kanye west bests 50 cent
September 19th, 2007 by Dave Allen
So in the race to #1 it appears that Kanye beat out Fiddy at least according to this CNN story. And it has to be noted that the hype was good for their sales; Kanye pulled 957,000 to Fiddy’s 691,000 - should put a smile on the industry’s faces at least for a day.
Kanye West - Stronger feat. Daft Punk [MP3]
September 19th, 2007 at 9:19 pm
50 was so pissed he cancelled some upcoming shows. wow. why do I know that?
September 19th, 2007 at 11:00 pm
This whole “competition” thing is moronic. It’s such an obvious PR tactic that I can’t believe people are buying any of it. This is pure Coke and Pepsi nonsense, all day. Kanye? 50 Cent? Cotton candy, baby, every bit of it. Even Daft Punk can’t save this shit.
Hip Hop is, by and large, a dead genre. “Me too” merchants ad nauseum, ad astra. It, along with pop-punk, is the WWE of music. Why don’t Kanye and Fallout Boy have a nice tour together? They can autograph each other’s gold records while snorting coke off a hooker’s hind end, giggling about the whole thing.
I can hear Dave now:
“How many cups of coffee have you had then, Wallace?”
Too true. I’ve had so many I am hearing voices, as referenced above. I am going back to Julian Cope’s tell-all book now. “Head On” and “Repossessed” in one tome. Nice. I love crazy people.
September 19th, 2007 at 11:36 pm
i don\\\\\\\’t really know what hip hop is anymore…not that i really did in the first place. i liked the kanye daft punk remix mainly because of the daft punk beats…..so, it feels like pop music more than anything else.
September 20th, 2007 at 6:25 am
almost 1 million in sells? that’s so old school!
September 20th, 2007 at 7:45 am
I heard that kanye calls 50 cent, 49 cent, now…
September 20th, 2007 at 8:21 am
30 cent maybe…I think Roy Christopher should jump and educate us with his hip hop insights…
September 20th, 2007 at 8:34 am
So is 50 cent gonna actually gonna quit “rhyming” like he promised he would if he lost? Magic 8 Ball says, “Outlook Doubtful…” To quote the thrice-retired Michael Jordan of rap - Jay Z - “can’t leave rap alone, the game needs me…”
Well, maybe a tired genre needs you, Mr. Jay - but not 50…
September 20th, 2007 at 11:55 am
I think the media-orchestrated, money grabbing, over-hyped “competition” between 50 and Kanye was….
Excellent. A great idea, and I hope other artists take notice that an audience can be entertained by more than some remixed songs and a ringtone. Fans want more than just recorded sounds from their artists, or at least they’re ready to respond to more. Its all part of being an entertainer and being good to your fans - you need to be interesting above all else. For tons of folks, this was a fun little matchup that let them pick a side, think about 50 and Kanye’s contrasting personalities, compare their music, (yes, spend a little money), and get EXCITED about the music they’re listening to.
So what if it was a media stunt? Almost all the mystique and “artistic genius” we read into artist’s images going back to the Beatles and earlier is self-conscious promotion, if not outright media-driven. It doesn’t matter if it wasn’t a genuine moment within the artist’s minds; it was a genuine moment for the audience and their conception of the artist and their music, which in my opinion is what its all about.
September 20th, 2007 at 12:15 pm
Justin, I totally agree. As commentators on a blog like this we take our thoughts seriously enough to write about them, the 1.6 million plus kids who rushed out to buy the CDs or downloads don’t care whether this a real competition or one fabricated by their labels. Just as on American Idol you get chance to vote that’s what happened here and millions of music fans made their choice… [I wonder how many of the sales were via iTunes?]
September 20th, 2007 at 6:21 pm
Justin/Dave
I think the reason I don’t like any of this 50/Kanye hype is because A) it’s media hype over a tired product, the last struggling death kicks of a musical cockroach that has been living on its back far too long (like pop-punk) and B) well, this is a totally circular argument because for me it all goes back to the idea that behind all the hype, THIS SHIT IS LAME.
I could get behind a Warhol vs. Basquiat concept (yes, AW did this first –after a fashion– lest we forget) if the stuff these two media darlings put out had any interesting qualities whatsoever. But how many monotone rappin anthems can we possibly get before people catch on to the rinse-lather-repeat nature of these overhyped genres?
Hip Hop is truly as awful today as the punks thought Yes and Rod Stewart were back in the 70s. Give me some Ultramagnetic MCs any day and never mind these “me too” kiddies.
HOW TO SAVE HIP HOP:
1. Bring back the BAND. As in, on stage.
2. Make them play the funk.
3. Write some lyrics worth listening to. Songs with titles like “I Got Money” are, well, do I really need to elucidate here?
4. Make them play the funk.
5. Make them play the funk.
6. Where are those guys rapping about William Burroughs and Naked Lunch? Bring THOSE dudes back. Please. That shit was priceless. Blackilicious? Please move to the front of the concert hall and begin performing now.
that’s it. Instant revitalized genre.
For my next magical trick, I’ll tell you how to save pop punk:
1. Infect them all with laryngitis
2. Close the concert halls.
That’s it. This patient is beyond saving.
OK, I have earned my CERTIFIED KOOK status for the day. I hesitate to hit “submit”. Cazart.
September 20th, 2007 at 11:39 pm
save hip hop?
that seems like an impossible cross to bear. do we really care? i welcome new music and new ideas, but saving hip hop seems like a force that will work itself out on its own.
jk
September 21st, 2007 at 1:08 pm
Hey Josh,
Oh yeah. I am thinking we need an NGO to save hip hop. Never mind the whales, the seals, the environment or the starving. We need a think tank, a focus group, a senate oversight committee, and maybe even an agency like the Department of Homeland Security.
“The Department Of Hip Hop Quality Control” could be staffed by RZA, Chuck D, Ice T, and for laughs, Moby.