13 year-old kids dictate the direction of hip-hop culture now

[GangstaBoogy]

hip hop is mostly a club culture thing now

yeah and i got a problem with that

[SGV]

Hip Hop is only entertainment for you, Shallow. But thats because you're NOT Hip Hop. It IS a culture to many people. Shit! It's soon to be a Religion, thanks to KRS-One. Graffing, Emceeing, Breaking, Popping, DeeJaying, Beatboxing etc. is ALL apart of the culture, making up Hip Hop. Hip Hop is a way of living. It's more than just wearing Sean John and listening to Rakim, it's the way you think, act, etc.

Hip Hop has ALWAYS been a Club culture. When they weren't in the parks, where were they? In the clubs! Look at the "Rappers Delight" video... Where were they? The CLUB! The only difference is, when WE (Being the Mid to Late 80s kids) were coming up we were stuck in Gangsta Rap mania and the music was not very geared toward Clubs or Partying.

People these days are too lazy to peep the history. I would think Rock is garbage if I never peeped out The Doors, Hendrix or people of the sort. I would think R & B is garbage if I never peeped out EWF, Mary Wells etc. Even though I started listening to Hip Hop at the end of the 80s, I still checked out the Grandmaster Flash's, the Ice-T's, the Mixmaster Spade's etc. How can you rep something without knowing it's history?

[Shallow]

Hip Hop is only entertainment for you, Shallow. But thats because you're NOT Hip Hop. It IS a culture to many people. Shit! It's soon to be a Religion, thanks to KRS-One. Graffing, Emceeing, Breaking, Popping, DeeJaying, Beatboxing etc. is ALL apart of the culture, making up Hip Hop. Hip Hop is a way of living. It's more than just wearing Sean John and listening to Rakim, it's the way you think, act, etc.

Hip Hop has ALWAYS been a Club culture. When they weren't in the parks, where were they? In the clubs! Look at the "Rappers Delight" video... Where were they? The CLUB! The only difference is, when WE (Being the Mid to Late 80s kids) were coming up we were stuck in Gangsta Rap mania and the music was not very geared toward Clubs or Partying.

People these days are too lazy to peep the history. I would think Rock is garbage if I never peeped out The Doors, Hendrix or people of the sort. I would think R & B is garbage if I never peeped out EWF, Mary Wells etc. Even though I started listening to Hip Hop at the end of the 80s, I still checked out the Grandmaster Flash's, the Ice-T's, the Mixmaster Spade's etc. How can you rep something without knowing it's history?

Okay, so do you consider, Punk, Heavy Metal, Folk, Country Western, and the Blues culture's as well? If hip hop is a culture then the hippies of the 60s were an entire civilization of there own, and not just Americans with distorted minds.

And don't talk to me like I don't know the history. You speak like I don't know anyone before Eminem, or 50. I know plenty of the history of hip hip, from it's 70s undeground in the streets of New York period, to it's mainstream crossover of the 80s. Could I write a book about it with research? No, but I doubt you could either. Just because I would rather listen to other genres doesn't mean I don't know about hip hop. It's all Rock n Roll to me. Chuck D agrees with me on that.

[white Boy]

shallow dropping knowledge

[SGV]

Punk is a culture, Country Western is a culture. There's more to those than music. KRS-One would agree with me on that.

[Shallow]

Punk is a culture, Country Western is a culture. There's more to those than music. KRS-One would agree with me on that.

America is a culture, and that can be broken into north and south, like it's always been. I look at a culture as a complete way of life. Something that can be depended on to live every aspect of life. You can live as an American and survive based on things, and only things, that have been created by the American culture, which ever race it comes from. This inclues food. Other parts would be, as mentioned before, economy, education, religion, philosophy. Hip hop is not complete in these things, and neither is Punk, or Country. They are all just subdivisions of a full culture. You could argue that the American City is a culture, or that the South is a culture. But both these fall under the full American Culture that has a distinct way of seeing things. Does this mean that all Americans are the same, or that all cities are the same? No, but there are enough similarities and customs that are unique to America, more or less, to have them fall under one main culture. Got to New York, Chicago, Dalllas, and Detroit, and you'll find the day to day life of most isn't too different. They all speak the same laguage, all had the same type of schooling, depending on how far they went. They all have the same major types of food that are present thanks to franchising. They all watch the same TV channels. Go to Tokyo, or Athens and you'll see a difference. (of course one could argue that the differences between a southerner, and northern yankee are completely different, except for the major cities in the South.)

