Cover story
Black Ink
debut album released in 1988 was tided
“Youngest in Charge" with the boastful
rap, “I’ve Got It Made.” His latest album
released during the Summer of 1990
called “Legal” continues his idolist tradi
tion with songs like “I’m Special Ed.”
Antoinette, who has been called the
gangstress of rap, is truly an idolist
rapper. Rumors have surfaced that she’s
been dissing MC Lyte and is known for
her hard-edged rapping. Her debut al
bum released in 1988 titled “Who’s the
Boss,” shows her boastful character with
the song “I Got an Attitude. ” She recentiy
released another album, “Burnin’ at 20
Below,” which contains cuts likes “In My
House.” LL CoolJ an acronym for “Ladies
Love Cool James,” is the ultimate idolist
rapper. LL has been called rap’s first sex
symbol because of the way he portrays
himself. His first album titled “Radio”
was released in 1985. His second album
“Bigger and Deffer” started the rap bal
lad with the cut “I Need Love” in 1986.
His third album, “Walking with a Pan
ther” went platinum with songs like “I’m
That Type of Guy.” His fourth LP con
taining the songs “Jingling Baby” and
“ Boomin’ System” was released this year.
“This category of rappers may have
emerged because a lot of rap is about
articulation and being the best,” Brian
Austin said. “Everyone is trying to be
come the best because so few artists
become really famous.”
Story Tellers
The story tellers are a group of rap
pers who act as narrators in a lot of their
songs. Some of these songs have hidden
messages that show social conscious
ness in rap. These rappers spend much
of their time telling some kind of story in
their music. Although most rappers are
story tellers, this category of artists has
no real distinct sound or lyrics. For the
most part, they just tell stories. This
category can be large because it can con
tain almost anybody in the industry.
Story tellers are also some of the most
widely accepted rap artists. Some of the
best known story tellers are MC Lyte,
with her rigid rap style. MC Lyte’s first
album, “Lyte as a Rock” was released in
1988 and contained the songs “Cha Cha
Cha” and “I Cram to Understand You.”
Her second LP, “Eyes on This” continues
her storytelling tradition. Young MC is a
college-educated rapper, who won a
Grammy for his song “Bust the Move.”
Young MC also hit with “Principal’s
Office,” from his debut LP. Kwame, the
‘one we all know and love,’ was consid
ered a genius when he came on the
scene two years ago. Kwame has made
polka dots fashionable again and will tell
you so in his raps. His latest LP, “Kwame
and a New Beginning” contains the hit
single, “OnleeU.” Slick Rick became a
popular story teller with his song “Chil
dren’s Story” from his first LP, “The Great
Adventures of Slick Rick” in 1988. Slick
Rick is the rapper with the British accent
and a former sidekick of Doug E. Fresh.
Comedians
Comedians are rappers whose lyrics
are amusing and sometimes satirize other
songs. Comedians may also relay so-
cially-conscious messages at times. Co
medians like story tellers have been
received very well in the music world.
One of the earliest and funniest comedy
groups was the Fat Boys. The Fat Boys
always joked about their weight, when
they came into the music worid in 1984.
The trio revolutionized the “beat box,”
which has become their trade mark.
They have starred in two movies. Disor
derlies and Krush Groovin’, Bobby
Jimmy and the Critters have become the
kings of parody, especially with songs
like “Roaches” and “Hair or Weave.”
Dana Dane, another rapper with a
British accent, has also made some funny
songs. His debut LP, “Dana Dane with
Fame,” went gold with songs like “Cin-
derfella Dana Dane.” Biz Markie, per
forms in oudandish style, often changing
his voice. One of his hits from 1987, was
“Pickin’ Boogas”. In late 1989, he re
leased his second album containing the
songs “It’s Spring Again” and “Just a
Friend.” DJ Jazzy Jeff and Fresh Prince
are one of the funniest groups in rap
music. Their clean cut image has earned
them the nickname rap’s “Cosby Kids.”
