Remember the Time
Way before the beefs, the shootings, the cookie-cutter singles and corporate influence, Hip-Hop music had always been an important part of people's lives partly because of the way it made them feel. You would never believe it with today's music, but once upon a time, Hip-Hop music was used as a source of inspiration. There are some songs that make you go back to a time or period in your life when things were all good. I remember my female cousins losing their minds when Salt-n-Pepa came on the radio or TV. Songs like "Tramp"; "I'll Take your Man" and "Independent Woman" inspired them in different ways, obviously. For me, "Ego Trip" by The Ultramagnetic MCs, "You Gots to Chill" by EPMD (High School); "One for All" and "Wake Up" by Brand Nubian (my Ohio State days); "They Reminisce Over You" by Pete Rock and CL Smooth; B.I.G.'s song "Hypnotized" and "Lex Coups Beemers and the Benz" by the Lost Boyz (these songs came out during my most memorable years at Morgan) were the songs that take me back to a time when my life was good. Songs like "Who Got the Props" by Black Moon; "Where My Homies" by Ill Al Scratch; "They Want EFX" by Das EFX remind me of the days when me and my friends used to be heavy into our mixtape "exclusives". The songs from the "Bad Boy Era" like "Flavor in Your Ear" by Craig Mack; "Juicy" and "Unbelievable" by B.I.G.; "C.R.E.A.M." by Wu-Tang; "Dead Presidents" by Jay-Z and "NY State of Mind" by Nas remind of when the East started to get relevant again after Cali had the game smashed. My pro-Black side was serviced by the music of PE, X-Clan (R.I.P. Prof. X), Paris, Common, Ice Cube and KRS-One.
You hear professional ball players say the listening to Hip-Hop helps them prepare to play their games. Lauryn Hill inspired millions of females with her solo disc, "The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill." In some ways I'm sure the eclectic styles of Andre' 3000 and Kanye West have inspired a legion of people to do what makes them happy regardless of what others may think. Our question to you this week comes two-fold:
What are the Hip-Hop songs that remind you of the "good ole days?"
Is there any Hip-Hop music out here today that has inspired you in any way?
May 15, 2006
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1 comment:
Man, I remember banging Nine(how many remeber him) and Smooth the Hustler (the joint with him and his brother trigger going back and forth is a classic, in my opinion). I was speaking with my brother 'OS and talking to him about the music nowadays and how the radio doesn't even allow me to FEEL music anymore. You get joints from websites, remixes from underground djs, and burned cds and that is beginning to encompass a lot of people's collections. man, Hip Hop is definitely not the way it used to be. I find myself searching for old (f*ck that, CLASSIC) R&B: Al green, Shalamar, New Edition (with and without B squared), Tempatations, The Five Heartbeats sountrack (yeah, what!) Chaka Khan, Stephanie "big head-onionbooty" Mills, Junior (Mama used to say, take your time young man. . .) DeBarge, Rockwell(true one hit wonder!). . .Damn, the list can go on and on. Don't get me wrong, even music that I rock has that element of bang, bang, shoot 'em up in it, but i find my old 31 "soul" getting back to the real basics! This is LDB (Boogs) having problems signing in but like Double T, I will get through. . .
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