The R.E.C. speaks out

ReCaaLL presents....

THE TOP 5 REASONS HIP HOP is WACK!

*it's basically a business: people do what they can to exploit the genre and make money. "grinding" and "doing big thangs" are often championed. more often than not, whatever you are PAYING isnt worth what you are getting...

solution: if you're an artist, give away as much free shit as you can! do shows with MINIMUM door prices so that people can come and enjoy the show and still have a few bucks for a beer or two or five. if you're a consumer, fuck that- if you are a listener- dont buy SHIT!!! until you hear it. you can download almost anything offline, one way or another. Also, refuse to pay anything more than a few bucks to see an act with which you are unfamiliar or dont really like. beleive me, there are more shows than you hear about out there.


*lack of creativity: i know Maybe MAYBE MAYBE 5-7 actually hiphop artists, everyone else just rhymes, and they usually dont even do it in a clever way. Often, you'll see mixtapes FOR SALE of course using industry beats. that shit is so fuckin dead- if this is supposed to be a craft and you an artist, lets see something unique, different, and original

solution: artist- do some original shit, do something unique and push the envelope. make some beats, get some new beats, lets her some new sounds and concepts. listeners- broaden your horizons, go on myspace, look up some random hip hop and listen- u might like it.


*underground purism- stop with that preachy ass bullshit, "REAL hip hop", fuck that...for real. just because you live and die by KRS1 or whomever, (no doubt KRS is ill) doesnt make you an expert on all that is hip hop. that's snobbery, pure and simple. these people often preach against hip hop "without a message"- well shit, even "I make mad cheddar" is a message, all music has a message.

solution: artists, stop being so preachy off the mic. this is an individual expression of one person, not an objective sciene to be governed, judged, and then fuckin narrated by you. you are REAL because you don't like any mainstream shit, you're just closed minded. similarly, you aren't still "underground" if you sell fuckin 100,000 records. El-P is SICK, but he's no longer some "underground emcee". Stop labeling, judging, and sorting the the genre into subgenres to fit your wack ass arguement.


*PAYOLA- that shit DOES go down, its real life! a LABEL pays to have shit heard/advertised whether it be directly or by consequence. I mean cmon radio shows, even "indy" shows playing 5 tracks by one group/collective in an hour slot...seriously

solution: dont listen to the radio, dont support LABELS, but rather artists. first off the radio is wack anyways, i mean there are a FEW good shows, but its rare. Often, to hear an ill track, you have to CALL IN, waste minutes on your fone, and REQUEST it. and then, you call and they've NEVER HEARD OF the song...i mean they are hiphop djs that dont know who Jeru, Camp Lo, or Boogiemonsters is...good show!


*Exclusivism/Inclusionism- that whole ideology of like "we are hiphop" or "you cant be hiphop because of a,b,c" or "you're indy, im mainstream". Thats just ridiculous! It sincerely supports the notion that hiphop is full of a bunch of young minds with identity issues.

solution: DO you! screw everythign else...if you like something, someone, some sound- do it, live it!



PEACE TO ALL THE LIVE EMCEES, DJS, GODS, and LISTENERS that have been with me this past year. I wrote this on a whim, and i bynomeans feel like i am an expert on shit. That being said, HIP HOP DID SAVE MY LIFE a few times! so i feel obligated to vent this out presently. I sincerely hope that U KILL U the next FREE solo disc im putting together can give a few folks a good listen. peace to all the rock and do the hip hop.

One and indebted,
ReCaaLL