Overall, 2015 was probably my best year as a writer. A lot of great things happened.
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Tag: Hip-Hop
This is the latest entry of Flashback Friday Flop, a weekly feature in which I will examine a hip-hop album from years ago that was considered a flop, either critically or commercially or both, when it was released and see if it has gotten better – or worse – over time.
This week: Raekwon’s Immobilarity (1999)
I make no secret of my devotion to all things Wu-Tang. I’ve studied their albums, their synergies, and even made it a point to be there to drink a beer dedicated to them.
But I’m also a realest, an honest disciple, and I’ll be the first to tell you that the Wu has had some rough times. Neither 8 Diagrams or A Better Tomorrow were good and it looks like they’ve become the hip-hop version of The Rolling Stones: no one wants to hear their new stuff but people will still pay money to see them perform their classics live.
Welcome back to the latest edition of Flashback Friday Flop, a weekly feature in which I examine a hip-hop album from years ago that was considered a flop, either critically or commercially or both, when it was released and see if it has gotten better – or worse – over time.
This week: Eminem’s Encore (2004)
By 2004, Eminem was at the height of his fame and notoriety. Over the previous four years, he had released two Grammy-winning, RIAA-certified diamond albums (at least 10 million copies sold in the U.S. alone) and starred in a commercially and critically successful film loosely based on his own life and also executive produced its soundtrack, which included one of the greatest hip-hop songs in history, one for which he won an Academy Award (“Lose Yourself”). He had also become a label head, founding Shady Records and overseeing releases from D12, Obie Trice, and rap’s newest superstar, 50 Cent.
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Week in Review (November 20, 2015)
My daughter is only three, but I often worry about her.
Welcome back to the latest edition of Flashback Friday Flop, a weekly feature in which I examine a hip-hop album from years ago that was considered a flop, either critically or commercially or both, when it was released and see if it has gotten better – or worse – over time.
This week: A Tribe Called Quest’s Beats, Rhymes and Life (1996)
Last week, one of hip-hop’s greatest groups, A Tribe Called Quest, reunited on The Tonight Show with Jimmy Fallon and, with help from The Roots, performed their classic “Can I Kick It?” All four original members – Q-Tip, Phife Dawg, Ali Shaheed Muhammad, and Jarobi – performed together.
That song comes from their debut, People’s Instinctive Travels and the Paths of Rhythm, which came out 25 years ago (the reason for the reunion). They followed that up with two undeniable classics, 1991’s The Low End Theory and Midnight Marauders in 1993.
“Class of nine-eight, my fellow graduates / Well-known savages”
– Nature, “Fire”
A seismic shift occurred in hip-hop in 1998.
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Week in Review (November 13, 2015)
It’s felt like a weird week.
Welcome back to the latest edition of Flashback Friday Flop, a weekly feature in which I examine a hip-hop album from years ago that was considered a flop, either critically or commercially or both, when it was released and see if it has gotten better – or worse – over time.
This week: Canibus’s Can-I-Bus (1998)
Towards the end of 1997, hip-hop was entering a transition phase, digging itself out of the rubble left behind in the wake of the East Coast-West Coast war that altered the genre forever. The deaths of 2Pac and B.I.G., Snoop’s decline, and the dominance of Puff’s shiny suit army left an opening for new artists.
To celebrate the release of “WTF,” the new video by Missy Elliott, I decided to compile some of my favorite Missy videos. She is a trendsetter that changed hip-hop when she entered the game. She can do it all – rap, sing, write, produce, dance, direct, whatever. One of the most innovative artists in rap history, here is just a small collection of Missy’s best visuals.
Making a great album is not easy. Making another one is even tougher. However, the task of making three great albums in a row is a rare feat indeed, one that the vast majority of hip-hop artists, even the great ones, have failed to do.
The Passion of Christopher Pierznik 