Greatest MC Ever...to move the crowd
You asked for it, you got it. Here's a suggestion I received for a subject to blog on; who is the greatest MC to ever move the crowd? This is different from who is simply the greatest MC of all time. The difference is performance. Now, they must have all of the elements that it would take to be the greatest MC, but they don't necessarily have to be the best (even though you could make a case that maybe all but one of the candidates I will list is the greatest).
With that being said, there were three names that emdee44 gave me. He mentioned KRS-One, Rakim, and Big Daddy Kane, in that order. He also mentioned that this art of performing has basically become extinct, which I completely agree. I think the only person that you could really add to this list is Busta Rhymes. Now he's not touching them in terms of all time, but as a performer, there are very few that love it more than him.
Unfortunately, I have not seen any of these artists perform, but I really hope that I would get the chance to at some point. I know that KRS still performs on the regular so I really hope that I get the opportunity. In terms of the orde, I would have to agree that KRS is number one (no pun intended), but then I think that you could honestly say that Busta is number two. Now once again, I have not had the privilege of seeing Rakim perform and I haven't seen much footage, but from at least the footage I've seen of Busta, he has almost unlimited energy on stage. However, Rakim coined the phrase "MC means move the crowd", so that could really go either way.
To be honest, I don't even feel as qualified to rate these, but I have to agree with the order of the original three MCs and the only other artists I would to the discussion is Busta. I will say this though, KRS takes his job more seriously as a performer than anybody. Busta has an absolute passion for it (as the rest of them do), but KRS has made it a science. In the hip hop documentary The Art of 16 Bars, a QD3 Collection, KRS describes how he performs and what it does. For example, he says that he always wears multiple layers and as the show goes on, he will take a layer off. This just adds to the crwods enthusiasm. That's just one of the tips, but KRS has really found the true art to performing.
That's it for me for this week. What are you're thoughts. Who do you think is the greatest perfomer/crowd mover? Is there anybody in the game currently that might be able to bring it back? Let me hear from you. If there's anything you would like me to blog about, either leave a comment with you suggestion or hit me at straightouttahiphop@gmail.com.
With that being said, there were three names that emdee44 gave me. He mentioned KRS-One, Rakim, and Big Daddy Kane, in that order. He also mentioned that this art of performing has basically become extinct, which I completely agree. I think the only person that you could really add to this list is Busta Rhymes. Now he's not touching them in terms of all time, but as a performer, there are very few that love it more than him.
Unfortunately, I have not seen any of these artists perform, but I really hope that I would get the chance to at some point. I know that KRS still performs on the regular so I really hope that I get the opportunity. In terms of the orde, I would have to agree that KRS is number one (no pun intended), but then I think that you could honestly say that Busta is number two. Now once again, I have not had the privilege of seeing Rakim perform and I haven't seen much footage, but from at least the footage I've seen of Busta, he has almost unlimited energy on stage. However, Rakim coined the phrase "MC means move the crowd", so that could really go either way.
To be honest, I don't even feel as qualified to rate these, but I have to agree with the order of the original three MCs and the only other artists I would to the discussion is Busta. I will say this though, KRS takes his job more seriously as a performer than anybody. Busta has an absolute passion for it (as the rest of them do), but KRS has made it a science. In the hip hop documentary The Art of 16 Bars, a QD3 Collection, KRS describes how he performs and what it does. For example, he says that he always wears multiple layers and as the show goes on, he will take a layer off. This just adds to the crwods enthusiasm. That's just one of the tips, but KRS has really found the true art to performing.
That's it for me for this week. What are you're thoughts. Who do you think is the greatest perfomer/crowd mover? Is there anybody in the game currently that might be able to bring it back? Let me hear from you. If there's anything you would like me to blog about, either leave a comment with you suggestion or hit me at straightouttahiphop@gmail.com.
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