Business…here’s a quick look at Joey Crawford’s pre-Tim Duncan transgressions.
I missed most of yesterday’s Oprah because it was interrupted by coverage of the tragedy at Virginia Tech.  I saw a good bit.  Saw my man Whitlock and Sharpton go back and forth, and heard a few pretty interesting points being made on both sides.
Today, it’s “hip hop’s” turn to respond.  Kevin Liles, Russell Simmons, Common and Ben Chavis are on stage while Whitlock and others sit in the crowd.
My problem with today’s show is with Russell Simmons’ insistence upon referring to rappers today as “poets.”  By calling them “poets,” Russell positions the music that’s out as art, and art shouldn’t be censored.  Artists have license to be loud and offensive because they’re simply expressing themselves, offering the world a perspective on something they don’t see and providing personal emotional resonance that news stories and interviews provide.  Artists tap into their souls and let loose ideas they often can’t say, enhancing their ability to communicate through whatever vehicle they choose.
I ain’t heard much of that on the radio in a long, long time.
(There will be some generalizations used in this post.  Not all rap music is one way or another.  So save the “what about Kanye West?” comments because I’m accounting for some of those dudes.  That said, be honest with yourself about the median record and what it sounds like.)
Let’s be real–the hustle is more deeply connected to rap than any other musical genre.  Rap was the first musical genre to describe poverty in stark detail and paint a startlingly clear portrait of what it can drive people to do.  Soon after, much of the description moved toward what was done to get out of poverty.  Often that meant dealing dope.  Often that meant rapping.  Often that meant dealing dope in order to make the money needed to get the rapping off the ground.
But the hustle has always been at the forefront.
The problem with so much hip hop now is that the hustle isn’t even masked.  It’s right up front for all to see, even when it isn’t described.  When I turn on the radio and listen to hip hop, I’m not hearing much that’s particularly inventive or expressive anymore.  I’m hearing a lot of formulaic stuff.
That ain’t quite artistic.
The reality is that people like hearing about dealing dope, pimpin’ hoes and clubbin’ all night.  That’s what it is.  I’ve listened to a lot of it, and I bought a lot of it before I started getting albums for free.  Sure didn’t hurt that the beats were fire.  So don’t mistake this for a statement from the moral high ground.
But game recognize game, and these cats look awfully familiar.  Don’t try to tell me these dudes are just expressing themselves.  If they are, they aren’t doing such a great job.  The stories about poverty sound awfully repetitive these days.  Either these dudes all feel the exact same way, or they’re following a template.  If they’re following a template, it ain’t exactly art anymore.  It’s commerce.  It’s a hustle.
So please, Russell, and everyone else, don’t use artistic license as a defense.  That time in hip hop is over.
The problem, as things stand presently, is that mainstream hip hop has become a monolith.  The themes are repetitive.  The slang has even become normalized to the point where accents are one of the few remaining indicators that cats are from different places.  It doesn’t have that individuality anymore.  It sounds like it’s coming off a conveyor belt.
I have problems with what’s played on the radio now because I don’t think some themes are meant for mainstream consumption.  Yeah, it’s cool to censor “bitch” off records, but it’s not cool to talk about strip clubs and dealing crack at 10 in the morning.  That just ain’t the time and place for such discussion.  You can tell me that NWA was talking about those sorts of things in ’89, and I’ll tell you that NWA didn’t get radio play.  That’s where my issue is.
I won’t knock cats if they want to talk about dealing dope.  That’s their right.  I’ll knock the people that have flooded me with images of dudes dealing dope.  It’s boring, and I’m insulted by the idea that that’s all people want to hear from rappers.
What the game lacks now is diversity.
I still love this music.  I grew up with it, and I learned a lot from it.  But I don’t like it very much right now.  It hasn’t grown up with me.  In fact, in terms of maturity, it’s regressed.
So if Russell Simmons and anyone else wants to defend rap on an artistic platform, then bring the art back.  Show different angles of the struggle.  Show me ways people overcome poverty besides selling dope.  Give me something to think about.  Make me feel something.  Make me want to do something.
Other than turn to the old folks station, that is.