OUT OF TOUCH

I know everybody must remember back in the day, whenever you would put on that Dre or Snoop tape while cleaning your room so you could go outside without argument, your parents always had a snide comment about your choice of music. "Aw boy that ain't music...they stealin' from Parliament...they ain't even sangin'!" Then they would proceed to drown you out with The Isley Brothers or Earth, Wind, and Fire. I've began to think recently, am I turning into my parents? With all my rants about the Golden Era of Hip-Hop, have I become so stubborn in my listening ways that I can't even give this new era of music a chance? As I reflected upon this revelation, I came up with a single answer: "Hell naw!! Majority of hip-hop (if you can still call most of it that) today is straight garbage!!"

I'm a pretty open minded dude, I think I give everything a fair chance (even "808's and Heartbreak") before I decide that it is not for me, and most of the shit out there ain't for me. I don't even turn on the radio anymore unless I want to catch a game. This weekend was one of my guy's bachelor party, and I didn't know any of the songs the girls danced to at the strip club. Strip clubs play everything that's in heavy rotation and I did not recognize not one "Yung," "Big," or "Lil'" that was played over the speakers.

The average new schoolers answer to criticism of their peers is usually one of two things: 1) "Fuck them old school niggas!" or 2) "Niggas is hatin' cuz we gettin' money and they can't no more!" There are more answers, but they all boil down to disrespect of the previous class. No matter who it is, even the most respected new schoolers slip up with the disrespect (ask Lupe). I will agree with them that they are more marketable than say a Redman, or a Rakim; but fuck, so is Britney Spears, and who much actual talent does she possess besides looking cute and being able to grind on people and other objects. She's nothing more than a smart stripper.

So I guess the question I am trying to pose here is am I and other people who think like me out of touch with the new direction in hip-hop? I would have to say no. You see in my parents case, they did not want to like hip-hop or give a chance; I am nothing like that. I search out for new and innovative artists everyday through the Internet, most of the time I come up empty handed, but I have found some diamonds in the rough like Wale, Asher Roth, 88 Keys, AC, Kid Cudi, Mikkey Halsted, and etc. Money made will never equate to talent. My message to all these new schoolers who think people like me are just haters: Step your game up! Quality music will shut my mouth.