Hip Hop History Part 6: 1997 to 2000

Part 1 can be found here.
Part 2 can be found here.
Part 3 can be found here.
Part 4 can be found here.
Part 5 can be found here. 

Ah, the homestretch …

Hypnotize by The Notorious B.I.G. (1997). This is the capstones for Biggie’s career (along with his verse on the otherwise mediocre group track It’s All About the Benjamins in DeepCuts). The flow is immaculate, including the oft-cited dozen-plus internal rhymes in 5 lines in the first full verse. RIP.

Wayfarin’ Stranger by Spearhead (1997) & UMI Says by Mos Def (1999). Two totally idiosyncratic choice, but the mix of Michael Franti‘s ultrabass, Joan Osborne‘s voice, and the narrative skill is, for me, irresistible. It is also Spearhead at the peak of their powers: Franti would make a sort-of New Age turn after this, embracing peace and yoga, which while fantastic for him and his mental health and his state of being in the world, also reduced the impact of his music. That’s a complex issue, for sure. Mos Def‘s mother’s nickname is Umi, making an incredible song even sweeter.

Ruff Ryder’s Anthem by DMX (1998). DMX’s delivery and style are quintessential late 1990s hip hop, and point towards the extreme commercialization of the genre that is coming. He isn’t mentioned much today, but he was a dominant force, and remains firmly in various top ten lists of highest selling hip hop artists of all time.

He Got Game by Public Enemy (1998). The final great cut from PE, of note also is the incorporation of live contributions from Stephen Stills and the samples from Buffalo Springfield. It also has one of the few riffs by Flava Flav that is (almost) in complete sentences.

What It’s Like by Everlast (1998) and Love for Real by Everlast & N’Dea Davenport (2000). We’ve heard from Everlast before, as the leader of House of Pain, but here he starts a very strong run of albums (including the two represented here: 1998’s Whitey Ford Sings the Blues and 2000’s Eat At Whitey’s) that explore the overlap between acoustic blues and hip hop. If that sounds odd, check out Michael Franti‘s album Songs from the Front Porch from 2004, which contains acoustic versions of Spearhead favorites. With regards to these two songs, the first was major commercial hit, spurring another entry in the but, is it hip hop? debate; the second is a sweet sentiment, and also meant to honor all of the female vocalists who made hip hop collaborations a part of their career (Davenport worked extensively with Guru, among others).

Alphabet Aerobics by Blackalicious, Lateef the Truthspeaker & Cut Chemist (1999). One of the peak MC performances of all time, much imitated on YouTube (including one by Harry Potter Daniel Radcliffe), but never really matched. When at his best, Gift of Gab is a nearly unmatched lyrical force behind the mic.

1979 by Hilltop Hoods (1999). This probably belongs in the International section below, but it’s not because (a) Hilltop Hoods (represent, represent) are pretty incredible, led by the MC skills of Pressure and Suffa and (b) the song encapsulates a lot of complexity around the globalization of an art form. These are three Australian musicians talking about a longing for hip hop in 1979 (which, as you know, really wasn’t much) and inventing a nostalgia for a time they never knew nor ever had access to. That’s … oddly interesting.

Hip Hop by Dead Prez (2000). It’s not clear how Hip Hop became such a hit: hip hop groups as militant as Dead Prez get very marginal treatment, regardless of their skill (see Spearhead and The Coup for 2 examples). On most of the rest of the tracks on Let’s Get Free, the MC duo of M-1 and stic.man pull no punches, preaching a profoundly radical version of Afrocentric politics with clarity. This track focuses more on the music business itself, and perhaps that is what helped it spread more widely. Regardless, I’m glad it did.

Hello by Ice Cube, Dr. Dre & MC Ren (2000). An infectious beat, and a demand for respect for one’s elders direct from the foundation of west coast hip hop.

Ms. Jackson by OutKast (2000). 1998’s Aquemini started a run of creative brilliance for OutKast that is hard to match in hip hop. The difference here is the ability of André 3000 and Big Boi to keep moving, to keep evolving their sound. Such experimentation hits some false notes, for sure, but in a genre often quite content to just recycle the same beats with a few new lyrics, it stands out. Ms. Jackson proved it could succeed in the marketplace as well.

My Name Is (1999) and The Real Slim Shady (2000) by Eminem. And so it begins … an annoying hook and a series of staccato questions, and we are introduced to the maddeningly skilled and equally maddeningly adolescent Marshall Mathers. Eminem is, in one sense, the end of the first generation of hip hop: we culminate with a rapper who has undeniably mad lyrical skills. To what degree does that lead to his sales, and to what degree does his whiteness play a part? To what degree is his rampant misogyny an act (and an act that horrifyingly seems also to drive his sales) and to what degree should that matter? Welcome to hip hop in the 21st century, y’all.

The Spotify playlist is here: http://bit.ly/hiphophspva-6

DeepCuts

“Songs” appear in quotation marks, Albums in italics without quotations, and Artists in bold.

DeepCuts can be found here: http://bit.ly/hiphophspva-deep

#The International Scene

It all explodes.

