It Takes One to Know One

Yes you read it correctly, Nas' upcoming album is titled, well again, you read it correctly. But why, then again, why not, Nas' albums have been titled in an arrogant, self-deprecating fashion for quite a while now. For example what was "God's Son" as a title all about, or the confrontational "Hip Hop is Dead", where he continues to talk about what hip hop was at one time yet again, as much of "Streets Disciple" was about the same thing. In fact as much of Nas' shtick deals with his arrogance, much of which his intelligence and reputation has earned him in hip-hop in the right for him to posit it.

My issue with the title is that is purports to do something new in hip-hop, but what is it about "Nigger" that is truly revolutionary that isn't endemic to hip-hop anyway? What is the difference between Nas using the word as an album title and Chuck D or KRS-One using the word in one of their songs? In fact, if you really want to talk about it isn't the usage of the word nigger through artistic terms everything that hip-hop is about anyway? True listeners should find some offense that one of the brightest minds in hip-hop used the same perspective that editors and writers about the genre have been applying to their articles for years as the platform for his rhymes once again. I refused to listen to "Hip Hop is Dead" because of the nerve and hypocrisy of an artist who was willing to sell their true self for prosperity but a few years ago was suggesting that the state of the music, (which only reflected the state of mainstream rap, not true underground, street hip-hop at that), needed to be exploited for their own personal gain, and now I wonder if "Nigger" isn't the same thing, when we have artistically portrayed ourselves as such for years for a good century or so now, and continue to do so in the new millennium.

There is much to be gained from acting ignorant and portraying a shallow, materialistic, soulless individual on the big screen, in television, on the radio and even on the Internet. There are billions of MySpace and Black Planet websites with, essentially, on them; much worse books seemingly written by them for them under the guise of urban romance novels. Everyone knows they like to do the latest dances. Truth be told we've been, for entirely too long, and if nothing else, the quintessential, is the hero in blaxploitation movies. To add insult to injury, they tried to prevent Spike Lee from showing, who they truly are on their own campus. So what makes Nas' stance that much different, outside of the same lyrical genius that he brings to each album? When lyrical brilliance and artistic thoroughness isn't enough to sell records Nas' digresses to showing his belligerence by speaking to us on the level that we must understand, to get our attention through these empty marketing schemes.

Nas is a brilliant artist, but he isn't the best or the greatest; arguably that is all on who you listen to in hip-hop and who you take into consideration; the same can be said for any artist. But there is something myopically inconsistent with the way in which he sells his artistry, and too much of Nas has him as a modern day Norman Lear, who may be remembered for something other than his artistic talent. Though I hated it then, it is understandable how and why artists like Tupac and 50 had said what they said about Nas; though the later doesn't really deserve to be mentioned in the same sentence with the former. It is this type of marketing that makes you wonder about the integrity of the platform that the artist is standing on, and the stability of their future to continue to preach from it. Almost enough to make you want to retreat back into the, that you used to be; then again Nas wouldn't respect you if you were to do that ...