It’s good to hear Fab 5 Freddy talk about the Afrocentric movement in hip-hop, because it was such an important component of the culture at one point. In the late 80s/early 90s, it was like everywhere you turned folks were embracing their roots, their African heritage, via medallions or T-shirts, or style and colors of the clothes themselves. And the music reflected it as well. You had acts like Public Enemy, Jungle Brothers, Queen Latifah, Poor Righteous Teachers, and even alternative groups like Arrested Development. I think the movement climaxed in 1992 when Spike Lee’s biopic, Malcolm X, came out. From there, the West Coast gangsta rap era took over, and hip-hop went in a completely different direction altogether.
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Outside of a few cameos, it’s been four years since Nelly’s Sweat/Suit album dropped. The game has definitely changed a lot since then. In our exclusive interview with the St. Lunatic, he talked about why he’d been gone, noting that he generally takes time off between albums, but also that he had to handle some BI with his record label, Universal Records. He said,
“I kinda had to pull a Prince move, almost. I was going through a lot with my label as far as monies being owed to me since Country Grammar. I just felt like this was the time for me to do it. Before I do another record, let’s get this straight now. It was one of those things where it was a must that it be done. It was one those things where I put out a record ["Wadsyaname"] that was never going to be on my album. But if I had to take the brunt for that, in order to make waves in order for the next artist to come along and be able to get that much ahead, and get that much of their business straight for the next time, then so be it. It’s not a hit that I feel I couldn’t overcome.”
Directed by Rik Cordero. The closet thing you’re gonna get to a go-go track right now. Chrisette Michele looks real good. Go get the Roots album, Rising Down, when it drops next Tuesday. Definitely worth your cash, whether it’s a CD or a download. Some real good tunes on there.
