Two weeks ago, I discussed the effect that grunge had on reshaping the rock landscape in the early 90s. This week, I’d like to point out the parallels between grunge and gangsta rap.
As I mentioned previously, grunge music was divergent from the mainstream, popular rock music that was being produced in the 80s. The big hair bands were a polished product meant to fill arenas and sell music. When Nirvana burst onto the scene, their style was anti-corporation, underground, and focused on creating the best music they could. Then they released Smells Like Teen Spirit, which became a huge success on the radio and MTV, moved them from playing small clubs to the top of the charts worldwide, and set the stage for other bands with a similar style to become popular.
This chain of events is mirrored almost identically by the rise of gangsta rap and hip hop.
Coming out of the 80s, rap was basically still in its infancy as an art form. It is the child of jazz, poetry, disco, and other arts, but its potential as a highly marketable skill was yet to be fully realized.
In 1979, The Sugarhill Gang released its single “Rapper’s Delight,” which would become the first rap song to become a Top 40 hit. In the 1980s, rap began transforming, trying to find a way to become both commercially viable and maintain its credibility as an art form. Popular groups like Run DMC and Public Enemy began balancing entertainment and politics in their albums, in order to provide both fun, easy-listening jams and socially conscious media. But it wasn’t until NWA released Straight Outta Compton in 1988 that the gangsta rap revolution had begun.
NWA, comprised of future solo stars Dr. Dre, Ice Cube, Easy E, and MC Wren, was a rap group from South Central LA, and rather than write sugar-coated lyrics meant to entertain and be play over a disco track, they discussed the grittiness of living in the hood and reflected the escalating malice of urban youth in America. This album gained notoriety due to the FBI’s disapproval, especially of the track “Fuck tha Police.” The album was revolutionary as a popular form of entertainment; many Americans had never been exposed to the obscene language and descriptions of violence, misogyny, and hatred of authority present on Straight Outta Compton.
The parallels between gangsta rap and grunge are eerie; both were crucial to redefining pop music and reestablishing how to make commercial music. I’d say that prior to grunge/gangsta rap, record labels were creating musicians to fill the markets that they wanted to sell to. These two new forms of music showed that any good music was marketable, so that record labels could actually construct the market itself to accommodate the music they were selling, rather than finding acts to fit into the market.
I would also suggest that the two music icons of the era, Kurt Cobain and Tupac Shakur, shared lives that mirrored each other in significance. Both were viewed as the best in their respective professions, both revolutionized their craft, both became endowed with the title of “The Face of a Generation,” and both would inevitably die to maintain the integrity of their music.
Cobain, as I mentioned last article, committed suicide because he could not handle the level of popularity he had achieved. Faced with the difficult task of creating music that he could be proud of- that reflected Nirvana’s grunge image, appealed to their original fans, and sounded more organic than over-produced- while also fulfilling his obligation to the label to sell albums, Cobain cracked under the pressure and shot himself, thereby never having to sell out his art and integrity in order to make money.
Tupac was never afraid of selling out, often going back-and-forth between making commercial music to be played on the radio and MTV, like “I Get Around,” while simultaneously releasing heart-felt anthems to hood living, like “Dear Momma.” But Pac quickly became embroiled in the infamous East Coast vs. West Coast battle, the most tragic marketing ploy of the generation.
Anyone who believes there was a genuine hatred between the East Coast and West Coast needs to just think about how ridiculous the concept is; how can you hate someone 3,000 miles away that you’ve never met and who has no impact on any aspect of your life? Yet despite this seemingly common sense concept, rappers played off this grudge in order to increase interest in their music, and thereby increase profits. If you don’t believe me, examine how quickly the players involved stopped the whole battle. Snoop Dogg and Puffy couldn’t react fast enough to let the public know that they were stopping the West/East competition. These were millionaires who were not about to get shot by some broke gang-banger over a fake rivalry. Today, rappers still create “beef” with each other in order to make people pay attention to them and sell CDs (50 Cent has made a FORTUNE off of this).
The difference between Tupac and the other rappers who use faux feuds to fuel sale is that Pac truly believed in what he was doing, either making him fearless or foolish. People close to Tupac claim that prior to his murder, he had almost accepted it as inevitable. He sounded brash on tracks; welcoming anyone brave enough to try and test him. Death even took a more prominent role in his songs, as if he foresaw his demise. It is for this reason that rampant rumors have circulated that he faked his own death in order to escape the real murder that was most certainly coming. I’m more dismissive of these rumors and offer a different explanation: Tupac welcomed death so that he could go out as the greatest gangster rapper in history, the only one literally lived the lifestyle he portrayed in his lyrics.
The unwillingness to compromise who they were, even if it meant dying for their art, is what made Cobain and Tupac the greatest, most influential musicians in their genres and of the 1990s.
