A Moment of Clarity, Hopefully

Peace to Trent, whoever you are. Sometimes, I need reminders that the world doesn't always just accept one's idiosyncracies and bullsh*t without making it's voice heard. Clarity wasn't on my mind yesterday. I just wanna say this real quick. Most of the time, I don't write because I think I'm smarter or more talented than others (although I am awesome-er). I don't write because I can say things better than others (although, my opinion is the only one I want to hear sometimes). In fact, sometimes, I don't even write because I want people read. The only consistent, definite, every-time-out truth when it comes to my writing is this: I write because I have something to say. At times, I do write because I feel like I know more about a topic than most, because I can write about things from a better perspective than most, or because I want as many folks to read what I write as possible. But yesterday? I had something to say, so I said it. So, let me now clarify why I chose the artists I chose. First of all, it says "Part 1" because it's not a complete list. There's no order, these are just the first artists who came to mind. Second, when talking about "underrated" artists, I figure it should always be understood that sales aren't a factor because the operative word is "rate" which means judge, evaluate, based on an analysis of quality most of the time. Sales don't figure into the equation; most hip-hop heads I know never figure in sales when discussing why someone is dope or not. Yes, I do think that lack of sales does show a lack of appreciation for some artists' skills, but for the most part, and I know hardly anyone will agree with me on this - the best rappers sell (eventually, if not from jump) and the wacker ones don't. There are exceptions, but to me, the best rappers in history (B.I.G., Wu, Nas, Jay, Snoop, Outkast, Common, Rakim, Kane, KRS-One, Slick Rick) either sold well for a solid amount of years or were in everyone's tape decks. You might argue that the Kanes and G-Rap's of the world never got their due sales-wise (emcees like G-Rap are a special case; I'll do another blog about why some incredible rappers never sell - deservedly so), but if a rapper was popular in the '80s and early '90s, everyone had their album. Mostly bootleg. Meaning they did sell, a lot; just not in stores. They weren't rich, but they were popular. Nowadays, it doesn't hold true as much, but to me, the best rappers out there sell more than the corny ones. Then again, hardly any rap is selling, so let's just take sales out of the equation all together. Third, you folks don't know me, but magazine ratings have always, even when I read rap mags a lot, always, meant very little to me. Doesn't mean I don't recognize their value, or wouldn't like to be praised and acclaimed myself. There are certain celebrities who I know are beautiful but don't really do anything for me. Doesn't mean I wouldn't smash either, feel me? Understand that the term "underrated" inherently includes a comparison between things. Underrated in relation to something. I felt like these rappers didn't get their just dues in certain categories, compared to their contemporaries. Pardon me for wanting you guys to read my mind, because I was very unclear with certain artists. Chuck D sold well as part of P.E. and was admired, but most folks I know never mention him on greatest rapper lists, or one of the best rappers of his heyday. I'm talking about lyricism and flow, which he had much of, but isn't really acknowledged for, thus making him underrated. They say he spoke powerfully, was risky, and influential; nothing more usually. And also, remember that I'm just speaking from my experiences with whoever I grew up with around. Rza is well-respected, but hardly ever mentioned as one of the Wu's premier wordsmiths. He's underrated as a rapper because he's rarely put on par with the better rappers in his camp, but that doesn't mean he can't rap circles around chumps not named Ghost, Rae, or Gza. Because of Li'l Wayne's recent dominance, folks forget that Juve was Cash Money's ace, and though he was it's star when he was down, I never felt like folks (mostly in NY) gave him props for being the star because he was it's best rapper. He wasn't (to me) the CM star who was also one of hip-hop's best, like Wayne is, but he was pretty good. So my point is, comparisons and being in the shadow of other great rappers often skew our opinions of other great rappers. Rappers who, under different circumstances, might have ended up more appreciated.