It's high time Pinoy Hip Hop gets a makeover. It needs reinvention. Enough of the baggy jeans, reverse bull caps, fake blings, booty sluts, gansterism and inane rap. More of collaboration, more respect, more experimentation, more expression.. it's time Manila experience what hip hip is really about.
What I don't get is while Hip Hop and RnB is big abroad as seen in the success of such acts as 2 Phat (Asia) and Black Eyed Peas (U.S.) and of course, there's Kanye West, JayZ, Jamie Foxx, Usher, Nelly, the list goes on and on but here in Manila, hip hop is barely surviving. I know there are efforts from Empire Entertainment with H-Town and his crew producing the annual Hip Hop Awards and of course, our very own group, DMC Philippines to resuscitate hip hop and bring it back to its glorious days but I guess it isn't enough.
Audiences do not really understand hip hop and are not exposed to its many interesting facets. Maybe, they need to see more fascinating ryhmes rather than tired old ones that begin with Yo-Yo, and ends with Give-it Up. Maybe, they need to hear funkier beats, awesome lyrics and dance-worthy groove. Maybe Tagalog is really a difficult language to use for rapping. Maybe, record producers should give talented hip hops acts more mileage. Maybe, we should see a Pinoy Dj win in the World DJ Mixing Championship. Maybe, hip hop acts should stop imitating their foreign counterparts and come up with their own style. Maybe, we need our own JayZ, 2Pac, the closest we have is Francism, AndrewE, Mastaplann, 7shots... Maybe, we need another Pinoy Hip Hop hit. Maybe, we need another hot new act and I'm not talking about Gloc 9 or Dice & K9. Or Krook & Jolo or Pikaso or Mike Swift, Arbie Won, etc. I mean a hot new act that actually produce platinum albums the kind that people actually buy in droves.
RnB not doing too bad. JayR, Kyla's career are doing fine with projects left and right. People flock to their concerts and they actually have fans.
But hip hop... I still have to rehearse over and over again what I say to my friends about what turntabulism is, what graffiti means, and b-boying is all about. Admit it, it hasn't gone mainstream. Some hip hop afficionados argue that it should remain underground but if Hip hop's underground, how can it adequately express itself? How can it grow and thrive?
I still have to see a Fade 2 Black-like concert mounted. I still have to hear another album that could rival FrancisM's 1st one or see an act that can eclipse Mastaplann in popularity. I hope the entire hip hop community realizes the urgent need to revitalize the scene. There is really a challenge for Pinoy Hip Hop to reinvent itself from its old boring self to a dynamic new one.
* from Petula Menggay...
carpe diem!!!
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