Jay-Z's 54th Birthday is Today and it Got Me Thinking About Rap Growing Older

Shawn Carter, or as he is also known, Jay-Z, turns 54 years old today. Hip-Hop was considered by many to turn 50 this year. A lot of rappers who once were young and edgy to the degree that parents protested them now are grandfathers who hang out with Martha Stewart (Snoop Dogg), popular mainstream movie or television stars (Ludacris, Ice Cube, Queen Latifah, Ice-T and more), or releasing instrumental albums dedicated to playing the flute and other woodwinds (Andre 3000, who outright has said he doesn't know what a 40-something man might rap about). 

There are plenty of young(er) rappers out there who are immensely talented, without a doubt. We've got Kendrick Lamar amazing listeners still. Drake is hugely popular too. That said, you see a stark generational divide in Hip-Hop between the new young folks rapping about the go-to subjects of partying and sex versus older rappers who either have quit for other passions or seem past their prime (Eminem belongs on a metaphorical rap Mount Rushmore but his newer stuff has been lacking). Dr. Dre is about a billionaire thanks to headphones. Uncle Luke of the 2 Live Crew maybe once was as nasty as he wanted to be, but now he's a high school football coach--and actually quite a good one! Rap isn't just young folks anymore, it has older talent too and arguably is a genre in a bit of a aged-up/midlife crisis.

Rap can be about drinking, smoking weed, having sex, and being a troublemaker. Rap can be about politics, life's struggles, religion, and being true to oneself. For a long time outside of some gimmick rappers, however, I don't think rap ever really thought about dealing with the subject of getting old. The idea was to live fast and die young, and that tragically did happen with a number of Hip-Hop stars. That said, Lil Kim arguably paved the road for today's raunchy lady rappers who proudly will discuss sexual subjects, but she's now almost 50 and while older folks surely have sex, she's dealing with other aspects of life like (unfortunately) trouble with the IRS. 

Rappers are getting older and so are their fans. Can someone in their 30s relate to Sexyy Red as much as the younger folks or do we need the older rappers to touch on subjects relating to us being older? I'm not saying Andre 3000 should finally release a rap album with a track about getting a prostate exam, but just as rap has covered a wide range of subjects, why not touch upon what it is like being middle-aged? Jay-Z once rapped about selling drugs to get by, now he can rap about being a parent. He's grown and parts of rap have grown too. There will always be space for the younger rappers and the subjects the teens/20-somethings want covered. Let's give some space to the older folks too.

It is Odd How They Air Big Super Bowl Ads BEFORE the Super Bowl

Imagine you have a big television show or movie coming out. Then, a few days before it is set to release in theaters/on a streaming platform/etc. you just plop it on YouTube for everyone to see the highlights. I know an advertisement is different than a movie or show, but that's how I feel about Super Bowl ads being put online a number of days before the actual Super Bowl.

A part of me understands. Companies spend a ton of money to get these ads on the air and want to get their full monies' worth. If you spent 7 million just to broadcast your ad and even more on producing it and promoting it ya gotta squeeze that orange for all the juice you can. That said, the ads have always been a big selling point of the Super Bowl--especially for those who could care less about Football (you can't see this, but I'm raising my hand to identify myself). A person can avoid being spoiled, but I have never been especially upset about having something spoiled in a movie or television show, let alone an ad. Still, if there aren't cool new 30-second spots to get excited about because the Today show is already showcasing them or they're everywhere online, what's the point of shelling out all that money or watching the Super Bowl itself? 

There is the halftime show, I guess, but even though last year it was amazing it is a bummer this year we have Rhianna. I'm sorry but when you've got 50 Cent, Dr. Dre, Eminem, Kendrick Lamar, Mary J. Blige, and Snoop Dogg (along with Anderson .Paak on the drums) and then give me Rhianna, that's a downgrade. I've never been a fan of her yodeling in most of her songs and hearing Rhianna was making new music again served to remind me how much I don't like her music.

We've got a bunch of spoiled advertisements, a mediocre halftime performer, and a sport I don't follow much at all. I'm still going to watch it because it's the Super Bowl and there is fun to be had in viewing it. I just find some decisions about showcasing the ads in advance or having Rhianna do the halftime show to be baffling choices.

The Grammy's 50th Anniversary of Hip-Hop Tribute Makes Me Tempted to Tune In

I have been critical of the Grammy's to a relentless degree on my blog. After all, the chances are surprisingly good they are corrupt, rigged, and generally repellent. Besides that time OutKast essentially took over the awards it has rarely been that fun to watch, an occasional fantastic performance by Kendrick Lamar or Kacey Musgraves winning a significant award aside. All of that said, I believe I want to watch it this Sunday due to a big tribute to Hip-Hop being planned.

Many agree this year is the 50th anniversary of Hip-Hop. There may be some disagreement, but exact date you want to say rap music started aside, a big special segment is going to happen dedicated to Hip-Hop during the Grammys--the line-up is totally stacked too. From older artists to newer ones you've got everyone from Big Boi (of OutKast), to Nelly, Lil Wayne, Missy Elliot, DJ Jazzy Jeff, Rakim, Queen Latifah, Eminem, De La Soul, and so many more. LL Cool J is going to introduce the segment and Questlove is the musical director/producer for it. I am legitimately interested in seeing this segment so I may need to watch the show as it is broadcast from the Crypto.com arena (yes, that is the actual arena's name for now until cryptocurrency finishes cratering and it changes names again). 

Even if I don't want to watch the rest of the show, I can always DVR it and view the tribute segment, I suppose. The Grammys will be on tomorrow, February 5th (at various times depending on your time zone, so check your local listings). I can't speak to the quality of the whole show, but this special part will at least be full of great artists!

