I know a hit when I hear it! Read more, after the jump.

Last Week: Hip-Hop Confessions: Aesop Flop?

That tweet came from revered music journalist and Rap Radar Guest Lister, Paul Cantor. Over the years, Robby V. has evolved into a hip-hop punch line. But compared to most of the ka-ka I hear daily, his flow—or music for that matter, weren’t that bad. In fact, l still say  “Ice Ice Baby” is a great hip-hop single.

Now before any “purists” choke on a Chew Stick, how many  can honestly say that they’ve listened to To The Extreme? Thought not. Truthfully, most of us are probably basing his entire career off that one record. Now, I’m not touting Mr. Van Winkle as the second coming of Rakim, but why all the criticism? Perhaps, bad timing. Though “Ice Ice Baby” was a commercial success, the record didn’t have a place in the land of gangsta rap and Afrocentrism. I guarantee if that song were released today, folks would say, “He’s too lyrical.” Wouldn’t that be some ironic shit?

But Vanilla isn’t without faults. After all, this is the same guy that said his beat was different from Queens.’ And of course, there was that whole Suge thing. But I think it’s about time we stop leaving Ice out to thaw. As long as shitty popular acts like Shawty Lo and Ron Browz (amongst others) continue to record, there’s plenty of room left at the bottom of the totem. Word to ya mutha.