13 thoughts on “No Country for Old (Rap) Men: Why Can’t Rapper’s Rock?”

  1. This article got me thinking which is never a bad thing, but can lead to a lot of hot air being typed.

    There’s a bit of dialogue between Q Tip and Andre 3000 in the Abstract Radio show where Pete Rock cuts up breaks, in which they discuss Eddie Hazel and Jimi Hendrix who were both accomplished rockers. I believe that Pete Cosey in the Artistic Heritage Ensemble predates both Eddie H and Jimi H in respect of going mental on an electric guitar. Anyway, I’d better not divert too far from our boom bap ethos here.

  2. You left out anthrax? What about kanyes attempt? PE?

    Big reason for the poor crossover into rock is attitude and fear of embarrassment.

    My list of easy rock x-over artist… g rap, mop, bumpy knukles, whatever other cats with solid delivery and bass in they voice.

  3. On the one hand, Rappers can rock/do “proper” music:
    Judgement Night OST
    The Goats “No Goats, no glory”
    Cyco (Insane Poetry) & Sutter Kain “The snuff reels”
    Sage Francis “Li(f)E”
    Flobots “Fight with Tools”
    Necro/Ill Bill
    Michael Franti
    Streetsweeper Social Club (Boots & Tom Morello)
    Eyedea & Abilities “By the throat”
    Mcenroe “Edge of town”
    Peter Anthony Red (Tonedeff) “The projectionist”
    I also enjoyed that “Mash out Posse” of rock dubs/mashups.
    K-os”Exit” and “Joyful rebellion”

    On the other hand, Rappers shouldn’t rock. EVER:
    Buck 65 “This right here is Buck 65”
    Q-Tip “Kamal the abstract”
    Lupe Fiasco/Japanese Cartoon
    Lil Wayne “Rebirth”
    SX10 (Sen Dog)
    Wyclef
    Ladybug Mecca”Trip the light fantastic”
    Tairie B.

    Public Enemy keep barking up the RapRock tree. Chuck had Confrontation Camp (snoozeville) and Griff had 7th Octave (headache). Now they’re both part of a “supergroup” Prophets of Rage featuring B-Real and Tom Morello. It’ll be awful.

  4. Rapping and songwriting are two very different disciplines – as different as essays and sonnets. Songwriting is minimal, oblique and elliptical. Rapping is technical/formal, literal and dense. Rappers strive to be “tight” but “proper” songs are more sprawling and nebulous.

  5. suprised rappers dont have a more open mind frame to whats around them, at least in nyc. days are long gone from sharing the same venue, like the roxy, punk scene, duess things were more raw at the time.

    to think, rappers were recording in the same building with metallica, or whatever big rock groups at the time!!! that building by gertz mail in jamaica, studios all over the city, people couldnt connect because of race.

  6. I thought most of judgement night was well done.

    I actually like that kamaal the abstract album but have to be in the right frame of mind to enjoy it. My wife hates it though.

  7. Rappers doing “proper” music works when they let actual musicians handle the bulk of the instrumental side of things and confine themselves to ideas, vocals and overall production. Alas! Cocaine-fuelled hubris drives too many to believe we want to hear their sub-grade 2 piano/guitar thuds and AutoTuned rendition of highschool scribblings. The Rza’s “Bobby Digital Orchestra” sounds like an arthritic cat walking on a cassio keyboard.

  8. Edan ft Dagha ‘Rock n Roll’.
    That track fucking rocks.
    Public Enemy at their peak were the greatest Rock n Roll band in the world, like Bill Adler said if you love Rock n Roll how can you not love P.E?

  9. “Perhaps the only true success stories have been those of white rappers who turned to rock because no one was particularly interested in hearing them rhyme anymore.”

    That and also most white rappers (and most white hip-hop cats in general) grow out of the rapping/hip-hop phase

  12. two things:

    1.) deep down I think a lot of rappers don’t even respect hiphop themselves. The whole thing of “look im being backed with a live band now that sounds like crap instead of two turntables! I’m real music now!” NEWSFLASH: You were always real music.

    2.)Most rappers didn’t grow up with parents or families that played rock around them growing up. So they just truly don’t understand it and have no reference point for what’s good or not. Think of Jay Z and Kanye co signing Coldplay. Coldplay is pure crap! Or Travis Scott going on about the Sex Pistols. Except for Anarchy in the UK, the Sex Pistols sucked! You would never see Jay, Kanye, or Travis Scott bump The Ramones or even Little Richard because when it comes to rock they just don’t have the cultural knowledge to fully grasp it. When it comes to rock they are just as much posers as some wigger walking around in a Du Rag.

  13. I Actually really like the Kamal The Abstract album,thought it was better than Amplified!!!One more example is the Cherrywine album that Butterfly from Digable did!!thought that album was pretty bad!

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