[SpectralJulianIsNotDead]

So, my little siblings turn rap on the radio. And this rap has no drums or bass, just this really high pitch synth stuff and this low pseudo bass drum pseudo bass guitar sound that gives me a head ache. No turntablism or sampling, and the guy can't even enunciate his vocals. When you can understand them, the lyrics are terrible- but my little siblings think this new rap is great- meanwhile I can't even find a beat!

My point is- new MTV/radio rap sucks. Everyone seems really obsessed with Tupac as well.

I really love Kool Keith- whether in Ultramagnetic MC's, or as anyone of his incarnations. I like Outkast a lot too. Public Enemy and NWA are cool, but I haven't really been properly introduced. Any suggestions? Any other rap recommendations? I've heard a Tribe Called Quest and Kid Koala are good.
Cheesy Oldschool rap is good too- Sugarhill Gang, Grandmaster Flash, and the likes.

[val-holla-ing]

i never liked tupac, but i do like this whole "minimalist crunk" thing.

it all depends on what you like. i really love N.W.A, the first Warren G album, Bone Thuggs-n-Harmony, A Tribe Called Quest, and Notiorious B.I.G. because they're the ones i grew up listening to (i listened to alot of rap from the south, but i don't even remember any of their names).

if you're looking for newer stuff, i'd point you in the direction of The Roots, Mos Def, and Talib Kweli...stuff like that. none of them are "new" at all, but they still put out quality material. Beans and Del The Funky Homosapien are cool too, but they're an acquired taste.

[SpectralJulianIsNotDead]

I shouldn't have said I don't like new rap, I just hate a lot of the stuff on the radio. It reminds me of some rich freshman fratkids that would get drunk, party, and come into my dorm lounge and say both the hell out of me.

[themawt71]

you must check out quasimoto and his 2 cds-the unseen and the further adventures of lord quas.
really avante garde back in the day/present day real hip hop-especially further adventures...really forward looking with many roots in the past. quas is madibs alter ego-he (for the most part) freestyles ontop of his beats which are slowed down then he speeds back up to normal speed so he sounds like hes been sucking on helium-cool shit, very out there. he likes his greens!

you cant go wrong with the first 2 wu tang cds and the first solo cds by gza, ghostface killah and ol dirty bastard all with production by beat master the rza.

check out any mf doom and various aliases-victor vaughn, king geedorah, madvillian-with production by madlib!! a very unique mc who phrases way behind the beat with the most abstract rhymes.

matt

[johnnywinternoshow]

Jurassic 5, tribe called quest, quasimoto, beastie boys, kool keith, antipop consortium and cypress hill's "black sunday" are my favourite hiphop beat combos

val-holla-ing is anything else by warren g anywhere near as good as regulators? I love that track but never heard anything else by him

[Iain]

Just get Vaudeville Villain by Viktor Vaughan. I have had that record in one for or another for over a year...well over I reckon....and I still listen to it all the time. It's damn great.

[krastian]

J 5 crew, hit ya with the 1-2

[selkcip]

eric b and rakim - let the rhythm hit 'em

[Danny Himself]

Beastie Boys, man.

[SpectralJulianIsNotDead]

Beastie Boys are great. I think I mainly like rap that still has a lot of rock in it. That is why I don't like stuff without drums.

[Rob Instigator]

Eric B & Rakim - PAID IN FULL
Public Enemy - NATION OF MILLIONS
APOCALYPSE 91
FEAR OF A BLACK PLANET
De La Soul - 3 FEET HIGH & RISING
DE LA SOUL IS DEAD
BUHLOON MINDSTATE
STAKES IS HIGH
Digable Planets - REACHIN
RUN DMC - RAISING HELL
GETO BOYS - GETO BOYS UNCUT DOPE
Slick Rick - The GREAT ADVENTURSE OF SLICK RICK

[pantophobia]

well MTV made a conscious decision to make Rap the dominant genre on their network, and cause of that, the worst comes out (50 Cent and his G-Unit Soldiers"Mobb Deep made a bad move there", Ja Rule and all of Murder Inc. Slim Thug) the OK (The Game "G-UNOT *gun clicks*", Eminem, Snoop Dogg) and the phenomenal (Jay-Z "great but MTV is so far up his ass they proclaimed him the best MC over Tupac and Nas, Wu-Tang Clan, Outkast, and many more), it's very different then the rock side where the only bands i have seen mentioned are Yeah Yeah Yeahs and Arcade Fire

also the thing people have to realize is that MTV's viewers age have dropped immensely to the point that middle schoolers are trying to get Crunk, Goth, Jiggy, Wiggy, and just Retarded

otherwise other greats are KRS-One, Nonphixon, Aesop Rock, Mr Lif, El-P (hell most of Def Jux), and the amazing Wu-Tang Clan who were the most exciting group i have ever seen live, SY need to step up, Thurston needs to start spraying Champaign on the audience, and Kim needs to start taking people's cell phones from the audience and start calling people ala Cappadonna

but yet again i am eclipsed by the vast knowledge by the High Priestess in the Temple of Hip Hop Je-L-Be, we are JPMD, we form like Voltron and she's the Head

