Boonapalist
Superstar
And Too Short
Why did KRS ONE solo career never really pop off?
- Thread starter Lil Bape the PostGod
- Start date
He gave us a free album last year and it's good
The_Third_Man
Superstar
yeah but, even without rapping, Eric B/Dj Polo and them were most probably involved in choosing the direction, concepts, and sound of their albums. it's not the same as making an album as a solo rapper.
Rhyme 4 Rhyme
Pro
While Return of the Boom Bap is a near classic in my opinion, the self-titled album I wasn't overly impressed by. Since then, while he's definitely had some great verses, haven't found any album of his to resonate.
AnonymityX1000
Veteran
KRS x DJ Premier were a great combo. But O can't front MCs Act Like They Don't Know is one of my least favorite Premier offerings.
BmoreGorilla
Veteran
Rapperz R N Danja is the real Primo gem on the self titled album
MikeStamina
All Star
First of all, krs IS BDP
His self titled album in 95 is a classic
Pulled out the album to head to the car wash couple of weekends ago. Still sounds as good as I remember it
His self titled album in 95 is a classic
Pulled out the album to head to the car wash couple of weekends ago. Still sounds as good as I remember it
AnonymityX1000
Veteran
Yeah, love that record. Primo's scratches are dope on that.
Ethnic Vagina Finder
The Great Paper Chaser
He never embraced hip hop being uber commercialized during the jiggy era when everyone was going gold and platinum.
He was able to survive the boom bap era because it still had the same foundation of that 88 - 91 era.
Instead of bracing the new acts and sounds he rejected it. Then he played himself by trying to do a battle with Nelly not realizing people who listen to Nelly didnt know who he was
.
Basically he got old and couldn't connect with the newer generation of rap fans
He was able to survive the boom bap era because it still had the same foundation of that 88 - 91 era.
Instead of bracing the new acts and sounds he rejected it. Then he played himself by trying to do a battle with Nelly not realizing people who listen to Nelly didnt know who he was
.Basically he got old and couldn't connect with the newer generation of rap fans
Piff Perkins
Veteran
To be fair, how many golden age 80s rappers were going gold past 1992? The changing of the guards was in effect. I don't think it had anything to do with the fanbase or quality of music, things were just moving quickly away from those dudes. Rakim, Kane, KRS. G Rap...basically everyone except LL fell off a mountain in terms of popularity. I know people are gonna say LL survived because women loved him and while that's partially true...the bigger thing was that he never completely lost a core fanbase of dudes, because he kept releasing good "street" songs and making great decisions in terms of beat selection. Someone should write an article comparing Kane's 90s decisions to LLs. One became a caricature and went 100% at women, the other understood you gotta feed the streets and the ladies. Same playbook that Hov later figured out, and Drake has completely mastered.
Very true. Plus LL was always more commercially appealing than the others to begin with. LL in the 80s was much bigger, mainstream wise, then KRS, Rakim, G Rap, Kane, etc.. LL only real comp was Run DMC. And funny thing is, LL actually pre-dates Rakim, Kane, Slick, KRS etc.
LL just continued to reinvent himself.
Rakim, Kane commercially fell off mainly because they weren't able to transition with the sound.
Kool G Rap was always kinda underground/hardcore rap and was never really all that commercially viable, but probably had the best career of all the 80s rappers in terms of actual quality of music post 93. I think that's due to the fact G Rap's lyrical content was much closer to what the audience was listening to in the mid 90s.
KRS-One funny enough, started as a gangster rapper, and I wonder if Scott La Rock doesn't die, would he have continued down that path. Also a lot of people say Scott La Rock was a great mind for business, so I wonder what different path his career would take as far as commercialism.
Slick Rick probably would've had a much bigger career had it not been for the prison time.
Does inflation factor in when it comes to rap sales?
Like if he sold 300k in 94 that could be equivalent to 600k etc in 99...just using that as an example...
I doubt rap albums were getting the proper promo during those days where sales could be held against them so strongly...
Like if he sold 300k in 94 that could be equivalent to 600k etc in 99...just using that as an example...
I doubt rap albums were getting the proper promo during those days where sales could be held against them so strongly...
Piff Perkins
Veteran
LL was the first rapper to figure out what Michael Jackson and Madonna were doing. You have to constantly reinvent yourself, or else you become stale and get left behind. Each MJ and Madonna album introduced a new sound and LOOK that demanded attention. Consider the hat/glove of the Thriller era, vs the black leather jacket and zippers of the Bad era. Sometimes LL's moves didn't work...but remember even 14 Shots To The Dome, which was largely panned for the faux gangsta shyt, went gold.
With Slick Rick...I saw a somewhat recent GQ video he did, as well as the Drake video appearance. He has the same look. And now of course as a man in his 50s/60s, he looks utterly ridiculous. You can't stay the same in this game, or else you fall off and look stupid (no offense to Slick) A lot of black artists seemed to abandon the MJ model until somewhat recently. Beyonce, Rihanna, Drake (to a degree) and Kendrick have all adopted it in the last decade. Also...Weeknd. Consider the look and sound of his new album, vs the StarBoy era, vs the other stuff. And the way each era introduces a different hair style. That's pure Michael Jackson (and Madonna) shyt.