Thursday, December 01, 2005

Am I Still Ready 2 Die?

I love music. I don't even know if love is a strong enough word for how I feel about it. I cannot imagine my life without it. Music is me. I feel like there is a song for every day of my life. Music helps me to survive. It is my soul. It motivates me. It sustains me. It soothes me. It heals me. I come from a family of music lovers. My grandfather was a saxophone player. Three of my five uncles were DJs in the 80s. One of my great uncles was even a member of KC and the Sunshine Band. Love of music is in my blood and in my bones. After a love of reading and learning, I think it is the best gift that my family has ever given me. I know all of this sounds so dramatic, but it's that deep for me and has always been this way. Even as a child, I would rather listen to my radio/tape player than watch TV.

I have always thought that I was lucky because I was born in 1979, the year Hip Hop left the parks and parties of NYC and hit airwaves and record stores everywhere with the release of "Rapper's Delight." And although true hip hop heads will tell you that "Rapper's Delight" isn't a true representation of what real hip hop was back then, I thank God for it because without it that sound may have never come all the way down 95 to North East DC where I grew up. I already told you that I love music in general, but hip hop is like my first love. My love of other genres of music grew out of and with my love for hip hop. It seems that everywhere I go I hear people talking about the present state of hip hop. I too have really been thinking about the state of hip hop lately and how it relates to my life as a thinking, grown woman.

Over the past month, I have only been listening to hip hop created before the year 2000, with the exception of Flo'Ology (which some call Neo-soul, but it's all hip hop to me). I decided that I needed to listen to things that I listened to when I was at a different maturity level to see if I still feel the same as I felt when I listened back in the day. I have had Biggie Ready to Die, Eric B. & Rakim Paid in Full, A Tribe Called Quest Low End Theory, NWA Niggaz4Life, Salt & Pepa Hot, Cool, Vicious, Jay-Z Reasonable Doubt, and Mary J. Blige My Life on rotation. Here is how I feel about the Notorious B.I.G.'s first album today vs. how I felt when the album first came out.

Notorious B.I.G. - Ready to Die (shout out to Eskay over at Nah Right for the wonderful XXL article on the making of Ready to Die)

This album is still my sh*t!!! It's a classic-Period. I was in the 11th grade when this first dropped. There was a Wiz (that was a record store for you youngsters) right across the street from my highschool, so you know it was on and poppin' whenever something new and hot came out. I still remember paying $8.64 with tax for the tape. Those were the days! Anyway, when I listen to it today, I still love it. Some of the violence, glorification of selling drugs, and misogyny stands out to me more today, but the pure artistry of the album kinda overshadows those things for me. Aight...

1. Things Done Changed - I would listen to it in its entirety when I was younger. Now, I still like it. But, I skip over it because I like the next song better.

2. Gimme the Loot - Very violent imagery! I mean Big talks about robbing pregnant women! But the song is so creative. Big is so thorough as an MC that he is able to make it seem like a conversation between co-conspirators, but it is all just him. He is clever, his delivery is impeccable, and his words perfectly paint the picture of the mentality of someone who is on a paper chase by any means. Classic! Although the song promotes violence, you can't hate but so much because of the artistry. Back in the day, my favorite line was Goodness gracious the papers/ Where the cash at? /Where the stash at?/ Nigga pass that! It remains my favorite line from the song.

3. Warning - Still bangin'! I remember this being played at my cousin's Memorial Day Cookout in '95. It rained that year so the party had to be relocated to the basement. My sister came downstairs and turned the music down for some reason and heads got heated. This was definitely a banger when it was out and it still is. From the first drop of the beat, the song is on. I think the lyrics from this song are some of the most memorable from the album. Big is a great storyteller and this was the world's first glimpse at just how good he was at it.

4. Ready to Die - Title track. I used to skip this one when I was younger. It wasn't my cup of tea. I always liked the part of the chorus that samples Mary from What's the 411?, though. As an adult, it's a bit too violent for me, and the lines aren't catchy enough to make me want to ignore everything else. So..I still push next. I should note that Jubb (my fiance') loves it and gets pissed when I don't want to hear it.

5. One More Chance - My bestfriend and I used to love this one. We would sing the chorus all of the time. I always thought that the messages in the beginning were funny because they seemed so real (remember I was in highschool when this first came out). As an adult, I think that the beginning of the song is unneccesary and sad. I hate that they used a little child to say that horrible message. People think that sh*t is cute when the child is little but want to knock their heads off when they say the same thing when they are 10 years old. And the voicemails from the women are just as sad, but I guess there are women who leave messages like that out there, so it's still real to someone. I still love the beat of the song. I am a serious DeBarge fan, so the sample of All This Love was on point. My favorite verse is still the first verse. This one was so hot that the King of Remixes created not one, but two for this song. I actually like both remixes better than I like the original.

6. The What - Classic! Still great! The first part of one line screams at me now - B*tches I like them brainless/Guns I like them stainless. Of course I hate that part. I think a lot of men would agree with it, though. That's probably what bothers me the most. But the song is still on. Back in the day, I loved it. I don't think I even thought about the aforementioned line back then because Big and Meth were on this one, and I loved me some Method Man.

7. Juicy - Who in the hell would ever have something bad to say about Juicy?!?! It kind of makes me sad when I hear it now because it reminds me of how you just knew that he was going to blow when you heard this. Why did his life have to end so soon? But anyway...Of course, I still pump this one as loud as I can stand it. It's really a feel good song. Many, many memorable lines. I don't even know if I can pick my favorite.

8. Everyday Struggle - This one was my shit back in the day!! The beat is still hot. My grandmother died the July before this cd came out, so I was already in a zone. Life was hectic and I was not doing very well inside. I could really feel the chorus back then. Now, I still like it. But it feels so negative. I avoid listening to things like this now because I really think music gets in my spirit and I don't need to feel like this. That's how people end up dead or behind bars. All in all, it's still a good song, though.

9. Me & My Bitch - Puffy's little skit on this is still funny to me. As a woman, I'm kind of thinking is this supposed to be a love song? It's a bit much. I hate when men refer to their women as their bitch, but I know folks with this mentality so although I can't relate I can understand. I still let it play, but I'm not as attentive as I am when other songs are on. The part when the girl is like Ain't no jokes is funny, however.

10. Big Poppa - This was my favorite song on this cd even before they released it as a single. I just love the beat to Between the Sheets. It's so smooth, and so is Big's flow on this one. Again, full of classic lines. I'm still lovin' it.

11. Respect - What in the hell ever happened to Diana King? No one ever heard from her after the horrible Shy Guy. I still like this one, too.

12. Unbelieveable - All I have to say is Primo & Big - ridiculous!! Again, who in the hell would say something bad about Unbelieveable?!?! The beat is just sick!! Big's flow-crazy! He told y'all already- Biggie Smalls is the illest! From the very first line, Big is murdering. Classic!

13. Suicidal Thoughts - I always skipped this one and I still have to skip it most of the time. It's just too much. It's too raw. It hurts to know that people really think like this. I am sure that Big didn't feel this way or he never would have become who he became. But, there are so many people who feel this way about themselves and life in general. I am sure that this was very powerful for them. This is just an example of how the word rapper is just inappropriate when it comes to describing The Notorious B.I.G. Big was so much more than just a rapper. Chingy is a rapper. N.O.R.E. is a rapper. Big was an artist and this song shows you why the term rapper falls short. And when you read the article in XXL about how he was so committed to truly painting this picture, it just reiterates that.




D- Said It@ :: 11:36 PM :: 0 Said Something About It

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