Fuck Harvey Levin and anybody that loves his celebrity news website. First you prematurely pronounce the impending death of Lil Wayne (Weezy Forgives. We Don't.) and then you try to link the horrific actions of one of the Boston Marathon culprits to our culture? "DEAD BOMBING SUSPECT: HEAVY INTO HIP HOP" You don't say? It's 2013 and most kids are into rap music. We've been penetrated pop culture, you cock suckers. "What's interesting... hip-hop lyrics are notoriously violent and often degrading to women." So our music is at fault in this tragedy? Let's be clear the only bombs my culture cosigns is DJ Funkmaster Flex's sound effects. Thirty Mile Zone is prone to post anything to get traffic. Fuck dude and his coffee cup. Get you a Rap Radar cup and drink with us in the winner's circle.
Yo Mister Cee, the people feel threatened! Soliciting prostitutes is illegal and this is the second time your private affairs have been publicized. Get some help...and a room! —B.DotI’ve had it up to here with New York City radio. After hearing the same three songs in less than an hour on Hot 97, I tweeted ”A NYC radio DJ could incorporate at LEAST 5 local records into their daily mix. But they don’t. Kinda sad. Yo @oldmanebro, change must come!”
@oldmanebro is Ebro Darden. He’s an Oakland native and Program Director of Hot 97. PDs are the boss of a radio station. Ebro responded to my tweet and a debate ensued including Hot 97 personalities Peter Rosenberg and Tat Wza.
Peter Rosenberg: What’s up with Hot 97 supporting good local underground hip-hop?
Ebro: Oh so, he wants Flatbush Zombies? Sean Price? Oh that’s what he wants? He wants Denzil Porter? Joey Bada$$? We support those records, but those are for the minor leagues right now, they still on the come up. We put them on Rosenberg’s Real Late show until they make it to prime time…
When it comes to airplay, there’s more politics in radio than on Capitol Hill. Songs just don’t get “added” into rotation. Record labels spend money for spins ad space, while programmers monitor AQH analytics. So no Ebro, that’s not what I want, nor expect. What I want is for New York radio to showcase more local talent during the course of a full business day.
Fuck a blog dog. DJs break records. And Hot 97 employs some of the game’s most notable for their mixshows (i.e.: DJ Camillo, DJ Enuff, Funkmaster Flex, etc.). On a mixshow, PD’s loosen the reigns and allow DJs to construct their own playlists—in other words: They get to play whatever they want. Unfortunately, music from locals are few. Hot 97 pacifies this problem with Peter Rosenberg’s Real Late on the dreaded, Sunday 10PM-12am (Ed correction 12 a.m.-2.am.) time slot.
Following a similar Twitter rant this summer, Flex and I formed Social Media Mondays. The spot was to air new music that sounded FM ready. But after a few weeks, the segment came to an abrupt end. Go figure.
This is bullshit. Hot 97 embraces artists only after they’re successful—or have money behind their songs. Later down the line, the station claims bragging rights as if they were ahead of the curve. Instead of being innovators, Hot has followed the playlists of other regions. Locals are now forced to play second string to outta town rookies like Trinidad James and Chief Keef.
I’d be first to admit that a lot of rotten music comes out of the Big Apple. Yes, artists have to put in the leg work and make quality music fit for the FM dial. But radio has to do their part too. It starts at home.
Tags: b.dot, ebro darden, hot 97, peter rosenberg
I gave up listening to the radio a long time ago
U know..Ebro got a point…cuz u niggas on Rap Radar won’t posting Odd Future shit until Kanye sent that co-sign…
Juuust saying…
False. First post came after their first sold out NY show…and i still say they suck (aside from Frank Ocean and occasionally Tyler)
b.dot i fucks wit u but i think u reaching with this one. the game has changed. you and this blog are the proof of that change. so while things are changing u cant expect some things to just stay the same. or the things u want to stay the same.
before blogs and mp3 and itunes i would go to hot97 for new music, to break new artist. but internet killed that for the radio, so they adjusted. i admit listening to the radio sucks, but so what, thats why i come to this site multiple times a day, thats why i gave apple 200$ for an ipod. only time i listen to the radio is when i’m in a place thats playing it that i cant control, or the morning show.
they have bills to pay same way yall do. i see this huge big boi ad all over rap radar right now. i dont know if i see that for a joey bada$$ or whoever local new act is out there.
hot 97 might not be great but they are light years ahead of ya boys at power 105. outside of the morning show they might as well close the office for the day until the next morning, thats how irrelevant the rest of their programming is.
