SIN,,, I think you misunderstood my argument. firstly, I would never celebrate anyone's 'failure' (actually, that's not true, I'm loving what's happening to Chelsea, but that's another story) so there's no 'hate' here.
Secondly, all I was saying was that I couldn't understand all the hype after I'd listened to one of Papoose's mixtapes (it just sounded rushed and superficial - but I hear he's put out 17 so it's not suprising).
Lastly, my comment about 50 and Kanye was making the point that it doesn't matter who is the 'latest hottest rapper' because the whole industry is changing as a result of downloads and a general move away from Hip Hop by the white suburban kids who make up the majority of music sales in the US. This means that we should judge artists on the music, not on the hype or the record deals/ sales because the whole paradigm is changing.
I haven't heard 'The Nacirema Dream' so i'll reserve judgement until I do. It might be a cla**ic. It might just be more unfulfilled potential - let's see. My judgement of it won't be clouded by political agendas or what someone else has said. One thing is for sure, if it's hot, I'll bump it and give him props.
If appealing to the pop audience (with whichever value-judgement you choose) means making weak, diluted, lowest common denominator music, then f*** that. Bob Marley made music for "simple ghetto people" and created some of the most inspiring music ever written - so those are the standards that have been set for anyone who is setting themselves up as the people's champion.
Just out of interest, which Cape Town rappers do you consider to be "Bombastic but empty"?
