“Yuuuuuul! CRANK THAT!” Sigh. I knew that wasn’t going to last long. Not trying to diss SouljaBoyTellWho because I respect his hustle. I was even doing the crank that dance! *Punch that, crank back, superman that ho*…whatever that means. The thing I can’t respect is the “I’m just trying to make a quick buck” mentality. Really, do artist think they can produce mediocre music and stay around for a lifetime? They do? Oh.

I used SouljaBoy as one example of many of these artist who come out today, drop a few “hits” and disappear. Why? Because their next few singles or albums don’t produce the sells compared to their first album. Well duh…How can you top a song like Crank That? *pause* lol. Where are the classics? A lot of new music is NOT timeless. I doubt I would want to hear Crank That 10 years from now. I’m just sayin’.

Honestly, I find myself rolling around listening to instrumentals from time to time because a lot of these artist “can sell a mill by sayin’ NOTHIN on a track.” This is true. If the beat is tight and the hook is dope then I believe you can release a hit record. It’s that easy these days. I’ve even thought about dropping my own album…seriously.

I don’t blame the artist though because most of them ACTUALLY have deep tracks on their albums. For example, I’ve been listening to J. Cole lately. The songs you hear on the radio by J. Cole are “In The Morning,” “Workout” and “Can’t Get Enough“…all three singles are about having sex with women. But, on his album he spits real material about making his dream come true and wanting women to do better for them self. But will we hear those tracks on the radio? Probably not…so I get it when people say “I don’t listen to the radio”…they just want to hear real music with a message.

I’m also diggin’ Wale, who said in his song The Problem,”They say I’m runnin hip-hop but I’d rather unify with yall then stampede” …I wish more rappers thought this way. Stick together and drop REAL music instead of trying to just claim “the best rapper alive” title. Get out of here. Sidenote, shout out to the Ambitious Girls 😉

Some artist rap about cash, clothes and ho*s, build their fanbase and THEN discuss real, everyday issues.  Ludacris first had singles like  “What’s Your Fantasy” and “Southern Hospitality”…FIVE albums later we heard “Runaway Love,”  a more realistic song about problems facing young girls. Lil’ Wayne had countless songs about everything else until we finally heard, “How To Love”. But for every How To Love and Runaway Love, there are thousands of songs degrading women. On the contrary, I commend Kanye West who released “Jesus Walks” from his debut album, College Dropout before knowing how his fans would receive him.

Probem is, it’s all about money. Which singles would create more spins on the radio stations?…which singles would make people buy the whole album? I get it. I’m not trying to diss any artist making their paper. I guess my frustration is with record labels since they ultimately make the decision as to which songs become singles. But who owns the label? Hmmm.

One of the realest songs about the need for real hip hop is Busta Rhyme’s track, You Can’t Hold the Torch  from his 2006 album, “The Big Bang“. Here are some of the lyrics: ” They keep regurgitatin the same script..Same ho*s, same blow, same glock clip…Same drug strip, what the f**k is this?…You sound stagnant, need to progress and grow…Upgrade your punchlines, progress the flow…Get your concepts and lyrics together, aiyyo…Then drop the bomb ish to step up the pressure, y’know? What happened to the love for the game? Love for the music…I need realness in my life! They ain’t got in ’em to make a classic…These ni***s can’t hold the torch, so why pass it?” … but of course the song was not released as a single. Instead we heard “Touch It” and “I Love my B***h” on the radio…go figure.

Who do you think can hold the torch? What rapper(s) are you feeling right now?

~I ask ’cause I’m not sure, Do anybody make real s**t anymore?~ “Stronger” Kanye West

~Ashley Caprice