Do not bootleg/download the new Xzibit, come in here let me convince you

[Narrator]

Um actually Cube's album had a major impact on hip hop.  To the point where Forbes magazine had a huge write up on him and his latest album.  I don't think you are looking at the big picture.  This is showing hip hoppers that they can go independent and still move units/make alot of cash.  Alot of people have been going independent but not any of them have hit gold in this day and age.  For a time when no one is selling period, to see a guy on an independent go gold is crazy. 

Nope, if you believe that you're being idealistic.  Cube went Gold because has a huge fan base who were going to buy the album provided it was good and being hyped enough.  It's not like the album produced any hits or anything.  Cube simply made a good business choice...he had a good idea of how many fans he had and how much he could sell, and he decided to put the album out himself so that he could get all of the $$$$ instead of giving most of it to the label.

But don't get it twisted...just cause Cube did it doesn't mean ANYONE can do it.  This is the kinda thing you're almost certainly never gonna see again in the future.

Ice Cube does more then just talk about westcoast thug life shit...did you listen to his album at all?  Xzibit's new album has a number of issues he speaks on that dont fall under the thug life in the west title you gave him.

It doesn't matter...the classification for their music is still "West Coast gangsta/hardcore rap", is it not?  Do we not have enough of that kind of music already?  The fact that there's a little bit of diversity in subject matter doesn't amount to much.  At the end of the day, Cube and X are still making basically the same style of music that has been made by the West for the past 20 years now, and that isn't really contributing anything new or innovative to hip-hop.

[djkoast]

Nope, if you believe that you're being idealistic.  Cube went Gold because has a huge fan base who were going to buy the album provided it was good and being hyped enough.  It's not like the album produced any hits or anything.  Cube simply made a good business choice...he had a good idea of how many fans he had and how much he could sell, and he decided to put the album out himself so that he could get all of the $$$$ instead of giving most of it to the label.

Um ya it did.  It proved to hip hop that if you have a core fan base you don't need a major label if you work hard and push your own product.  Guys like Method Man, Redman,  Nas, etc could benefit from it.  I am sure are afraid they won't make money but Cube proved otherwise.

Where do you live?  Cuz 'Go to Church' was pretty big in the clubs and 'Why We Thugs' got heavy rotation on LA radio/BET/MTV

But don't get it twisted...just cause Cube did it doesn't mean ANYONE can do it.  This is the kinda thing you're almost certainly never gonna see again in the future.

True, not anyone can do it.  Only vets who have a solid fan base like the people mentioned above.  Guys like Method Man could do it if they wanted to work hard at promoting themselves.

It doesn't matter...the classification for their music is still "West Coast gangsta/hardcore rap", is it not?  Do we not have enough of that kind of music already?  The fact that there's a little bit of diversity in subject matter doesn't amount to much.  At the end of the day, Cube and X are still making basically the same style of music that has been made by the West for the past 20 years now, and that isn't really contributing anything new or innovative to hip-hop.

I am sorry but just because the classification for their music falls under that doesn't mean that is the only thing they talk about.  That somewhat corny to even bring up.  Do we not have enough of that?  I wish we had more Laugh Now Cry Later albums coming out of the westcoast.  I am looking forward to Snoop's "west coast gangsta/hard rap" Blue Carpet treatment.

The last part is like you saying 'Nas isnt really contributing anything new to hip hop, he is still rhyming about stuff Rakim did almost 20 years ago'  I mean Dilated has been making the same kind of music that we heard from people like Native Tongues all the years ago.  Of course westcoast hip hop is going to talk about westcoast  things.   Of course Snoop is going to talk about Long Beach and Xzibit is going to talk about esses.

