The process of growing up is hard. From exiting the womb to becoming a full grown brother with a beard, I’ve enjoyed my memorable journey in between. The one thing that has helped me become a young man is the art form known as music. Hip-Hop in particular is the main musical genre that has provided me the type of moments that can never be forgotten.
As a young buck who always enjoyed hanging around his Pops, my ears and eyes were opened wide when he put on that cassette player every Saturday afternoon. My father is the very definition of a music connoisseur, so he had anything and everything that was music to his ears. Little did he know that his hip-hop spins were influencing me too. I can vividly recall being amazed by the artwork for The Pharcyde’s “Bizarre Ride 2 the Pharcyde” and bobbing my head for the first time to “Oh Sh*t.” I came to experience the massive crowd hype surrounding KRS-One’s “The Bridge is Over” when I ventured in a little known NYC staple known as Fat Beats. My fandom reached an all time high when De La Soul’s “3 Feet High and Rising” hit a funky chord within me when I first heard “Me, Myself, and I.” My infatuation with hip-hop led me to understand its other qualities in due time.
Hip-Hop is a form of music that has magical properties, in my opinion. I’m a New York City resident and this is the music of choice when it comes to the sounds of the city. I’ve witnessed what it can do through my ventures through the city. Sitting on the train watching a group of young B-Boys teaching their surprised audience how to dougie. Walking past a group of young spitters freestyling to a DJ Premier beat. Witnessing the crazy sight of an older white gentleman bobbing his head to a Wu-Tang joint and reciting every line of “Triumph.” These are the type of every day occurrences that remind me of how much hip-hop has touched and influenced the masses.
I’m a 22 year old cat raised on 90’s hip-hop and coming to appreciate the new sound that’s heard today. My iPod playslist has the Drake, Kanye, Lil’Wayne, and Jay-Z joints that are prevalent on radio stations all over the world. But within that playlist are also the classic hip-hop essentials from Grandmaster Flash, LL Cool J, A Tribe Called Quest and more. Hip-Hop provides artists like these the chance to amaze people with lyrics to go and punchline’s that get all the ooh’s and the ahh’s.
Never mind color, race, or religion. Hip-Hop is a universal thing that will not and can’t stop. Let’s keep her alive.