There are countless debates on whether Hip-Hop has died or not, what ‘true’ Hip-Hop is, etc.  Whether or not the music has failed us will be disputed until the end of time, or Hip-Hop, whichever comes first.  Some dream in color, I dream in Hip-Hop.  Everyday, the news gives you just enough across America to reel you back in after a sponsored break; how can we make sure that we are bouncing back after our own Hip-Hop nation’s commercial breaks?  What is the state of both our unions?  There are more similarities through the differences than initially meets the ear.  The focus, after all, is what happens after the commercial breaks …

Written by Nicole Camack  “K-Mack”

On the leader(s) of the nation:
Not President Bush.  Who are the leaders of our Hip-Hop nation?  To answer to that one must have the qualifications.  Minimally for starters, they must use their formulated (WMDs) words of mass destruction to lead the masses to an endless war of unconventional thought, resonating when retreating is the status quo.  They must democratically prevail what’s best for the people of the nation, especially in matters where foreign affairs try to interject and saturate themselves into the integrity of the lifestyle.  It is inexcusable, when addressing the nation (in addition to its immigrants and by-standing foreigners alike), to not have those around them that have absolutely prepared them for longevity and to positively make history, or they will be just that – history.

On the Economy: 
Could the recession loom any lower before it crashes into our pockets?  The state of the economy is like the current state of album sales, slowly declining into oblivion.  Whose fault is it?  Everyone’s.  There is no one party to holistically blame – it is a culmination of events that have been avalanching for some time now.  What can we do about it?  Save the wealth of great music in the accounts of greatness that we have and let the value increase over time.  Who is to say we will ever come out of this recession the same.  Hold on to what you have, hope that you can get more of it in the future, but make preparations to savor your old interests if the situation worsens.

On Sports: 
The Divisional Championships are this weekend: AFC and NFC.  The best of the best or, survival of the fittest, will advance on to the Superbowl.  Let’s take the AFC (Alumni Famed Champs (70s/80s)) and the NFC (Nineties Famed Champs) of Hip-Hop.  Who would you send to represent your ‘divisions’?  Who would win the ultimate match?  The same issues arise:  are your personal favorites really the best; did they make the illest cut?

On Awards: 
The Golden Globes annual awards show, for film and television, were canceled due to the indirect support from the nominees for the ongoing writers’ strike.  We are such the dependent, politically correct society that we must have someone else brainwash words in our mouths.  Everyone becomes actors of the written word.  To put this into scope, what would happen if all of the Hip-Hop writers and ghost writers left your favorite actors’ – excuse me - artists’ payroll and went on strike?  How many people would be canceled?

On Movies:
Tony Scherman wrote an article called ‘The Great Debaters’ in the spring 1997 edition of American Legacy magazine that sparked the inspiration and basis behind the movie, “The Great Debaters”.  About two months ago, an infamous drug mogul, Frank Lucas, was the blueprint behind the box office hit “American Gangster”.  Both movies starred Denzel Washington in award-worthy performances.  The former was about overcoming, seeing through adversity whether people believed in you or not.  The latter was about a drug lord who blue magically produced millions of dollars.  The difference: the ‘go-against-the-grain’, ‘less-mainstream’ story made $13.6M in its’ first six days while the ‘money, power, respect’, ‘more-commercialized’ story made $46.3M in the first three days alone – that’s over three times as much in half the time for the mainstream option.  Sound familiar?

On Debates:
There are at least two sides to every story, how poetic.  Look around.  Debates seem to be the hot topic – it’s everywhere: sports, movies, politics.  The Presidential debates overwhelm the tube with premature projections of the winner, outlandish statements, mysterious leaks, and surprise rebounds.  This is painstakingly familiar.  What famous quotes will be remembered?  Who will be forgotten?   The real question I had was – where are the great debates of Hip-Hop?  At the end of the day, politics begin with debates and attacks and end in a winner.  In Hip-Hop, both the ‘winner’ and ‘loser’ can come out to be winners in the end. The truly great debaters transcend the debate, to move on to proclaim their status of ‘greatness’.

