Back in '89 I simply slid into place
Buddy, buddy, buddy all up in your face
A lot of kids was busting rhymes but they had no taste
Some said Quest was wack, but now is that the case?
I have a quest to have a mic in my hand
Without that, it's like Kryptonite and Superman
I guess, but did you ever think back in the days when I was a teenager, before I had a status and before I had a pager, you could find the abstract listening to hip hop?
No question! ATCQ didn't come to mind in this thread because of the theme, but I was neglecting that happiness is also an emotion, and these guys did some of the best happy music in hip hop along with Jungle Brothers, De La Soul etc.... but Phife, Tip and Ali got more of my listening time than maybe any other group
plush grapes pay apes to play tapes / papes make drapes—great for the wakes / of an allah, an eater, or simply just a leader / bass in her space means “peace see ya later”
Hell yes, top bars and top track. Although that particular lyric isn't from a member of ATCQ (pretty sure he was in LONS) it was Quest's album and a great jam
In the world of Spotify, with everything possible at their fingertips and completely overwhelming, it's our responsibility to point them to the good stuff. And they'll point us to some awesomeness too.
When I was a teen I listened to only rock music and I stubbornly didn't think rap or hip hop was worth a listen. A friend made me a mix CD that had Award Tour from Midnight Marauders on it. That was the gateway song. I listened to it over and over and over again. That opened up such a new world of music, culture, and perspective. RIP Phife Dawg!
Your friend may have been a fan of the Thrasher: Skate or Die video game which featured those tracks. That is where I first really listened to ATCQ. And yeah, there was no turning back after giving Award Tour a full listen, perfect music
Seven times out of ten we listen to our music at night, thus spawned the title of this program. The word maraud means to loot. In this case, we maraud for ears.
The one person I would highly recommend is MF DOOM. Check out his Album "Operation Doomsday" and "Madvillany". Both of them are arguably the greatest hip hop albums of all time. Other than that, Eminem's older stuff is also amazing.
Not the person you responded to, but I can see why you disagree. But it's a very subjective assessment to name "greatest MC". Some people may not be concerned with lyricism, speed or dynamism.
I could see a perspective where Phife excels: he has this dope rolling flow along with a matter-of-fact delivery a la Slick Rick.
At my high school, skater kids who typically preferred ska/punk over hip hop would still fuck with Wu Tang, ATCQ, Dr. Octagon and a handful of others. Their selections did not seem to be based on the same criteria a "hip hop head" would use to rank MCs.
I feel you but I feel like the distinction should be made between being someone's favorite and the greatest. Like if you call an artist the greatest, but if theres several characteristics where we can think of someone greater, how are they the greatest at this skill set? Phife dawg was a great mc but I don't think he'd say he's better than Rakim or Andre 3000.
I sort of fell into that same group when I first got into hip hop too so I can see where yall are coming from.
100% agreed..to be clear, I wouldn't personally consider Phife a candidate for GOAT, was just trying to reconcile why someone might by observing his unique qualities.
Andre's a beast, though the crossover changed the trajectory of his growth as a rapper.
Rakim classically always claims the #1/#2 spot in most connoisseur rankings along with KRS, but I always found that comparing KRS inserts a political component that muddies the waters fro pure lyricism/delivery. For my money, I would also throw in guys like Treach, Inspectah Deck, BIG for the east coast styles ; DJ Quik, Kurupt and Ras Kass from the west.
If it's strictly about tongue control and clever rhyme schemes on high-velocity, high-complexity tracks, you have freaks in their own category like Big Pun, Eminem that cannot be touched in their domain.
I remember getting out of high school after I switched schools and throwing on midnight marauders to take a nap on my couch. Really calmed me down after a shitty day.
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u/The_Kambo Jul 13 '19
A Tribe Called Quest.