While most of the East coast is embroiled in the soap opera story of Jay-Z and Jim Jones (no Cam’Ron), there has been a much better story developing out on the West coast. It seems that all the rap acts that are based in L.A. are in decline. From Snoop Dogg to G-Unit and everything else on the Aftermath imprint is mired in a slump. Everything except GAYME. Two years ago this time there wasn’t anything that came from the Aftermath/Shady/G-Unit camp that wasn’t a certified hit. Why have these commercialized gangsters declined, yet GAYME seems stronger than ever?
Mediocre projects from G-Unit affiliates like Tony Yayo and Lloyd Banks have hurt G-Unit’s juggernaut image. The fact that Mobb Deep is in their forties and they are still riding on the subway like teenagers was an image not lost on… the teenagers. G-Unit seems to be ever expanding its artist roster, but less and less product is escaping the sound booth. Spider Loc? M.O.P.?! Olivia?!? Fisty Scent appeared to be the loser with his public battle with Piddy even though the two are proclaiming peace in the streets. What we are seeing firsthand is the crumbling of a hastily built cRap music empire. Someone at G-Unit needs to wise up and sign Ja-Rule and ASHANTI just to remind these guys how to make hit records.
Meanwhile, GAYME exits 2006 with a record more passionate about Hip-Hop than Jay-Z’s ‘Kingdome Come’ and more focused lyrically than the Clipse’s ‘Hell Hath No Fury’. Plus GAYME didn’t recycle any sampled music from his previous CD ‘The Documentary’ either. Someone could argue that GAYME is the best rapper out right now with no public images of him tongue kissing another man. Hate it or love it the underdogs on top. How much you wanna bet that Fisty wishes GAYME were still down with G-Unit?
let the record reflect that game got flows. i’m waiting on him to go conscious with it, but until then that classic gangsta rap will knock from my speakers.
too bad jayz randy ass won’t just hang it up. i’d prefer to reflect on his empire and body of works without sifting through 2-3 comeback/midlife crisis albums. he’s peaked. he’s done.
you wanna hear a relevant old dude flow? nas is real. he getting up there in years like jayz, but is still repping and putting out quality music. jayz trying to make club thumpers…..when his geriatric ass need to wife beyonce and play the family man. save a little face, plus i’m tired of looking at his geechy ass.
eff 50. GET MONEY!
Yeah your right, Game is the best of a pretty mediocre bunch.
***looks around desk for wire-tap, video surveillance ,etc.***
…it’s funny, I think it was last week or so, when I pointed that out to my boy at work that Fifty seems to forget that he didn’t create himself, JMJ and them 9 shots to the groin did….other than startin beef, he really didn’t have solid plan for artist promotion and marketing.
I kept tellin people, he’s signin too many artists, there is no way he can promote, market, and manage all those dudes with his 4-bits brain and queens corner mentality. With all the projects, and the movies, and whatever else, he was gaming himself if he thought he was gonna make it happen on the strength of him alone.
50 ain’t the brightest. street sense doesn’t always perfectly mesh with business sense. i suspect he’s lacking any substantive knowledge in that area. pair that with an inflated sense of self….you got just another dude who’s been shot in the mouth hoarding ‘rappers’ so his gang can be better than your gang. if only he realized middle school is done.
I Agree, Gayme came through(No Wilma) He gets it. 50 Just plain don’t.
I’m still not impressed with none of these cats. Feelin’ Lupe right now though…dude’s talking about some real ish…I’ll pass on Gayme.
but this raises the question – would anyone still care about game if he was still on g-unit? would a g-unit/dre sanctioned “doctor’s advocate” be something entirely different than the break up record that you guys are in love with?
RAP FANTASY SPECULATION LEAGUE GO!
what if 87 never happened?!
^Noz,
you just created the Rap Fantasy Speculation League. I am drafting up the rules tonight. Everybody gets to draft rappers to their fantasy label(team). Points will be awarded some kind of way (I’m working this out in my head). This is great. It’s gonna be fun.
I predict these rappers(players) will get drafted early
DR.DRE = Barry Bonds
RAEKWON = Tony Gwynn
JAY-Z = Alex Rodriguez
This shit is gonna be dope
Game, focused? Lyrically? Eeehh…I admire the way he goes at each track like he has something to prove (maybe that’s what you mean no?)
