Just looking into what people think are the best hip hop songs with a political/social ring to them...intrested for myself (gotta pick up some new tracks) and also I want to see what others think about this kind of stuff. Just to start off, a short list of what I consider the most powerful hip hop songs... Public Enemy: Fight the Power Jay-Z: Minority Report Talib Kweli: Hostile Gospel Part 1 (Deliver Us) Talib Kweli feat Coi Mattison & Lyfe Jennings: Give Em Hell Talib Kweli: Get By Talib Kweli: Listen Common ft. Will.I.Am: I Have a Dream KRS-One ft. Marley Marl: Hip Hop Lives (I Come Back) Tupac: Changes Tupac: Brenda's got a Baby Tupac ft. Elton John: Ghetto Gospel Nas: If I Ruled the World
I absolutely HATE it when my favorite artists decide to get all political. Music is where I go to try to get away from all of that crap.
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I got a letter from the government The other day I opened and read it It said they were suckers They wanted me for their army or whatever Picture me given' a damn I said never
I can feel that. I think a rapper should be able to rap about every aspect of their experiences and what they feel. There's too much specialization. Some rappers think their running for president, some wanna be your history teacher, some wanna be your preacher, and some wanna be your dealer.
On that note, Public Enemy is playing close by to where I live soon...Montreal has this Jazz Fest which always ends up being the "Everything" Fest and yeh, they're comin into town, so I'm pumped for that Classic stuff. Also, I really can't think of a rapper that limits himself to politics...I mean some like Talib are really bent on that sort of stuff, but it's not like it's the only thing in thier music.
Practically anything by Dead Prez. Practically anything by Immortal Technique Ras Kass - Nature of the Threat Hasan Salaam - Prayers of a Sinner Hasan Salaam - Blaxploitation Hasan Salaam - Allegro Talib Kweli - Around My Way Talib Kweli - Black Girl Pain Mos Def, Common, the Roots - Hurricane Mos Def - Katrina Klap Mos Def - Mathematics Akrobatik - Remind My Soul K-Rino - Doin' Bad K-Rino - Who Are You K-Rino - Two Roads Papoose - Law Library (Party 1 - 5) There are many more out there, but these are some of the ones that immediately popped into my head.
Nas - I Want To Talk To You Normally I'll all for introspection, but I remember this song popping up on the album and thinking eeeeh I just DONT CARE this time....
any Immortal Technqiue song but I particularly like: The 4th Branch Caught in the Hustle Peruvian Cocaine Obnoxious The Cause of Death
Be grateful for blessings Don't ever change, keep your essence The power is in the people and politics we address Always do your best, don't let the pressure make you panic And when you get stranded And things don't go the way you planned it Dreamin of riches, in a position of makin a difference Politicians and hypocrites, they don't wanna listen If I'm insane, it's the fame made a brother change It wasn't nuttin like the game It's just me against the world gosh man, every single Pac song had a message in it.. talking about politics, the world, analyzing the life of people in the U.S, telling a meaningful story.. there will never be a rapper/singer/poet as good as Tupac Amaru Shakur..
beastie boys are pretty hit and miss with their political songs. some of their better messages are in songs that don't have a political slant, but sometimes they push it down the audiences throat. In a World Gone Mad This Government Needs a Tune-Up Right Right Now Now Alive Bodhisattva Vow
The eastern world it is explodin Violence Flaring Bullets Loadin Your old enough to kill but not for votin you don't believe in war but what's that gun you're totin and even the Jordan River has bodies floatin and you tell me over and over again you don't believe we're on the eve of destruction
I can feel that, too....depending on the genre. BUT....to me, that's when I loved rap the most: when it was political/social at its core. Maybe this means I like gangsta rap more than other rap styles, but to me, that was where it was at. F**k the po-lice. RIP, Eazy. Kinda like punk. I can't imagine punk NOT being anti-everything with a message to match. You're left with radio-friendly pseudo-punk garbage. Kinda where rap is today, imo.