Rosenburg was suckin that Ebro nigga heavy. And I feel where B Dot is coming from, its all about the financial backing, its not about building buzz. That lame nigga wasn’t keepin it 100, gotta give B Dot credit this time
MOST OF THESE BLOGGERS AND RADIO PEOPLE ARE FUCKBOYS….DICK RIDING FAGGOTS THAT HAVE NO FORESIGHT AND ARE SCARED TO PUT YOUR “WORD” ON THE LINE.. STEP UP AND STOP BEING SCARED
@Busby ye your right this site only posts up the big names even Elliott Wilson said it himself lol thats why i like 2 Dope Boyz
radio blows
Nobody wants to hear flatbush zombies on the radio.
“Is this what rap need….Abunch of tatted up niggas that rap about weed?”
Joey Badass is very boring..People are going to turn the station when a song of his comes on.Hot 97 are not willing to lose ratings just to prove a stupid point.
@County Of Kings
^
We (self included) are hip-hop nerds. We go hard and scour for new music. The average/casual rap fan hears new music via the radio.
@Rap Game Shawn Kemp
I agree. I don’t think he’s a great writer, but he can improve. Plus, I not everyone is capable of making music with for a MASS demographic.
@bdot I agree with you bro! The politricks of this shit are nauseating. I understand that the young audiences want to listen to the dance happy pop stuff they play but….Where is the love for Action Bronson? Meyhem Lauren? Roc Marciano? Joey BadA$$? Denzil Porter? Sean Price? Skyzoo? These artists aren’t MINOR LEAGUE…they’re more talented & genuine artists than these label projects all over the radio now. Hot97 & Power105 need to take out the word Hip Hop from the label, b/c they really aren’t playing any of it. With all that said….I still think Radio isn’t coming back, mainly b/c it’s now about the Rap Business & not the Hip Hop Culture…Hip Hop as a culture overall is dead & diluted!
this is just hurting hip hop… waiting til they in the primetime, fuck that, how are they gonna get there ? no wonder hip hops losing popularity
The radio station in 757 va way worst only time they play locals is Sunday night for like an hour. Pusha t dint even get the spins he suppose to n his own town. And they never break artist never
I hear what you’re saying B.Dot but Busby has a point. YN has famously said (several times) that RR “…might be late…but when an artist matters, we showcase them.” Obviously RR isn’t going to post MC No-Name just for the sake of being “FIRST” so why would you or anyone expect radio to do it? They are only going to do what makes them money. I applaud your efforts but you’re really wasting your time. I don’t even think PD’s copy out of state playlists, It seems as if they look at the Billboard and iTunes charts and selects their playlists accordingly.
I gave up on radio a looooongggg time ago, maybe it’s time you throw in the towel and tune in to underground/internet “radio”
ya this is true, but before you say this look in the mirror. Yall pump wack niggas on here on the daily and make these kids eat the shyt up like skittles.
Who still listens to Hot97 tho???
True indeed sir
gotta pay to play,,,however radio is corporate,,so money is the bottom line,,,,,radio programmers,could care less about local talent,,,,,niggas rent to high to be looking out for a up and coming artist,lol,,,,
ice cube and public enemy said FUCK THE RADIO!!!!!!!!!,,,
If you feed the youth with the watered down messages of I Wish I Could Fuck Every Girl In The World, along with all the gimmicky music that plagues 99% of Hot 97, Power 105 today and don’t balance it out with more options for the youth to listen to you will witness the problems we’ve been seeing over the last 10 years and witness it get worse and worse. Hip Hop won’t thrive again until it goes back to Original Form of self reliance, and OWNING our culture again.
im with B. Dot on this shit fuck radio anymore though i listen to sirius and they got the same problem half the time but i enjoy when B. Dot comes in and breaks new artists on the all out show!
I completely agree with B. Dot. Chief Keef/Trinidad James and all these other songs or artists dont get played until they have built success on their own! For the most part Hot 97 are just band wagon supporters/fans!
Completely with B Dot on this one!
