The label "conscious rapper" has been become beyond twisted.
Is there another group in the past decade that has Public Enemy's DNA???
- Thread starter maxamusa
- Start date
The label "conscious rapper" has been become beyond twisted.
Yeah, overtly political, pro-black, unapologetic.
Most definitely, and I say it without hesitation.
Backed by the Bomb Squad and that "wall of sound" - I think the closest that we get to that nowadays might be El-P?
Chuck was not a rapper's rapper by any means, he was just putting folks on to Huey, Malcolm, Marcus, and most of all Farrakhan.
As for cats doing it today - the handful that I can think of - the times makes them sound corny.
Nobody under 45 wants to hear this type of thing today.
You can sneak in some of this with Childish Gambino, or catch a line here and there from Kendrick - but nobody wants to hear Boots Riley or Immortal Technique, much less NOI Rappers praising Farrakhan and NOI ideas.
This type of thinking, Black nationalism, black economics, all that type of stuff - is seen as corny.
The ship sailed.
Piff Perkins
Veteran
Rage Against The Machine was prob the last one.
Public Enemy came out when rap was public enemy #1. CACs were going HARD. rappers were battling the Supreme Court.
I think its weak AF to say insinuate that the reason is CACs have forced everyone since the late 80s to rap a certain way.
I'm not buying it. Sorry not sorry.
I'd honestly appreciate It more if you just called new guys softer than babyshyt
I think it's because like the video you posted; was not it.
Who's that teacher rapper from New Orleans? the light skin breh who hates rappers? Guys like that are not what I'm talking about.
I just don't understand why so many of you are saying it's impossible when nobody has tried.
You guys are citing the worst examples.
Public enemy was authentic....good at rapping....and had BANGERS.
Just cause you're talking a bunch of "positive" and "conscious" shyt doesn't make you anywhere near public enemy.
It takes a lot more than that.
Public Enemy is STILL making money off this shyt.
CAVEMAN
PyrexPyramid
Hell no, but I really wish there was. Its a wide open lane, and people would rally behind them in a major way
Anthems on anthems, with wild rebellious energy, speaking truth to power over banging ass danceable production, thats designed to appeal on a mass popular level.
People would swarm behind a movement like that
but instead wack ass "conscious rappers" would rather focus on dusty traditionalism & respectability politics
Anthems on anthems, with wild rebellious energy, speaking truth to power over banging ass danceable production, thats designed to appeal on a mass popular level.
People would swarm behind a movement like that
but instead wack ass "conscious rappers" would rather focus on dusty traditionalism & respectability politics
When you go back and listen to a lot of political hip hop from say 88-91 - a lot of the most political stuff wasn't "banging"
This was not a hit.
This was
Cats don't want to hear Gospel Raps either.
When you look at Pac, he was one of the few that could do a "political" song and make it into a hit, but his biggest stuff was like this
Once the audience realizes there's a "message" - they don't want to hear it, not too much of it at least.
The message repels people.
But people did try.
They tried, and failed.
This was great...and they never were able to repeat it.
Common, Kweli, the Roots, J-Cole, etc - they have figured out that the conscious stuff doesn't really sell, much less something that's straight up political.
This is what a Public Enemy crowd looked like in 2013
You can look at the places they toured in the last decade
Public Enemy Concert & Tour History (Updated for 2025 - 2026) | Concert Archives
Public Enemy tours & concert list along with photos, videos, and setlists of their live performances.
They're making money off of white people in Europe.
This was my era. And it's gone. It's been gone.
It's not coming back.
I had to make my peace with it.
When you go back and listen to a lot of political hip hop from say 88-91 - a lot of the most political stuff wasn't "banging"
This was not a hit.
This was
Cats don't want to hear Gospel Raps either.
When you look at Pac, he was one of the few that could do a "political" song and make it into a hit, but his biggest stuff was like this
Once the audience realizes there's a "message" - they don't want to hear it, not too much of it at least.
The message repels people.
But people did try.
They tried, and failed.
This was great...and they never were able to repeat it.
Common, Kweli, the Roots, J-Cole, etc - they have figured out that the conscious stuff doesn't really sell, much less something that's straight up political.
This is what a Public Enemy crowd looked like in 2013
You can look at the places they toured in the last decade
Public Enemy Concert & Tour History (Updated for 2025 - 2026) | Concert Archives
Public Enemy tours & concert list along with photos, videos, and setlists of their live performances.www.concertarchives.org
They're making money off of white people in Europe.
This was my era. And it's gone. It's been gone.
It's not coming back.
I had to make my peace with it.
Ice cube is another terrible example.
He literally bounced from NWA and ran to NY to work with P.E.'s team to jack the whole steeze
A market is a market.
They're a legacy act....Europe has a huge market for hip-hop.
The same talking points on this fourm were said for 50 cent. His farewell tour proved the coli all the way wrong
Common, kweli, the roots, and J-cole aren't even in the same realm as PE Breh. And all of those artists have had a successful career in music
You're twisting the whole thread....this isn't about measuring "conscious" rappers success.
I don't think we're having the same conversation.
Son I swear I came in here to say Rage
Yea but they’ll unalive u for it nowdays
god shamgod
Veteran
Conscious rap been dead for decades. No, nobody has replicated public enemy , dead prez the only ones who have & they dropped in 2000. All these current rappers/groups talk about today is how much money they have,hoes,cars ,drugs they do/sell ,killin opps etc
The only rapper I can think of that remotely tried was sha stimuli & he was so underground nobody knew.
The only rapper I can think of that remotely tried was sha stimuli & he was so underground nobody knew.
I think there’s a reason all rap is toxic and negative now. I also believe that infamous “meeting” between record execs really happened in 92. Public Enemy was really a threat.
How many independent rap labels and artists came after 92 with success?
Literally ANYONE can be a rapper and start a label from their couch. its been like that for a minute.
