The Struggle Up North...

Industry 101
written by J.DOT

People don’t dance no’ mo’…all they do is this! All they do is this!...That was a great song by Goodie Mob that obviously never matriculated into the mainstream rap world. Those prophetic lyrics have come true for East Coast hip hop during a time in music where people don’t dance on the East Coast/up North anymore. They just bop their heads to a beat that the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles should be cruising the sewers to. In the South they make songs like “the stanky leg”, “its goin’ down”, all Soulja Boy’s songs, and many more that keep people dancing down at the bottom of the map. Even T.I. and Jeezy’s music, which leans on the more street side, has some bounce to it. This key element to the music (dancing) is missing from East Coast and up North rappers right now.

When we refer to East Coast rap we might as well say New York City. Jersey and Philly had they’re heavy weights but just like New York we can count on our hands how many East Coast rappers there are/have been that are still relevant in today’s music industry. Let’s face it. Hip hop has gone main stream, there isn’t anything wrong with that either. Jay-z made the matriculation from the street to the fame and so did Diddy. 50 cent is probably the last New York rapper to achieve high levels of fame, money, success, and popularity off of rap culture and music without eventually becoming irrelevant. Cam’ Ron and the Diplomats are the one group that did a good job connecting with the South rather than going against them. The Dips (or what’s left of them) have been good at making “feel good” music. They incorporate Harlem's lifestyle and the many dances that the natives of Harlem come up with in their music as much as possible. The world would not have known about the Harlem Shake had it not been for the music and videos that portrayed it during the late 90’s and early 2000’s. No matter what was going on in their personal lives, their music is always positive and up beat. Joe Budden, who happens to be a great lyricist can’t get over the hump because he has been rapping “AT” his fans and not for them since 50 came at him.

How many rappers from the East Coast are still out there trying to find that one “hit”? It seems like even when they do get that one hit (ie: Maino with “Hi hater.”) They still become one hit wonders. M.I.M.S. has a new song called “Move.” This record has a nice beat but Mims actually did a decent job with what I like to call “The new dumb version of rap” that provides a nice beat with okay lyrics. I don’t mind this new version of rap because hip hop and rap were founded upon dope beats that made you want to dance. The lyrics weren’t always complex although they still provided your body and soul with something deep.

Over the years we have been blessed with lyrical genius’ such as the Notorious B.I.G, 2pac, Big Pun, KRS 1, Busta Rhymes, Public Enemy, Rakim, NAS, just to name a few. Those were not the only rappers that gave us something significant. Grand Master Flash wasn’t super lyrical but he gave us some legendary, classic, music to hold on to and dance to. Run DMC definitely was not a lyrical bunch but they are arguably one of the best hip hop acts of all time. I’m not sure what the East Coast can do to keep up with the Southern artists right now but I do think it will need to involve some music that involves less complaining, street talk (because everyone aint street), and more bounce. People don’t like being rapped at. They like being rapped to or about.