wow your really a tool arnt you? And yes Ive heard every Nas album and have many of them includeing illmatic, stillmatic, It was written, and hip hop is dead. Secondly Nas overly like many rappers raps about guns, murder, drugs in some of his songs. Not all of them yea hes not bad and he has a good voice and flow, rewind is one of my favorite songs by him, but then again it is about guns and other bullshit, but then again the whole way the song is delivered and the way its delivered is pretty good. as respects to slug have you ever heard abusing the rib? If you havent then I suggest you dont comment on issues you have no creditability in. Have you even heard of Illogic? Sage francis? Sage francis is a lyricst by all means, having a few National poety slams under his belt. So please dont lecture me on your poor perception of lyricism and rappers. Nas is not even close to slug or sage for that matter.

I can't honestly say I have heard Sage Francis, although I will since I plan on seeing him at Rock The Bells.

I do have to say I disagree and agree with you on some parts about Nas. He has kind of stagnated and is not as great as he used to be, lack of exploration into new lyrical ground is probably why I feel that way. But its what he knows and if it were anything else then he couldn't do it half as good.

But for you to say he is untalented I can't agree with. Perhaps he isn't as talented as some of the rappers you listed, I haven't heard Slug or Sage, but each has their opinion on who is. I certainly don't think he is the best MC ever. But he does have a way to make tired subjects interesting and done in a clever way.

For instance how many times has the topic of love been covered in a song? Brittney Spears makes it look boring and tired but there are countless other performers that somehow still find a way to talk about it.

Firstly, I note that you have failed to make any response to what I said about Aesop Rock when I specifically called you out on that. But that's okay. I assume you, like Aesop Rock, have no idea what he's talking (not rapping) about.

Secondly, do you really think you're so underground to be the only one who has heard of the artists you've mentioned? Of course I've heard of Slug, Illogic, Sage Francis and the rest of them. I've even listened to them. That's how I know that the Slug track you were referring to is called "The Abusing of the Rib" and not "Abusing the Rib", as you thought. If you're going to try and test me, at least get your own material straight. Otherwise, you just end up schooling yourself like this.

I'll now deal with the main issues you appear to be confused about. You don't like rap about guns, murder and drugs. That's fine. It's also fine that you seem to prefer the rap about being a suburban tortured artist. But you're conflating different issues when you suggest that these artists are better than Nas for that reason.

Subject matter and lyricism are not one and the same. If some random guy rapped about a turtle, would that in itself make him a better lyricist than someone who rapped about guns? Of course not. So don't get it twisted.

Even though I do appreciate what guys like Slug or Sage have to offer, their flow and delivery can never be compared to one of the greats like Nas.

You claim that guys like Slug and Sage are more complex? How? I'm still waiting for you to provide lines and break them down for me to illustrate their complexity. Or are you unable to understand them yourself?

As for credentials, Nas has released what is arguably the best rap album of all time. What have Sage or Slug done to remotely compare to this? Don't embarrass yourself, son. Saying that those guys have better credentials is the height of ignorance.

And of course I can lecture you on lyricism and rappers. You probably need it anyway. Look at your signature. You can't even spell "lyricist" right and your grammar leaves a LOT to be desired. Which makes you the LAST person to talk about lyrics or wordplay so please save yourself from further embarrassment.

I'm not getting into this debate/argument at all -- I just wanted to comment on what mikegreco16 said in a previous post:

Most of early rap was founded on the struggles in the low income communities which are, unfortunately, riddled with guns, murder, and drugs.

Many of my favorite songs passionately circle around these themes and when done right -- can be very powerful.

I will say that the subject has been dragged through the mud by too many talentless hacks, but it doesn't mean that you shouldn't rap about it if it means something to you.



I wonder if there are rappers in the warzones of the middle east...? That would be interesting.

That's a very good point. In fact, I had it in mind but had to deal with other issues. But thanks for mentioning it so lucidly that I'm spared the trouble of doing the same.

As to your final point, I can't agree more. If done right, as you said, I can only imagine how moving it might be.

My favorite rapper is Coolzey, but most have not heard of him since he's a local guy from my neck of the woods. I believe he has stuff on iTunes. Check him out; he's amazing because of how unique he is.

Everlast in the House Of Pain era.