[d-nice]

You guys both have good points. X and Cube have been known to make "Gangsta Rap" in their music but is that to say you cannot make other types of songs and you stick to that? I could care less about where you want to put a artist category wise, as long as they are speaking about something that matters that in itself shows they are not a 1 dimensional artist. Do I think Cube's success as a indie was big? For the west coast it is, but the general public will look at it as he is supposed to succeed with all that movie money. The artist that actually go gold on Koch or other indies is slim at best. Where Cube made it work for him is he signed a A&R/Promotional firm to help with promotion. Also he had help from his distributor. If anything Cube laid down the blueprint. But all this "classify a artist" talk is why we can't get anywhere. We are right back to where we started. Gangsta rap gets the nod over backpack rap. Xzibit helped to bridge that alot. We need to support the real hip hop, gangsta or backpack or whatever.

[djkoast]

You guys both have good points. X and Cube have been known to make "Gangsta Rap" in their music but is that to say you cannot make other types of songs and you stick to that? I could care less about where you want to put a artist category wise, as long as they are speaking about something that matters that in itself shows they are not a 1 dimensional artist. Do I think Cube's success as a indie was big? For the west coast it is, but the general public will look at it as he is supposed to succeed with all that movie money. The artist had actually go gold on Koch or other indies is slim at best. Where Cube made it work for him is he signed a A&R/Promotional firm to help with promotion. Also he had help from his distributor. If anything Cube laid down the blueprint. But all this "classify a artist" talk is why we can't get anywhere. We are right back to where we started. Gangsta rap gets the nod over backpack rap. Xzibit helped to bridge that alot. We need to support the real hip hop, gangsta or backback or whatever.

Co-sign

That is what I am saying.  Just because the general public paints it as just 'gangsta rap' doesn't mean the only thing they talk about is banging on wax and shooting fools.  Everything in this country needs a simple label for consumers but alot of those are not dead on.  Immortal Technique falls under 'backpack rap' but has just as much 'gangsta shit' in his music as Cube or Xzibit.

Cube made it work by being in control of his own product.  Sure he has a great movie career and is a star.  Xzibit has a film career and Method Man has been in a number of movies also.  So they can help use that to translate back to music.  Most people go the opposite route and use Hip Hop to get intot he movies.  Cube hustled with music and got into movies and then it working the system the other way and using his star power to put out his records independent.  Both have core fanbases that will support them...as you can see by this very thread.

We need to support good music and fucka 'westcoast gangsta music' label fareal because that is not the only thing they talk about.  Being raised in LA and living in Southern California my whole life gangs are very much apart of the area and that is why it comes up.  Same reason why the beach and marijuana we have is always mentioned.

[d-nice]

I like what Cube and X and even DPG to a point are doing on the indie tip. I also want to see some young mcs succeed in the game. Glasses, SAS, Bishop, even Game. The more success across the board we have, the better it is as a whole for the west. Look what E-40 has been able to do in the Bay.

[blockstar]

lol any nigga that dont hear the album these days before buying is a dumbass. the industry is flooded with so much garbage. this cd is solid tho. I DID download it and I WILL buy it.

[WestCoasta]

this cd is good, but I was forcing myself to listen to it...


rather than a great cd which carries you through because you wanna keep listening


only problem with this is the repetitive Jelly Roll beats...

[acgrundy]

I've bought 3 X albums and the SAS dvd, not to mention all the people I've introduced X to and they bought an album.  I have done my fair share of supporting Xzibit.  I won't buy this one.  I'm listening to it right now for the first time and its really not all that good, I expected much better.  I can't see myself listening to this more than 3 times, so definately not worth buying.

[Narrator]

Um ya it did.  It proved to hip hop that if you have a core fan base you don't need a major label if you work hard and push your own product.  Guys like Method Man, Redman,  Nas, etc could benefit from it.  I am sure are afraid they won't make money but Cube proved otherwise.

No, it proves that if you have a BIG core fan base, you can benefit from it.  But it's probably a safe bet that if you can't push Gold sales on a major label (which Method Man has shown he can't), you aren't going to move a whole lot more (if ANY more) units going the independent route.  Nas and Cube have consistently sold Gold or better with every release, so yeah, it's a fair bet that the independent route is good for them provided they know how to market themselves and make good business decisions (here, Nas has proven less competent compared to Cube).

