Brendan Whitt's 15 best Rapper-Actors

What separates a regular rapper from all other rappers? Film and television credits. As we get wrapped up in the personas of these rappers (e.g. Rick Ross, Lil Wayne, Diddy etc.) we have to remember that these guys and girls are entertainers. Look at the legends like Sammy Davis Jr. Dude sang, acted on screen and stage and he could dance. Now that’s an entertainer.

As Hip-Hop broke out onto the national scene as a new cultural movement, rappers began to be approached to star in films a television specials centered around this “new” culture. Some of the best actors of our generation started off as singers or rappers. Here is a list of my favorite rappers turned actors.

First here are my criteria for the list: 1. Must have a rapping credit befor an acting credit, 2. My personal opinion on cultural relevancy, 3. Only T.V., Film, Theater and Video Game credits count, 4. Individual success and critical acclaim.

WARNING: THE PICTURE QUALITY ISN'T THE BEST!

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Some of you may be thinking “What about Tupac?” While he was an exceptional talent Tupac had a theater credit at the age of 12 in a rendition of A Raisin In the Sun as Travis Younger. Having an acting credit before a music credit disqualifies you from the list. Childish Gambino (Donald Glover) and Drake would have also made the list but they both had acting credits before their first musical releases.

Blought #21: The Beauty of the 'Surf'

In life some of the things we enjoy the most are the ones that are best aged. We all love trends because they're fun and in this day and age we can quickly share them with others. For me the music that I enjoy most is the music that stays with me for a long period of time. Now I didn't listen to Surf by Donnie Trumpet (Chicago trumpeter Nico Segal) & The Social Experiment right away. Music to me is best enjoyed when all of the hype has died down. When all of the biased critics can subside and the internet fan boys can latch onto the next release.

With Chance the Rapper's name attached to Surf I knew that the Jazz infused Indie\Hip-Hop album would attract a bunch of hype. Once Sunday Candy dropped It still felt like Surf was only Chance‘s project, but it was more than that. Phil Hebblethwaite of NME stated Surf sounds "infectious, light and upbeat, but never inane. It begs you to feel included, and wide-awake", and I completely agree. All of the instruments, arrangements and guest spots reassure you that this was something that everyone involved clearly enjoyed.

Here is my brief track by track analysis of Surf:

1. Miracle - The project’s opening track was very soft and angelic. The strings and keys are very light while Danny Trumpet hangs around in the background with his own tune. Chance appears later in the track with his usual poetic flow. Did the artists see Surf as a miracle that so many minds could come together and contribute to this project?
2. Slip Slide - The drums and trumpet give the feeling of watching a black high school or HBCU band play during half time. Busta Rhymes sounds like a band director preparing Chance and B.O.B. for their verses as they lead their sections around the field.
3. Warm Enough - The song is very laid back with a calm and soothing voice melodically asking “Who are you to say I’m not warm enough in the summertime, I know that I can decide myself…”. This was easily the best paring of artists on the entire project. Chance and Noname Gypsy ALWAYS compliment each other when they appear together. J. Cole, while not poetically doing so, aesthetically offers a deep perspective on love.
4. Nothing Came to Me - The first song with Trumpet appearing on his own, I immediately thought “This sounds like Ornette Coleman.” The beginning is very “ugly” as it smooths it’s self out towards the end. I imagined a sad and lonely trumpet looking for happiness.
5. Wanna Be Cool - This song was very light hearted and “pop-py”. The piano and Jeremih's back vocals for Chance are beautiful. Big Sean’s verse built on his previous work of the year (His highly successful Dark Sky Paradise). The song shuns “cool” and promotes happiness and acceptance of individuality. “I don’t wann be you\I just wanna be me. I don’t wanna be cool\I just wanna be me…”
6. Windows - Don’t like it, I have nothing to say…
7. Caretaker - A very short warm, romantic Neo-Soul melody.
8. Just Wait - Indie style Pop\Hip-Hop track. My personal favorite trumpet arrangement on the entire project. The beat is very high tempo. I got the feeling of an interlude ubtil Chance made his way onto the song. The sound bytes in the background offer a 70’s feel (Play that muthafuckin' horn!"). The message is simple in saying “Wait your turn, great things will come.”
9. Familiar - Wasn’t a good song vocally or lyrically. King Louie was useless and my favorite Migo Quavo, was terribly misplaced. The music was just meh…
10. SmthnthtIwnt (Something That I Want) - Aesthetically pointless and simple lyrics. The trumpet was phenomenal.
11. Go - Very fun and upbeat. Neo-Soul\Pop mix with Jessee Boykin lending vocals. In my opinion he was the best featured singer on the entire project. I loved the background strings as well.
12. Questions - Jamilia Woods melodically asks "why?" with her beautiful Neo-Soul voice before transitioning into a poetic and almost monotone singing voice. The music gives it an Indie-Pop feel. The song is fairly short but offers some of the best mixing and engineering on the project.
13. Something Came To Me - The lonely trumpet from Nothing Came To Me returns and this time he sounds happy. His happieness isn’t immediate but it is sufficient. He appears more versatile and skilled than he was before. I still feel like Ornette Coleman could have been the trumpet.
14. Memory - Chance’s second best poetic styled rap on the album. Typical Chance as usual with deep and insightful stanzas\lyrics. The background vocals sound like an old Outkast song. Towards the end Ms. Erykah Badu asks Chance about his day as he rests his head in her lap. “Young man you’re on your way”.
15. Sunday Candy - This song has plenty of Trumpet with short moments of Afro-Caribbean influenced percussion. This one sounds like an Indie\Hip-Hop ode to Gospel music. Anyone with a loving grandparent can appreciate this song. Chance tells us about his grandmother and how much she loves her family. She pays the blls and gives him his Sunday candy in church.
16. Pass the Vibes - Indie-Pop song about smoking weed and sharing thoughts with a groovy chick. The instrumentation is easy going with a simple drum pattern and some accompanying strings.

