Why do people act like rap before 1994 doesn't exist?

[mobbinfms]

I was lamenting this not too long ago myself. There was a coordinated industry push to label the 90s as the "golden era" even back then, and as soon as the decade flipped people were talking about GOAT era. It's the industry narrative and we have to wear that sin for burying some of our greats in deference. And to be honest, while 90s was dope, it definitely is overrated...

I was listening to AmeriKKKa's Most Wanted the other day. One of the best albums ever...



Is that really accepted here? Alota nikkas are wrong lol...

AMW came out in 90.
And yeah it’s big fax Breh.

 

[dora_da_destroyer]

well no i wouldn't expect someone in their 30s to name or listen to a lot of artists from the fifties era, that would be unrealistic. but i'm pretty sure they know who ray charles or billie holiday is right?


and they would also understand that black soul music didn't begin with stevie wonder, michael jackson or jodeci i'm sure


as for you i understand being concerned with hip hop from 1992 on, that's what appeals to you most & i ain't even mad. but look at rock music and their depth of knowledge when it comes to their history. the beatles, beach boys, bob dylan, the ramones, and queen are studied and all get love today. we must acknowledge hip hop history with the same reverence that they do

You named the biggest names in rock, plenty of kids who listen to rap have heard the names in this thread, but knowing the names versus really knowing their music and wanting to put them in goat conversations isn’t realistic. Especially given how different that era of rap sounded vs the flows and sounds that popped off in 92-94 and beyond and then compare even mid 90’s to how music sounds today...what exactly are y’all hoping for from kids? They know those are forefathers of rap, and they keep it moving. No need to front like they’re into that music or sound. Most of them couldn’t even stay relevant through 94, There’s a reason that only LL made the jump across eras.

 

[mobbinfms]

Because low key, the same shyt these (now) old heads do the the pre 94 rappers, is the same shyt that they claim kids do to them now

Brush them off
Don’t respect them
“Oh it’s different”
No goat talk

Instead of accepting an obvious culture change and a shift in direction, they shyt on those kurtis blow era nikkas heavy.

Never met anyone who shytted on the 80s in the 90s. Never happened.
Radio stations out in the Bay played classic hip hop songs from the 80s. Rap City had old school Wednesday’s.
The consensus GOAT was Rakim.
The consensus GOAT album was It Takes a Nation.

 

[mobbinfms]

shout out to netflix for airing the hip hop evolution piece, watched it with my younger sister who is a 90s baby and she really enjoyed it. there was a lot of stuff she didn't know. granted they have the internet but it can be daunting and time consuming especially when you don't even know who or what you're looking for, or how to even put it in any context when you find it

Exactly. That’s why even though we weren’t able to listen to anything we wanted whenever, we benefited from the gatekeepers that existed. Radio, video, Source.
Kids nowadays can listen to anything they want, but why would they?

 

[mobbinfms]

nah no way did us old heads dismiss the old school acts when we were younger

- snoop remade la di da di
- afrika baby bam named himself after bambaataa
- kurupt said rakim is his idol
- jay z has given love to cold crush, g rap and of course his mentor kane
- biggie shouted out rappin duke on juicy
- nas remade kurtis blow if i ruled the world to a whodini beat for chrissakes lol

Common and Artifacts making songs shytting on the 90s as compared to the 80s.

 

[ahdsend]

Long Division: Exploring The Roots of Hip-Hop’s Commercial Vs. Underground Rift

 

[mobbinfms]

It’s no different than us, how many people in their 30’s and under can really name and say they listen to tons of artists from before the 60’s (for some folks it’s as late as the 80’s)? You can’t expect younger people to have knowledge of or care to have knowledge of the folks who were at the beginning of rap, same way the average person doesn’t care about who was at the beginning of r&b/soul music. Yes, music lovers, those who had older siblings or parents who are really into music might have more knowledge, but the average 15 year old has no desire to care about anything a decade or more older than them.

I’ll say most my knowledge of 80’s rap is due to having older brothers, had it not been for them, I’d pretty much only care about rap from 92 to present.

Great point. I think it’s different for hip hop fans though because you have these twenty somethings in Media now trying to opine on GOAT albums and rappers and you know they don’t know shyt about the 90s much less the 80s and 70s. But because the shyt is still being marketed as “hip hop” even though imo it’s an entirely different genre (maybe “trap mumble singing”?) you get conflict and “but what about KRS?” Type comments from old heads.

