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The jazzy ones, Tribe Called Quest, The Roots, Digable Planetsreal instruments!
Time to bust or confirm an audiophile stereotype: David Chesky is wondering if you ever listen to rap or hip-hop music?
I do not own any rap except some lo-rez oldies (Shaggy, Will Smith, Run DMC, Dr. Dre/Snoop and of course, Sir mixalot) that friends have given me over the years. Ther is nothing wrong with the genre; it is just not my type of music. East coast in the house!
Don't be a music snob you audiophile elitists. People certainly have their likes and dislikes as far as music tastes go, and that is simply dandy. However, this fact doesn't bar certain types of music, namely rap in this instance, from being recorded, produced, and engineered in a manner that would make you audiophiles drool. Fidelity isn't genre specific, it is artist specific. Don't stereotype rap by what you may happen to hear on a lousy radio station. Dig deeper and you may be pleasantly surprised by what other genres have to offer besides the typical audiophile favoritesjazz and classical.
I grew up during the dawn of hip-hop's crossover to the mainstream. However, after high school, left to my own devices, I lost touch with the genre for a long time. After being into hi-fi for a few years, I started buying the one or two big hip-hop albums of the year. You know? I'm just not into it. These days it shows up in some of th electronic music I listen to, but that's about it.
For me, the music itself has always been paramount; reproducing it in the most real way possible is secondary, though still important&151;why else would I be writing this, here?. As such my music listening is not limited to music that is recorded especially for audiophiles/natural sound reproduction. Nor am I old enough to yearn for a rock n' roll past that is long gone, though its treasures remain. And so, yes, I do find joy in the urban sound and qualities that rap and hip-hop, and the like, capture; a rythm, a beat, a perspective = music.
Very rarely listen to it. I almost have to accidently bump into it. Rap doesn't do it for meThe Last Poets beat them all to the punch and I think did it better than most. Although I have enjoyed some of the hip-hop I've heard I wouldn't buy it.
Rap and hip-hop have been around for a long time. To me there is no real music content. It is all about the verbal content and the projected attitude. I am curious: Does anyone listen to rap that was done 20 years ago? I believe the answer is no, which is not the case for other types of music.
Stuff involving non-singing, sourced from distortion, riddled with clichés, lyrics, dances and rhythms can sanely be avoided. I do not understand its popularity or giving them Grammys, except from a profits perspective. Crap-hop has taken vapidity to another level, below that of fashion. BTY, I have never heard it at CES or THE SHOW.