Store-Exclusive Hip-Hop Covers Are Becoming Really Popular

I don't really buy store-exclusive variant covers. Comic shops can buy the rights to have a variant cover from a publisher and as long as they front the cash and get the cover approved by everyone, the comic gets made. Store variants can be pretty but don't have much speculation value, generally being considered worth less even if they are a key issue compared to the version of the comic you could buy in shops. That said, sometimes store variants seem to strike just the right nerve and become quite popular (at least for a bit). That has happened with some hip-hop covers featuring popular rappers.

The Haul did an exclusive variant cover featuring Notorious B.I.G. and Deadpool. It took a bit to sell out from their site but once it did the price kept creeping up from the initial $30 to over $100. Then, some covers with Eminem dropped via his website and people eagerly scooped those up. Now, some are selling online for $200 or so. Perhaps it is the combination of fandoms that has resulted in these being quite popular? It is hard to say, but it would not surprise me if we start seeing a bunch of rap artists on more comic covers now that it is clear there is some money to be made.

The Super Bowl LVI Halftime Show Was a Treat

Update 2/14/22: It has been brought to attention that was indeed Anderson .Paak on the drums as well. Very cool!

I'm not a huge football fan, but I almost always watch the Super Bowl to enjoy some fun ads and see what kind of spectacle the halftime show turns out to be--sometimes for better and sometimes for worse. When the lineup for this show was announced I was pumped. The kiddos in GenZ maybe didn't get what the big deal was but us Millenials, the GenXers and cool Baby Boomers (like my Mom) were all excited. I mean, in alphabetical order we had: Dr. Dre, Eminem, Kendrick Lamar, Mary J. Blige, and Snoop Dogg sounded like some quality rap and R&B from some GOAT artists and one of the few new ones I really dig (Lamar). Then the show happened and it delivered the goods along with giving us a surprise appearance from 50 Cent as some icing on the cake.

It was fun, well-choreographed, and had a bunch of songs that took me right back to my Junior High years. There ain't nothing wrong with a little nostalgia, and this halftime spectacle illustrated that beautifully. Now we just need Dr. Dre to release a new album considering that, "Detox," is basically forever shelved. Oh, and the actual football game was fun too, although I was hoping for the Bengals to win basically out of spite for the Rams. It goes back to how they treated Saint Louis some years ago (when they abandoned the city), but that's a whole digression we don't need to go into. The halftime show was where the fun was at, for sure.

The Grammys Continue to (Possibly) Be Corrupt and Rigged, Still (Undoubtedly) Pretty Lame

The Weeknd is/was set to perform at the upcoming Grammys. However, he was not nominated for any awards for his latest album. Considering how much buzz and love it has gotten this upset him and resulted in accusations of the Grammys being, "Corrupt." As The Weeknd tells it, due to tense negotiations about how he was performing at the Super Bowl a week after the Grammys and how that impacted certain things, the Grammys purposely shut him out of having a chance to win any awards. Now, one could accuse the Weeknd of just being petty...but, he may have a point. Remember early this year when tons of accusations were being lobbed at the Grammys for being a rigged sham? 

Yes, I know 2020 has been a long year, but that did in fact happen way back in January. I am of course not a big fan of the Grammys usually, with their constant snubbing of rap albums winning awards outside of set rap categories often rubbing me the wrong way. I was pleased in 2019 when Kacey Musgraves won album of the year, however. All of that said, I thought the running gag has always been that nobody cares about the Grammys?

Watch old episodes of shows like, "The Simpsons," and there are multiple jokes about how the Grammys are lame, with my favorite being when Homer remarks in one episode, "Oh, why won't anyone give me an award?" To this, Marge says, "You won a grammy," and Homer responds, "I mean an award that's worth something." Then some 4th-wall-breaking text appears that says, "Mr. Simpson's opinions do not reflect those of the producers, who don't consider the Grammy an award at all," which is just a lovely double-burn. It is silly but reflective of how people often are dismissive of the Grammys. Eminem famously rapped about how stupid they were years ago (but still was willing to accept some, for what that's worth), they try to say how one album is better than another even though we all have different tastes. 

I mean, you could argue that makes all award shows kind of pointless due to everyone liking different stuff, but at least with stuff like an Oscar there are some awards that make sense, like ones remarking on great editing or cool special effects (I quit caring about who wins the supposed movie of the year a long time ago). If award shows, in general, are mocked, and the Grammys are the most heckled of all shows, plus they might be the most corrupt of the big awards, who cares about them? Yeah, it can look impressive on your resume to say, "Grammy winner," but if you hate the event so much, why even want an award from it? That's just my two cents on all this, although now I really do hope The Weeknd performs at the show because an anti-Grammys act at the Grammys itself would be pretty wild.

The Oscars Were Last Night, Your Interest May Vary on the Results

Hey, the Oscars were last night. Depending on how much you care about them you were either super-pumped or actively tried to avoid any news regarding the show. I am somewhere in the middle of those two extremes--interested in the awards but I take it all with a huge grain of salt. One thing that surprised everyone was Eminem showing-up and performing, "Lose Yourself," which won an Academy Award way back in 2002 but he was unable to attend the show then to perform it, so why not now? Also, "Joker," won some big awards (like Best Actor for Joaquin Phoenix) and will continue to divide everyone heavily on if it deserves any recognition for its content beyond at least us all agreeing on Phoneix being a fantastic actor.

I want to offer congrats to, "Parasite," for being the first foreign-language film to win Best Picture (it won Best Director too). Hopefully, this will encourage people to seek out more films with subtitles (America has a weird thing about that sometimes it seems) or at least examine the great variety of flicks director Bong Joon-ho has made over the years. It was overall a fine show and it did fine its second year without an official host. If nothing else, "Lose Yourself," always gets the crowd going...unless you're Martin Scorsese or Billie Eilish.