Ok, Ok....had to chime in on this one...dang yall got my in a "reply-ing" mood today...
First off, the title of this thread is misleading...I opened it in hopes of seeing a tour date on the east coast....
As for the eastcoast/midwest/westcoast talk...
I'm from NC...central NC....we have ONE, count 'em ONE radio station that plays only RandB/Rap.... they are owned by ClearChannel (I believe...one of the big companies anyways)...so..whatever they are TOLD to play, they play...and if it aint on their list, they aint gonna play it.....My friend and I have written, called, etc. etc. etc. trying to get Tech on the radio...all hours of the day...every day of the week.....no avail....
This same station will not even play hometown underground/kinda mainstream now act Little Brother....
Wanna know why? and this is coming from a white guy.....
The powers that be (program directors, djs, on down the line) could give a fuck what people wanna hear.....they play whoever PAYS to have their shit played, or whomever sounds the dumbest...in what I believe is an attempt to continue the dumbing down of the youth of today..and the African American race in general.....they WANT ever youngster to pick up the new D4L, the Bow Wow, anyone that will pay them for play or that makes their own people look like complete idiots.....It's all probably even organized by the government too.....if everyone is fed this mainstream fodder, they will continue to act, dress, and carry themselves in a manner that benefits the powers that be...ie: keep spending the money on clothes, accessories, and keep letting their own lives play out like wanna be gangsters and thugs, who know only ebonics and make no attempt to further themselves, thus not threatening the "powers"...basically artists like Tech and Little Brother encourage people to open their mind and think for themselves, outside the box even.....if kids did that, there would be a balance of power......thats not what "they" want....
Tech isn't just talking about the music industry when he says F.T.I......its about going against the grain....in everything...
Hell, even XM radio is following the trend of the main stations...we've got it in one of our rides, and it's useless......the only channel worth listening to in regards to hip-hop is the "classic" channel....and I get tired of listening to the oldies all the time....We don't even use the XM really....what a waste...we just load up 6 cd's and roll....
As far as NY being whack...you're crazy...it's probably the birthplace to the GREATEST this artform has ever seen....granted it's gone down the drain as of late, but it all comes back to the powers that be...NY is home to TONS of races from all over the globe....it is a Mecca of art form....don't be hating just because SOME have given it a bad name.....
We've got artists here in NC that are WAY better than anything you'll ever hear on the radio anywhere, as I am sure most states in the union do....but the sad part is, it is those artists that often have to resort to the other life or working a 9-5 and 10-6 job because industry heads don't think they can sale.....the problem is, young America is so dumbed down for the most part that if it isn't along the lines of 50 Cent (most anything you hear in a club really), then it is whack......what happened to the good days of having the OLD Mobb Deep's "Shook Ones" banging the halls?....its not about quality anymore...it's quantity.........why do you think most mainstream rappers can put out 5 albums a year? It's because its marketed so well that someone will buy it just for the name.....Any other genre, and you gotta wait 2 or so years for the goods.....
It's time for artists in the limelight to step back and realize whats going on.....why did Pac, BIG, Big L, and Pun have to die?....you think this shit would be happening if they were still around?...hell no, cuz they kept it real...I'm still hangning on to the hope that Nas and artists like Little Brother will get the eastcoast back to it's glory days.....all we have now is whack ass dirty south and crunk shit.....the beats are ok, but the lyrics do NOTHING.....
right now, I give it to the midwest....ya'll are making your own thing....
westcoast has always been different than the eastcoast in that its more about gangbangin' and partying with fly chicks and nice whips.....wait that sounds just like the new east coast!!!.....
really though...I respect everyone that makes their own music....regardless of where they are located on the map.....if its good and its got a message, imma listen to it.....if its stupid shit that dont mean nothing, then to me at least, its whack...
nothings gonna ever reverse the trend of this decline in hiphop unless the artists themselves stop being about the paycheck and being about the advancement of a people...of a society....of a way of life....
too many fuckers are concerned with their next paycheck, their next hot bitch to lay with, and their next phat ride......if they cared about their music, and their own people, and getting a message across, hiphop would be in a better state of affairs.....thats one thing I give old school....NWA and the like said what they NEEDED to say for their people and for themselves....they didn't give a shit about what anyone thought......
Tech N9ne represents the insurgence of newness in hiphop that has been needed for a long ass time.....and look at him....he's out there doing his OWN thing...THAT is what I love about Tech....his whole attitude and love for everyone...THAT is also why Tech doesn't get the major deal, the major exposure, etc....he doesn't have the powers that be pulling the strings for him.....thats why I hope he keeps doing what is right for Strange.....because once you let someone else pull the strings, you lose....
oh well....I'll leave this mindfuck session with this....
There are people in this world that WANT young America and black America dumbed down...that way, future puppetmasters won't have to work so hard to keep the control of the strings...
Do like NY rapper Saigon says he does...all these other cats are out there hustling and doing dumb shit while he's at the library reading books...like Tech says..."open your mind motherfucker".......
