When do you feel hip hop peaked?

[maxamusa]

when only built 4 cuban linx dropped

 

[re'up]

Yep, I was one year outta high school.

I will say; the reason I didn't pick the mid to late 90's because I think Hip-Hop had a second breath after Pac/BIG died in a way people didn't think would happen.

People hate on the South, but, that early Lil Jon era made stars outta so many random ATL/Southern rappers.

Plenty of hits in that mid 2000's timeframe.

Wayne at his peak, Jeezy at his peak, Southern visibility at it's peak.

Curtis was still a star, Kanye was on a rocket upwards.

DO NOT GET ME STARTED ON THE (early) BLOG ERA. (late 2000's-early 2000's).

That's one of my biggest arguments; Hip-Hop was beginning to cut out the middle man.

If those artist stayed independent (The Cool Kids for example), Rap would be in such a different place.

A lot of career got stalled because the labels wanted too much out of them.

A lot changed around 2007/2008, but the magic did start fade a little around the mid 2000's. Ringtone rap. The quality seemed to slip a lot, as the music got less creative, and the greats of the 90's transitioned into the next part of their careers. But you also had Wayne's run, which to me, ended around 2008. I'd include the 2008-2015 era as the last time it really really felt alive. I'm 40 this year, and some of this is just me getting older.

Around 2005: 50 going full on industry, and going into cruise control. Jay stepping back, and then stepping back out. Nas kind of floundering. Kanye coming more into focus. Mobb was kind of gone. Puff was doing weird Euro music. Pharrrel had taken a pretty center stage. The game had softened up a lot from it's street foundations, and that was the major moment of 2007, Kanye outselling 50.

 

[H. Selassie]

96 was pinnacle of rap from a quality standpoint IMO. The late 90s/early 2000s was the commercial pinnacle with the vanity labels, clothing lines, films, diamond and multiplatinum albums, super producers, etc.

But the last era I loved was during my freshman year of college…the era that ushered in Kendrick, Cole, Drake, Wiz Khalifa, Wale, Curren$y, Big KRIT, Dom Kennedy, ASAP Mob, Odd Future. That was the last class/generation I gave af about.

 

[Child_Of_God]

The 90’s (particularly 93 to 97) and then again in the 2010’s because it brought us J Cole, Kendrick, Drake Nip Hussle, Tyler The Creator, Future, ASAP crew, XXXtentacion and Juice WRLD.

 

[get these nets]

When the DJ was taken out of the picture completely is when hip hop began its creative decline.

The culture was based on the DJ. Emcee soloists and crews developed along with and after that.

Perhaps the years that DATs came out, DJs moved to the background of recording acts. And not long afterward, the DJ was no longer even part of groups.


Part of the reason the LOX/Dipset versus restored the feeling was seeing dj and artists in sync