50 Cent (or “Fiddy” as he’s known to his close friends, entourage, fans, wannabes etc) was recently in Australia for a series of concerts. He was spotted by a friend of my in the Qantas lounge at Sydney airport, checking his own website. That’s fine ‘Tash - I check my own websites on a compulsively-regular basis. However, as she pointed out, I don’t have my own song as a ringtone. That is, I had to agree, a sign of narcissistic personality disorder (defined, for those who don’t know, as “a pervasive pattern of grandiosity, need for admiration, and a lack of empathy.”)

It would be easy to write off most rappers as self-aggrandizing nobodies with nothing substantial to say, but I’m not one to broadly generalize about a genre I don’t really listen to. To be honest, it seems these days that the “gangster rap” “bling and bitches” style seems (thankfully) to be on the decline. Maybe its just because I don’t listen to commercial radio, go to mainstream clubs, or watch top 40 video shows, but if it is the case, it would be a welcome relief.

That’s not to say rappers don’t still like to party. South Australian boys, the Hilltop Hoods, have been throwing the same party every show for the last four years. Zing! Take that Hilltop Hoods. Maybe that’s a bit harsh, but I have seen them a bunch of times, and they do pretty much the same set with the same crowd participation every time.

But let’s look at the positives. Rappers like Kayne West, Lupe Fiasco, Mos Def and Wyclef Jean have impressed me with the things they have to say. Well, Kayne may display a touch of NPD on occasions, but who am I to judge?

And a lot of Aussie hip hop seems to display a sense of awareness and community. Artists like Urthboy, Bliss and Eso, The Herd, and yes, even the Hilltops at times have things worth listening to.

I heard an unsigned rapper called “Rapaport” on the Triple J Unearthed website recently and was immediately struck by his message. The lyrics are simplistic at times (”They say killing people will get rid of evil / It ain’t gonna work, they’re just making it worse”) but his message and aware of current world events (”From the way the CIA first funded Osama / To free trade laws that hurt the third world farmer”) is not only impressive, but commendable.

If only we heard more Dead Prez and less Fiddy on the radio…

One Response to “Celeb-spotting: 50 Cent”

1. Dune Says:
   

   Let me also add Butterfingers and *especially* the Winnie Coopers as local hip-hop acts that not only add something to the genre but can even be appreciated by non hip-hop fans.

   Wu-Tang Clan also show the diversity of hip-hop.

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