Newsgroups: rec.music.hip-hop
Subject: Re: growing old
Date: Thu, 15 Aug 1996 12:43:32 -0400
From: Rhome Anderson (rhome@wam.umd.edu)

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This has been a disturbing feeling the past few years (hitting 21 in a week). The burial of hip-hop icons and milestones is something I've noticed more and more. Peep some ill experiences I've had:

1... meeting people who thought Midnight Marauders was Quest's 1st joint.
2... playing the Loud Hangover rmx w/Yvette Michelle at a club, girl was really feeling it and asked who it was. I was like "Akinyele, Sadat X, you know Brand Nubian right?" She had no knowledge of Brand Nubian but sure could jock Heltah Skeltah, AZ, and Nas for weeks.
3... Playing "Check The Rhyme" and The "Scenario"rmx. and people not knowing either song. (see 1st comment)
4... People thinking It Was Written is Nas' 1st joint. Those who might know Illmatic have no knowledge of "Live at the BBQ" or "Back to the Grill"
5... 18 yr. old girl I know made a tape of 1989-91 cuts and labeled it "Old School Tape"
6... Kids that call themselves die-hard Quest fans and don't know Q-Tip first appeared on "The Promo" (too nitpicky here? Maybe but it's important to me)
7... Kids that think Juice was the first real hip-hop movie, show them Wild Style, they see Fab 5 Freddy and be like "Oh Damn! The MTV guy!"
8... Kids That don't know where the refrain from Busta's "Woo-Hah!" came from.
9... Kids that think KRS stole Total's beat, Slick Rick stole Montell Jordan's, EPMD stole Jay-Z's and Kriss Kross', etc. etc. that "jack a classic beat and get over because these kids don't know any better" shit is getting out of control. That new Real Live shit "get Down for Mines" or whatever. Why doesn't someone just buy the whole EPMD catalog? I digress... See "ooh Ohh Baby Baby" -De La Soul

While some of the ignorance may be extreme due to contact with some of the Frederick, MD natives where I have to stay for the summer, I run into similar, milder(but no less surprising) shit like this all the time. What will the new generation be like? My hip-hop moments revolve around seeing Run-DMC live for the first time, "Where were you when you first heard Criminal Minded?", trying to do a report in the library in 8th grade but unable to concentrate due to mind-blowing 1st time listen of 3ft High and Rising in my headphones. Will their hip-hop timeline be defined by Wu-Tang, Snoop and Biggie's 1st releases? Is this what they're being molded by?

For the young really talented lyricists I meet, they almost always claim Hiero as their strongest influence and sound like 'em too. Us older folk that rhyme might most likely say Kane, Kool G. or Rakim.

I am unraveling and starting to babble, I was going to get into old-school memories but I'll save it for another strand if it hasn't been done already.

-Stylus

TILLBAKA.