If you enjoy eclectic music I'd say expect this project to receive Grammy considerations in the Hip-Hop, Jazz and Urban Contemporary categories.

Sites Used:
http://www.livemixtapes.com/mixtapes/34461/donnie-trumpet-the-social-experiment-surf.html

http://pitchfork.com/reviews/albums/20664-surf/

http://www.rollingstone.com/music/albumreviews/donnie-trumpet-and-the-social-experiment-surf-20150616

http://www.nme.com/reviews/various-artists/16149

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Surf_(Donnie_Trumpet_%26_The_Social_Experiment_album)

Blought #19: Is Cultural Appropriation a Real Problem?

Is denying a white person the freedom to embrace cultures outside of their own racists or justifiable?

This is probably as best a time to be African American as it’s ever been. The nation’s first black president is finishing up his second term, our music continues to dominate the airways and American pop culture and racists attitudes and remarks are finally becoming taboo in our society. As a black male in my early 20’s it’s great to know that I live in a country that is becoming more socially liberal and accepting of all types of cultures.

I do however find it counterproductive to our own cause as a race and culture to blast anything not black that would like to take part in our culture. I know cultural appropriation exists but is it always negative when a white girl wants to wear cornrows? How can hair braiding be cultural appropriation when cultures in Europe and Asia had their own braiding styles that most black hair textures can‘t achieve. The modern cornrow wasn’t worn until c. 1970. I know this question is becoming old but are you black women not appropriating white culture when you dye your hair blonde?

Would you shun an  African American who dressed and behaved like this?

You can’t say them wearing our fashion is cultural appropriation. The Hip-Hop era took white owned brands like Adidas, Nike, Levi and Kangol and made them a part of our culture. Adidas was founded in Germany and even made boots for German soldiers during WWII. Nike was created by Phil Knight from Oregon in the 1970’s for track and field athletes. Levi’s was invented by German immigrant Levi Strauss during the California Gold Rush in the mid 1800’s and Kangol was created by a Polish dude in the late 1930’s.

So I guess you’ll say the music is being appropriated by Macklemore and Iggy Azalea. I call complete bullshit. One of Hip-Hop’s most revered pioneers are the Beastie Boys. Three white Jewish kids from Brooklyn who loved listening to the Funk music of the 70’s like Parliament Funkadelic and Bootsy Collins. They were essentially the first rap group by today’s standards. Who says a white kid can’t enjoy Hip-Hop as much as a black kid? It’s hard to call anything music wise cultural appropriation when it was whites, mostly Jewish who are responsible for putting Hip-Hop in the mainstream. It’s like slavery and abolitionists. Without white abolitionists there would have been no abolishment of slavery. In theory, without rich Jewish Investors there would be no Hip-Hop.