Where do you live?  Cuz 'Go to Church' was pretty big in the clubs and 'Why We Thugs' got heavy rotation on LA radio/BET/MTV

I live in the Dirty-Dirty.  I think "Go To Church" got some rotation here (cause Southern niggas will always give you a spin if you got Lil Jon on the track), but "Why We Thugs" most definitely did not.

Not to mention that I don't remember seeing either of those songs make a dent on the Billboard charts, which doesn't necesarily mean nobody was bumpin them, just that it was probably Cube fans more than anything else.

True, not anyone can do it.  Only vets who have a solid fan base like the people mentioned above.  Guys like Method Man could do it if they wanted to work hard at promoting themselves.

I'm sorry to say, Method Man is not one of them cats I think could do it.

I am sorry but just because the classification for their music falls under that doesn't mean that is the only thing they talk about.  That somewhat corny to even bring up.  Do we not have enough of that?  I wish we had more Laugh Now Cry Later albums coming out of the westcoast.  I am looking forward to Snoop's "west coast gangsta/hard rap" Blue Carpet treatment.

I'm sorry to say it, but I honestly don't look forward to any more "Laugh Now, Cry Later" or "Blue Carpet Treatment"-type albums coming from anybody except Cube and Snoop.  I'm much more interested in seeing new cats who are more like Jurassic-5 or Murs or anyone of the sort.  The West has been stuck on gangsta mode and almost universally refuses to support its "alternative"/conscious artists for almost 20 years now.  It's time to move on.  I'll always love the classic G-Funk records, but refusing to move past the gangsta mentality is the reason why the West fell off in the first place - it just kept putting out the same type of music again and again, and people outside of the West just got tired of it.

The last part is like you saying 'Nas isnt really contributing anything new to hip hop, he is still rhyming about stuff Rakim did almost 20 years ago'  I mean Dilated has been making the same kind of music that we heard from people like Native Tongues all the years ago.  Of course westcoast hip hop is going to talk about westcoast  things.   Of course Snoop is going to talk about Long Beach and Xzibit is going to talk about esses.

LOL, where did that Nas example come from?  Nas' music is consistently fresh (even when it's over-indulgent, like on "Street's Disciple") and creative.

The problem I have is how every new rapper to come out of L.A. always wants to claim he's a Crip or a Blood and brag about banging.  It's not like I have a problem with it per se, just the fact that it's just about the ONLY shit West Coast rappers talk about, and have been talking about for two decades straight now.  I mean, Chicago is known for its People/Folk rivalries, yet you don't here a zillion Chi-Town rappers calling out their sets all the time - there's far more diversity, from Kanye and Common to Twista and Do Or Die.

[djkoast]

No, it proves that if you have a BIG core fan base, you can benefit from it.  But it's probably a safe bet that if you can't push Gold sales on a major label (which Method Man has shown he can't), you aren't going to move a whole lot more (if ANY more) units going the independent route.  Nas and Cube have consistently sold Gold or better with every release, so yeah, it's a fair bet that the independent route is good for them provided they know how to market themselves and make good business decisions (here, Nas has proven less competent compared to Cube).

Method man does have a core fan base.  He sold 200k units with no video and no radio spins.  200k on an independent is good money.  Look at Cormega, he sells half that and is living much better then you and I.   Every Method Man album except the last one has gone platnium or gold.  Even his one before 4:21 went gold with very little promotion.  So, you are wrong in that regard.

I live in the Dirty-Dirty.  I think "Go To Church" got some rotation here (cause Southern niggas will always give you a spin if you got Lil Jon on the track), but "Why We Thugs" most definitely did not.

Go To Church is on hitsdailydouble.com as one of the top radio tracks DJs like to play.  So again, you are wrong in that regard.  Just because something is not a hit in your town doesn't mean its not a hit period.

Not to mention that I don't remember seeing either of those songs make a dent on the Billboard charts, which doesn't necesarily mean nobody was bumpin them, just that it was probably Cube fans more than anything else.

You should look again...

