What Happened To Conscious Rap/Hip-Hop?!

[Mode' Moheem]

According to the Wikipedia definition of Conscious Hip-Hop.

Conscious hip hop is a type of hip hop that focuses on social issues. It is not necessarily overtly political, but trests of social issues and conflicts. Themes of conscious hip hop include religion, aversion to violence, African American culture and advancement, and the economy. Grandmaster Flash's "The Message" was an early and hugely influential political and conscious hip hop track, decrying the poverty, violence, and dead-end lives of the black youth of the time.

The audience for conscious rap is largely underground.[1] Most conscious hip hop artists have not attained the same level of commercial success as mainstream hip-hop [2], though some notable exceptions to this are Gang Starr, Nas, The Roots, Common, Lupe Fiasco, OutKast, Talib Kweli and Lauryn Hill.

Some conscious artists have criticized the name. Mos Def criticizes the label, saying:
“ They keep trying to slip the 'conscious rapper' thing on me...I come from Roosevelt Projects, man. The ghetto. I drank the same sugar water, ate hard candy. And they try to get me because I'm supposed to be more articulate, I'm supposed to be not like the other Negroes, to get me to say something against my brothers. I'm not going out like that, man."[3] ”

Similarly, Talib Kweli confirmed in a recent interview with VIBE magazine that the title of his next album will be Prisoner of Conscious, a reference to his constant labeling as a "conscious rapper".


With that definition, I agree and disagree. Public Enemy is considered by some "writers," and "critics" as a Political or Politicized Rapper. It's amazing how they come up with these categories of rappers. I always thought that KRS-One, Public Enemy, Paris, and X-Clan to name a few, were conscious rap artists. The description of Political Rapper to me is borderline insulting. Why? It's like separating. Divide and Conquer. It just seems like a way to cause conflict.

I overstand what Blackstar (Mos Def & Talib Qweli) was talking about when they refused to take the label. They have great tracks that spell conscious, but the label is unnecessary.

Conscious Hip-Hop to me, is rap/hip-hop music that melds with the minds of people that want to wake up, consciously or sub-consciously. It doesn't matter the category on where one wants to wake up at. The music taps into that area, making it happen.

KRS-One, Public Enemy, X-Clan, Paris are my favorites. There haven't been any other artists (that I've listened to) that have come close to the caliber of the aforementioned. I've only heard through the grapevine on how good Dead Prez, Kanye West, and Nas are.

However, I don't know a lot of the artists out there. I stopped listening to a lot of rap music, because of the road it's seemingly gone. If it ain't about pimps, players, ballers, hustlers, bitches, whores, and other negative crap, then it ain't nothing. As it was said before by a couple of wise folks: "...the streets don't dictate the music, the music dictates the streets." Unfortunately, I agree. I just listen to the music that has been popularized over the past 10 years (at least). The promotion of less than conscious music (to put it VERY lightly), has been rampant. My conclusion has to do with nameless, or code named groups who wish to destroy it. This is what happened to Conscious Rap/Hip-Hop.

If anyone wishes, they can elaborate on this, or expand on it.

Peace & Blessings