Not even the same hairstyle bro...

I can understand the cause for alarm. The line between Cultural Appropriation and Appreciation is a very thin one. Writer and Illustrator Mojuicy from Queens, New York explored the difference in his 2014 piece titled “Appropriation vs. Appreciation”. He described Lady Gaga’s wearing of a Burqa as a “sexual” and non-Political play that “position Middle Eastern cultures as a second class, exotic cultures worth dominating.” I’m not Arab so I won’t speak on his sentiments, but I can speak on mine.

I believe the idea of our claims of Cultural Appropriation comes from the belief that African Americans have nothing else to offer besides our music and fashion. To me that speaks poorly of us as a race and culture. We place emphasis on things that don’t reflect positively on us as a race. I will be the first to admit that I sag my pants, listen to vulgar rap music and I curse more than the congregation shouts “Amen” on Sunday.

Some argue that Appropriation is an extension of Slavery. I’d like to refute that by saying it could be an extension of Jim Crow. In my eyes we, meaning African Americans are keeping Jim Crow alive ourselves. The idea of hatred fueled racism. That same hatred has trickled down into the black psyche causing us to hate the white man in turn making our main objective to reject the white man in the same manner he has done us for centuries.

To me Cultural Appropriation is another device for us to pigeonhole our objectives and movements as a race. If we can move on from what we shun other cultures in appreciating, then we can spend more time on fixing real problems facing our community versus focusing on ones that offer no threat to our culture or race.

Sources:
http://interruptmag.com/article/appropriation-vs-appreciation

http://www.lovelyish.com/2013/04/15/the-beautiful-and-amazing-history-of-braids/

http://www.feminish.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/08/culturalappropriationread.pdf

The Strange Career of Jim Crow by C. Van Woodward

Authentic Issue - F*ck All That, Just Rap!

Cleveland rapper Authentic Issue released his latest project F*ck All That, Just Rap! on Audiomack last night. Click the link below to stream and download.

Authentic Issue - F*ck All That, Just Rap! - Download and Stream | Audiomack

A Refreshing Sound for Cleveland Hip-Hop

Cleveland rapper Authentic Issue is set to release his new mixtape titled “Fuck All That, Just Rap!”. He passed me two of the songs off of the upcoming project and I must say I was impressed. The Intro is a sobering reality of what Cleveland is going through during this time of transition. The public housing area known as Longwood or Down the Way, the area Authentic Issue calls home has gone through some drastic change over the past few years.

The sound bytes at the end of the intro explains the general process of gentrification, something that Clevelanders are becoming quite aware of. At the end of the song there is a disagreement between a younger voice and an older voice where the younger voice believes there should be a community effort to keep the neighborhood “black” and black owned in an attempt to resist the assumed gentrification of a predominantly black neighborhood. The older voice blames the culture of drug dealing and black on black crime for devaluing the property of the black neighborhood.

The second track titled Real Shit uses a sample of the late Barry White’s Cant Get Enough of Your Love Baby, and while it doesn’t have an apparent message like the Intro did it’s still a fun song to listen to. Issue plays around on the track with simple but lyrical punch lines and even shares a moment of laughter with a playful “do-do-do” chant.

Fuck All That Just Rap looks to be a different type of rap than what is usually promoted around the city. You can follow Authentic Issue on Twitter and Instagram @Ant_Ant91. Fuck All That, Just Rap! releases Halloween on Datpiff and Hot New Hip-Hop.

Go Support #YoungLangston on November 1st!!!

Later this week I will be launching an Indie Go-Go campaign to raise funds to print copies of A Summer In Harlem and When the Crows Come Home along with my promotional bookmarks and laptop stickers. Here is the promotional video for the campaign set to begin on November 1st. I will be posting a link for the campaign in the near future. Thank to all of my supporters, Peace...



 

Blought #17: The BET Hip-Hop Awards Suck!

So here’s the deal with BET. Viacom, the television  company that owns; Nickelodeon, MTV, Comedy Central and a bunch of other channels bought out BET for well over $2 billion in stocks around 2000. Reportedly the deal involved BET founder Robert L. Johnson becoming a major shareholder of Viacom. Blacks still call the shots but they answer to some white guy with quadruple their net worth to get advertising money which really pays television station bills and salaries.

