I was having a conversation with a friend about Hip Hop, specifically about Lyricism. He was explaining to me how Saigon was one of the best to ever bless the mic. I agreed with him but stated that Saigon, and in turn any lyricist that ever decides to include any complex wordplay (metaphors, multisyllabic rhymes, etc) owes it to Rakim, the greatest to ever touch a microphone. This is where the problem began.
He told me that this is wrong, and that in turn Rakim did not influence Saigon. In fact Rakim did not bring anything new to the table that was not already there (citing Nas' "No Idea's Original") and that in turn Rakim is irrelevant. This is wrong people.
While it is true that the ideas themselves (metaphors, multisyllabic rhymes, etc) are not anything new whatsoever, the fact that Rakim brought them to the artform of Hip Hop WAS new when he came onto the scene. He essentially created the form of Hip Hop that is THE MOST RESPECTED.
Back to this idea that Rakim is irrelevant. He said this because he stated that "the past is irrelevant". How is this so? The past has created the present reality we live in and combines with it to influence the future as we speak. We must respect and learn from the past or we're doomed to repeat the mistakes made in the past. It's simple, there's nothing complex to it. Everything around us, from buildings, houses, music, television, etc has been created by dead people or to be more correct people in the past. The damn language we use is influenced by the past & our history. You are entitled to like or dislike anything, that is your prerogative as a human being, but to label the past as irrelevant is as backwards as the word itself. Especially when the art form YOU love was created by the man you are calling irrelevant.
He created political songs to express the views of many people, he took his craft from his basement and made a name for himself, he created new ways to lyrically brag about yourself, HE IS HIP HOP. And yes, because he brought these different things to the forefront at a time when NO ONE was doing it, he is the greatest. No one has done it better than him, like him yes (see NaS) but greater than him? Nah.
Next time you wanna say "No Idea's Original" finish what NaS said and understand it. "No Idea's Original, there's nothing new under the sun, IT'S NEVER WHAT YOU DO BUT HOW IT'S DONE." Real talk. It's never what you do, but how it's done. Rakim created the blueprint and did it so good no one has created one that's better yet. That alone proves the past is completely relevant today. Ya dig?
1 hunnit
-The Black Sunn
5 days ago
