As a teenager, I used to stay up late and write record reviews. I wanted to be a writer for Rolling Stone so bad that I wrote the magazine and asked for a job (declined). I quit writing about music, turning to other topics and styles as this site clearly attests. But I did not quit listening to music. As a kid and young adult, I certainly knew about hip hop. I knew about Public Enemy's unapologetic Black Power, the Beastie Boys' sonic experiments, the accessible dance hop of Kid 'n' Play, and the pearl-clutching controversy over the Geto Boys. Anyone who listened to punk rock back then could recite the attacks of censorship minded politicians against the Dead Kennedys. When the same politicians targeted folks on the other side of the musical bins like Luther Campbell and 2 Live Crew, DK fans made connections and concluded something monolithic and generational and dirty (not in the fun way) was afoot.
I spent my youth earning my bones by listening to punk rock classics like the Subhumans, the Misfits, and the aforementioned Dead Kennedys. Conversely, I was (and am) also the number one fan of the band U2. I did not listen to hip hop because I lacked MTV or friends who did. In my late 20s, though, I accidentally discovered no one had disconnected the cable connection in the house I rented and, in my exploration of early piracy, I found MTV2, a channel that focused in those days on rap and heavy metal. Basically, I found my musical promised land. Mesmerized by all the new, my family seriously considered an intervention because all I did was watch videos for weeks. Since then, most of the time I am listening to music, it is rap. I love it for a number of reasons and also take issue with some of the stances and themes that are consistently presented. I think about it a lot. The words that run through my head when I am thinking are striking in their similarity to those midnight record reviews. So even though there are a lot of people who are more well-versed or connected or eloquent about this music, I decided writing about it would be a lot of fun.
I spent my youth earning my bones by listening to punk rock classics like the Subhumans, the Misfits, and the aforementioned Dead Kennedys. Conversely, I was (and am) also the number one fan of the band U2. I did not listen to hip hop because I lacked MTV or friends who did. In my late 20s, though, I accidentally discovered no one had disconnected the cable connection in the house I rented and, in my exploration of early piracy, I found MTV2, a channel that focused in those days on rap and heavy metal. Basically, I found my musical promised land. Mesmerized by all the new, my family seriously considered an intervention because all I did was watch videos for weeks. Since then, most of the time I am listening to music, it is rap. I love it for a number of reasons and also take issue with some of the stances and themes that are consistently presented. I think about it a lot. The words that run through my head when I am thinking are striking in their similarity to those midnight record reviews. So even though there are a lot of people who are more well-versed or connected or eloquent about this music, I decided writing about it would be a lot of fun.