Contributed by Saron Dier on 02/14/08

I know it’s February, somewheres around the 14th. Yo ass is probably scramblin around the mall, or tryin to bid snipe some shit on Ebay looking for some gift for the lady, cause yall had a big ass argument about somethin silly you don’t even remember. She’s pissed at you, and you can guarantee this one thing. It’s Valentine’s Day, yo girl lookin for some lovin, and it sure aint gonna be from you…

Or you’re a WOLF like me and you wait till 5pm on the 14th and start callin girls you KNOW aint got no dates, and feel horrible cause they dont. When who pops up in my phone…oh oh, it sure is…its YO girl!!! Hahahahaha…its on.

I spend a little dough, you know we get that romantic ass dinner at Burger King. After I offer to put cheese on her Whopper, we go on a cheap ass walk, then head back to my crib and either watch a) Love and Basketball or b) Brown Sugar. Cause Sanaa Lathan does it for me. We talk about how much I love hip hop and then I use a generic freestyle with her name inserted, and she pretty much forgets about you…..

and at this point, it’s time to cue up that playlist for sweet sweet sweet lovin. Oh yeah baby. I had to say sweet three times, cause I’m involved. As I scramble through my playlist I search high and low for the song that will describe this moment. I find the exact songs I’m looking for. I slowly turn around to your girl. Her eyes shine with glee and sexiness and a little bit of sweat. In my lowest, sexiest, sweatiest voice I ask her…

” Whatchu wanna hear? Wu Tang or M.O.P.??? “

With that [mostly] false story aside…..i got a question. What happened to the Hip Hop love song? I mean where the hardest of hardcore emcees break down like they supposed to and profess love for the girl that’s been puttin up with they rapper-life bullshit (long nights, non-dance-based music she really doesn’t understand, the fact that there is this “other” woman- hip hop) Doesn’t that special girl in your life deserve more than the generic freestyle I used to get her pants?

{{{{{ When I’m alone in my room/ Sometimes I stare at the wall}}}}

and in the back of my mind….Truer words have never been spoken. Okay. I admit if that shit was released today, and by ANYONE other than LL, he would be laughed at. And that’s a damn shame, cause as corny as it was, that song has been used by anyone who can play those 4 piano notes to let her know…you love that girl.

That girl named Hip Hop. And what other theme defines a genre such as Love does to Hip Hop. Evident in every scratch, verse and tag us hip hoppers do, the trues do this for love cause money in Hip Hop is shaky, haha. And even though we’re usually tryin to be tough as hell, every song in Hip Hop is a love song. But when an emceein man loves a woman, boy do you get some extraordinary material….

Ghostface “All that I got is you”. (runner up Ghostface “Wildflower”)
Biggie Smalls “Me and my Bitch”
LL Cool J - I Need Love/ Hey Lover/ Around the way girl
Tribe Called Quest - Bonita Applebaum/ Electric Relaxation
Little Brother - Whatever You Say
Tupac - Dear Mama/Keep Ya Head Up
Common Sense - I used to love h.e.r.
Method Man/ Mary J. Blige….do i even have to put the title to this one? CLASSIC

And such and so…So what’s the common thread between these songs? They’re dope!!…haha. But the concept is that they conveyed deep emotion and conviction to whoever the woman was. Even though Biggie Smalls referred to his girl as his “bitch” , he damn near collapses at the end lamenting the death of her; his “best friend”. A poignant display of Hip Hop’s vulnerable side that allowed you to express feelings about something(someone) you where passionate about, and rewarded those who had cajones enough to not care about how it affected your “street cred”.

However, in this “i rap for dough, and only dough” era, it takes a lot of bravery to admit that you love someone on record. But when you find that Claire Huxtable type woman that deserves it, you gotta let that woman know. But can we even do that? Has the hot-beat-with-somebody talkin era replaced the geniunity, honesty, and ice cold vulnerability in Hip Hop?

{Time are a changin/ rhymes are a changin}

Fast forward to today’s era. The “hot” era. That line was hot. That song is hot. That car is hot. What everyone forgets is that hot things eventually cool down…

The recent attempts at love songs are also hot. Hot as in microwaved. Microwaved garbage. The so-called “love” songs in “hip hop” do not seem like they come from the heart, soul, or even the brain. Like a guy who goes out on a date, spends $300 on dinner and gets a kiss on the cheek, any MC Automaton can put out today’s “love song”. Emotionlessly going through the motions, no passion or believability is conveyed. A whole bunch of money dumped into a mandatory radio single, one that will come and go without much fanfare either way. Hot intentions with lukewarm results.

Cause there’s no lasting feeling. The emotion embedded in a Jackson 5 songs. The rebellious gangsta/b-boy spirit that bursted through when you first heard NWA. Or like T.R.O.Y., a love song for a different reason, but still retaining the soul passed down by the late James Brown. For some reason, I dont think that Chingy “Pullin Me Back Hurrr” conveys the same lasting passion or conviction. Exhibit A of a “hot” song that was written just because….

And just like a woman who’s tired of a guy just going through the motions, maybe Hip Hop is tired of the same old thing…the lack of flair, emotion, passion. The lack of Tupac Shakur’s fiery spirit or Big L’s charisma. ATCQ’s down-to-earthness. The Beatnuts’ wacky antics. Even “underground” artists are guilty. Hiding behind 30 second-a-round battles, or seeing who can string the most mutlisyllabic lines together, underground artists often forget to drop their hardcore facade and put some passion and purpose behind their technical talent. Remember, MC means move the crowd. So do that shit!

As in partner dancing, the guy has to take the lead. Meaning that emcees must take the lead of our art. It’s cool that we can put together verses, hot songs, etc. Any ghostwriter could sell you that. But we have to remember that we are the masters of ceremonies. Meaning that emcees have to make the crowd feel it: feel love, hate, angst, fun etc. They say Hip Hop is dead…i say not. She’s just fucking bored. She misses the feeling of popping in that purple tape and the way that Glaciers of Ice comes on. Or a talented artist working their way up the ranks and proving themselves on talent and sustainability as opposed to image and marketability. Make it happen. Make h.e.r. fall back in love with you. Cause the only way Hip Hop only dies is when the love does…
Happy Valentines day….

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