Hip hop radio is supposed to be a pioneer. It’s supposed to break new artists, start new trends, play local cats who make good music; as opposed to dickriding whichever artist is currently in the limelight.
How dope would it be to hear Joey bada$$ ‘Survival Tactics’ or ‘Snakes’ on Hot 97?
The problem with hip hop is ABSOLUTELY the depreciating quality of what’s on the radio.
Fuck hot 97 & whoever else is promoting stereotypical coonery & calling it ‘real Hip Hop’.
B dot, keep fighting the good fight.
i work for radio and i still don’t quite understand it. but put it this way…you got satellite: they play a larger variety of songs that your local radio station doesn’t play. why? i don’t know, i work for fm radio. but i agree, if the song is dope, why not play it? rosenberg runs a show that showcases hot local talent. i’m sure he’s spoken to ebro a couple times about hot music he’s heard…or maybe he hasn’t heard any new music he feels is dope enough to be in rotation…or maybe ebro won’t put it in rotation because it’s all about $$$. i just feel like if the music’s hot, it should be in rotation.
but i gotta give it to hot 97…i hear a lot more variety in their music (in the morning) than i hear on power 105 in the morning.
i remember i was listening to funk flex one night (the night GOOD Music came by) and i heard “take it to the head” 6 times in less than an hour. NO LIE.
@raylosophy: Busby has a point. YN has famously said (several times) that RR “…might be late…but when an artist matters, we showcase them.” Obviously RR isn’t going to post MC No-Name just for the sake of being “FIRST” so why would you or anyone expect radio to do it?
I don’t if that’s verbatim, but the site’s purpose was to fill the void of documenting what’s going (which we did and now followed). Radio, esp, NY radio prides itself on being in tuned to the streets, but in actuality, they really aren’t. This is why an artist like Mac Miller or Macklemore can pack a show and they’re scratching their heads like “how?” you missed the boat!
Ramel hit it on the head. Thats all that maters.
They get in radio to make money and culture is not even important or even a thought. Its all about money, no sense in even ranting B.Dot, its a money game. You wont find anything authentic on the radio, period. Its about money, not talent, culture, or anything else of that nature. And the response from ebro is typical. If you cant pay me Im not playing your music, thats all he means by “prime time”. Basically sell out, and youll get played.
Again, Ramel hit it on the head. Black commercial radio is to fuck the youth up. And until you have that gimmick, you have no chance of sales or getting air time. Thats what happens when blacks own NOTHING. No control.
I havent listened to the radio in years.. Same songs every hour and there horrible with some occasional good ones. *Goes back to plugging in my ipod and listening to hip hop with SUBSTANCE
And that Ebro guy comes off like a bitch
Hip-Hop fans act like 17 YEAR OLD FEMALES….Y’all complaining about the radio and most of y’all don’t listen to the radio anyway.Y’all complain about shit just to do it LIKE FEMALES.
Ya’ll got the internet at your disposal and y’all hoes complaining about radio…And one more thing STOP BLAMING Lil wayne whenever something goes wrong in rap,We get it he sucks.Hiphop isn’t dead only butthurt HIPSTERS say that
@B.Dot,
It’s a new era. Radio used to break artists but now it’s left to blogs, tumblr, and YouTube. It’s sad but it’s true. The “pay to play” game is much more rampant than ever and independent artists can’t afford to spend like the majors can. It’s a new source of revenue for radio stations who are losing listeners everyday and advertsisng dollars keep moving away from them and to ya’ll.
The good news is that blogs (like RR) have the ability to break artists that they deem are worthy. A blog like RR, which has a certain level of cache (in large part to YN), can be the tastemakers in the industry by putting people on. And ya’ll have done that to a certain extent. Eventually, those artists (if they’re legit) will make their way on to the radio because they won’t be able to be denied. The difference between now and back in the day is that radio is no longer the main place that fans go to get new music. And they no longer affect the culture in the same way. They don’t create the momentum, they dickride. And that dichotomy often clashes with the authentic hip hop personas that represent the stations (i.e. Rosenberg’s Nicki Minaj rant last year).
