Award Tour

Why score all my points in one peroid
Appearin in complex structure like a pyramid
The paper for the media presence
Ya learn lessons from the face of false legend...

Last week the Grammy nominations came out to a bit of fanfare. In the Hip Hop realm, the category is at five separate awards. Considering the original Rap Award was in one category, (won by Jazzy Jeff and the Fresh Prince) five categories show how much the genre has grown since 1988.

Grammy voters are also apparently on board with rewarding the real as most of the nominess can be considered viable MCs, producers, and groups. Not too many bullshitty chant-the-same-chorus-to-the-same-tired-beat-with-no-original-lyric-
or-rhymes-my-rims my-ice-my-chicks type songs populate the nominees.

One artist featured a bit is Lupe Fiasco, who’s Food and Liquor CD is nominated for best album and “Kick, Push” single is also up for an award. I'm all for Lupe getting his, but it is with an air of ambivalence. If Lupe does happen to garner an award or two, they might start to take him from us.

By us I mean the real Hip Hoppers: the backpackers, the street corner spitters, the graf artists, the b-boys, the old school; those who are the true consissuers of this Hip Hop shit.

By them I mean the same people who took or tried to take De La Soul, Public Enemy, Oukast, The Roots, Eminem, and Common (not Common Sense) from us. They are the same people who while in college asked me countless times, “hey Commish, can I borrow your ‘PE’ disc? Maybe a little ‘De La’ too?” (As if their use of ‘PE’ would lend to their cred.)

And when I countered with, “sure, why don’t you check this Poor Righteous Teachers CD too” and would be met with blank stares and a “nah...Flavor Flav, yeahhhhh boyeeeee.”

Hip Hop is open to all people, it’s what part of this blog is based on. I know half of you could give a shit about the new Ghostface album or an old school Smoothe Tha Hustla video. But when heads latch onto the “hot” or trendy MC or group, it would be nice if they acknowledge where they came from, where this Hip Hop shit is going, and know their place in the genre.

We’ve worked hard to get through these last 30 years, and are enduring an almost systematic barrage by wack “rappers”, horrible production, corporate politics, and community backlash to tear this down. So, root for Lupe, go buy his CD. But listen to it, like Sidney Deane said, “feel” his music. Buy a similar CD, maybe go to a show, check a breakdancing expo in the summertime, be more than a sheep who simply follows what your local Indy Rag writer says is the new ish. Hip Hop has alot to offer if you respect it.

You know what, fuck it, root for Young Joc. That "It's Going Down" is the shit. i love how he talks about his money! Run out and buy it. Lupe who?