I'm sorry to say it, but I honestly don't look forward to any more "Laugh Now, Cry Later" or "Blue Carpet Treatment"-type albums coming from anybody except Cube and Snoop.  I'm much more interested in seeing new cats who are more like Jurassic-5 or Murs or anyone of the sort.  The West has been stuck on gangsta mode and almost universally refuses to support its "alternative"/conscious artists for almost 20 years now.  It's time to move on.  I'll always love the classic G-Funk records, but refusing to move past the gangsta mentality is the reason why the West fell off in the first place - it just kept putting out the same type of music again and again, and people outside of the West just got tired of it.

How are you speaking on the westcoast if you dont live out here?  Murs, Living Legends, J-5, Dilated Peoples, Planet Asia etc all get support.  If you went to any of their shows in California you would know that.  Dilated gets spins on Power106 anytime they put a single out.  The westcoast is buying those albums, its just that no one else is so thats why they stall at 40k-50k sold.

Although I do agree that alot of artists themselves are too stuck on what worked 10 years ago.

LOL, where did that Nas example come from?  Nas' music is consistently fresh (even when it's over-indulgent, like on "Street's Disciple") and creative.

Nas is rapping the same way he has since Illmatic is my point.  He hasn't switched it up very much other then he dropped the fake drug king pin ESCOBAR monkier.

The problem I have is how every new rapper to come out of L.A. always wants to claim he's a Crip or a Blood and brag about banging.  It's not like I have a problem with it per se, just the fact that it's just about the ONLY shit West Coast rappers talk about, and have been talking about for two decades straight now.  I mean, Chicago is known for its People/Folk rivalries, yet you don't here a zillion Chi-Town rappers calling out their sets all the time - there's far more diversity, from Kanye and Common to Twista and Do Or Die.

To me I also think that is corny but at the same time...alot of them have ties because they grew up in the hood.  I agree its too repetitive.  The other problem is that to people outside of Cali only call someone 'real' if they are backed by crips or bloods.  As you can see the rest of the US is still obsessed with Crips and Bloods.  There is blood sets in NYC!!  You have crips in DC.  Its crazy.

If we had a Kanye in LA pushing those other guys, someone who is super popular that could co-sign a piece of crap and get them attention, we would be more diverse to the public.  As far as diversity goes...there is not a more diverse region then the westcoast.  From hyphy to gangsta rap to underground to the djs to the political MCs....but if you dont follow westcoast hip hop closely they will fall through the crack for some crip or blood.  Not that I am shit talking on MCs who claim affiliation cuz I listen to alot of them, just saying.

[d-nice]

West coast rap is diverse. You can't get more diverse than the Bay. They have every kind of style you can think of. Just because people do not listen to a certain type of rap or it does not sell as well or you don't want to listen to it does not mean it does not exist. Method Man did go plat, 2x plat and gold on his 1st 3 albums, the new one will not sell but there are other reasons for that (jay z).

[djkoast]

BTW

Someone gave me a negative "prop" point for this thread...pretty funny. I was at 16 but now I am at 15.   I didn't realize Xzibit made people so mad.  That or my comments made a certain poster mad...

[da flayboyant 2]

BTW

Someone gave me a negative "prop" point for this thread...pretty funny. I was at 16 but now I am at 15.   I didn't realize Xzibit made people so mad.  That or my comments made a certain poster mad...

id diss you if i could, just for complaining

[djkoast]

BTW

Someone gave me a negative "prop" point for this thread...pretty funny. I was at 16 but now I am at 15.   I didn't realize Xzibit made people so mad.  That or my comments made a certain poster mad...

id diss you if i could, just for complaining

Why can't you diss me?  You can say whatever you want here.  I was pretty much laughing at the situation about doods being salty towards Xzibit.  If you think I am really that worried, I am not.

[da flayboyant 2]

BTW

Someone gave me a negative "prop" point for this thread...pretty funny. I was at 16 but now I am at 15.   I didn't realize Xzibit made people so mad.  That or my comments made a certain poster mad...

id diss you if i could, just for complaining

Why can't you diss me?  You can say whatever you want here.  I was pretty much laughing at the situation about doods being salty towards Xzibit.  If you think I am really that worried, I am not.

i dont have enough posts