And this is big new? haha wtf So is like a NBA player saying we cool but on the court I'll try to beat you.
Grantland's piece on Kendrick Lamar's name drop. http://www.grantland.com/blog/holly...-verse-and-the-evolution-of-the-rap-name-drop
ok verse. Without the name dropping of a bunch of mediocre "rappers" in today's "rap scene", it's just another decent verse by a wannabe. You want lyrics? you want clever vocab? you want flawless flow? you want just the right mixture of cockiness and depth? Rest in peace GURU.
I love a good rap beef that I can digest in the comfort of my own home while a drink a virgin Shirley Temple, but this is just absurd. There is no way this should have blown up to the extent it did.
What has Drake done for hip hop? I'm not even a hater, I actually think his songs are fun though incredibly safe and pop-y. He hasn't really done anything that hasn't been done by other artists like Jay Z and Kanye. I think his biggest hip hop accomplishment is being wildly succesful before signing with a major label but then he let Lil J's son and Baby take all his money later. I will say he's better lyrically than people seem to give him credit for, definitely a step above most of the other pop rappers he does songs with.
Can somebody catch me up on what has happened so I don't have to weed through the pages? A TL;DR type summary. TIA
Darkness at the break of noon Shadows even the silver spoon The handmade blade, the child’s balloon Eclipses both the sun and moon To understand you know too soon There is no sense in trying Pointed threats, they bluff with scorn Suicide remarks are torn From the fool’s gold mouthpiece the hollow horn Plays wasted words, proves to warn That he not busy being born is busy dying Temptation’s page flies out the door You follow, find yourself at war Watch waterfalls of pity roar You feel to moan but unlike before You discover that you’d just be one more Person crying So don’t fear if you hear A foreign sound to your ear It’s alright, Ma, I’m only sighing As some warn victory, some downfall Private reasons great or small Can be seen in the eyes of those that call To make all that should be killed to crawl While others say don’t hate nothing at all Except hatred Disillusioned words like bullets bark As human gods aim for their mark Make everything from toy guns that spark To flesh-colored Christs that glow in the dark It’s easy to see without looking too far That not much is really sacred While preachers preach of evil fates Teachers teach that knowledge waits Can lead to hundred-dollar plates Goodness hides behind its gates But even the president of the United States Sometimes must have to stand naked An’ though the rules of the road have been lodged It’s only people’s games that you got to dodge And it’s alright, Ma, I can make it Advertising signs they con You into thinking you’re the one That can do what’s never been done That can win what’s never been won Meantime life outside goes on All around you You lose yourself, you reappear You suddenly find you got nothing to fear Alone you stand with nobody near When a trembling distant voice, unclear Startles your sleeping ears to hear That somebody thinks they really found you A question in your nerves is lit Yet you know there is no answer fit To satisfy, insure you not to quit To keep it in your mind and not forget That it is not he or she or them or it That you belong to Although the masters make the rules For the wise men and the fools I got nothing, Ma, to live up to For them that must obey authority That they do not respect in any degree Who despise their jobs, their destinies Speak jealously of them that are free Cultivate their flowers to be Nothing more than something they invest in While some on principles baptized To strict party platform ties Social clubs in drag disguise Outsiders they can freely criticize Tell nothing except who to idolize And then say God bless him While one who sings with his tongue on fire Gargles in the rat race choir Bent out of shape from society’s pliers Cares not to come up any higher But rather get you down in the hole That he’s in But I mean no harm nor put fault On anyone that lives in a vault But it’s alright, Ma, if I can’t please him Old lady judges watch people in pairs Limited in sex, they dare To push fake morals, insult and stare While money doesn’t talk, it swears Obscenity, who really cares Propaganda, all is phony While them that defend what they cannot see With a killer’s pride, security It blows the minds most bitterly For them that think death’s honesty Won’t fall upon them naturally Life sometimes must get lonely My eyes collide head-on with stuffed Graveyards, false gods, I scuff At pettiness which plays so rough Walk upside-down inside handcuffs Kick my legs to crash it off Say okay, I have had enough, what else can you show me? And if my thought-dreams could be seen They’d probably put my head in a guillotine But it’s alright, Ma, it’s life, and life only
I know I'm a dinosaur sticking to my late 80's/early 90's stuff. But keeping an open mind, I guess it's good he's getting rappers to 'compete' again. I thought it was good, but nowhere near what people are making it out to be. From the reactions it looks like the scene was yearning for more drama (in a good way) instead of the same 'ole, and it looks like it's working. The fact that this was so 'exciting' says something about the current state.
Can you explain please? I keep seeing that his song is going over everyone's head, and I'm a pretty big Lupe fan but am not understanding.
I wouldn't say Cassidy and Ortiz and Lupe are irrelevant. I think he means that drake allowed artist to know that mixtapes can help you with being famous or get a record deal. It was his best work. He fell off after the mixtape.
