Who are you and what have you done with Guru? Seriously, we go from the emotional rollercoaster ride of thinkin' we're gonna lose one of the game's greatest MCs to some sick pathetic soap opera involving a man of no blood or kin relation denying family members the right to see their loved one. Now yes Keith Elam may not wanna reconcile with folks he hasn't been on good terms with for the past seven years but that's his decision not yours. From the outside lookin' in, you seem really shady. And if Guru's nephew claim is true that you signed documents as Keith Elam's brother and your wife as his sister than that's just plain alarming. An abuse of power. Releasing statements to websites and official Twitter accounts in Guru's name when he doesn't appear to be able to speak on his own behalf is also misleading and completely wrong. Be clear: At this point the only thing relevant and important is the status of Guru's health. Nobody gives a fuck about you or 7 Grand. Guru's legacy is Gang Starr. DJ Premier and Guru made classics. You and Guru make crap. And you should get slapped for meddling in family business.
I'm not dissin' but you shoulda stayed missing. Everybody in the club get tipsy. Nobody in the club remember your name. Damn shame.Cornel West Says Jay-Z Isn’t Motivated
Monday, February 08 2010 1:54 PM EST | Posted by: Big Homie | Posted in: Blog, True Story
Before Dr. Cornel West’s speech at The Center for the Arts in Buffalo Friday night, he spoke with The Spectrum on random topics including his view of Hip-Hop and Pop music on the radio.
Now I’m an old school hip-hop guy, and I know you’re big on that stuff and have even been mentioned in Lupe Fiasco songs. I’m kind of skeptical of modern hip-hop, pop kind of stuff. What’s your view of all of the stuff on the radio?
CW: Guys like Talib Kweli and Lupe Fiasco rap messages and have something to say. Now Jay-Z is on the radio and he’s talented, but he’s just not at the level he use to be at on Reasonable Doubt and The Blueprint. The genius is still there, but there’s no more motivation.
@ epinz
yeah, your post is how I see it, I don’t personally give a fuck about Dashin’s opinion per se, i was just posting a viewpoint about Jay so whoever reads the thread can balance it out and make their own opinion. thats when these threads work the best and people reading can learn new shit. Of course, you still get the occasional faggot, keyboard gangsta or weirdo online, but that comes with this shit i guess. but overall Cornel West has raised a good point. Jay pushing 50 years old soon, he gotta switch it up if he wanna keep rapping. For instance KRS got enough range of topics to rap forever, so I ain’t hating on Jay age, im just saying Jay taking about the same ole shit into his late 40’s ain’t a good look its kinda embarrassing. Ideally he shoulda retired after Black Album but GREED brought him back – this guy really think he the Mike Jordan of Recording……
….senile dementia I guess.
People give to the charities they want to. It doesn’t get you to heaven quicker donating neither is it any one’s place to judge any one’s donations. If I’m from NY I will take care of my environment first before I help any where else. As for hunger and making an impression, Jay Z has already left us with a legacy. He is not Cornel West trying to educate our youth, he is speaking of his truth. Every one does not want to change the world nor should they be pressured upon to do so. We all have a part to play in this world. Jay Z has inspired many and entertains. He is an impeccable business man amongst other qualities he doesn’t have to display for fame, those are his attributes. How can you expect to impose what you value on others? We all have a different purpose. He has helped our world in many ways by paving a way for others, breaking records. His body of work speaks in high volume, you have to give credit where it is due only haters can not see an extraordinary individual.
I find it immature to insult people for their opinions and beliefs especially in a forum for discussion. This is what’s wrong with our world today, we can’t agree to disagree always want to infringe our beliefs on others which is uneducated. I salute any one who can influence others positively to succeed. If you want a role model look towards your family members and people who want that role model position. Jay Z continues to break records and still maintains to sell and progress with today’s music something most of the rappers can’t do. If he donated to one charity, touched one life he has helped our community all it takes is one act. We are not in the olympics to see which celebrity can be the most charitable or look good for society’s ideal. He has done more than most rappers can dream about, more than our youngsters can conceive. Let’s congratulate and dicrease the amount of hate because it’s so infantile. Jay Z I salute because you have done enough and inspired plenty. No one but a higher power knows what that man does and especially whats in his heart. Stop questioning one being genuine because we can never know who is donating sincerely.
@epinz,
I appreciate your balanced perspective but I disagree with your premise that I’m biased. I will admit that I think Jay is probably the best rapper alive (Nas, an extremley close second). I don’t think that makes me a dickrider or gives me an obvious bias because I think it’s based on the facts. ( # of albums critcally praised, # of records sold, influence over other rappers/producers, consistency over a long period of time).