 

[tuckgod]

I’m not saying Kast isn’t legendary :Peasy:
But the Mobb got them. And it’s not even close :prodigylol2:
Ok it’s close but the Mobb gets the W :PHandsup:

I love them both and I hate you always make me shyt on the Mobb to big up Kast.

 

[dora_da_destroyer]

Great point. I think it’s different for hip hop fans though because you have these twenty somethings in Media now trying to opine on GOAT albums and rappers and you know they don’t know shyt about the 90s much less the 80s and 70s. But because the shyt is still being marketed as “hip hop” even though imo it’s an entirely different genre (maybe “trap mumble singing”?) you get conflict and “but what about KRS?” Type comments from old heads.

Same could be said about r&b, ask a 35 yr old, you’re going to get albums from r Kelly, usher, mjb, Beyoncé etc. ask a 45 yr old it will be tony Toni tone, guy, Swv, etc. both may throw in a Michael Jackson, Janet Jackson’s or Whitney album...but to act like the list will be full of pattie labelle, temptations, Aretha, etc is silly. We simply cannot ask 25 yr olds to have lists full of rakim, krs, LL as well as demand pac, nas, biggie and still leave room for the shyt they really grew up on

 

[Cave Savage]

94? More like 92 (even 1988 in the case of NWA).

I think there was a sea change from the late 80s to early 90s where songs started aging better and are more likely to be considered good by today's standards.

 

[DANJ!]

So realistically, people who only know about their era and nothing before it, should probably NOT be having "GOAT" conversations... cause in order to speak on "all-time", you gotta acknowledge "all-time".

 

[old boy]

You named the biggest names in rock, plenty of kids who listen to rap have heard the names in this thread, but knowing the names versus really knowing their music and wanting to put them in goat conversations isn’t realistic. Especially given how different that era of rap sounded vs the flows and sounds that popped off in 92-94 and beyond and then compare even mid 90’s to how music sounds today...what exactly are y’all hoping for from kids? They know those are forefathers of rap, and they keep it moving. No need to front like they’re into that music or sound. Most of them couldn’t even stay relevant through 94, There’s a reason that only LL made the jump across eras.

actually no i wouldn't expect a teenager to put an 80s or 90s rapper in a goat conversation, that would be unrealistic


i would however expect a kid to know that pac and biggie are not the forefathers of rap that was my point, bless his heart though i laughed

 

[mobbinfms]

I love them both and I hate you always make me shyt on the Mobb to big up Kast.

Should we pull up the stats?
Nah. That wouldn’t be fair to Kast

 

[FreshAIG]

I think the 80s is still acknowledged

It's that 1990-1993 era that kinda just get tossed to the side besides The Chronic, Snoop and Wu Tang you would think that era never existed

But Buckshot, Redman, Grand Puba, Onyx, Boogie Down Productions, Naughty By Nature, Tribe, Public Enemy, Lord Finesse, X-Clan, Geto Boyz, De La, Organized Konfusion, Black Sheep, Nice and Smooth, Cypress Hill, Das Efx, Showbiz and AG, CL Smooth and Pete Rock, Gangstarr, Diamond D, Compton's Most Wanted, and many other groups and rappers were dropping nothing but fire. So much great rap music came out that pocket but everyone acts like rap went from 1988 and skipped over to 1994 when gangster rap boomed.

I'm do a documentary on that specific era.

 

[Wild self]

As time goes on rappers like Rakim, Cube, Kane, LL Cool J, G Rap, Chuck D, and KRS get no love in the goat talk. Some of the biggest contributors to the culture no longer get love as time goes on. Soon that late 80s era will be totally forgotten. Hip hop will begin with 2pac and Biggie then go from there. I think other rappers and crews in-between will start to get lost in the sauce as well. Do dudes really remember how dope Redman used be? When people talk about the best group they rarely mention A tribe called quest...it's always OutKast.

Cause these booth heads hated the pro black message in Hip Hop pre 94 and hate those MCs that demonstrated God-tier level of lyricism.

Put them onto Public Enemy's first 4 albums and they will cry for their favorite corporate DJ and their favorite mumbling simp trap rapper.