CUT THAT OUT...

i really get sick of you niggas. especially when it comes time for you to get feedback from your work. it's amazing to me that you niggas want accolades with no criticsm. honestly, the greats are made great by what they overcome. not by what they over compensate for.

this term HATIN'. this shit fucks me up. or at least the way it's used sometimes. because the minute somebody tell u that ur ridin the wrong way up the block, yall'll tell 'em they jealous cause you got a car.

it makes me think back to the days when it was common place that dudes was called toys in graffiti and was called wack rappers or breakdancers. or u got called a biter if u didn't come at it in your own way. it was a sin to copy, or if u did something that was in an existing style, you had to add on to it. that type of scrutiny kept muthafuckas on they toes and on they game. and what was honorable about it was that muthafuckas would accept it. not sayin that a muthafucka would choose stagnant as a position (Bow Wow?), but would rather work his ass off to get that title off of him. in order to change a problem, u first got to acknowledge that it exists.

nowadays, its a whole 'nother thing. these dudes is sensitive. you tell em that they need more work, or that you simply don't like they stuff and you would swear you cussed they mother. they get real emotional, want to fight and call you a hater cause they are plain and simply not that good. i remember back when the Source was the shit and that whole anti-journalist sentiment sprung up. i mean rappers was ready to set it on people for their opinion. "they tryin' to take food off my kids table!" was the more famous mantra by those of this sort, when it was the futherest thing from the truth. they may be stoppin u from doin what you WANT, but there is always other ways to feed the children. i mean if u serious about being a daddy. but if you serious about your career, then you're just gonna have to get better, strait up. that is, if u don't wanna throw jabs at the next man's clock. make a choice.

editorial in music is what used to drive the standard. most folks don't realize that Billboard position was once determined by the general consensus of the critics. that was what decided the number one position. so for RunDMC to chart #3 on the Billboard is a real feat considering it was judged by people who weren't close to the culture. good weed will get you high, no matter who smokes it, yah'meen? it's easier to understand why The Beasties hit #1 being as tho' they had an approach that was easier to understand to the writers of Billboard; they used snippets of Led Zeppelin and used thrashin guitar solos. but make no mistake, when held to a standard of responsibility in regards to the culture, they passed with flying colors. no one has ever compared them to a Vanilla Ice. that just seems absurd. so with the introduction of the Source, there was a center point for the type of editorial that was needed to explain and introduce different aspects of the culture. it was an integral part of the expansion of hip hop for sure. but it also served as a reminder that excellent work will be rewarded. it used to be a coveted prize to get the hip hop quotable and a career sealer to get a 5 mic rating. i mean, the mic rating system would help drive sales! these coveted prizes were the reward of responsible editorial. and we barely disagreed.

now, it's all fucked up. even the last man standing, XXL, seems compromised. or scared. the new editor fielded comments from the regulars on the site, and she openly admitted that Slaughterhouse wouldn't get the cover in deference to Jeezy. not to slight Jeezy, he does what he do, but i thought the whole thing was about covering the HOT story. the commenters wanted Slaughterhouse, because they felt they deserved it. the editor wanted Jeezy, insisting he'll do numbers, even tho' she agreed that Slaughterhouse DESERVED it. another example of the responsibility of the editoratti, if u will, or the irresponsibility conversely, to the culture that gave it the platform to exist in the first place! talk about some ungrateful shit.

now a days, what gets artists validated is the pure collective opinion of the blogosphere. we gave Drake his career. but in truth, Drake gave us somethin to fuck with. others on the rise will also benefit from the new found power of the editorial blogger, who at no time bites his/her tongue. that why things are trending toward more developed concepts and increased innovation in material and subject matter. watch what i tell you, this shit is gettin ready to pop off. and it's at the hands of people who are demanding that others content has to have content in order to be content with including it amongst other content on their site. (i know, i b havin fun sometimes...) bloggers know that the people who fuck with them do so because they AGREE with them. it's that sense of integrity that keeps us going. thats that real shit, sun.

and it's not without reward. do you think i'd be doin this if i couldn't get no loose leaf? sheeeet! but i live by thorobred rules. even if it's wrong, i do wrong right. money is a by product of doing things well. no matter how you do it. drug dealers get rich from GOOD product, not from tellin you it's hot. so i see nahright.com holding events with big name rap artists, and even my man Dallas Penn makin more of an effort to generate more original content. this will all get niggas MONEY. but because muhfuckas fux wit dem. not because someone told them they should.

i included this cartoon cause it made me think about a lot of the material that comes through my studio. it seems any bum off the street is a producer or rapper. i act as the editor to a lot of their shit, to, at the very least show them what good audio is supposed to sound like. so i increase my business because people know Culture will give you a quality mix/master. so i make more money by making sure the quality is there and not just giving people any ol' thing. but keep it up, rap magazine editor, and that will be YOU with the cardboard box speakin to bloggers like my man Tony Grand$ behind the editor's desk. my, how the table's have turned. and then, when it's too late, you'll really understand... that a house divided against itself, can not stand. 'specially if it's made of cardboard.

just ask Dave Mays...

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