After the last "General" post ("Our Past Can't Be Our Present"; not the X-Clan "Respect Due"), there was a brief discussion/debate with my hip hop brethren and all around good-guy @MisterDrake (for all you Twitter lovers out there). You can check the discussion and post out here, but I want to piggyback off of that blog and even the conversation.

When I talk about comparing the past to the present and making sure that we just appreciate the artistry for what it is, that doesn't stop at an artist to artist comparison. Whether we recognize it or not, we compare artists in their current state to their past selves/work. When an artist creates a piece of work that resonates with the hip hop community, we always ask the question "Can they do it again?" But we don't ask this in the sense of can they make more quality music. We don't want the same feeling that might be different, but just as good. We want something familiar; something we've already seen or heard. Who cares if the follow-up effort is a really solid effort? It's still not a classic.

This is seen in no better place that the "Sophomore Jinx" theory. I'm sure you have all heard it before. An artist comes out and shocks the world with their debut album. Everybody claims they're the next best thing. But as they gear up for their second album, the questions about topping the first one start to arise. Can they out-do themselves on this project. How do they think the fans will respond? How does it compare to the first one? These are questions that we have heard. We may have even asked them ourselves. If you go back through some of my album reviews, I'm definitely guilty of it. I may say that the album I'm reviewing "isn't quite [insert album title]...", but why should that matter? All you need to know is if it's something worth buying; whether it's good or not, not how it compares to previous work.

Part of it is psychological. As humans, we need certain references and a lot of times we talk in absolutes. That's why we constantly have the debate about who's the greatest rapper ever. There probably isn't a greatest, but we still place one artist against another, constantly narrowing down until we have a never ending argument (although they can be fun). And let's be honest, perhaps artists bring it on themselves. Are we supposed to compare two albums when an artist does a sequel? Redman says he's working on Muddy Waters 2. OB4CLII just came out with high praise. Jay-Z now has three Blueprint's under his belt. How can we not compare one to the other? It would almost be unfair to think people would otherwise.

Then again, there haven't been sequels to Illmatic, Reasonable Doubt, Amerikkka's Most Wanted, etc. Perhaps Ice Cube matched, if not topped, he debut solo album, but most artists aren't as fortunate. And instead of hearing, "That was a great second album," most hear, "It's good, but not as good as..." We take away from our own listening experience when we do these comparisons. We become critics instead of fans. You could even say we become junkies. Each artist is a new drug and each album is another high, but we can never top that first high. We're never satisfied with what we have, just on the search for the hunt for the next best thing.

As artists get older or stop putting out music at the pace we're accustomed to, we tend to say they've lost it - that they're washed up. I beg to differ, though. It may be true in very few instances, but more than that, I think they've lost their shock value. It's hard to continuously reinvent yourself. DMX brought the grit back hip hop during the shiny suit era. Hip Hop was shocked by his presence. But what about now? How can DMX stand out when every single person with a microphone is killing somebody while simultaneously dancing and grinding on some chick?

This post could go on for a lot longer. I could talk about Nas and how his concept albums continue to keep him relevant. Or how Rakim can still out spit some of your favorite artists, but nobody will check for the album. We claim we just want quality music, but is that what we're really in search for? Or are we just waiting for another artist to grab a defibrillator and yell "Clear!"?

What do you think? Do artists just get washed up after a while? Is this whole thing about shock value just a baseless theory? Why do you think so many artists that still produce quality music get overlooked? Leave all your thoughts and opinions below. You can send any e-mails to straightouttahiphop@gmail.com.

Peace.


R.I.P. Heavy D