Their first single released in late 1988
was “Parents Just Don’t Understand.”
The group’s second album, “I’m the DJ;
He’s the Rapper” achieved double-plati
num status.
Brian Austin said amusing rap
pers are accepted better because of the
nature of their songs. “Of course most
people are not offended by the Fat Boys
or the Fresh Prince because they present
a funny side of life. However, some
people can’t rap about light-hearted
things because they haven’t experi
enced them.”
Dancers/Dance Lyricists
Some rappers in this category have
become famous because of their danc
ing ability. Great rap dancers sometimes
create new dances that become famous
nationwide. Other rappers have lyrics in
their songs that produce dance crazes or
dance music. Rap lyrics backed up by
house music have become very popular
over the last couple of years. MCHam-
merhas become one of the most famous
rappers of all time. He is the mastermind
of the “Hammer,” a dance that has swept
the country. He released his first LP,
“Let’s Get it Started” in 1988 with hit cuts
such as “Turn this Mutha Out.” His
current LP “Please Hammer Don’t Hurt
‘Em” has sold 5 million copies, making it
the top selling rap album of all time.
Hammer’s former dancers Oaktoum's
357, are now rappers and are also known
for exciting the crowd with singles like
“Get Loose.” Kid-n-Flay, coined the “kick
step” in dance routines. Songs on their
first album, “2 Hype,” gave them a chance
to showcase their talents across the
country. They released “Funhouse,” their
second LP earlier this year. Three new
groups became popular on the scene
this year. The Digital Underground re
leased its album “Sex Packets” contain
ing the hit single, “The Humpty,” which
started a summer 1990 dance craze.
Technotronic is in the dance category
because of its hits “Pump Up the Jam"
and “Get Up,” which are backed up by
house music. SNAPPzlso belongs in the
dance category because of its rap jam
“The Power,” which became one of the
top songs on the dance charts during the
Summer of 1990.
Sexist/Sexiiallv Explicit
Rappers in the sexist/sexually ex
plicit category either talk about the op
posite sex negatively or talk about sex a
lot in their music. Some rap groups rap
about sex explicidy in their music. They
have aroused tremendous public con
troversy in their music. Tone hoc, a for
mer gang member, released his debut
album in 1988, “Loc’ed After Dark.” The
LP contained the songs “Wild Thing,” a
slang word for sex and “Funky Cold
Medina,” what you drink to get ready to
do the wild thing. ”Wild Thing” soared
up the charts and became the best selling
single of 1988-89. Much ofTone Loc’s al
bum dealt specifically with sex. Ice-T,
another former gang member, can be
classified as a sexually explicit rapper.
All of his albums have included warn
ings about violence or sexual explicit
ness. His song “Let’s Get Butt Naked and
F—K” confirmed his place in this cate
gory. Ice-T’s songs also usually contain
a great deal of profanity. And of course,
there is the legendary Miami-based 2
Live Crew, which has aroused the most
controversy in rap of almost any group.
The group led by Luther Campbell, in
cludes explicit sexual references in almost
all of its songs. The group’s first LP
“Move Something” contained many ex
plicit songs. The group’s second LP “As
Nasty as They Wanna Be,” has sparked
controversy across the nation. The al
bum contains the song “Me So Horny,”
which needs no explanation. The group
was recently acquitted of violating ob
scenity laws in Florida and have become
martyrs for free speech.
Harry Allen said that black women
must fight against sexism in music. “Hip
hop’s sexist thinking will change when
the community changes. Black women
will have to challenge the music and tell
it how to change, if change is to come.
Only then will record companies cease
the release of cuts that call for bitch-
smacking.”
Dr, Blanchard said sometimes judges
censor music without listening to the
lyrics, which is a clear violation of free
speech. “I solely believe that adults ought
to be able to listen to what they want,”
Dr. Blanchard said. “No one really can
define what obscenity means anyway,
but you have courts making decisions on
it. Whether you like the 2 Live Crew is ir
relevant, but you must defend free
speech.”
“Edutainers”