My Ultimate 90s Playlist: Rap and Hip-Hop
West Coast1) Tupac “California Love”: It is worth noting that Tupac recorded so much material that he has more posthumous albums than were released while he was alive, furthering speculations that he is lounging at a Caribbean resort collecting royalty checks.
2) Dr. Dre “Nuthin but a G Thang” and “Forgot about Dre”: Dr. Dre will remain one of the most influential producers, having invented the G-funk genre, but can also be commended for his evaluation of talent, as displayed by the young Snoop Dogg and Eminem on these two songs.
4) Ice Cube “Steady Mobbin’”: It’s hard to believe, but the star of the child’s film “Are We There Yet?” was one of the hardest and most politically charged rappers of the 90s. His album Death Certificate describes gritty situations such as the dangers of STDs, the economic factors that force urban youths to turn to turn to drug dealing, and the hypocrisy of the emergency room not helping gun-shot victims, all while maintaining a sense of irony and comedy. He wrote most of the lyrics for Straight Outta Compton, left NWA after they failed to pay him fairly then criticized them for signing with a Jewish producer, and now stars in movies like Lottery Ticket. Oh, how the mighty have fallen.
6) Warren G featuring Nate Dogg “Regulators”: RIP Nate.
East Coast7) The Notorious B.I.G. “Big Poppa”: Sadly, the late Christopher Wallace only recorded two albums and died a month before the release of his second. His first album, Ready to Die, was an instant classic, one that is good from start to finish, and remains a reminder of what could have been.
8) Puff Daddy “All About The Benjamins”: Anyone else notice how poorly Diddy hides his samples. Blatant thievery.
9) Nas “It Ain’t Hard To Tell”: It’s such a shame that hip hop became mainstream, because it left amazing story tellers like Nas behind for artists that could make dance music. This track, off of his unbelievably fantastic debut Illmatic, samples Michael Jackson’s Human Nature and just allows Nas to weave a story for listeners to follow.
Budding Superstars
14) Jay-Z “Can I Get A…”: Jay-Z surpassed Elvis Pressley in 2008 with eleven albums hitting #1 on the Billboard 200 and is the current record holder, but in 1998 he blew up with this track and introduced the world to Ja Rule.
15) Eminem “My Name Is”: Eminem would absolutely blow up, becoming the highest selling rap artist of all time, but not until his Marshall Mathers LP in 2001.
16) Hot Boys “I Need A Hot Girl”: Notable not for the group, but for future star Lil’ Wayne.
The Fugees
17) The Fugees “Fu-Gee-La”: This trio had excellent solo careers, along with their hits “Ready or Not” and “Killing Me Softly”
17) The Fugees “Fu-Gee-La”: This trio had excellent solo careers, along with their hits “Ready or Not” and “Killing Me Softly”
18) Lauryn Hill “Doo Wop (That Thing)”: Hill would release her solo album, The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill in 1998, which was nominated for ten Grammys and won five, which was outrageous for rap music at the time. The album opposes many of the mysoginstic themes present in rap music and stands as a brilliant example of feminine strength. Along with being a superb rapper, Hill is also a beautiful singer, as exemplified on tracks like “Can’t Take My Eyes Off of You.”
19) Wyclef Jean “Gone Til November”: The Haitain producer provides this acoustic song about a man telling his loved one to wait for him as he temporarily departs from her.
20) Pras “Ghetto Supastar”: This song sampled the Dolly Parton and Kenny Rogers hit “Islands in the Sun,” was co-written by the Bee Gees, and hit #15 on the Hot 100.
Other
21) Bone Thugs-N-Harmony “Tha Crossroads”: I swear they just put a bunch of words into a hat and used the ones they drew to form their name. Also, the word “tha” is now added to my computer’s dictionary.
22) OutKast “Rosa Parks”: This Atlanta duo would later have the first rap album win the Grammy for Album of the Year in 2004.
27) Busta Rhymes “Gimme Some More”: Great video.
I could probably drag this list on for a lot longer but I decided to wrap it up. If you feel I left someone crucial off my list or chose the wrong song for an artist, let me know. I plan to write the third, and final, part of this 90s music saga in the coming weeks, which will include other genres including pop, country, and miscellaneous, as well as wrap up my thoughts on where I believe the music industry is headed. So look forward to that soon.
The Tiger Girlfriend
My roommate Sharon decided to make a short film with her friend Andrew and I helped with the writing and brainstorming the story/plot. My other housemate, Chris, filmed it and the three of us edited. Anyways, I think it’s really funny so I figured I’d show it here. I wrote the lyrics for the song Andrew plays on guitar, so listen for those.
I love love love this post! It's so interesting, all this fake feud stuff, I would have never even thought of that!
ReplyDeleteLove the video too! You all did an awesome job.