Saturday Soapbox: Believe it or not...these guys are doing you a big favor.

I think I like it......I really think I like it. I am actually pleased with the current state of hip hop. When you think about it, it’s not as pleasing as it is useful. Hip hop, these days, is the great equalizer. It separates the truly enlightened from the wannabees. The people who buy the "now that’s music volume 345" cd from best buy and the people who go to their local hole in the wall and get the "G Dep Head Over Wheels" 12 in".

I am the president of the hip hop club at my college, (perhaps the only legitimate one in the state of N.C.) and what I always find my self saying to interested parties is that...hip hop isn't just music it’s a movement. Hip hop isn't simply your music preference it’s a lifestyle. It is something that you live in and with everyday without fault. Not, to make it seem like it’s an adopted religion, or that you make a conscious decision to live a "hip hop way of life"; but it’s just a myriad of things you do that feel natural. Before you know it... what you listen to is what you are, you ARE hip hop. This brings me back to my point. The worse that commercial rap music gets, the easier it is to see who really believes in the culture. I hate to say it, but more often than not, you have a better idea of who a person is based on what type or types of music they listen to. I mean, I've got friends from hundreds of different environments and backgrounds and none of them have ever felt the need to chicken noodle soup, do the motorcycle, or walk it out. (I remember thinking that the “bankhead bounce” looked incredibly stupid)

The greatest part about the current state of rap music is that you have to search for the good stuff. To tell the truth, good rap music was never especially easy to find, be it because of the newness of the artist, or parental advisory laws, or the size or lack there of designated to hip hop in your local record store. Back in the 90's if you weren't in New York, Chicago, or L.A., there was a good chance there might only be one spot in the city to get the basics (de la, beanie sigel, tribe, common, A.Z. etc). And that spot was always subject to close down due to the lack of revenue. These days there is a lot of good talent out there both locally and globally, but you’ve got to look for it. Whenever you find a cd that you can listen to from beginning to end and be pleased with your purchase, it’s like you struck gold. You put your friends on to new artists; your friends put you on to a new blog, or remind you of so and so's album release date etc. It’s just what you do. You can't leave home without your ipod and a little cash in your pocket incase there are some new additions to the used cd section at the record shop, your checking my eBay to keep a watch on that vinyl or that pair of sneakers… like I said it’s a way of life. And I wouldn't have it another way.

So next time you tune into rap city hoping that they'll finally show that “Dilated Peoples” video you've been watching on iflim for two weeks and instead they run the “Dem Franchise Boys” joint, AGAIN, just know that they're doing you a favor.

Five for Friday

1. Crooklyn Dodgers Pt. 3- Memphis Bleek, Jean Grae, Mos Def (Produced by 9th Wonder)

2. Keep It Moving- Hi Tek ft.Dion Q-Tip & Kurupt

3. Try Me Again- Rapper Big Pooh & Jozee Mo

4. Shine- Sadat X feat Money Boss Players

5. Too Much- Big Treal ft. Remo

War Report

It's interesting how an experience or succession of similar experiences can shape the mind. I think rappers would make an interesting case study to this end. That is, if anyone cared enough about the culture to perform one. Most would consider Lloyd Banks and his G Unit constituents as the poster boys for violent, misogynistic, and otherwise "ignorant" "gangsta rap". However, I would suggest further analysis before jumping to broad and unwarranted assumptions about a group of men, or in this particular case a man, who is just as complicated, insightful, and introspective as any other artist or human being for that matter.

To most tourist New York City is known as the "Big Apple", however, if you ask a native from one of the five boroughs (preferably a Black or Latino) they could probably give you another pet name that's not so euphemistic. Cocaine trafficking, morally corrupt law enforcement, families in a 3rd generation welfare cycle, a mayor who's more worried about his presidential bid than the prosperity of his own citizens, and overcrowded jails, are just few of the "colloquial" characteristics of the "Rotten Apple" that Lloyd Banks calls home. Banks, born and bread in the Southside of Jamaica Queens could tell you that the city where most people come to "make it" is the same city that he and most of his peers have been trying to make it out of...alive. Subjected to the aforementioned surroundings for more that 20 years its no wonder that Lloyd Banks' second go round only brings you more stories of the death, the despair and the social unrest, that still exists in the slums of what is widely considered as one of the most; aesthetic, prosperous, enchanting, and affluent cities in the world. Long story short...ladies and gentleman this is the real New York City and this is a real new yorker, and there’s nothing aesthetic or enchanting about either of them.

With songs like; "Survival", "Playboy Pt.2", "Rotten Apple", and "Get Clapped" featuring fellow native New Yorkers Mobb Deep, Banks clearly comes to drive home the issues that the critics didn't grasp from his first album “The Hunger For More”. Don't be fooled by the industry standard "club single" "Hands Up". This album is dark, deep, and full of what the contemporary, uneducated, so called "rap fan" needs....the truth.

However, from an artistic standpoint, this album is not without its faults. North Carolina's favorite producer, 9th wonder serves up a somewhat lack luster beat for the ladies on "One Night Stand". Being a big fan of both 9th and Banks, I expected a lot more out of this collaboration. Tony Yayo once again ruins what would be a perfectly good track on "NY, NY", and for some reason the south had to put their two cents in on "Iceman". No offense to Eightball & MJG, but the "Rotten Apple" might not be the place for you. I was also sad that there wasn't a bigger presence from New York rap legend Rakim on the track "You Know the Deal".

All in all, especially compared to the other rap releases out of New York this year, (except for Busta Rhymes) Rotten Apple definitely delivers. It’s got six solid bangers, which is really all you can ask from a rapper these days. He stays true to New York City and therefore true to himself, which is all you can ask from an artist of any sort. I strongly suggest that you listen to this album with a finely tuned ear. Once you get past; the women, the cars, the money, and the braggadocio, I think you'll find the crystallization of an attitude and a way of life that is a direct result of the social inequality and the economic polarization that goes on in this country everyday. THIS IS JUST ONE EXAMPLE, TRUST ME, THERE ARE MILLIONS OF OTHERS.

Song List

1. Rotten Apple
2. Survival
3. Playboy 2
4. Cake
5. Make A Move
6. Hands Up
7. Help
8. Addicted
9. You Know The Deal
10. Get Clapped
11. Stranger
12. Change
13. NY NY
14. One Night Stand
15. Iceman
16. Gilmore's