Aside from a sideways hat, pants that are too low and some broken English, you won't be able to tell the difference between a hip hop fan in New York, and a kid from New York that doesn't listen to music at all, but goes to the same school, eats the same food, and watches the same TV. Take that hip hop kid from New York and put him in a formal environment like a church or a wedding and he won't be any different from the other kid in New York because they both come from the same culture that teaches the same edicate for formal situations. Now take a kid from Manitoba Canada, or a Native from Cocopah Tribe of Arizona and put them in the same environemt as the two new york kids and you'll know with in seconds that these kids are not from the some place, race not included. If you took a black kid fom New York and raised him in Manitoba he'd be nothing like other New York blacks, and if you took a white from New York and raised him in the Arizona reseveration he'd be nothing like a white kid from New York. Why because they'd be raised in a completely different culture, rather than the same culture but from different sub-divisions. Listen to N.Y. State of Mind by Nas, and then Jungle Land by Bruce Springsteen and you'll see a the same portrait of the same way of life painted by both artists, obviously not the same story, but a similar view on the world. These songs are 20 years apart, one is rap and one is 70s rock. One is from a poor black kid from New York, the other is from a poor white kid from Jersey. Why do they talk about the same way of like, the streets, in a poetic way? Because they grew up in the same culture more or less. They were from different eras and those differences may pop up, but the general tone is the same. If they were truly from different cultures the simlarities would not be there.

[SGV]

I'll take a kid from my school as an example. Matt. We went to school together from Junior High until we Graduated. Both had the same friends. Both of us Latino. Both of us came up in the same area, no more than 5 minutes from each other. Both had a mother and father. Both of us were the younger brother. Very similar right?

We both were submerged in music and let it influence us more so than anything. His Rock influence took him down a much different path than my Hip Hop influence. He was very immature, couldn't hold a conversation. He was very heavy into drugs and would stay home playing his Bass guitar.  I was more mature, held conversations with everyone. Only drank and smoked a little weed. Enjoyed going out and partying.

Am I saying that Rock made him that way? No. But, we were VERY different in many areas outside of speech and dress. We both came from the same background/Racial cutlure, but he went one way, I went another.

Im sure the same can be said about kids anywhere. If they're as passionate about music as we were, then you can see there difference. The crooked hat and pants below the ass is NOT the epitome of Hip Hop culture, which is why I don't think you're Hip Hop in the slightest. Thats the "mainstream" image that we know. But look at KRS, look at Cube, look at Run!!! None of them dress that way. Yes, they may have at one point, but thats only when it was "in." They still embody what Hip Hop Culture is today.

[C-Swift]

hip hop is mostly a club culture thing now

yeah and i got a problem with that

So do I, I hate the fact hip-hop is about mass media and not music

[Thuglife]

Get the fuck outta here!
13 yr olds running the indutry, thats some bullshit right there

[Shallow]

I'll take a kid from my school as an example. Matt. We went to school together from Junior High until we Graduated. Both had the same friends. Both of us Latino. Both of us came up in the same area, no more than 5 minutes from each other. Both had a mother and father. Both of us were the younger brother. Very similar right?

We both were submerged in music and let it influence us more so than anything. His Rock influence took him down a much different path than my Hip Hop influence. He was very immature, couldn't hold a conversation. He was very heavy into drugs and would stay home playing his Bass guitar.  I was more mature, held conversations with everyone. Only drank and smoked a little weed. Enjoyed going out and partying.

Am I saying that Rock made him that way? No. But, we were VERY different in many areas outside of speech and dress. We both came from the same background/Racial cutlure, but he went one way, I went another.

Im sure the same can be said about kids anywhere. If they're as passionate about music as we were, then you can see there difference. The crooked hat and pants below the ass is NOT the epitome of Hip Hop culture, which is why I don't think you're Hip Hop in the slightest. Thats the "mainstream" image that we know. But look at KRS, look at Cube, look at Run!!! None of them dress that way. Yes, they may have at one point, but thats only when it was "in." They still embody what Hip Hop Culture is today.

