the list...2007...

Rare Earth B-Boy Funk, Vol. 2 - J-Ro

from the mid '90's on it would seem that hip-hop music got away from itself culturally. it would seem that radio doesn't really give a fuck about the cultural aspect of the music. it would seem that certain artists, for whatever the reason, decided to get $$$ at all costs w/o regard for basic ideas of being original (not biting), not going commercial, etc.

i'm saying it would seem repeatedly because working on this list presented plenty of physical evidence to the contrary. i've been hearing different complaints over the years about the quality of hip-hop music & the cultural absence of what makes the mainstream. there is a basic problem w/the argument that hip-hop has fallen off or is dead. the people that seem to hold on to such ideas the most vigorously are people who look to mainstream outlets for direction.

hip-hop never has been mainstream. occasionally hip-hop culture is so popular that it reaches into mainstream. the reality is that the core of the culture is where it always has been. if you do not comprehend such things, then you likely are among the group who trusts mainstream to do right by hip-hop culture. stop fooling self...

hip-hop is not dead. hip-hop is not dying. hip-hop is fine, just don't expect to have it spoon fed to you by the mainstream. that would not serve the interest of those who maintain the status quo. hip-hop is irreverent, outspoken, underground, off the meter, etc. hip-hop is not supposed to be safe. hip-hop music does what the various other music genres do at their core: speak to the masses. very often the messages are deemed threatening or distasteful. hip-hop music is freedom speaking. you can believe it's just entertainment if you want.

the truth is that no media is just entertainment. there are people who don't want this to be commonly known.

here are  the '07 albums...

• ...And Justus For All - Little Brother
• 8 Diagrams - Wu-Tang Clan
• Break Glass... - Polyrhythm Addicts
• Casualties Of War - Boot Camp Clik
• Desire - Pharoahe Monch
• Finding Forever - Common
• Getback - Little Brother
• Hip Hop Lives - KRS-One & Marley Marl
• How You Sell Soul To A Soulless People Who Sold Their Soul??? - P.E.
• Jazzmatazz, Vol. 4: The Hip Hop Jazz Messenger: Back to the Future - Guru
• Lightning Strikes - Aceyalone
• Mos Definite - Mos Def
• My Last Good Deed - A-Plus
• Over Time - Hieroglyphics
• Psycho Therapy - Psycho Les
• Rap-Murr-Phobia - Keith Murray
• Rare & Unreleased - D.I.T.C.
• Rare Earth B-Boy Funk Vol.2 - J-Ro
• Red Gone Wild: Thee Album - Redman
• Representin' - MC Eiht
• Return From Mecca - X-Clan
• Rhyme Pro - Rob O
• The Album - Smif-N-Wessun
• The Best Kept Secret - Ultramagnetic MC's
• The Big Doe Rehab - Ghostface Killah
• The Dealers - Phesrock & DJ Lex
• The Grudge: Fuck The Industry - Tame One
• The Orchestral Files - Jean Grae
• Tom C3 Presents... Saga Of The Simian Samurai - TomC3 & Prince Po
• Undeniable - AZ

F.P.C.

Find these albums. Peep their content. Cop the albums you dig.

support those who strive to perpetuate the core of hip-hop culture. if you don't see/hear it, stop waiting. don't complain. go...go...go...

go find it & make it known to others!

get at me when/if you can...

PEACE
...be calm...