That said, do I think that he beat Nas in his battle? No. Do I think he could outrap Lupe bar for bar today? Maybe, but probably not. If he did a track with Eminem, would he get outrapped again? Probably. BP3 is certainly not classic at all, BUT it’s telling that it’s still a top 3 album of the year last year (Behind Rae and Mos).
It’s also factually untrue when folks say Jay always raps about the same things. Then when he makes Kingdom Come (an album with a ton of problems, and almost as bad as BP2) where he raps personally about his new multi-millionare 30-plus lifestyle, it flops and people knock “30 something” and “Beach Chair” “I Made It” and “Hollywood” which were authentic songs about his current sucessful lifestlye. Then when he goes back to gangsta on AG, people love it again. Then when he goes back to commercial on BP3, people love that again but then say he raps the same every time.
BP3 sounds nothing like AG (thematically or in the production). Neither sound like Kingdom Come (thematically or in the production). And none of them sound like The Black Album (thematically or in the production).
Fact is we don’t have a template for what older rappers are supposed to do. Should he go the Raekwon route and redo his first album to great success(see also Meth and Red, CNN, AZ)? Should he keep talking about how life of a multi-millionaire businessman is and really “keep it real”? Should he just keep making hits? I don’t know, but either way, the fact that we’re still having this argument means we’re still all listening to every word.
BP3 is a wack album , if you listen to it half the album is spent reminding his fans how great he is and what he’s done for Hip Hop. Its a Commercial Pop Album. He disses AutoTune to raise publicity, then uses Autotune onthe Album. Maybe im missing something or maybe I been listening for Hip Hop too long, but I remember when Jay Z was wearing Hawaiian Shirts, thats round the time he was supposed to be a big time drug dealer. Its like when fans talk about Jay’s growth they talking his fictional growth and not his actual growth. Anyway, maybe one of you dedicated fans can help explain WHAT exactly Jay Z has done for Hip Hop? How has he helped or furthered it? I can see how he’s benefited FROM Hip Hop but his input back has been minimal. We know Jaz O, Nas and Biggie inspired HIM, but who did he inspire? All I know is even the most ARDENT rocafella stan cannot deny Hip Hop is Dead on a mainstream level, and they also cannot deny that the meteoritic rise of Jay Z coincided with Raps decline. Even when Vol 3 dropped, Big Pun was alive, DMX just released Hell is Hot, Ja dropped I came I saw, Eminem dropped Slim Shady. It was only once Hip Hop started to decline that Jay Z became really popular. I’ll give him that, he’s smart.
If we’re talking business, yeah, Jigga is a smart individual, but musically? c’mon son. when the remys in the system… all those commerical tracks he put out aged 38 talking all that shit, biting Biggie Smalls lyrics. Nah, plus when he was at Def Jam as President the only Hip Hop artists he pushed was Officer RIck Ross and Jeezy. Overall the only legacy Jay Z has are his various business sensibilities. Other then that, Jay Z ain’t got the lyrical legacy of Biggie, and he ain’t got the world wide Love like Tupac. Maybe Jay Z got the the Hip POP crown, but not Hip Hop.
Thats what this conversation is about btw. HIP HOP. thats what Cornel West is talking about, and HIP HOP is bigger then Jay Z, but his stans think otherwise thats the problem. When people defend Jay Z they always talking about his growth or some shit. Or they talking about his money and why everybody hating on him. Or they talking about his record number of record sales and selling more then Elvis. NONE OF THE ABOVE, IS HIP HOP and thats what Cornel West is talking about.
But more then anything, I respect Jay’s ability to make cats dance to his tune – he got half of you calling him God Emcee Hova – nobody called Jay Z God Emcee till HE called himself that.
Nobody called him Hova till HE called himself Hova. So I respect his ability to gather Stans around him. But on the real, from a Hip Hop perspective, minus the SALES or his personal CAREER GROWTH or any of that irrelevant bullshit… minus all that… Jay Z is maaaad over rated in Hip Hop and the closer he gets to 50 years old the more obvious it is.
Even Joe Buddens already lyrically murdered jay Z – right now in 2010 Buddens is a better emcee. But Jay can hide behind his numbers. Cuban Linx 2 is a waaay better album then BP3, BP3 is a POP ALBUM, but Jay can hide behind his numbers. Biggie Smalls only ever released one solo album but he has STILL had a bigger impact and influence on Hip Hop then Jay Z and he’s been dead for 13 years, but Jay can hide behind his numbers. My point is Jay Z does sound more and more played out with each album, his fans can call it growth, and can call criticism of Jay Z hate, but ain’t nobody hating on a 40 something year old, who wanna be 40 something years old? if anything he hating on the Youth my constantly putting wack albums out instead of being a CEO and bringing in new talent. Its ike Jay tryna reclaim his lost youth. Reasonable Doubt came out when Jay Z was damn near 30 years old. Wu Tang, Nas, Tupac, Biggie Smalls, Fugees, OutKast, Scarface, Ice Cuve, Snoop Dogg… the list goes on… Hip Hop was ESTABLISHED by the time Jay came out, and it was established by Artists YOUNGER then him – he was desperately trying to get a deal when All Eyes on me and Ready to Die came out but Jay Z was older then Biggie and Pac… So when people say JAY changed the game, they just repeating what Jay says himself.
