Everyone loves a rookie’s story. Some pan out to become superstars. Others find themselves as permanent punchlines. In Hip-Hop, it’s the same pressure on a different platform. Music relies directly on the consumer’s feedback to determine how much success, if any, the artist will see. If the fans aren’t appreciative, neither are record labels. The music industry’s gift and curse, some would say. In today’s climate, J. Cole, Freddie Gibbs, Pill, Wiz Khalifa, Drake and others are all making strides in the positive direction at the current moment. Read the rest of this entry »

Probably the most enticing quality of 50 Cent’s Behind The Music special is its lack of pitfall. Where VH1′s storied series is renown for going into depth of the industry’s biggest stars and their descension, as well as their triumphs, Curtis Jackson really can’t count his losses since his 2003 official breakout. Read the rest of this entry »

We go through the same ball n’ chain routine everytime a rapper is set to release a new album. “It’s better than I’ve ever been” they say. “It’s a classic” they boast. Knowing damn well the recording process was about as sporadic as their last consecutive string of hits. Read the rest of this entry »

Found floating in my inbox yesterday, this particular email from a Crew member…

A quick question for all of you TSS-ers: I and another TSS-er, who shall not be named (omitted), were discussing/arguing the other day about an album, and whether it was deserving of classic status. So I wanted to canvas you guys to see what you thought.

50 Cent – Get Rich Or Die Tryin’ – Classic or not?

It should also be noted that the argument wasn’t even necessarily whether it was classic or not, as one of us – who shall not be named – thought it wasn’t even good. But, for sake of balancing the scales of the argument, let us know what you think.

I’ll spare you the countless “reply all” emails that went back & forth between the Crew, where fact-based opinions were slung, criticisms exclaimed…all the way to eventual threats of “I’m bout to hop on the plane & kick yo’ ass.”

So we bring it to you, dear reader and fellow esteemed members & minds of the Hip-Hop community. Read the rest of this entry »