Thursday, October 8, 2009
I remember a simpler time when listening to hip-hop was more of a deliberate experience than it is today. One would embark on an excursion to the store, buy a rapper’s CD — or cassette tape for the veterans out there — return home and listen to the album the whole way through, track by track.
You may be saying to yourself that buying CDs from the store is still perfectly possible, and indeed this does still happen daily. Even so, the concept of the tangible hip-hop album has been discarded for the most part in today’s world where music is demanded instantaneously and quantity is valued over quality.
The Internet now rules the hip-hop world, equipping fans with a seemingly infinite stream of original and remixed material. Because of the emergence of online file sharing, mixtapes have dominated the hip-hop landscape in recent years since they are free and easy to download. A mixtape is a sort of mini album that may involve the artist rhyming over pre-existing beats, rhyming over exclusively original production or a combination of the two.
Mixtapes have been blowing up for years now, with every rapper from Lil Wayne to that guy at your local barbershop releasing tapes in an attempt to maximize the exposure to their music.
The unfortunate result of the mixtape invasion has been a steady dilution of talent and truly good music in the hip-hop pool. Many artists seem to be so concerned with the amount of material they release that they have forgotten about taking the necessary time to craft an actual album, one that’s original in content and consistent in quality.
Though there have been plenty of respectable mixtapes released over the Internet, many consist of a few good songs padded with about 18 tracks of filler material. It often seems that artists get lazy and are so eager to release the one or two good tracks they have that they crank out a dozen mediocre songs in an effort to get the tape out as soon as possible. More and more artists seem unwilling to dedicate the time and effort to compose and perfect a marquee album these days. As a result the production of genuine hip-hop albums has tragically become somewhat of a lost art.
The Internet is clearly here to stay. This is a good thing for hip-hop as its music and culture will only spread with its help. What we have lost with the rise of the Internet is the ritual of actually buying an album and experiencing it independently as its own unique brand of hip-hop rather than just a bunch more songs on our iTunes.
That, my fellow hip-hop heads, is our loss.
Coldham: Best rappers achieve longevity
Consistent respect is an accomplishment attempted by many, fulfilled by very few ...
Coldham: Hip-hop grows up
The era of southern gangster rap is being replaced with more modest ...
Coldham: Lil Wayne takes wrong turn with ...
The rapper should stick to what made him famous in the first ...
Coldham: Too much R&B in hip-hop
Lengthy R&B chorus' shouldn't have a place in hip-hop.
Coldham: Hip-hop balances differing styles
‘Gangster’ and ‘conscious’ rap contribute equally to hip-hop’s popularity.
Coldham: Hip-hop versus rap
Thoughts straight from the hip-hop head.
Coldham: Internet dominates hip-hop
Hip-hop and the internet are linked through blogs and hype.
Coldham: Hip-hop must retain its roots
Corporatism has leeched the soul out of hip-hop.
Coldham: Hip-hop may sell, but fans hope ...
Corporations and hip-hop enjoy a lucrative, if tense, relationship.
Lawrence’s local hip-hop scene
With an increasing number of local hip-hop shows, local artists and hip-hop ...
Coldham: Hip-hop has a friend in the ...
President Obama brings urban edge to politics.
Rhyming in the far east
On a study abroad trip to Japan, KU student Travis Tewes took ...
Preparing for the hip-hop season
Ramping up the season of rap and hip hop.
Coldham: Artists such as Kweli keep hip ...
Not your average "Soulja Boy"
Roesler: Quality hip-hop isn’t far from home
New artists playing at local bars show a different side of the ...
Music Review: 'The Last Kiss' by Jadakiss
2 1/2 out of 4 stars
Lysen: Being proud of your roots
The rapper XV shows us that there is no shame in loving ...
Music review: Kid Cudi
KJHK’s weekly guide to sonic consumption.
Rap music sales decline
The hip-hop and rap industries are losing fans and sales. Sales dropped ...
Music guy
Your guide to music utopia
Review: “Chemical Warfare” by the Alchemist
The Alchemist’s newest album lets the guest MC’s shine.
Coldham: Lawrence has potential to attract more ...
Lawrence allows up-close exposure to hip-hop artists that's rare anywhere else.
Book review
Mix Tape: The Art of Cassette Culture
Review: Mos Def album
‘The Ecstatic’ offers ‘patchwork of infectious beats and rhymes.’
El Pus
Music review: Roots Manuva Meets Wrongtom
KJHK's guide to sonic consumption.
Hip-hop duo to release second album
The local hip-hop group Crux, which formed in 2005, draws many of ...
Lysen: Auto tune technology ruins the integrity ...
The old saying goes: “Those who cannot remember the past are condemned ...
Forget what you heard
The Kansan's four part series showcasing hip hop's impact on a mix ...
Bump it on the boulevard
West coast rookies of the year
Music review: 'Style Like Mind' — Steddy ...
KJHK's weekly guide to sonic consumption.
Bump it on the boulevard
The Clipse: Road To Till The Casket Drops
Mixin' beats
With N.E.R.D.
MUSIC: Ray LaMontagne, Gossip in the Grain
Boultinghouse: Remedies for iPod idleness
Playlist-worthy music found outside the mainstream market.
G. Loves spreads the love
G. Love talks about his Lawrence and his musical influences.
Music: Andrew Bird, Noble Beast
Musician fuses melancholy instrumentation with language
Q&A: Cisco Adler
Because we have questions. Celebrities have answers.
Music Review: Wagon Christ - 'Toomorrow' (Ninja ...
KJHK's weekly guide to sonic consumption
Taking the Stage
Tanner Walle, the lead singer for Lawrence cover band The Wobbly H, ...
Kansas Jayhawk fans hold aloft a reproduction of ...
2 comments
Erin Saupe, a Ph.D. student from St. Cloud, ...
1 comment
0 comments
Armed robbers continue to threaten.
3 comments
Lecture from Greg Mortenson, co-author of New York ...
0 comments
KUnited presidential candidate Libby Johnson and vice presidential ...
1 comment
Comments
Coldham: Lost art of album making
I feel you on that, but don't you kind of think the same thing happens with rappers and their CDs? Nelly, Dre, Snoop.. all of those guys have CDs with 18+ tracks and at least 6 or so of those are just them talking or some skit. I think they're trying to make a CD with a lot of tracks so people think it's more worth the money than a CD with only 13 tracks and they can get a CD out quicker with only a few quality tracks.
Sign in to comment
Or login with:
OpenID