Black

well, because it is used to create a positive change and to educate, and also does so more efficiently then any other genre of music with poems versed very quickly over instrumentals. you can say more than any other genre in a minimal amount of time.

of course since big money is now involved mtv etc has rammed so many stupid rhymes down the throat of stupid youth that hip hop is now perceived by the ignorant as something that promotes violence, worship of expensive material objects and abuse of drugs. not what this thing called hip hop should be used for people. ive had some doobs i hope im getting my point across.

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formality known as higherlearner84, la coka nostra and finding balance.

Grieves

It could be argued that what makes hip-hop great is that it is the synthesis of all previous/present genres with elements of a style all of its own that creates something so original and unique but at the same time so familiar that the great songs can draw people that would otherwise dislike the genre in...Like the blues, jazz, rock, reggae artists did in the past...

The diversity is my favorite part, you have jazz-hop, trip-hop, beck/why?/indie rap, reggae rap, etc...All so similar but drawing from different influences...

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Being

i think schoolhouse rock educates better

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R.I.P. Gov

Paranoid Android

It's not.

It's just you're opinion.

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"We're not scaremongering, this is really happening."

Being

Its not a bag genre, i personally enjoy some of it, but I wouldn't go so far to say its the best.

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R.I.P. Gov

Black

great argument champ

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formality known as higherlearner84, la coka nostra and finding balance.

Mydriasis

Does someone really have to argue with you to prove to you that some people think goats eye's are a delicasy and some people think their disgusting?

I like hip-hop, but I treat all music pretty equal.

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Black

discussion does not stem from people agreeing to disagree. what is the point of a post if it does not offer some type of insight into the subject? like tits or gtfo.

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formality known as higherlearner84, la coka nostra and finding balance.

Mydriasis

I don't know what your talking about man. I'm saying it isn't the best genre of music because people have different tastes in music. So the best for you isn't the best for your grandfather or the kid in Malaysia, yea dig? That was my insight.

What that has to do with you seeing my "tits" make even less sense because I'm a dude, and this is the music forum.

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Grieves

dude, he's sayin in nicer terms, add something to the conversation at hand and stop bitching about semantics...

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Jack Straw

The best is hard to prove unless there is a competition of sorts. If hip hop is the best, which I agree, it is. Which genre is the worst?

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The time you enjoy wasting, was not wasted -John Lennon

In every walk with nature one receives far more than he seeks. -John Muir

One man gathers what another man spills...

Grieves

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Being

its not semantics... at all really.


its called opinion, and this will only start another flame war as there will never be agreeance on the 'best' genre.

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R.I.P. Gov

Mydriasis

The best genre of music for me is folk music because it has up-lifting intelligent poetic lyrics, no cliches, no big money behind it, it comes right from the heart but is liable to interpretation. Hip-hop has some of those qualities but I think folk is more of a pure kind of music.

And I was adding to the discussion before by saying what I said, but it sounds more like some of the big hip-hop supporters want an argument verses an opinion.

edit- couldn't agree more with Being.

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Grieves

nah nig it aint even like that, all wes trin to do here is talk bout music we aint worried bout that weak ass your opinion is your opinion bullshit, we want to hear opinions...why isn't it the best, why is it...you know state those opinions, then converse...

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Jack Straw

Hip hop is the best genre of music. Nothing sounds better than when a producer produces a gem. Either something that just makes me bob my head or a track that moves my feet. Gimme Pete Rock's Petestrumentals, gimme Flying Lotus' EPs, Gimme DJ Premier on anything he's ever touched. Hell, gimme Timbaland's production on Ginuwine's Pony.
The thing about producing a track is that it is limitless. Hip hop production is not held by the same rules as that of say funk, soul, "rock", country, folk, bluegrass, jazz, big band, whatever. Think about what makes all these genres, genres. They have a set of characteristics that the artists of that particular genre abide by. In death metal you have driving double bass, inaudible screaming vocals, shrieking guitars. In bluegrass you have the comfortable twang of a banjo, the basic bump of a standup bass, and the strum of the chords of rhythm guitar. All these genres of music have sets of customs that become sort of the 'laws of classification'.
SO, what are the laws of classification for hip hop? Limitless, the potential for a hip hop song to soar to new altitudes, conquer new territory, and breach new borders for the name of music exceeds the potential for any other song to do that for any other genre of music. (save some obscure subgenre of electronic music)
How? When a producer is producing a track they're improvising. Starting from scratch. They're a someone that knows what the people want to hear and they usually have an extensive collection of vinyl. A collection of vinyl which spans all of your favorite genres of music. So let's say they're working on something and they have the basic 'beat' down.
boom, boom, boom, b-boom, boom, b-boom you get the picture. Then they add a snare (in the 808, Weezy baby on the MIC). Once the snare's in there they add a sample of Bob James' Nautilus and another sample of an obscure soul/jazz album with a hit song from 1977 that they remember from way back. Effectively combining the genres of soul, funk, and jazz into his hip hop song.
Now, combine a well mapped out track with a real MC that can flow effortlessly from the heart and that's as good as it gets. There's nothing better than an intelligent mind speaking in rhymes, in a faster time signature than Kurt Cobain or Bob Dylan. Rappers often say more in one verse than an alt. rock band does in an entire album. And they do it in style. Their similies, allusions, metaphors, social commentary, and straight up imagery are enough to captivate scholars.
In the end it's like this, there's great music in all genres. I love plenty of music besides hip hop/rap. But me, I'll take UGK's Ridin Dirty over Tool's Lateralus any day of the week.

