My older brother, the infamous DJ Sean B, is the professional 4-elementalist in the family. And I mean that literally – he does it for a living. Having a few years on me, the guy is single-handedly responsible for superimposing hiphop over my childhood. Other kids had footballs, I was 9 and I had a roll of linoleum.
Bastard.
With that as an introduction, I present a baker's dozen defining moments in the denz hip hop evolution.
13. Mullet (Spoken Word) – Sage Francis
Sage’s history 101 holds up a mirror to the whiteboy evolution of and in hip hop. In three and one half minutes. If you haven’t heard this, find it. If you can’t find it, you shouldn’t be on the internet.
Sure, it isn’t a hip hop track. But that’s how I roll in my dozen, baby
12. Connected – Stereo MCs
0 for 2 on pure hip hop. In 2001, just prior to my second sojourn to Korea, I saw the Stereo MCs at the Livid music festival. Myself well lit. One of the finest live music moments I have been a part of. And in the middle of it was Rob B, pumping away like the poster child for taxidermy.
11. So Whatcha Want - Beastie Boys
Mike D is to skinny white kids, as Mike J is to skinny black kids.
10. Yes You May (Remix) – Lord Finesse (Feat. Big L)
Finesse is unheralded. For sheer battle like rhymes, he was a pioneer. Then again, he was once more topped by Big L. That's life.
No pun intended.
9. Time's Up – OC
I think it was Bobbito that said that every head remembers first hearing 'time's up'. Bottomline, if it isn't true, why spit it? It's just too bad that OC's line 'I'd rather be broke and have a whole lot of respect' ended up being prophecy.
8. Respiration – Blackstar & Common
The perfect subway track. Well, this and 'Code of the Streets'.
7. The Choice is Yours – Black Sheep
My latter day pet peeve? The fact that hiphop never gets a classic hit/golden oldies stations. That said, a few months ago I was driving down the M1 with the lass when this track came on one of the community radio stations. I nearly slammed my car into an overpass in glee.
6. No Regrets - Aesop Rock
Beautiful storytelling. Nowadays, I find it hard to seriously get into the whole Game, Kanye, etc experience. Give me Aesop, El-P, Cage and Slug for some post backpacker rhymes. As Sluggo says 'I must be getting old cause the bass sounds ridiculous'.
5. Wrong Side of the Tracks – Artifacts
An ode the the elements. I think it was an Aussie kid that said it best - Out in suburbia, I prefer my walls bombed up like Serbia. Or something.
4. 93 Til Infinity – Souls of Mischief
If there is a warmer, more goose bump inspiring sample than that of 93 I haven't heard it. Oh, you crazy hiero cats.
3. Industrial Revolution – Immortal Technique
The politics can be a little undergraduate at times, but that's better than the preschool politics of a lot of other rappers. Industrial Revolution is like 'time's up' on some bad meth. I mean, come on:
And if your message ain't shit, fuck the records you sold
Cause if you go platinum, it's got nothing to do with luck
It just means that a million people are stupid as fuck.
2. Ego Trippin – Ultramagnetic MCs
With this pick, I restore equilibrium to the universe. That being the cosmic tilt that occurred when Sparkles included the De La version over the MCs Ultra – magnetic, magnetic – version, way back when.
To wit: you can’t fuck with Ultra, stupid motherfucker.
1. New York State of Mind - Nas
Perfection.
Confident in our hip-hop fidelity, I want to nominate Bran Van 3000's "Drinking in LA" and LEN's "Steal My Sunshine" as songs that are 100% hip-hop but just don't know it, or refuse to admit it.
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