Originally Posted by ulokoe

smorg, what an absolute joke. are you doubting the intellectual capabilities of a Nas or (dare i say it) a DMX?? if you're going to target a niche of hip hop for intellectual betrayal of the genre, you should turn to the south IMO. but that would be unfair as well because they have given us the likes of scarface and Outkast. focus that observation on individual artists rather than the entire gangsta rap sub-genre. its not my favourite but there is a wealth of social commentary in their songs. "shallow" is a real insult to some of these guys. gangsta rap might be repetitive but its mostly an honest depiction of the reality of most of these guys and you can only write about what you know about and all they know is the dangerous inner city. as for carrying guns being a reflection of cowardise, i guarantee an early ice cube or tupac would be just as comfortable capping someone as they would be bludgeoning them to death with their fists, not that i approve of such behavior. they just have a different socialization from most other americans because they grow up in a harsher environment.