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The time you enjoy wasting, was not wasted -John Lennon

In every walk with nature one receives far more than he seeks. -John Muir

One man gathers what another man spills...

Mydriasis

You'd really take ugk's riding dirty over tool's lateralus lyrics-wise? I guess for some people it makes more sense to dissolve into a gangster fantasy, verses listening to something I find more sensible. No offense or anything because I really do like UGK, but I like it because it makes me think about simple things(therapuetic).

Murder off of ridin' dirty by UGK
Tool - the patient off of lateralus
Two song's about the same thing. The trials and tribulation of choosing a harder path in life.

Also a faster time frame I wouldn't consider an advantage if you had a good message you wanted your audience to hear. IMO you can't throw bob dylan into any comparison with speedy hip-hop.

Tool is brilliant for example: from the song schism -
I wish UGK got near that kind of understanding of human nature, and deep references to things like sacred geometry.
Btw RIP pimp c.

edit - I think the reason why hip-hop/rap genres are so progressive is because it's fashionable, which makes it very profitable. With all the illicit downloads going on with music, the music industry has screwed itself backwards. But if your into hip-hop it's cool to own old LP's and new CD's and mixed-tapes, let alone fitted hats, and the shoes/shirts rappers get paid to endorse, ring-tones, concerts etc. Also when you go into the poorer areas of America you find there's no computers let alone the internet, hence why there's still a bunch of cash going in. And where there's gold, there's a gold-rush.

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Black

that first song you posted is not a hip hop song, its gangster rap.

these are lyrics to a hip hop song
Contrary to popular belief...
This is not a lovesong
It's a sonnet
Damn, it feels good to have people up on it but
I'm just a fool playing with the Master's tools
Learning how to break the rules of this record company pool
Hallucination - I see with my eyes
But my heart's telling me lies
Why do I fantisize?
Why am I telling lies to the people from the stage
Pretending it's all good when inside it's fire and rage
Cuz I can't understand how a man lives off the life of another man
Tryin to pimp the universe - that's a joke
I stay rockin the boat down on my last note
It's murder she wrote
Assassination vocabulary
I see your termination is heavily necessary
I should have known - they do it for funds alone
I do it to break the walls if I fall off then let me know people

CHORUS
It's funny how life can go
First you ride high then you might lay low
Don't get high off your own supply
Someone said first before a fall comes pride
This is my message to the world
Just tryin to reach every boy and girl
Not tryin to say if it's right or wrong
This is not a love song

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formality known as higherlearner84, la coka nostra and finding balance.

Mydriasis

He said UGK ridin dirty dude so I took a song off the album, lol.

edit - those lyrics imo are decent, but I've seen better hip-hop lyrics. like I said I'm not slamming the genre there's some good hip-hop but I thought UGK verse Tool was just silly(opinion).

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Ego Tripping

I don't know about the "best" genre, but it's indeed a strong catalyst for change, more so than most rock based genres of music. But to say there hasn't been amazing and inspirational artists amongst other genres that opened peoples minds is a bit shortsighted. Hip Hop is interesting though because it really brings back the original instrumentation of mankind, voice & percussion.

To call something 'best' is way too subjective. Best of what? But I would wager to say, with the world in it's current standing, hip hop is definitely the strongest agent for change in our musical area right now.

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