(ThyBlackMan.com) Time has brought about an immeasurable amount of change. In hip hop’s heyday, rap music was, without question, authentic and thorough; nowadays, people march to a different drum. It appears that only one vainglorious record is all that is required for an individual to be awarded a multi-million dollar recording contract. As a result, the true art of rap music has been compromised and perhaps lost. Hip Hop has become one of the new American hustles, and this is the problem: Record executives are buying into the first act they see.
Today’s commercial hip hop lacks creativity. There are too many artists doing the same thing. The lack of creativity extends to the artwork on albums and mixtapes as well as the technique in which artists rhyme and flow. Many rappers of the day are “biting” other people’s styles; originality is scarce. What happened to the rhymes and songs that once
made people think about what was said and caused them to rewind and play the track over and over?
That’s what makes a song a masterpiece and or classic. The resurrection of creativity and originality in rap music will only produce competition among rappers to be the best and that is what hip hop fans love. The current mold must be broken when it comes to hip hop music. This is a new era, and with ever-so-changing technology and software, extraordinary must become the new normal.
When a record label adds an artist to its roster, it is done so mainly to encourage the company’s growth and prosperity. What executives fail to realize is that their brand can’t flourish with garbage.
Labels dish out marvelous contracts to one-hit wonders and are forced to release them after the public’s interest in these acts wane. Executives need to invest in promising talents whose work may actually yield positive and lasting results. This could be one reason for the general decline in album sales as the masses feel less compelled to purchase a body of work that has little or no value. Moreover, knowledgeable – would be – music executives who deserve to be in power don’t even have a voice.
The situation is to the point where those who are a gem and truly have something to offer the hip hop industry are stereotyped and pushed to the side. What about the kid who had a significant message to tell the world ever since his mother got him that boom box for his birthday? He went unnoticed because the industry never gave him a chance.
Record label executives must pay attention to who they sign and be able to discern the difference between the next big star and someone who hasn’t the ability to achieve such a position. Hip Hop has had brighter days, but it’s not too late. I love hip hop, and I’m a practitioner of it from an early age. I’m fond of the craft, regardless of its state as my affinity for the music is genuine. Though this is not the only platform upon which I express myself, I do not want this beloved brand of music to fall. The hip hop community can’t change the past, but we can all make better future decisions so as to re-elevate this art form.
Staff Writer; Ray Blount
This talented you man is a social critic and aspiring entrepreneur. He may be reached at raytovenworks@gmail.com and on twitter; http://Twitter.com/Raytoven.