[Disgruntled Youth]

Dr. DoooM : First come, First served

[jennthebenn]

2pac is crazily overrated, but that happens from product saturation. they went up to like makiveli 56 or some stupid shit. makes me sick when people put him number 1 greatest mc ever. he was versatile as hell, had a commanding voice, influential flow, and yeah, an incredible work ethic, but his beat selection was not great and once you've heard 5 2pac records, you've heard what you need, pretty much. but he was murdered...hip hop martyr. same with biggie, who had the art of mcing down MUCH better. and even then he's not my top 10.
top 10 favorite mcs (not best; two different things entirely)
1. redman--humorous, streetwise, instantly recognizable; i give a fuck about failed fox sitcoms and deodorant commercials.
2. nas--when people talk about nas falling off...you mean with beats, right? 'cause he can't ever hope to match illmatic's sound ever. how many can? you had premier, large pro, pete rock, each of them hitting on every cylinder for this teenager out of qb no one outside that borough knew. lyrically? he's never fallen off. ever ever ever.
3. big pun--the deceased rapper i'd bring back, if given a choice by the genie of massive improbability. amazing multisyllabic rhymes that made sense within the song, great willingness to rap over any kind of music style (and fit right in).
4. slick rick--the great adventures of.. is bona fide classic. teach it in MC 101. great stories told perfectly. maybe the most recognizable voice in hip hop ever.
5. krs-one--the mc i'd most love to see live. he's insufferable about "owning" the cultural aspect of hip hop, provincial to a fault so big new york should start worrying about earthquakes, but wrote the second greatest diss song ever, and those bdp albums are must-listens. intelligent boom-bap.
6. grand puba--from brand nubian. a great group with no weak spots, but puba stood out as the most diverse. will absolutely sneak up on you and leave your mouth open with his wordplay. one for all is the masterpiece.
7. ill bill--raps about drugs, guns, bitches, death, gore, government, with breathtaking flow and wordplay. all of nonphixion are great...bill is just the illest.
8. aesop rock--does the whole mumbly-joe word salad shit better than el-p these days. tremendous voice to deliver lyrics that more often than not are so clever and sharp you could gut a fish with just the paper they're written on.
9. rakim--most influential mc of all time, has to be. made everyone rhyme slower and more precise. his deliberate style was born of studying the sax as a youngster. as a bragging battler--A+; as a storytelling mc--A+. often overrode the beats, which really became a detriment in later years.
10. ice cube--at his best, the best. still can put good verses together, but the amerikkkas most wanted/death certificate era cube was not being touched. lots of rappers have controversial songs that are misogynistic, racist, violent and nihilistic, but most of them arent' that special. cube was. was. barbershop, y'all.



the game had some really good tracks on his first album, but too much filler! and stop the namedropping, man. tell us more about you and less who you know. 50 cent and gunit? weak. i dont' know who mop need to beat up to get out of their deal, but do it, please. don't end up like mobb deep.

mr. lif's new one is really good, for the def jux fans. it's not better than i, phantom though. that's still the best lif.

hmm, anything else? yeah, if you haven't heard ll's "radio" and you like hip hop, get that. relentless rhyming! jay-z is overrated, but the blueprint IS worth the hype. the new apathy is great. i actually like the whole jmt/aotp/babygrande camp stuff. they're like perpetual second tier under def jux in perception, though.

[golden child]

im not well versed in the rap scene either, some of my favorites include the obvious
beastie boys
nwa
public enemy
lil kim ("i got homies in the west, homies in the east that'll stick you with an aids needle and piss in your mouth!")
jay-z

i didnt really like aesop rock that much

i defiantly be interested in more more jams, some id like to hear
the roots
mos def

any others?

[SpectralJulianIsNotDead]

Originally Posted by Disgruntled Youth

Dr. DoooM : First come, First served

I love Apartment 223.

Have you heard the Mr. Nogatco stuff yet?

[HaydenAsche]

Good Rap/Hip-Hop:
the Fugees
Quasimoto
Handsome Boy Modeling School
Danger Doom
Public Enemy
Beastie Boys
Wu-Tang Clan

[SpectralJulianIsNotDead]

I just now got a hold of Nogatco Rd - Mr. Nogatco (aka Kool Keith) and it rocks.

[Alex's Trip]

I like Digable Planets and Public Enemy...

[val-holla-ing]

Originally Posted by johnnywinternoshow

Jurassic 5, tribe called quest, quasimoto, beastie boys, kool keith, antipop consortium and cypress hill's "black sunday" are my favourite hiphop beat combos

val-holla-ing is anything else by warren g anywhere near as good as regulators? I love that track but never heard anything else by him

yeah, the entire album that "regulators" is on is tight. the production is so smooth, and the lyrics, while not that great, are very slick and fit the music very well.