Dot, Logic, Jay-Z, Vince Staples and feel complete in your logical music brain once again buts it a turn of the page into something new. It is always okay to dislike what the genre has become, that’s why you can always resort to cramming Illmatic into your life to remember when lyricism was valued at an all-time high or you can accept the trap beat infested songs that flood through the speakers of millions each and every day. There’s only one more thing I need to get off of my mind. “I miss the old Kanye.”