This realatively new way of expresion in music,art,dance,fashion and ultimately lifestyle clearly dominated my youth.It mad me be the classic teen rebel ,with the weird wardrobe, over-usage of english, gestures and hobbies, it was my summer of love, it was my Woodstock it was all that a beautiful life in highschool could give you. Hip hop ment everything , from the way i dressed , to the kind of people i met.Conversations between me and my friends emulated this US-flavored universe, sharing music and discussing about monsters in the industry that hip hop became , about emerging artists , discovering new styles of flow , dubbing various artists as "ill" and others as "wack" made the whole high-school experience alot different to others in my generation , and made the connection with certain friends around me a lot tighter .
Needless to say , there is a flip side to that coin , i tended to become judgemental towards others , to demanding in terms of picking entourage enviroments.
At first, the thrill was "the realness" of the whole genre, the vibe it gave me as a teenager , some lyrics being spot on with what u went through in those years and some ,just placing a lucid dream ,of what "ghetto-fab" life could be, in your mind.Started with the tip of the iceberg , on digestable artists with easy going beats and catchy lyrics and then moved on to deeper and more sophisticated sounds and rhyme constructions .I was being facinated of what was opening up ahead of me, this vast universe ,completely different from mine,yet attractive ,on the few things it made me identify myself with the movement.I was in awe, completely overwhelmed.
The media frenzy that surrounded hip-hop in those years was contemporary with the age when you're hungry for knowledge, artistic identity and lifestyle guidance.The evolution of the internet ,made you part of a musical and social movement alot easier , gave you acces to tones of tunes and artists , gave you insights on their biography and foremost made you aware of the way things are turning and how lucky you are to be living those times of rapid information sharing and fast access to almost everything you would be curious about.
Naturally, years went by ,and i opened up to different things ,and realised how hip-hop, ultimately made me tolerant and hungry for quality-music , fine movies , valuable connections with people surrounding me.Now, obviously , hip-hop isn't what it used to be , which was, creative and original (even the mainstream area) , but that's ok, there's still some sun shining through ,as artists with experience in the game ,take it to different levels, at a slower rate though (couse of the tones of garbage that comes out everyday on the Internet and the Media Channels, cause you know , when you produce for huge mass consumption, the quality can't be as good as it is for a exclusive consumer market).
This was my article on hip hop , i preferred not to give names and examples ,cause it would have been pointless and not interesting ,wich i'm not sure it is, anyway :) .
People take their teenage years of rebelion to find themselves , i had those years and they've been a bit helpful but the journey is hard and takes patience and perseverence , so that being said, i'll continue this journey ,the journey we all share....
"Hip hop ain't all about hoes,money and drugs ,it's about elevate and educate as well." Christopher Wallace a.k.a Notorious BIG
