Why I pass on new rappers
October 12, 2011 1 Comment
Because they cannot compete with the old rappers. Don’t take that state- ment as the grumpy complaint of a fan of “true hip-hop” or “old school rap” who is just bitching about new rappers messing up the game. What I mean is that rappers are in constant competition akin to athletes in sport. Rappers battle each other, in person or on records. Rappers boast of being the King of New York, the King of the South, the Queen Bee, the guy with the biggest watch, the guy with the chick with the biggest butt- cheeks and so on. Rappers claim to be the Greatest Rapper of All Time (GOAT). Rappers compete.
One difference between athletes and rappers is that athletes can only truly be measured against their contemporaries. In basketball for example we know that Shaquille O’Neal was the greatest player in the world from about 2000-2004 by a pretty wide margin but despite having statistics and game footage it really is impossible to judge his abilities against those of Kareem Abdul Jabaar or Wilt Chamberlain.
Rappers, unlike athletes, can be compared across eras because we can sit down and play the best performances from each competitor and decide which rappers performance we like better. Rappers can also be compared to themselves over time in a way that does not make sense for athletes. Jay Z 1996 verses Jay Z in 2001 verses Jay Z 2007 is a fun debate. Those years coincide with the release of arguably his 3 greatest albums. The reason why it is possible to make these comparisons of rappers over a long period of time is that their performances are captured on record to be enjoyed forever. Now, back to competition.