I’d say he and Clipse were about even par. What Game lacks in creativity, bar for bar Clipse shine there…what the Clipse lack in nostalgia Game has there..
Werd on the rap fantasy league. I’m drafting 90’s Jeru to lead off.
Watch out for my rap fantasy league all-star mix cd on the myspace in the next couple of weeks.
My Rap Fantasy League starting 5:
’87 Big Daddy Kane
’90 Ice Cube
’89 KRS 1
’90 Slick Rick
’90 Too Short
^ Unfuckwittable!
Watch out for that sleeper Craig G.
Stop, stop, stop! I ain’t on some Clipse are the greatest of all time shit or have even created a classic with their new album, but please don’t compare Game and Clipse lyrically. “Niggas get stretched out like a limo” vs. “No hotter flow dropper, since Poppa, you penny ante niggas see I know copper. Left the game on a high note, flow opera?” Come on, for real.
I like Game’s album. He’s a mediocre rapper who seems to have learned how to craft an album and he goes at every track like it’s his last chance. He might even be getting better lyrically but let’s not start calling him a rapper’s rapper just yet.
As for the Clipse, they might be extremely limited topic wise, but their mastery of metaphor and flow is unparralled among the young crop. And they are fucking focused, there’s no room for air anywhere on HHNF.
I’m nominating HHNF as album of the year and Game’s “Compton” as track of the year.
Heirs:
T.I. – The New Jay-Z
The Clipse – Big Poppa
Weezy – dunno, don’t really care about this cat yet
Game – At best, he’s Dre lyrically, could one day be Cube’s heir
Lupe – Could one day be Common
Kanye – that cat lives on his own planet and that’s not even a diss
Fantasy Leagues:
RZA on the boards
Biggie on point
Rakim in the clutch
Jigga if the game gets unReasonable
Mr. 3000 cause every star team has to have one unpredictable virtuoso
Imma go real old school on ya’ll….
I’m talkin
Kurtis Blow
GM CAZ
Spoonie G
Bizee Bee
Lovebug Starski
Rob Base
Rakim, etc.
PS. can we use dead rappers/producers?
Truth is everything 50 touches starts to suck…think about Eminem..the moment he got in with 50 it accelerated his downfall…game only improved when he left 50 and as for G-Unit, they make Dipset look like Wu-Tang, when in reality the Fat Boys could’ve torn both of them apart lyrically. Not to hate on the Fat Boys who are kind of awesome. I can’t believe how much I liked that Gayme record. But seriously,is it some kind of hip-hop pre req these days that to blow up you need to have some sort of vaguely siniister gay undertones about you. I’m just saying how Camron rocks pick fur, Kanye wears tighter jeans than a Bee Gee, Gayme has stripper photos all up on the Internet, and Lil Wayne is playing spin the bottle all the live long day with Baby. Whatever happened to Kane fucking Madonna.
i am going to make a killing on late round southern draft picks. it will be like $2 tower records sale all over again.
i call dibs on west coast icons. if we’re calling on souls lost i respectfully request that the late great tupac rep that left coast.
pls note i dominate fantasy leagues. come strong or not at all. my team even has cheerleaders. while you’re drafting the rules i’ll be sketching their fits. i LOVE this game!
It’s going down like this…
Everyone playing in the ‘cRap Fantasy League’ has to choose 13 rappers. You can choose dead rappers if you want, but your chances of scoring points with dead rappers is low. You want rappers that are fairly active.
Everyone playing gets to name their own Fantasy League cRap label.
Your label scores points when your cRappers get in the news for shit like album releases, gold, platinum certifications, arrests, lawsuits, etc. As soon as I have the point system straightened out we can set this shit off.
Players can have the same cRappers on their labels, meaning we can all choose Fisty Scent if we feel he is going to be a high scorer for our label. Stay tuned to DP Dot Com because I should have this thing figured out in a day or so.
The esbee fantasy league is as follows:
Big Daddy Kane
Jay-Z
Nas
Lupe Fiasco
Talib Kweli
Phonte of Little Brother
Young Dro’
Ghostface Killah
Snoop
Eminem
Kanye West
Papoose
Bun-B of UGK
game bitch 2much…like a chick!