Enjoy the benefits of a premium membership!
Upgrade Account
-
TalkBass has been independent since 1998. Add your voice.
Create a free account to reply to discussions, view embedded media, and browse with fewer display ads.
Join free Log in
Want zero display ads or expanded classifieds tools? Compare plans.
What Is Your View On Rap/Hip-Hop?
- Thread starter Funk$tar
- Start date
I think that's a stereotype about older people. Don't forget, we watched the art form being born and grow up to what it is today. We remember a world before hip-hop so we can give you a cultural context that you might not get from documentaries and books who are invested in a certain narrative to sell their back catalog.
I'm another old white guy. I don't listen to much rap or hip-hop, although I do like The Roots and some stuff from Black Eyed Peas.
I remember a quote from Pete Townsend back in the 80s when rap was first becoming popular, and someone asked him what he thought about it. He said "It's not for us to understand, it's not for us to like or dislike, it's for us to get off the ******* stage and let it take its place". I thought that was right on. Each new generation needs to come up with its own music, and the prior generation probably won't get it.
I remember a quote from Pete Townsend back in the 80s when rap was first becoming popular, and someone asked him what he thought about it. He said "It's not for us to understand, it's not for us to like or dislike, it's for us to get off the ******* stage and let it take its place". I thought that was right on. Each new generation needs to come up with its own music, and the prior generation probably won't get it.
I really think that Eminem is, in my opinion, the second greatest rapper of all time, the first being Nas who I don't think you know of.
Either way they both are what you call "Real MC's", these guys can rhyme and tell a great story at the same time.
As for Metal and Hip-Hop collaborations, you my friend couldn't be more correct.
From Ice Cube and Korn to Anthrax and Public Enemy, those are just few of many great examples of music period at it's finest. Being that Metal and Hip-Hop are the minorities of music, I think when they combine together they really balance out each others differences (musically) and complement one another. It's hard for anyone who doesn't listen to Rap & Metal not to judge the genres right away because they are so different from what "Mainstream" America is used to. Thats quite alright though, because it's better to be different than the absolute same, so who cares!
By the way, would you say that Fishbone and Living Colour are Metal?
I listen to some Metal music like Metallica, Black Sabbath, Judas Priest, And Iron Maiden, but I never knew if Fishbone or Living Colour was more Metal music than Rock.
Gaolee
Official leathers tester and crash dummy
I lived in New York in the early 1980s when Rap and Hip Hop were just coming out of the South Bronx and hitting the public consciousness. Break dancing was everywhere, and some of those guys were amazing. Likewise, when Afrika Bambaataa suddenly appeared, it was amazing. Then came Grandmaster Flash and The Message. It was social commentary as much as it was a competitive boasting session all of a sudden. Herbie Hancock did Sound System, which was a big surprise and also a big hit, at least in New York. LL Cool J recorded what was probably the first rap ballad. All of that was truly amazing, and it's what I measure it all by since then. There are a few who measure up, but very few. Public Enemy comes to mind. They keep me sane when I want to go bite truck tires for some reason. You wouldn't think listening to Public Enemy would be a calming influence, but I don't claim to be normal. I get a big kick out of Run DMC, but they aren't quite in the same league as some of the others.
There was a lot of really goofy stuff then, too. I still listen to it occasionally for amusement. It's amazing that all the stuff that rap and hip hop are built on came out of the South Bronx between about 1980 and 1983, but there you have it. It was an exciting time, since the whole punk thing was going full swing at the same time.
There was a lot of really goofy stuff then, too. I still listen to it occasionally for amusement. It's amazing that all the stuff that rap and hip hop are built on came out of the South Bronx between about 1980 and 1983, but there you have it. It was an exciting time, since the whole punk thing was going full swing at the same time.
I only like the rap that uses real instruments... like 80's rap that uses mostly bass and drums. I just can't stand computer generated and electronic music! I hate it!
That's EXACTLY what you call a TRUE musician!
Pete is a talented guy, but this quote right here really shows that their is more to him than just him and the guitar.
Great example of a humble musician with more to offer than just music...
I've got a playlist entitled 'hippity hop' that I listen to somewhat regularly. I don't listen to much of the recent stuff that's on the radio, but there are plenty of artists that I do enjoy, including: Aesop Rock, Busdriver, Blackalicious, Shad, Atmosphere, Eyedea, Jurassic 5, K Flay, POS ... there's quite a lot of good stuff out there (IMO, obviously) if you take some time to find it without the preconceived notions of all rap being garbage.
I also wrote/produced/recorded a hip hop album with a buddy of mine a few years ago (he did the vox, I did everything else) ... that was fun, but certainly not the best music I've ever created.
I also wrote/produced/recorded a hip hop album with a buddy of mine a few years ago (he did the vox, I did everything else) ... that was fun, but certainly not the best music I've ever created.
A majority of Rap from the 80s is sampled, which used to bother me because it's like, "Why don't you make your own music?" I later realized that they were making there own music, while giving credit to the older artists before them. A great example of that would be Eric B. & Rakim's, "Eric B. Is President," which samples James Brown's, "Funky President." I can't think of any rap groups that used real instrument back then besides The Beastie Boys, but I don't think that was till the mid 90's they started doing that...
