Rhymefest - SuperSonic Chucky Cheese / Author Rant

YES!

Oh, man. I love it.
I haven't bothered to post about a single "battle" in the 6 months that I've been doing this blog, but this one just make me so . . .happy.

Download it, blast it, share it with friends!

Thank you, Rhymefest!
I KNEW there was something super-whack about Charles Hamilton and his attitude. I didn't understand the amazing buzz the kid had in such a short time. Yes, the kid is talented, but he's a friggin' deity on the internet. Apparently, the same nonsense CH pulled with Sirius Jones, he's pulled with Rhymefest (even on the same night).

Not only is he a sensitive little thing, but he's a FRAUD! He's not underground...he's backed by Interscope. He's not from Harlem...he's from Ohio. His image was label created.

Let me break this down:
Charles Hamilton is the NWA of this generation. Back in the 80's, Ruthless records created NWA's super-hard militant gangsta image becaue it went with the times, was cutting edge and its what fans were responding to at the time. Fast forward 20yrs and you get Charles Hamilton. Interscope's attempt to cash in on the modern "being a nerd is cool" sentiment of young consumers. They dress him in pink, tighten his jeans up, drape him in 80's/90's iconography, create a YouTube buzz . . .fantastic plan. And it WORKED. Except . . .the rapper they chose was annoying as fuck, and no matter how outstanding the marketing campaign, he just couldn't break through because of his personality.

You might be wondering why I bother ranting about Charles Hamilton, when there are greater evils in hip-hop like Clear Channel, Viacaom or Atlanta (joking...mostly) that deserve more venom than he does. The reason is simple. Fraudulent images in hip-hop drive me up a fucking wall. They're wholly unnecessary, and only serve to lie to the youngest of fans. Those who might not be "sophisticated" enough yet to know if what they're hearing (or "seeing" in 2009) is real. Hip-hop is supposed to be about emcees thelling their stories. Rhyming from their prospective. Don't regurgitate back to me what you think I want to hear. Make your own noise. Let the music speak for itself. Convince me that that I should not only give a damn what you have to say, but that I should willingly hand over my cash to do so.

Beyond that, I'm doubly upset because the "cool nerd" thing actually gave me a glimmer of hope for those younger than me. These kids didn't have the same hip-hop growing up that I did. I had the Native Tongues when I was younger. I vividly recall listening to Midnight Marauders when I was on punishment during Easter Break in 6th Grade. As I got older, I had Mos, Kweli and the rest of Rawkus Records. Today's kids? They were raised on 50 Cent and ATL dance music. All liquor, no food. The last year or so has seen an amazing boom of young artists with vocabularies, eclectic tastes, and a message. Call me naive if you like, but the thought of major labels taking something with so much potential and turning it into poison makes me . . .ill.

But why rant?
Who's listening?