So what was the greatest debate of Hip-Hop?  Here are some heavy contenders:

Great Debates of Our Time (NFCs):
Who:        Biggie / Tupac (and others, depending on who you ask)*
What:       “East Coast vs. West Coast”
When:     ~1994~1996
Where:     New York Recording studio, Who Shot Ya, Long Kiss GoodNight, What’s Beef, Hit Em Up, 2 of Amerikas Most Wanted video, the media, etc.
Why:        Through rising tensions among New York and West Coast artists, many agree it reached a pinnacle after 2pac was shot 5 times outside a New York studio that Biggie and Diddy were present at. In essence, it ended fatally with every news spin possible and 2 “unsolved” murders. (and other reasons, depending on who you ask)
Winner:   you call it.
  * Depending on how far the scope is taken, the “East Coast” can also include: Junior Mafia, Capone-n-Noreaga, Tim Dog, Ultramagnetic MCs, Nas, Common, Jay-Z, Chino XL, DMX, Puff Daddy/Diddy; while the “West Coast” can also include: Suge Knight, The Outlawz, Tha Dogg Pound, Kurupt, Snoop Dogg, Ice Cube, Westside Connection, Compton’s Most Wanted, DJ Quik, Tweedy Bird Loc, Dr. Dre

Who:      Nas / Jay-Z
What:    Who is the King of New York?
When:    1996 ~ 2004
Where:   Freestyles, Mixtapes, Takeover, Ether, Supa Ugly, etc.
Why:       Respect (Jay-Z invited Nas to a song and video shoot, Nas denies offer, plateaud and boiled over later)
Winner:  you call it.

Some Throwback Debates (AFCs):
Who:     KRS-One and Boogie Down Productions (BDP) / Marley Marl’s Juice Crew
What:    “The Bridge Wars”
When:    1985~1990
Where:    The Bridge, South Bronx, Beat Biter, Kill that Noise, The Bridge is Over, Have a Nice Day, Beat You Down, Beat Down KRS-One, Take You Out, etc.
Why:       Where did Hip-Hop start?
Winner:  you call it.

Who:     Kool Moe Dee / LL
What:    Oh You Mad Cuz I’m Stylin On Ya
When:    Late 80s ~1993
Where:   How Ya Like Me Now song and album cover, Jack the Ripper, Jingling Baby, Let’s Go, To Da Break of dawn, Death Blow, No Frontin Allowed, etc.
Why:  A claim that LL stole Kool Moe Dee’s style 
Winner:  you call it.

Who:      UTFO / Roxanne / UTFO & The Real Roxanne
What:    “Roxanne Roxanne Wars”
When:    1984 ~ 1992
Where:   Roxanne, Roxanne, Roxanne’s Revenge; (later): Sparky’s Turn (Roxanne, You’re Through), Roxanne’s Doctor – The Real Man, Do the Roxanne, The Parents of Roxanne, Yo, My Little Sister (Roxanne’s Brothers), Rappin’ Roxy: Roxanne’s Sister, Roxanne’s a Man (The Untold Story — Final Chapter), etc.
Why:       UTFO had a nice record, Roxanne hooked up with Mr. Magic and  Marley Marl who wanted to get back at UTFO for being MIA at a show
Winner:  you call it.

The point is that no matter what side of Hip-Hop you fall on: the golden ages, the platinum ages, the ringtone ages, etc., to always keep you thinking, keep you tuned in.  As a united Hip-Hop nation, if we have the knowledge, we have the power.  I’m sure I’m not the only one who both lives and dreams in Hip-Hop.  Besides, how many commercial breaks can one nation take; eventually the commercial, breaks; so stay tuned …

Written by Nicole Camack  “K-Mack”
KMACKsMyName@gmail.com

This entry was posted on Wednesday, January 16th, 2008 at 8:02 pm and is filed under Editorial.