I was never a fan of Oj the Juiceman. It had little to do with the fact he couldn’t rap. It was mainly the content of his so-called raps. In every song, he was taking my girl out to eat! Pappadeauexs, Waffle House., etc Always for a light a supper, before he deflowered her and sent her home to me. Now, I would’ve never bought an album of his anyway and I know my girl and Oj the Juiceman would never happen? But his lyrics used to always me think, “Who are you selling records too?”
Many artists today are sending a contrary message. From 2 Chainz to Rick Ross and so on, many artists openly brag about how much money they are spending in the club on bottles of champagne, making it rain on strippers and how you can never be in their position. They tell you that you hate them, because of this money and stature that we should assume they’ve reached because of this money. Yet, when they’re albums about to drop, they get very humble and say things like, “I need yall to got out and support my record. Make sure you hit the stores/Itunes and buy my album.” Buy what and for what? So I can have a daily reminder of how I aint shit unless I get to your level? Are you saying that all the 9-5, regular job workers should have to support your lavish lifestyle, or they’re a hater?
Every week, we’re subjected to 1st week sales numbers of some of these same artists and they look pathetic. Routinely we see numbers like 50, 60 and 70 thousand units sold. Something that shouldn’t be bragged about at all! So I guess my question is this, are artists insulting the same people they need to support them? Only in hip-hop will an artist openly say something like, “I’ll buy one of you broke niggas,” like Wiz Khalifa said and then follow that up in an interview later with, “Go cop my album. Support the movement.” Buy for what homie, you good.
Now, don’t get it twisted. Before I’m a writer, I was and still am a fan of the music. Rappers boasting and bragging about money and material goods never affected me when it came to buying an album. Jay-Z bragged, Biggie did the same and so did Puff. I bought all their albums and got jiggy with it. But this is a new day and age and like a friend of mine ABlack mentioned on twitter, “This is day and age of the Internet. I’ll bootleg your album.”
With so many ways that fans can get your music for free, wouldn’t the last thing an artist would want to do is insult the same people who you need to buy your records? Now, I’m not in any way asking for people to change the content of their music. If that’s the life you live, then you have to speak about it. Another thing we in hip-hop always ask of an artist is be real. So if that’s really you, be you. At the same time though why would someone buy a record, where the artist reminds them on repeated basis that they aint shit? Would you? Obviously not, because no one is buying these records. Have you bought one?
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