Okay, I want the hip hop heads to rise to this because I was reflecting on this same issue the other day while listening to 50 (is there any other hip hop joint out?) I mean, it would be a nice change of pace if rap lyrics *somewhat* mirrored the experiences of most of its audience *sometime*. It's about as real as reality television. When are we gonna get some gangsta-style hip hop with folk-inspired lyrics. Something that spoke on how f-'d up the economy is or breast cancer or I DUNNO, *something* different, man. I'm feening. And I'm not talking about De La/Black Eye Pea sort of stuff (which I love). I like the hardcore *beats*; it's the images that make me crazy. WTF? I'm rambling...

nah a bro don't have to hook me up with a redesign...i'm into minimalism...but if you want a bigger window, all you gotta do is ask...i'll change the size

redesign is coming someday...and it ain't moveable type and it ain't done by me

but i'll be back atcha on a comment about your response to the voice article

man...just on the first read, there are things i can agree with, but there are a lot of things i don't. something that bothered me: the fact that s/he deemed KRS "gangsta" rap. what exactly IS "gangsta rap"??? is it rap that deals with violence? i think it's merely an overused cliched phrase, some of that Bill O'Reliey shit. ehhhhhh...back to reading!

ps--i'm glad the comments are back. they were MIA for a while (at least on my comp).

ok...i'm back *lol*

Well, I think the article had some good points. Violent rap music involves a great deal of fantasy and embellishments, and yes, it is pop. But to pass it off, or discredit rap that contains violent elements as out of style, strictly fiction, or passe, is to over simplify the issue.

How can I, or anyone (including this author), discredit anyoneÕs experiences and call them false? LetÕs use 50 as an example. He was shot 9 times! Yes, itÕs been said over and over, but that fact in itself shows that violence is real, and for him, a defining moment in his life. why wouldnÕt he talk about it?? I donÕt know where the author of this article lives (or grew up), but where I grew up, crack and other drugs are still being sold, gangs are still banging, and young men are still dying. So to automatically discredit what these rappers are talking about is to discredit their personal experiences. Sure, some of them are lying. Some have never sold any rocks, they never shot at anybody, they never did a bid, but shit, some have. For those rappers who HAVE indeed had those experiences are they supposed to rap about red roses and green grass when all theyÕve known until they got put on was dime bags and spending summers locked down?

Hip hop is a means for expression. Just because you donÕt like the message doesnÕt make it any less true or valuable. Shit, IÕve move out the hood (to a certain extent), but my experiences losing friends, seeing someone die in front of my house, dodging bullets, etc is still a very big part of my life & has shaped me into the person I am today. So what IÕve been to college, so what IÕm going to grad school. When I sit down to write poetry, or fiction, or blogs, I can reminisce on the things I have seen. It helps. ItÕs like therapy. So according to this person (the author) IÕm supposed to automatically start writing about my reality now? What about my entire adolescence that was spent in learning the ins and outs of the hood & how to survive? Is that not still valuable?? It has shapped me & the person I am, so of course IÕm going to write about it, IÕm going to talk about. So why shouldnÕt rappers have the creative license?

I do agree that there needs to be diversity in hip hop. For every 50, there should be a Talib, or an MOP, or a Dead Prez. But i think hip hop is such a place that it allows all these different styles to co-exist. Sure, one form is being pushed (marketed) over the other, but there are still alternative voices. Perhaps instead of this person doing a complete article on "gangsta" rap, why not highlight revolution-esque rap? as much rah rah as the article is doling out, it's not offereing any alternatives.

You said that 50 cent or the so called gangsta rap period was basically over and in the past and rappers could not claim to be protarying the real, but was'nt 50 arressted, did'nt he not get shot five times, is this not his reality? and if so as an artist is he well within his right to communicate HIS STORY and HIS REALITY.

50 is tired. He is living in the past, and although he does have creative license, that does not give him license to pass off the past as if it were today. yah ppl still get shot, and there are still drug problems, but not on the same level. 50's rap and most other Gangsta rappers are a relic of the past kept alive by industry who does not want to take the chance of losing money by producing another style. 50 needs to realize that although this may be his reality now, he has to stop living in the past and live in the present, because gangsta rap has lost its meaning.