After the slight controversy this week bought on by my previous blog entry, I was happy to finally get a chance to speak to YRF, the group stuck in the middle of the whole situation. Anxious, they were ready to defend their honor, and determined to get me to understand what's at the root of the growing trend that is, YRF. It was my priviledge to speak with Neesin "Y.C." Williams, one half of the upcoming West Coast rap group.
As we began to chat, it was evident that YRF had been a little perturbed about my blog. When asked how they felt, Williams responded with, "I don't think you quite get us." I said, "Ok, well help me get you....what's going on?" Williams proceeded to explain, that what bothered him the most in my post, was the fact that I said YRF had no substance. To him, that meant YRF and the music they make has no purpose, no meaning. He strongly protested my claim, stating that YRF takes what they do very seriously. They idolize legendary artists like Prince, the Temptations, Marvin Gaye, and the Stylistics, among others, so to say they have no substance was a slap in the face. Especially because it's something he'd heard before. Unfortunately, he felt that sometimes people don't give them a chance, and base their judgments on a closed minded approach to the progression of hip hop. "The reason we do what we do, the reason YRF makes music is to make YOU feel good," he explained fanatically. "We really make music that we feel good about and that makes you feel good. I feel like sometimes, people take Hip Hop too seriously. It used to be about fun, and people forgot how to have fun. " But to what extent is that fun worth?
Yes, hip-hop was about having fun, to a certain extent. Emerging from the basement of house parties as a creative, uplifting response to urban surroundings, Hip hop started out as a vocal engine. It was a way of coping, creating a bright light at the end of a dark tunnel. Lyrically, you had to be on point because there was a message to be conveyed. Poetic and unforgiving, people began to recognize its monetary value resulting in its commercialization and exploitation. Soon the exciting, often deceptive fashion in which it was displayed seemed to lessen the importance of its original purpose. Thus birthing (in my opinion) what I consider to be the sub-genre of hip hop known as rap music. Rap, in my opinion is the business side of hip-hop; the commercialized, less politically sound version of hip hop. But at its foundation, Hip Hop has always been meant to serve a purpose. And even today, that purpose still holds true though overshadowed today more and more by green paper with dead presidents on it. So just having fun? Just having fun has presented a decline in the craftmanship of the art. Having fun keeps the bills rolling in for a short period of time, but respect and polished craftmanship keep the bills rolling in long after you're gone. Hip hop has been and always will be about more than just having fun.
Simply having fun doesn't contain passion, and passion and respect go hand in hand. While knowledgable of the hip-hop history that came before them, YRF feels people may need to just move on. Its 2009, 30 years after the birth of hip hop. And while I explain that in my opinion, this "popcorn rap" fad is a result of new generation rappers lacking the respect for their elders and the movement that came before them, Williams presented the question, 'does the quality of todays rap/hip hop stem from a lack of respect for the game and its history, or could it just be evidence of a change in generations (usually represented by a change in the course of present day music)? I must admit, he may have stumped me. It was very good, thought provoking question. But I want to present an even better one. Williams was quoted as saying earlier in the interview, "hip hop has always been the voice of the youth." My question to you is, "what exactly, is the youth trying to say?" While you still haven't sold me quite yet Neesin, I can still respect the hustle. Get ya grind on young brah's...
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