Q: Hip-hop sucks in '07?
A: Hip-hop sales are down. Some will say it's because hip-hop in '07 sucks, and while they may have a point there, hip-hop sucking is nothing new, as DJ Shadow can tell you:
(Ironically, after DJ Shadow got famous and made a bunch of money, he went on to make a hip-hop album that sucked
Anyway, Aaron Pressman at Business Week has an insight into why sales are down beyond suckage — and here too, it's the money.
Regardless, and also irregardless, there's plenty of good hip-hop out there, if you're willing to look for it. Here are two recent favorites, from two very different rap duos, Seattle's socially conscious Blue Scholars, and Pittsburgh's stream-of-consciousness Grand Buffet.
Or if you don't want to download the files, you can hear 'em via this fancy new Box.net widget I got going:
Grand Buffet gets bonus points for naming their EP The Haunted Fucking Gazebo
, and for featuring Columbus indie-rockers Gil Mantera's Party Dream on the second track. Blue Scholars just get bonus points for putting out one of the best rap albums of the year
.In other news, the new Kanye West mix tape is totally sweet.
2 comments:
Thanks for the link. I've gotta pick up that Kanye mixtape, it does indeed look like it is worth my time.
Party Dream isn't from Columbus. They are from Youngstown/Pittsburgh
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