Rappers Trying to Cheat the Reaper... Vol. I

Looks like a few rappers who cranked that Kevorkian in 2007 are trying to do a Rob Zombie on your homie. We'll start with Lupe.


Hell no, I haven't forgiven him for his refusal to admit he was wrong for not knowing the lyrics to one of the most memorable songs in rap music history. Tonight, I can pick any place that plays 1990's NYC rap and they'll play "Electric Relaxation." The shit almost never fails. And the lyrics that Lupe forgot - a classic 8-bar rhyme structure - are so unforgettable that not only dudes but females recite it word for word, every time, even if they don't know the rest of the song.

And it go a little som'n like this:


"I like 'em brown, yellow, Puerto Rican or Haitian
Name is Phife Dawg from the Z.U.L.U. Nation
Told you in the jam that we can get down
Now let's knock the boots like the group H-Town
Ya got BBD all on your bedroom wall...
But I'm above the rim, and this is how I ball
A gritty little sum'n on a New York street
This is how I represent, over this here beat
Talkin' bout you..."
Phife Dawg - "Electric Relaxation"; Midnight Mauraders (Jive)


Now, I didn't have to look any part of that up on the internets; I just know it because I know my Hip-Hop history. Now, here's the YouTube of the '07 VH-1 Hip-Hop Honors Awards. Mind you, I didn't put that script on the video, but I seriously co-sign every word.





Maybe I'm just a damned purist. But if I wasn't sure that I could learn those lyrics, I would have had to seriously question my right to perform them during a tribute to the group that made Lupe Fiasco's presence in rap music possible. I'm not Lupe, but I know that nobody could do what Q-Tip, Phife, Ali Shaheed Muhammad (and Jarobi?) did to the game. They made it possible to not be a thug and still rock the crowd.





Man, I'm sorry, but I can't condone a rapper with a skateboard not knowing this. But maybe you can. After all, HITS MAGAZINE ONLINE IS REPORTING that Lupe will sell somewhere in the neck of 160k this week. Does this mean that rap fans are fickle, or that they don't care?

Just to be fair, I did hear from a good source that The Fool The Cool is a good album, though a lot of people are saying that it's lacking in production. If you want to buy it, be my guest. I never said that my opinion can kill a career, but I do believe that this new album won't break the 500k mark. Not that sales matter, but they do give you some shine. But if dude really says, "Eff all purists; Lupe no apologize," then I promise you I won't stop feeling like I was stupid to buy his first album, Food & Liquor.

And those who forget the past are doomed to repeat it. Ask Lupe how he feels in five years, when the new rapper (if rappers still exist) can't name a single song he ever made. If you ask me, I'll say it's poetic justice. Abstract, even.