This article isn’t here to get into all of that. It was just a backdrop to why I think the BET Hip-Hop awards blow. Granted, this year the awards did have to compete against the Las Vegas Democratic debate. But I mean let’s be honest here, the majority of Hip-Hop awards viewers aren’t into politics. I don’t need numbers to back that up, I live it.

This year the award’s ratings dropped quite a bit. The 2014 broadcast drew in almost three million viewers. This year during the 8-10 pm slot, the awards only drew in a combined 1.1 million viewers between BET and MTV. Just for reference the debate drew in over 15 million viewers. It could have been because of the proposed boycott related to the lack of Million Man March coverage. But if I know my people that is definitely NOT the reason. Most of the people complaining (myself included) don’t even watch BET.

So what could it be? I just think the awards show is terrible. As a definite Hip-Hop head or aficionado for my non head readers, I can definitely tell you the show sucks and here’s why. Most of the catergories only include heavy hitters. Big Sean, Drake, Nicki Minaj, Future, Kendrick Lamar, Kanye and just about every other major label artist out. The little guys or underground emcee’s get no love. Chance the Rapper did a lot for his community in Chicago but he couldn’t win the Made You Look award?

Various Hip-Hop artist boycotting the 1989 Grammys.

How was future ever going to lose when he took up three of the five slots for best  mixtape? This ain’t the Grammys, all of those tapes were not straight bangers. Best Hip Hop online site is a cool category but does World Star have to appear on there? I like watching hood fights as much as the next guy can we have a little more prestige? Which brings me to my next point. Let’s make the awards more prestigious. Have an actual red carpet and make the attendees dress up a little more. They can dress how they want any other time of the year. Let’s make it look a little more classy.

The only thing that hurts is that the Grammys don’t broadcasts best Hip-Hop album. Back in the 80’s artists like Public Enemy, The Fresh Prince and DJ Jazzy Jeff and Queen Latifah boycotted the Grammy because the genre didn’t receive recognition. In the 2000’s Jay Z led another boycott because our award wouldn’t get broadcast. Now you get you Grammy on the red carpet. Hopefully the awards can get it right before there is no major recognition for the Hip-Hop community.

Blought #13: Nicki-opoly

Finding a generally popular female rap artist is like finding a black republican. It isn’t impossible but it is fairly difficult. When I say generally popular I mean a female emcee who can come off as appealing to a wide range of Hip-Hop fans. When Hip-Hop evolved from mainly just Dj’s to emcees actually spitting bars, women had a say so as well. Emcees like Queen Latifah and MC Lyte were spreading socially conscience rhymes with a feminist view.

When the mid 90’s rolled in artists like Lil Kim, Missy Elliot, Da Brat, Trina, Eve and Foxy Brown all fought for their shine and the title of Queen of Hip-Hop. One by one they each began to fall off into obscurity. Da Brat and Foxy Brown quickly lost all traction and relevancy, Lil Kim and Trina stayed afloat until the mid 2000’s leaving Missy Elliot to claim the crown of Queen of Hip-Hop.

If you’ve read Blought, #9 ‘Damn, Shit Done Changed’, you heard the idea that over time Hip-Hop fans have forgotten or shunned previous generations. This past February Katie Perry performed during the Super Bowl XLIX halftime show. Perry brought out the previous Queen of Hip-Hop Missy Elliot. Teenagers who are too young to remember Elliot and her slew of hits questioned who she was and even suggested Katie Perry would help her blow up… Really?

Unlike the 90’s, today’s female Hip-Hop scene is completely ruled by Nicki Minaj. Although Missy Elliot arguably won her era there was still an even playing field. With Nicki and her peers, it isn’t even close.

Before I get into nicky (8insert sly grin) let’s look at a list of her closest competition; Iggy Azalea, Azealia Banks, No Name Gypsy, Dej Loaf, Tink and Dreezy. So let’s rank each of these beautiful women individually shall we?

Before I get into my rankings allow me to list my criteria:

• Album sales and mixtape downloads
• Charts (Hot 100, Billboard 200, and my own “urban music aggregate” which is the average between the US R & B\ Hip-Hop chart and US Rap chart)
• Twitter followers (Social media is extremely important for an artist’s reach and Twitter is probably the most engageable social network) and,
• My girlfriend’s opinion (She’s a female listener and gave honest answers)

6. No Name Gypsy:
Personally my favorite emcee on the list. Her social media following is relatively low with only 27k Twitter followers. Her only notable features are with fellow Chicagoan Chance the Rapper. Her mixtapes aren’t on Datpiff which is a negative. If you aren’t an underground fan or like Jazz infused poetry Hip-Hop then you probably won‘t enjoy her music.

