Okay honestly from the reading it would seem as if the never ending feud between rappers is a vicious cycle that plays out and seemingly entertains the consumers of the hip hop world. However, I point the finger at the record labels and the major music corporation masterminds who stage and insinuate this hate that turns into blood shed. Hip hop has gone from being solely in black and white standards where a rapper had to be thuggin and hard on camera with golds in his mouth to now in this era rappers have become "pansies." To completly switch tactics, I found it quite interesting even with the opening sentence that hip-hop walks this thin line of ununsual an absurd. This line itself popped into my head artists like lil-wayne who prances across the line of rock and lyrical domination, or even the weeknd who is definetly on the grade of absurd. Yet I believe it is artists like The Weeknd (who I freaking love by the way) who show that you dont have to appear as a thug to be "hard." Even though the feud between artists were not the main highlight of the article it was a captivating aspect that every artists has to be in some sort of "BEEF" in order to be a "rapper"; for instance 50 cent v.s. The Gane, Biggie v.s. Tupac, Ice Cube (my boo) v.s. Easy E. and the list goes on.
2 comments I want to make in regards to this post
ReplyDelete1. I feel as though with all rap battles, whether it be 50 Cent vs. The Game or Biggie vs. TuPac what starts out as a solely professional and artistic competition becomes something dangerous in the hands of their "crew". Its not the actual artists, their entourage that takes these friendly competitions to a new level of absurdity. Its been said countless times that Biggie and TuPac actually respected each other, but people took the fight too far and it ultimately lead to the death of two of the most iconic hip-hop artists of all time.
2. I feel as though the hip hop community really needs to take a look in the mirror when it comes to how they want to portray themselves. Drake is (in my opinion) one of the best rappers of our generation. Yet, people and the industry itself are so easy to make fun of him because hes not talking about 'having hoes in different area codes', 'thug life' or being a hustler because that is not who Drake is. Because of this, people label him as soft, or not 'hard' enough to be respected in Hip Hop.
I agree 100 % and very well said. Hip hop has begun to label artists and its trully sad that artists have to put on this facade in order to be respected as a man and artist. Its uplifting however like you stated megan that Drake is one of the few who stays "real" and true to who he is. Even on Facebook they label Drake as being in his feelings when honestly he's just not conforming to the norm.
DeleteI also agree 100%. Not only do major record labels and music corporation masterminds instigate and set up beef between artists, but I also feel that the media and public play a large role as well. The media, as we know, likes to cause drama and make mountains out of molehills. A lot of beef, at least in today's hip hop, is blown way out of proportion by the media and and people who want to see something exciting happen. They're instigators and antagonizers who love drama and want to stir up confrontation with these top artists because they find it entertaining.
ReplyDeleteIt seems that some rappers are becoming less confrontational though and looking at things with more of a competitive point of view. Like Kendrick Lamar's 'Control' verse where he calls out a lot of rappers. Instead of all of these rappers getting angry and starting a beef, they took it more as a verse to try and make the rap game more competitive as if it were a sport.
I totally agree with you on this. Hip Hop is an industry of music that let out feelings. Beef is not necessarily due to the hate of another rapper, but a competition between lyricism.
DeleteIt is tradition that before an artist does mainstream, that they begin their process as an "underground artist". Here, artist are known to have rap battles against each other to see how has better rhymes.
I think beef has to do with something minor than what people are making it, and it is the media that take it out of proportion. Having a public beef with another artist is another way of getting more ratings and interest by listeners.
I agree with you both Tashana and Makana . In my opinion though, I believe that the components of a "rapper" is soley based upon great lyrics and personality . With the aid of a loyal fan base, productive advertisement, and a positive reputation rappers are built. These traits make a rapper rather than Beef. "Beef" existing between different artist doesn't determine the level of their talent and skills. I honestly believe if consumers and journalists were excluded such "beef" wouldn't even exist. The rapper's audience and the media are mostly responsible for the birth of feuds. Different rappers only feel the need to beef in response to the hype from their audience .
ReplyDeleteI agree with the belief that in the current state of rap/hip-hop, beef is mainly perpetuated by record labels, the media, and a devout fanbase. That being said, I believe that in the 90's beef was a more serious issue. The song "Whats Beef?" by The Notorious B.I.G.(http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=94bNyh6BBB0) makes it seem that beef was not something settled on tracks and that it was settled on the streets. With the decline of hardcore gangster rap coming into the new millenium, and further into the 2000's the idea of drive-by's and "real" beef has also declined..
ReplyDeleteIn regards to Kendrick's verse on control: I don't think that we can classify this as "beef" but rather as a diss-track type of verse, the only thing that Kendrick elicited from other rappers was another verse responding to the statement.
The Chorus from "Whats Beef"
-----What's beef? Beef is when you need 2 Gats to go to sleep
Beef is when your moms ain't safe up in the streets
Beef is when I see you
Guaranteed to be in ICU, one more time
What's beef? Beef is when you make your enemies start your Jeep
Beef is when you roll no less than 30 deep
Beef is when I see you
Guaranteed to be in ICU.