What that means for you though is that you have more influence on what people will actually check out than radio. You can rep Joey Badass if you believe in his music by posting all of his new songs and editorializing when you post them. And if people like it, then they’ll comment and click the link and you’ll post more, as will other blogs, and people will buy it on iTunes and then it’ll get hits on YouTube, and then it will hit radio
As frustrating as it is that it’s different, it’s the era we’re in now. Radio is no longer king. Blogs are.You should just embrace your newfound power.
@artoxication,,,,,woord!!!,,,,black owned is the only way to reach our people,,,,thats why i listen to
WBLS
at least they play everything,,old and new,,,,,
Less concern about hip hop, more concern about your future. Its only important for kids, once youre grown, you realize its all fake. Get smart.
…And this is coming from a guy who said that “Backseat Freestyle” should of stayed off of good kid m.A.A.d city
Radio is for heads that don’t have internet connections,,,,basically
I agree with B.dot, I feel that New York radio is the ultimate co-sign. I think that radio in general need to be more balance. I’m going to use J. Cole for an example, to me they play his weakest songs on the radio like Workout because it’s hip-pop but they won’t play his better songs like lost ones or Rise and Shine. I believe that the radio stations are forcing artist like french montana, chief keef and 2chainz on us. Why can’t they introduce us to new artist or play more Cole, Kendrick, or Nas on the radio, They play like the same song 3x times within an hour. All I’m saying is you can play hip pop just balance it out with music with substance too.
@Chill
No doubt, the only way. Our people seem to forget we can write our own contracts and own our own businesses, and they dont have to have anything to do with hip hop. The world is too big to limit your mind to anything, especially a business like hip hop. Im painting a new shirt in a bit, check it out RR. Posting it in an hour or 2.
Hip hop is dead.
Hot 97 is in a never ending and losing war against 2 clear channel stations, Power 105 and Z100. Hot 97.1 use to be a place where you get that new New York… but they’re just keeping up with the Jones.
NY Radio is dead. Bloggers are the new radio jocks.
FUCK RADIO. We make our own playlists now. We listen to radio for interviews then turn that fuck shit right off.
well said. I work at a college and community radio station, I get so tired of seeing artists have to go thru this. It’s frustrating to know that stations think the only time to devote to this is on a Sunday, when they can incorporate these songs throughout the day. I don’t understand why these station don’t understand that adding indie/local music to your station makes you more well-rounded. I meet so many people who would rather pay and listen to satellite radio because they feel they have the power to choose and the shows are more on the “right now” than regular radio is. But until people stand up and truly demand a change, this will also be the politics of radio.
B. Dot you can be one of two things in this world. You can be a person who complains about the way things are done, or you can be the one who changes the way things are done. Obviously you want to be the second. How about putting together some weekly playlists that people can download and bump of the iPhone during the week. #AbandonRadio
@B.dot: – …Radio, esp, NY radio prides itself on being in tuned to the streets, but in actuality, they really aren’t. This is why an artist like Mac Miller or Macklemore can pack a show and they’re scratching their heads like “how?” you missed the boat!…
You’re right about radio, but trust me, they’re not gonna change unless/until people stop tuning in. Everyone claims they don’t listen to radio anymore, but someone’s listening to it, because even tho the music business is suffering…Radio is doing great (financially).
LOL Ebro putting so much emphasis.Like what he’s saying is so profound.but I feel like ppl at that platform have a different agenda than online blog sites.radio plays records to appease the “listeners” with limited amount of time/schedule.Where is online, it is endless-for almost every type of listener of a certain genre.And lets also include the importance of a co-sign by major artists’,some work but others are all show and not proving anything besides the fact that they’re GARBAGE.
FIN
@BDOT I love that you went at Hot 97 . I am a big believer of stating a problem and stating a solution not just a problem. Contact me and lets starts a Petition just like other people do when they dont like the violence on tv or someone gets gunned down. Time to show the radio stations how many people want to hear other MUSIC DIFFERENT ARTIST. Contact me and I will set the online petition up.
This is TOO hilarious. The pot is calling the kettle black. Are you kidding? Every last one of you music gatekeeps engage in this behavior. I don’t listen to terrestrial radio, so I have no words on the Hot 97 side, but I listen to satellite radio. Satellite radio is involved in the same thing, playing the same POP-HOP records, sometimes, as radio.
Let’s admit it, we’ve spent 10 years listen to this thing called rap music change MIT started with Lil’ Jon “different” sound then followed years later by SouljamBoy and it continues with 2 Chainz. Everyone dance and snap their fingers praising these artist never asking them for quality music (aka eligible to be one of music’s inductee’s).