MC Solaar is still hard at work, with “Daydreamin” from his hit album Paradisiaque and his appearance on Missy Elliott‘s “All N My Grill” exposing him much more broadly in the USA. But hip hop begins to be produced from all corners of the globe, and while much of it is incredibly derivative of hip hop in the USA, much of it is also just quite good. Examples:

• “Susanne zur Freiheit,” a sort-of all-German posse cut from Fischmob, Stieber Twins, Dendemann, Hausmarke & Smudo (1997);
• “Pose ton gun” by Suprême NTM (1998) who, along with IAM, came to dominate the more hardcore side of French hip hop. Also from France, Nemesis‘ “Elle Laisse Parler la Poudre” (1997).
• “Mundian to Bach Ke” by Panjabi MC (1999), illustrating just how seamless the fit is between some Indian traditions, especially bhangra, and hip hop.
• “Screems From De Old Plantation” by King Kapisi (1999). From New Zealand.
• “Nu Ma Schimbi” by Paraziti (1999). Austrian hip hop with flow.
• “Heruuks” by Fintelligens (2000). Finnish hip hop with even better flow, but after reading a translation of the lyrics, I wished I hadn’t. Misogyny is part of the export as well.
• “Siya Jola” by M’Du (1998) and “Uzoyithola Kanjani” by Mandoza (2000). Both are fusions with a South African genre called kwaito which melded quite naturally with hip hop.

#Alternative Hip Hop

Still hate the term.

The West Coast sees a bit of a renaissance with a loose alliance of related MCs and DJs that float among quite a few groups, including: Jurassic 5, Quanuum, Latryx, as well as solo efforts from Lyrics Born, Cut Chemist, Chali 2Na, Lateef the Truthspeaker, DJ Shadow, Gift of Gab. Some representative cuts (in addition to “Alphabet Aerobics” above, and expanding the timeframe a few years):

• Jurassic 5: “Concrete Schoolyard” (1998); “What’s Golden” (2002)
• Jurassic 5 & Quanuum MCs: “Concentration” (1999). This is perhaps the most brilliant group syncopation cut ever. Perhaps.
• Blackalicious: “Do This My Way” (1999), “Make You Feel That Way” (2002)
• Blackalicious, Lateef the Truthspeaker & Cut Chemist: “Deception” (1999)
• Lyrics Born: “Callin’ Out” (2003)

#Yasiin Bey (born Dante Smith, better known as Mos Def)

In hindsight, the late 1990s were Mos Def‘s world, and the rest of us were just living in it. It didn’t feel that way at the time, but the influence of his MC output over those years continues to be felt, from his work with Talib Kweli as Black Star to his 1999 solo album, Black on Both Sides. Key cuts include the fantastically under-appreciated “Umi Says” and the lyrical classic “Re:Definition,” as well as “Mathematics,” “Travellin’ Man,” “Children’s Story,” and  “Ms. Fat Booty.”

#Commercial Hip Hop

I’m following Tricia Rose‘s use of the term to identify hip hop that is more and more packaged for commercial consumption. It’s no accident that “Gangster rap” and low-content party songs would dominate the genre for a few decades, and the question of to what degree that is a result of artistic choice v. commercial interest is complicated. In any case, songs that charted well, but aren’t really in my focus (and, as such, aren’t included on DeepCuts) during this period include “Can’t Nobody Hold Me Down” by Puff Daddy;  “Been Around the World” by Puff Daddy & The Family; “What You Want” and “Feel So Good” by Mase;  “Lookin’ At Me” by Mase & Puff Daddy; “Ghetto Cowboy” by Mo Thugs & Bone Thugs-N-Harmony; “Who Dat” by JT Money & Sole; “Hot Boyz” by Missy Elliott, Nas, Eve & Q-Tip, “Wobble Wobble” by 504 Boyz; “Callin’ Me” by Lil’ Zane & 112; “Bounce With Me” by Lil Bow Wow & Xscape; “Baby If You’re Ready” by Snoop Dogg & Doggys Angels.

Note the name repetition: the late 1990s were the heyday of posses turning into conglomerates, organized around record labels. The desire to be an MC blends into the desire to be a “mogul.”

#Notable Cuts: 1997

“It’s All About the Benjamins (Remix)” by Puff Daddy, The Notorious B.I.G., Lil’ Kim & The Lox; “Why Oh Why” & “Ganja Babe”  by Spearhead; “Step Into A World (Rapture’s Delight)” by KRS-One.

#Notable Cuts: 1998

“Ends” by Everlast; “Gone til November” by Wyclef Jean; “Feel So Good” by Mase; “Rosa Parks” & “Aquemini” by OutKast.

#Notable Cuts: 1999 (I don’t understand why 1999 has so many more, either)

“Vivrant Thing” and “Breathe & Stop” by Q-Tip; “Mathematics” by Mos Def; “You Got Me” by The Roots & Erykah Badu; “Still D.R.E.” by Snoop Dogg & Dr. Dre; “Big Pimpin'” by Jay-Z & UGK; “Wild Wild West” by Will Smith; “Doomsday” by MF Doom & Pebbles the Invisible Girl; “Quiet Storm” by Mobb Deep & Lil’ Kim; “Holla Holla” by Jah Rule.

#Notable Cuts: 2000

“I Can’t Move” by Everlast; “Children’s Story” by Everlast & Rahzel; “One, Two” by Everlast & Kurupt; “Ride Wit Me” by Nelly.

Continue on to Part VII.