just sing a few songs related to being Arab / Muslim / Asian and (b) the lyrics of the songs and the behavior would put these people out of the tent of Islam in the opinions of most Muslims.
Yeah, the parallels to Christian rock continue-- you could definitely say the same about bands like P.O.D. or Creed (and God do they suck).
Really... because when I hear any rap that isn't by Common or the Roots since 1999 it's all about big ballin' and booty shorts and crunkin'. Or like peanut butter & jelly.
Sad, innit? I blame No Limit.
But even some post-'99 rap, like Jay-Z and P. Shitty feel obliged to occasionally tip their hats to social consciousness/social justice, even if it's completely shallow and phoney.
The rap from the early 90s though - that was definitely a lot of social consciousness and the use of Islamic imagery - although not Islamic per se b/c a lot of it was really 5%. It was like the golden age of hip hop. Or also, I am old so of course I think it was better (which it was).
I'm with ya, although I'd say the entire period from Afrika Bambaataa all the way up to the deaths of Tupac and Biggie was the "golden age", or, at a minimum, between Grandmaster Flash and NWA's last album.
Yeah, I'm 100% with Nas on this. There are very, very few bright spots out there for rap over the last decade. Occasionally Jay-Z would come out with something good amongst a whole bunch of crap he churned out, Eminem was good, Outkast, Common, the Roots, Talib Kweli, Mos Def, DMX (yeah, what the fuck, I'll throw him in there), and a few others who are past their prime but still putting out decent shit (Q-Tip, Slick Rick, etc.)-- it's been pretty much a wasteland in hip-hop. Compare that to the late 80s and early 90s where just about every mainstream song out there was great. Even the one-hit wonders-- Young MC, etc.-- were pretty fuckin great.
Sad, real sad. And I miss Schoolly D. That fucker's so due for a comeback. Maybe I should be his manager-- I could make it happen.
Topic: New Muslim Cool