I'm not sure about living color, But I feel that Fishbone is just one of those bands that can't be defined. It's Ska, Punk, Metal, Rock, and Funk. I mean there's a huge difference between Servitude and Lemon Meringue. They do have a large metal influence, but there's such a variety in their music that it's very difficult to put them into a category. I suppose that's why they didn't get mega famous, even though they deserve it.
Your right!
Fishbone combined so many different elements of music and played almost every genre, mainly Ska and Metal though. Servitude is a great example of their Metal side, while Party at Ground Zero is a great example of their Ska side. It just makes me mad though that their basically only known for that song, I mean Sunless Saturday, Freddie's Dead, Ghetto Soundwave, and so many other songs of theirs are enough evidence to prove that they are actually one of the greatest bands to live!
[QUOTE="Deoindra, post: 16622566, member: 244583"
I listen to some Metal music like Metallica, Black Sabbath, Judas Priest, And Iron Maiden, but I never knew if Fishbone or Living Colour was more Metal music than Rock.[/QUOTE]
They are whatever they want to be. In America the color of you skin has a great deal of influence on what record companies will hire you to do. There was a great documentary on the subject. I'll see if I can dig it up.
BTW Deoindra, are you hip to 24/7 Spyz? That is metal! As is Body Count.
I listen to some Metal music like Metallica, Black Sabbath, Judas Priest, And Iron Maiden, but I never knew if Fishbone or Living Colour was more Metal music than Rock.[/QUOTE]
They are whatever they want to be. In America the color of you skin has a great deal of influence on what record companies will hire you to do. There was a great documentary on the subject. I'll see if I can dig it up.
BTW Deoindra, are you hip to 24/7 Spyz? That is metal! As is Body Count.
I may look up this Nas person.
I think metal and hip-hop are natural partners for a few reason. Musically, they are both predominantly about rhythm. More personally, I think the music comes from the same basic place: a preponderance of poverty and/or oppression, and the will to make music about it, and ultimately to try to escape with it.
I'm not terribly familiar with Fishbone, but I am relatively familiar with Living Colour. Vernon Reid was my idol for a while when I was an angsty teenager. I have generally thought of them as a metal band.
Somebody mentioned The Roots. The only thing I've ever hard from them is this song from Yo Gabba Gabba.
Based solely on that, they seem like pretty decent guys.
Gaolee
Official leathers tester and crash dummy
The way it started was DJs who had a couple turn tables and a microphone. They would set up two systems and go back and forth as a competition to see who could come up with the best mix and lyrics on the spot. It's almost exactly the same as what freestyle rappers do now, except that the DJ would be spinning records, sampling, and scratching all at the same time. They would sample records sometimes by having two of the same record, one on each turntable. Then they would stop and start the records, spin them backwards, and do all kinds of things. I assume that all still happens, but it hadn't been done before, and it took a whole lot of skill and precision to make it sound good. There weren't any instruments involved, but the only electronics were what amounted to two record players hooked up to a glorified home stereo system.
The funny thing is that I don't much care for metal as it has evolved. I like hip hop and many of the things it has mutated into and influenced, but metal is a mystery. It takes a whole lot of chops, but so does signing your name with both hands at the same time.
Agreed completely. Sampling, when it's done well, is an art form itself. Here again, the radio hits cause some people to misjudge it. Yes, Vanilla Ice basically just cops Under Pressure and MC Hammer uses Superfreak. But the way Public Enemy uses samples to create sound collages is pretty amazing, IMO. The Beasties also had a knack for using samples well.
The Beasties, by the way, started out as a hardcore punk band playing their own instruments before turning to hip hop. Then with Check Your Head, they started using instruments again.
So sad, but so true!!!
Image is a money maker, I mean some people think that Madonna has one of the greatest voices of all time!
I listen to her and appreciate what she has brought to music, but she isn't that great of a singer...
Now if were talking about Whitney Houston, she simply has one of the best voices to ever grace music with and is a great example of black artists making it mainstream. (Even though she faced criticism about how her music was apparently too "White?" you can thank the group of stupid Black people for that one)
It'd be awesome to see that documentary though man, thanks!
And as for 24/7 Spyz and Body Count, I love them both!!!
It's like if Black people can sing R&B or Rap, anyone else can!
Just like if White people can play Metal, anyone else can no matter what race!
I truly do appreciate the Metal fans like you who listen to Metal music from Black artists, as well as other different races too.
It's best just to listen to the music instead of focusing on the appearance of those individuals, unless they have like swastikas or hateful images/words on them...lol
Image is a money maker, I mean some people think that Madonna has one of the greatest voices of all time!
I listen to her and appreciate what she has brought to music, but she isn't that great of a singer...
Now if were talking about Whitney Houston, she simply has one of the best voices to ever grace music with and is a great example of black artists making it mainstream. (Even though she faced criticism about how her music was apparently too "White?" you can thank the group of stupid Black people for that one)
It'd be awesome to see that documentary though man, thanks!
And as for 24/7 Spyz and Body Count, I love them both!!!
It's like if Black people can sing R&B or Rap, anyone else can!
Just like if White people can play Metal, anyone else can no matter what race!
I truly do appreciate the Metal fans like you who listen to Metal music from Black artists, as well as other different races too.
It's best just to listen to the music instead of focusing on the appearance of those individuals, unless they have like swastikas or hateful images/words on them...lol
Make sure you see the movie Everyday Sunshine, it's a great documentary on Fishbone. Goes through their entire history and how they really should have made it big.