Hip-hop and any genre for that matter has turned into whatever can get the most publicity and record sales. These feuds fuel the fire to the audience looking up these artists and potentially stumbling across their music. Nowaday in rap you see more of a shift towards plot and a story being told rather than just a huge diss put to a best. Of course there are still those songs that are meant for telling someone off, but it is less relevant in today's hip-hop.
ReplyDeleteI agree in terms of Hip Hop labels creating feuds amongst rappers. I 100% agree with Marisa because it can merely be to sell more records and we all know that it gains publicity and popularity. The public likes a good fight and drama, so more people will be attracted. As well, the comment Jake makes has a great point. That song really shows how having a BEEF with someone can mean many different things. Some insinuate murder while others are mad over a split class of water.
ReplyDeleteJust as everyone else I believe the modern feuds are generated from labels. Egotistical raps are what creates room for other rappers to challenge the lyrics of another writer. Rap competitions and free style competitions have occurred for a long time. Those battles were not a label feud but a general competition to prove who is best at rapping. I think from there it escalated. As hip hop reached urban areas, violence was relevant to the music as well as the battles. Now that hip hop artists are earning more money than ever before, they are out of the ghetto. They live large and do not get into street drama. To appeal to the current urban youth, they have to fake it.
ReplyDeleteI agree with the idea that record companies are in part responsible for major feuds between rappers, but in my opinion most of the responsibility is in the hands of the media because they are the ones who manipulate certain situations in order to gain the interest of the consumer. Whether it is a magazine selling more copies or a website getting more views, it is evident that the primary beneficiary in these situations is the media. A great example of this is the controversy surrounding Kendrick Lamar’s verse on Big Sean’s Control (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JdcNoGmt7Ws), where Kendrick calls out various rappers in a way that to me seems more competitive than anything. However, the media has used this verse as an opportunity to create tension between Kendrick and some of the rappers he names. The reason why I bring this up is because it is a perfect example of how a song is getting more recognition than it would, which means the record companies might be getting more money. Also this is a perfect example of how the media can manipulate a situation in order to generate discussion, which eventually will provide them a bigger audience.
ReplyDeleteThe purpose of rap battles was to challenge rappers artistically to see who can spit harder. I think record labels do play a major role in rappers feuding but you cannot point fingers at them. People listen to artists they can relate to. For some people listening to artists who talks about thug life, hustling, having hoes, drugs is their preference. Drake does not talk about “thug life” simply because he was not a thug and would seem hypocritical. Drake does talks about getting bitches but not in all of his songs. Drake even had beef before. Healthy competition is good but I do believe the Tupac and biggie beef was blown way out of proportion. As of right now, beef between artists has not been in the level of intensity like tupac and biggie.
ReplyDeleteIn my opinion i think this rivalry thing is really good for rap. Obviously it can get dangerous sometimes when you get into actual fights and wars. But in terms of popularity, it really helps the game. By having people argue about two different songs or artists it forces them to listen to the music. Tons of times there is a lot of talk about rappers calling other rappers out which usually doesn't turn into anything to serious, just a sense of pride for the artist. Biggy and Tupac are obviously the example of the east west thing going bad, which ended in a shooting. Without this sense of battle who knows what rap would be like, it could easily be something completely different, with no meaning in its lyrics.
ReplyDeleteWhile I feel as though in the past record companies and their influence in the media, as well as the media itself, have played a major roll in blowing up beef for record sales at the expense of peace, I can't re-call hearing about any very recent beefs in which violence was a serious threat with big media attention. Maybe it's just me, but perhaps this is a reflection of society valuing such ridiculous posturing less, thereby allowing for less money to be made by promoting it and therefor causing there to be less of it. Or perhaps the current players in hip hop have learned from the past and know that a beef will only turn to senseless violence.
ReplyDeleteI would agree agree in the sense that rap does seem like "beef" is necessary, but I'm not sure record labels is the only factor to blame. I believe where a rappers from takes a bigger role in his/hers point of views and disagreements. Not to say that record labels don't play a major roll, but I don't believe they encourage confrontation either. We have to keep in mind all the record labels care about is $$$
ReplyDeleteI definitely agree with your post. I think that sometimes these "beefs" between two big-name rappers are often blown out of proportion by their fans, entourage, ect. This can lead to large amounts of bloodshed between the inner city gangs, taking sides of one of the rappers. I also think, especially in today's world, that lots of these "beefs" serve as a publicity stunt to help get their name out in the spotlight. It's amazing the lengths publicists, labels, ect will go to to get their clients talked about.
ReplyDeleteUnless you are a rapper or other major part of the hip hop industry I don't think we can really blame anyone for the beef and violence between artists. Also I believe that over the years the genre of Hip Hop has evolved into more of an umbrella term containing various styles that appeal to different audiences.
ReplyDelete