So…let’s not pretend this a HOT 97 issue when it’s more like a “everyone that is responsible for the music reaching the masses” issue.
Granted, to be fair, if I think an artist is subpar, I don’t hit the play button on the site. Now, if I think it’s quality music, I press play. Yes, it’s all about choice.
Plus, Ebro has a boss that he has to answer to as well. You read what he said, they play those songs…….in the late/early hours of the night/morning. So, in his mind he met the requirements his boss asked him to.
real shit B Dot
@Mike S thats a pretty good idea
Part of the problem with radio is the lack of competition of the airwaves. If another radio station broadcasted some of the more “underground” acts, i guarantee the big “urban” radio stations would lose some listeners.
if all you have in your area is like 2 radio stations that play hiphop music, and they all play same songs that the labels give them, then its natural that you’ll have a gap that can be filled.
i dont think radio is dead. its just been monopolized on the low. what we need is more radio stations. The competition would have the biggest effect. But this is how they get us– the infrastructure is hard to own. Ever since the early 90s, big companies have been consolidating the radio stations and frequencies.
@p0is0nedkoola & QUEENZ
Some try to belittle or minimize Nas’ success all the time. Some seek pleasure when they feel Nas is being slighted/excluded by the media as being one of the GOAT’s. Some take pleasure in hearing anything negative about his personal life but through it all Nas PREVAILS!
Reblogged this on itsthahype.
Fact is people in NY (especially the ones that even still listen to the radio to hear “new” music) will reject anything that isn’t dope somewhere else first. NY radio is no different.
The difference between NY radio and other cities is that the locals actually support their artists in those other cities.
Not so much here. When you look at New Yorkers now (especially the younger generation) they’re highly influenced by the music & style that comes from everywhere but NY. Everything is copied from somewhere else (with very few exceptions). Radio is just another form of that same “me too” approach. You have a tiny bit of leaders and a bunch of followers here.
An example is ASAP Rocky. (I know his style is copied from all over the place, but that’s besides the point). When Purple Swag came out all these kids just figured he was new and different from everything else out. So what they do? Copy him. SMH
I work in a recording studio so I saw first hand how much things changed once ASAP came out. Then of course Cheif Keef comes out and everybody has to have a Young Chop-esk beat. Same shit with radio. Everything is a knee-jerk reaction.
imagine. B. Dot… #1 (arguably) Hip Hop blog representer waiting on NY radio to support the “right” artists.
i suggest you sit down with Elliott and figure new, creative ways to make what you want to see from radio, happen with your own abilities. you’re a RR personality, and if you play it right you’ll be more than that. THIS blog isn’t ALL you’re capable of doing well. time to step out there and see the trends for what they are, examine the present, plan for the future, and be on the cusp of where the elements within the culture are moving.
stop looking to Hot and Power radio. they aren’t for what WE are for. props though, brother. your thinking is leaning on correct imo.
I think that anyone that thinks this isn’t a problem is being naive or doesn’t realize how this is hurting the culture and craft of hip hop. If you don’t have your own drug money or some type of sponsor (somebody with the money to pay for spins) you don’t have a shot.
There are thousands of artists out here with nothing but their talent and maybe a producer and an engineer that believe in them enough to give them some beats and a way to record quality music at a cut rate. THAT’S ALL IT SHOULD TAKE! When we started saying that anything and everything is hip hop and you cant say that anything wasn’t, we gave the powers that be a chance to dictate to us what was hip hop. Yall hear all this elementary rhyming and singing now that’s called REAL hip hop? The easier they make it to do “hip hop” the less TRUE talent, skill, and soul as a writer and reciter is needed. And the more they can get any bubble gum dude or girl to be “hip hop” and take it over. That’s what we have now. A radio full of “hip hop” that ain’t real music and the real artists with a view point get zero burn. Last point. If the radio DJ’s don’t wanna break new acts, fine and good take that money and feel good about it, just don’t try to claim that you trailblaze because you don’t. You are now a bunch of followers that let the suits tell you what’s hot enough to be played. Get over yourselves and your power cause yall are just puppets. And yall wonder why the DJ is obsolete now…… we USED to need yall niggas SMH