But like Nas said, Jay Z was just a fan looking up to JAZ O before he dropped his own album.
I’ve already said, I respect Jay Z’s business sense, because he’s managed to build a myth around himself like he Madonna or some shit. But beyond that? Jay ain’t the GOAT, how can he be? The Greatest Hip Hop albums of all time dropped before Jay even got a record deal. ORIGINAL CUBAN LINX, READY TO DIE, ALL EYES ON ME, ILLMATIC, DOGGYSTYLE, IT WAS WRITTEN, the list goes on, and if you go back through the Best Hip Hop albums, most of them came out while Jay Z was wearing Jaz O’s chain back when he was rapping like Jaz O and he was Jaz O’s number one fan. Jay Z can’t be the GOAT, its like Lebron tryna be better then Jordan, he can’t be no matter what he does or how many championships he wins. JORDAN WILL ALWAYS BE GOAT, just like nobody can challenge ALI for his legendary status. NAS BIGGIE PAC WU TANG SCARFACE – Jay Z will never be in that league no matter how much growth or record sales he makes. History is History and Jay Z missed that boat. Biggie and Pac had to pass before Jay Z could shine. You really think he’d be God Emcee if they was still alive? Jay Z maaaaad over rated by todays Hip Hop fans. Buddens already murdered him lyrically. Jay Z the best POP artist right now, but thats about it. Jay Z ain’t the best Hip Hop artist out now. He’s POP. Hence Cornel West’s comments, Jay ain’t motivated no more. He just a mindless Pop Star like Lady Gaga or some shit. He ain’t Hip Hop no more. SlaughterHouse, Survival Skills and Cuban Linx 2 were 3 of the best HIP HOP ALBUMS last year. BP3 was POP MUSIC.
Yo for real Jay Z need to grow old with grace or bow out the game. KRS been rocking Mics around the world doing his thing since the 1980’s right ? well Him and Jay damn near the same age. So if you ask me, Jay just mad he got in the game late. think about it, Jay Z old enough to have been rapping with Melle Mel, DJ Herc and Grandmaster Flash and dem.
LOL @ Its Like a Jungle Sometimes – Man, Jay need to call it a Day for real.
Get a fucking life dude. You spend way too much time writing shit that’s really irrelevant to the world. Instead of dedicating time talking about another man who you don’t even know on a hip hop blog, why don’t put your time and energy into something positive. Like helping the eldery or inspiring kids. There’s people who desperately need help, and your here talking rhetoric. There’s people in haiti dying and your trying to discredit jay z’s life and his albums or his charity work at 4 in the morning with multiple posts. I think it’s more of an obsession than it is hatred by you for jay z. Just get over it and live your life dude. Smh
^ Get a fucking life dude. You spend way too much time writing shit that’s really irrelevant to the world. Instead of dedicating time talking about another man who you don’t even know on a hip hop blog, why don’t put your time and energy into something positive. Like helping the eldery or inspiring kids. There’s people who desperately need help, and your here talking rhetoric. There’s people in haiti dying and your trying to discredit jay z’s life and his albums or his charity work at 4 in the morning with multiple posts. I think it’s more of an obsession than it is hatred by you for jay z. Just get over it and live your life dude. Smh
@ respect cornel west
IF ANYTHING, IT’S U ON HUGGIN’ JAY NUTS!!!! U THE NO LIFE ASS HAVIN’ NIGGA POSTIN’ SHIT ABOUT HIM AT 4:58 AM!!!! U THE CLOWN THAT WRITES LIKE A WHITEBOY!!!! NIGGA U JUST MAD CUZ I HURT YA FEELINGS NIGGA!!!! SLAP YASELF ONE TIME FOR BEIN A SENSITIVE BITCH!!!!
GET A GIRL NIGGA!!!! STOP POSTIN’ SHIT LATE AT NITE TALKIN’ ABOUT A NIGGA WHO U DON’T KNOW!!!! U WACK SON!!!!
DON’T HATE ON MY OPINION!!!!
[...] into Jay-Z’s current musical and artistic direction. He also respectfully disagrees with Cornell West and explains [...]