5. Dreezy:
 I like her style. Dreezy brings a tough yet feminine touch to Chicago Drill music while showing off lyrical ability.  She only has 44k followers but as a general new comer that’s pretty good. Unfortunately she sounds a bit like Nicki Minaj which is a comparison surely to kill you off in the long run. If she can work on her delivery and switch up her cadence a bit maybe she can avoid those comparisons.


4. Tink: Another Chicago emcee like Dreezy and No Name, she’s a little more versatile. First off she has a co-sign from mega producer Timbaland who also played a huge part in Missy’s career. She has singing ability which is something that has helped Nicki evolve into a Hip-Hop goddess. She has released six mixtapes over the past three years. Two of which are available on Datpiff’s site (Winter’s Diary 2 had 50k downloads while 3 had only 25k downloads). She was even named to the XXL Freshman Class of ‘15. Her lead single Million off of her debut studio album Think Tink charted # 1 on the Billboard under 100 and #41 on the US R&B chart (it wasn’t a rap single but being able to sing helps overall like I said in Nicki’s case). Tink also has 179k Twitter followers.


3. Azealia Banks:
Her debut  EP 1991 was highly praised and peaked at #133 on the Billboard Hot 200 while it’s Urban aggregate was #14. Her next release was a free download titled Fantasea which also garnered high praise. It was available on Datpiff but was taken down. I’m sure it’s downloads were between 50K and 100k.Her Twitter follower count is 562k. Sadly between Fantasea and Broke with Expensive Taste Banks had several foot in mouth incidents including using the gay f-word. She also took too long between releases (28 months)  and in this ADD society that is a huge no-no. (Don’t forget the sentiments from Blought #9).

2. Dej Loaf:
A Detroit native and XXL Class  of’ 15 Freshman, Loaf released four mixtapes over the past three years. Her breakout single Try Me peaked at #45 on the Billboard Hot 100 and ranked #10 for my urban aggregate. Her most recent Mixtape Sell Sole reached 100k downloads on Datpiff. Her EP #AndSeeThatsTheThing failed to chart. Lucky for her she has a the ability to be a good feature artist which is a good way to make a career nowadays with digital sales. Her best feature was on Kid Ink’s Be Real which peaked at #43 on Billboard’s Hot 100 and a #10 urban aggregate. She has less followers than Banks at 288k, but she also toured with Nicki which turned out to be great exposure for her.


1. Iggy Azalea:
Iggy is a clear runaway for the best female emcee behind Nicki Minaj. She’s signed to TI’s Grand Hustle which is the ultimate co-sign. Her debut album The New Classic took a year to sell 500k and has been certified Gold. Her Billboard 200 peak was #3 with an urban aggregate of #1. Iggy's hit Fancy reached #1 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart making her only the fourth solo female rapper ever to top the Hot 100. Iggy was also featured on Ariana Grande's single "Problem" which peaked at #2 on the Hot 100 behind Fancy. This makes Iggy the only artist besides The Beatles to hold the #1 and #2 spots simultaneously with their first two Hot 100 hits. Iggy also passed Lil' Kim as the the longest leading Billboard Hot 100 #1 single for a female rapper. Her 2015 tour that was later cancelled due to scheduling and supporting act constraints, had more ticket sales than the Foo Fighters during the same period. Her 5.9 million Twitter followers doesn't hurt her cause.

Here is why Nicki has such a strong hold on the Queen‘s Thrown. First off  she can really rap. She’s sold almost four million albums through four major releases. She can also sing just well enough to make pop hits when needed and she’s attractive Sorry feminists. That is an unfortunate criteria. She’s a woman and sex sales.

Finally she’s her own brand. Nicki has her own Barbie, several endorsements with brands like Mac cosmetics and Pepsi and she has a 3% equity stake in Jay-Z’s acquired Music streaming service Tidal. Not to mention she has been said to be active as an artist since 2004. Most of her competition has been active since 2008 which gives her a four year jump. If any of these other artists want a sniff of her thrown, they have to first follow her lead.