Are you sure it wasn't the drugs that made him start acting stupid? Particularly if they were heavy drugs. Also it was the type of person he is. If you listened to Rock instead Rap don't you think most of your characteristics would be more or less the same, as far as intelligence, and edicate are concerned? Rap has just as many drugs and stupidness as Rock, but you didn't fall victim to it, much like you probably wouldn't with Rock.

KRS ONE is a grown man, so are the other two. You picked 3 very distinct adults that left behind they're childhood. Look at Mobb Deep, Fat Joe, Eminem, 50, Jay Z up until very recently. These are all grown men that for the most opart still dress like teenagers. I live in Toronto and I see a whole bunch of kids dressing that way. I visited New York and saw the same. I see it on the street way more than I see it on TV. I'm not going to further the sideways hat, low pants thing anymore because it was a joke. I still think it looks stupid.

[Shawn Nutt]

99% of the msuic I listen to is gangsta-rap, and I act like a total idiot at school and everywhere else. I'm one of the most immature people at my school, easily. But I wear G-Unit Sneakers and sagging pants. I don't try to act like a gangsta, but I dress like one. I don't talk like a gangsta, but I listen to the music. I don't do anything that would be considered "black", but I still have the knowledge of hip-hop culture and street mantality. I've never tried any drugs, but I know all the slang. It's not the music that changes you, it's the opinion of the person who's representing it.

[Machiavelli]

Im 14 and I own around 300 rap cds. Most people my age are clueless to what real hip-hop is...Its pretty sad.

[SGV]

He acted that way prior to the drugs and he always listened to Rock. He parents were lax, much like mine. As far as intelligence and edicate go, we had different influences at the time. He wanted to be a Revolutionary like Rage Against The Machine. I was more into Ras Kass, Chino XL and people of that sort. I was becoming more mature, he was carrying "Free Mumia" Papers, not knowing SHIT about Mumia.

I wouldn't say ANY of these dudes dress like Teenagers. THEY start the trends and THEN Teenagers follow. Example? The Button Up craze. That is FAR from a Teenage-style of Dress. But they WILL dress that way if Jay-Z or someone of the sort makes it a trend.

[Thuglife]

If your not a gangsta why are you frontin like one

[Shallow]

He acted that way prior to the drugs and he always listened to Rock. He parents were lax, much like mine. As far as intelligence and edicate go, we had different influences at the time. He wanted to be a Revolutionary like Rage Against The Machine. I was more into Ras Kass, Chino XL and people of that sort. I was becoming more mature, he was carrying "Free Mumia" Papers, not knowing SHIT about Mumia.

I wouldn't say ANY of these dudes dress like Teenagers. THEY start the trends and THEN Teenagers follow. Example? The Button Up craze. That is FAR from a Teenage-style of Dress. But they WILL dress that way if Jay-Z or someone of the sort makes it a trend.

So then he's just a dumb kid. That has nothing to do with the "culture" he chose to listen to. Like I said, if you listened to Rage instead of Rass Kass you'd probably be the same calibre human being you are now. You'd still drink, and go to parties, but you'd know your limit. You'd still listen to music a lot. You'd still go or have gone to the same school. You'd still eat the same food. You'd still pray to the same God (if you're religious). You'd still speak the same laguage. Why? Because you'd still be part of the same culture. Which is American, and Latino, not hip hop. If someone asks you what your culture is, would you truly respond by saying "I'm , latino, american, and hip hop"? By that token Lebron James could say his culture is Basketball. "Hey Jim Carrey, what's your culture?", "Comedy". Does that sound reasonable to you? because it doesn't to me.

As for the dressing like teenagers. I don't mean they dress like today's teenagers (even though they do). I mean they dress like they're still teenagers. The sideways hat and low jeans go a long way back. THis is how they dressed back then. Sometimes you just have to grow up and some people just don't. Look at the tape of Pac and Suge beating up the guy in the night club. These are bunch of guys between 26 and 40. They are businessmen, and millionaires, and they are getting into brawls. Don't tell me this isn't teenage behaviour. Could you imagine Tony Danza, Scott Baio, and John Stamos back in the late 80s beating the shit out of a guy in a lobby? How about Denzel Washington, and Sydney Poitier roughing up some punk that pissed them off? There are boys and then there are men. Boys are stupid, and men aren't.