This page is devoted to philosophy and ideas related to hip hop. I know it's some long ass shit but at least respect it if your not gonna read it. peace!



THOUGHTS ON THE REVOLUTION FROM FLARE

START THE REVOLUTION!!!
Words From Jeffrey "FLARE" Shafer

rev•o•lu•tion \'re-v€-"lü-sh€n\ n 1 : a sudden, radical, or complete change; esp : the overthrow or renunciation of one ruler or government and substitution of another by the governed

It has come to my attention that what we call HipHop is not what it used to be. HipHop has been polluted with people taking the word MC, DJ, Graffiti Artist, and Break-Dancer a little too lightly. Our HipHop Kulture has been lowered to stereotypes caused by perpetrators of our way of life. Don’t let people tell you that all the wack and or fake people are helping to balance HipHop because at it’s current state I don’t feel balanced I feel overshadowed. Overshadowed by people with no skill, overshadow by people who front and tell lies, overshadowed by people who don’t even recognize HipHop in the first place. Oppression has entered into our culture and I won’t stand for and neither should you. This is no time to sit around and say "oh well" about the current situation because to be balanced there would have to be a 50/50 status. Look at record sales between Talib Kweli and Nelly. Do you see balanced? I don’t think so. If you ask the average person who does not listen to rap or is not into HipHop about what rap and HipHop stands for the closest thing they may give to a right answer is self-expression. But besides that you’ll probably mainly hear booty shaking, drugs, sex, violence, bling bling, and if they are bold enough ignorant African Americans. Now let me ask you if you still see balance. Go give your demo to a record label and listen to them say "It’s not jiggy enough. Where is the big dollar and big platinum chain talk? How come you don‘t mention hoe’s in clubs?" Now let me ask you if you still see balance. Go talk to all these groupies of fake and wack rappers and listen to them call you a "hater" because of your opinion. Listen to them sing choruses that even degrade themselves then get mad when someone calls them a bitch or a hoe. Do you see balance!?!?!? Why? Why do you see something not in sight? It doesn’t make sense. It’s time to step up and start the fuckin revolution!!!!
Don’t get me wrong, I’m not saying if you make a party song your wack or fake. I’m not saying that any references to drugs, sex, violence, and bling bling make you wack or fake. But look at it this way in our society were music influences and inspires so much HipHop music needs to be a more righteous and dignified. Our culture that describes us and represents our way of life needs to be a more righteous and dignified. Besides over using and abusing these words, these phrases, these topics put our HipHop Kulture in a bad place. Repetitive bullshit that causes stereotypes should be the last thing we want. Did you ever think why lots of people even consider HipHop dead at its current state? If you didn’t know of this information well it’s about time you knew. When Common Sense came out with his album Resurrection he stated something that needed to be stated for HipHop. He identified the problem and did something about it. Along with many other HipHoppers like KRS-One who has stood up for what is true in HipHop through 10 albums. But needless to say HipHop is still on a great downfall. The year 2001 was even said to be one of HipHop’s worse years ever. Let us not sit aside and watch our culture, which we have fought for to be put into the mainstream and recognized, be destroyed right before our eyes. Remember the times when MTV wouldn’t even play rap music, remember when most people didn’t even consider rap as music, remember our elements that make up our culture that others used to think of as foolish and reckless. Now it seems you can see the influence of HipHop everywhere you go. In commercials from Sprite to McDonalds to other types of music that have adopted our style and elements. Because of this it seems everyone wants to be a rapper. Even the people that are not about HipHop or think they are but are just fooling themselves. Keep in mind that you can still be apart of the HipHop Kulture even if you don’t MC, DJ, Break-Dance, or do Graffiti. Plan real HipHop fans or needed just as much as real HipHop MCs, DJs, Break-Dancers, and Graffiti artist. We are finally in the spotlight so let us bring out the truth and realness of HipHop.
The steps to make this revolution possible are as followed: Recognize that HipHop at its current state is not balance. Stand up against perpetrators of HipHop. Sorry to say names. Rappers like, Nelly, and people from Cash Money or No Limit, and plenty others there are to many to name should be confronted. Ether let these people be elevated to a higher and more respectable purpose or separate these parasites from our culture. Label them as only Pop Rappers. This way they can not bring down something that they are not apart of. If the majority of all HipHoppers recognize what needs to be done for HipHop then in due time things will start to change. We will have the skill and popularity that we have built but will have return to the old ways of real HipHop. FAKERS BEWARE THE REVOLUTION IS NEAR!!
This last part is to set some things straight so not to cause false criticism. I know that everyone will not accept my ideas. (I’m talking about the real HipHoppers now not the fake people; of course they will not agree with me!) If you don’t agree with me well that is on you. I would hope that you would realize that something needs to be done to rebuild our culture but for whatever reason you have not to agree with the revolution that is on you. If before I considered you real in the HipHop Kulture and you don’t believe in the revolution that doesn’t mean I will think of you as wack or fake all of a sudden. Just keep doing your thing and maybe in the future you will understand what I’m trying to say. Also I do believe that there needs to be balance. I do see that if there were nobody fake or wake a lot of MC’s wouldn’t have something to rap about. But at the price of being overshadowed and oppressed for balance is to big of a price. Besides even after the revolution there will still be fake rappers trying to front. Just not as many. When the revolution comes the HipHop Kulture will finally be balanced and it will be a lot easier for a real MC or DJ with skill to be recognized. Because the fake people will not be hogging the spotlight.

Requested Tracks to listen to for those willing and ready for the Revolution
Hot-By KRS-One
Hardcore-By KRS-One
Simple Minds-By Qwazaar
Move Somethin-By Talib Kweli
Stakes is High-By De La Soul
Flawless-By Phife
Got-Mos Def