Alternative hip hop (also known as
alternative rap) is a sub-genre of
hip hop musicHip hop music is a musical genre which developed alongside hip hop culture, and is commonly based on concepts of loop, rapping, freestyle, DJing, scratching, sampling and beatboxing. The music is used to express concerns of political, social, and personal issues...
that is defined in greatly varying ways. Allmusic defines it as follows:
Alternative Rap refers to Hip-HopHip hop music is a musical genre which developed alongside hip hop culture, and is commonly based on concepts of loop, rapping, freestyle, DJing, scratching, sampling and beatboxing. The music is used to express concerns of political, social, and personal issues...
groups that refuse to conform to any of the traditional stereotypes of rap, such as gangstaGangsta rap is a subgenre of hip hop that reflects the violent lifestyles of some inner-city youths. Gangsta is a non-rhotic pronunciation of the word gangster. The genre was pioneered in the mid 1980s by rappers such as Schooly D and Ice T, and was popularized in the later part of the 1980s by...
, bassMiami bass , is a type of hip hop music that became popular in the 1980s and 1990s. The use of the Roland TR-808 sustained kick drum, raised dance tempos, and occasional sexually explicit lyrical content differentiate it from other hip hop subgenres...
, hardcoreHardcore hip hop, also referred to as hardcore rap, is a sub-genre of hip hop music that developed through the East Coast hip hop scene in the 1980s. Pioneered by such artists as KRS-One and Kool G Rap, it is generally characterized by an aggressive sound and confrontational lyricism, while the...
, and party rap. Instead, they blur genres - drawing equally from funk and popPop music is a music genre that developed from the mid-1950s as a softer alternative to rock 'n' roll and later to rock music. It has a focus on commercial recording, often orientated towards a youth market, usually through the medium of relatively short and simple love songs...
/rockRock music is a genre of popular music that entered the mainstream in the 1960s. It has its roots in 1940s and 1950s rock and roll, rhythm and blues, country music and also drew on folk music, jazz and classical music....
, as well as jazzJazz is a musical art form which originated at the beginning of the 20th century in African American communities in the Southern United States from a confluence of African and European music traditions....
, soulSoul music is a music genre originating in the United States combining elements of gospel music and rhythm and blues. According to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, soul is "music that arose out of the black experience in America through the transmutation of gospel and rhythm & blues into a form of...
, reggaeReggae is a music genre first developed in Jamaica in the late 1960s.While sometimes used in a broader sense to refer to most types of Jamaican music, the term reggae more properly denotes a particular music style that originated following on the development of ska and rocksteady. Reggae is based...
, and even folkThe term folk music originated in the 19th century as a term for musical folklore. It has been defined in several ways; as music transmitted by word of mouth, music of the lower classes, music with no known composer...
.
Origin
Originating in the late-80s, in midst of the Golden age of hip hop, alternative hip hop was headed primarily by
East CoastEast Coast hip hop is a form of hip hop music that originated and developed in New York City, USA during the 1970s and early 1980s. The style emerged as a definitive subgenre after artists from other regions of the United States emerged with different styles...
groups such as
De La SoulDe La Soul is an American hip hop group formed in 1987 in Long Island, New York. They are best known for their eclectic sampling, quirky lyrics, and their contributions to the evolution of the jazz rap and alternative hip hop subgenres...
,
Jungle BrothersThe Jungle Brothers are an American hip hop group that pioneered the fusion of jazz and hip-hop and also became the first hip-hop group to use a house-music producer. The group began performing in the mid-1980s and released its first album, Straight Out the Jungle, in 1988...
,
A Tribe Called QuestA Tribe Called Quest is an American hip hop group, formed in 1985. The group is composed of rapper/producer Q-Tip , rapper Phife Dawg , and DJ/producer Ali Shaheed Muhammad. A fourth member, rapper Jarobi White, left the group after their first album but appears to have rejoined the group since 2006...
, and
Digable PlanetsDigable Planets is a Grammy Award-winning American Alt Hip Hop group based in New York City, composed of Ishmael "Butterfly" Butler , Craig "Doodlebug" Irving , and Mary Ann "Ladybug Mecca" Vieira...
in subsidiary conjunction by
West CoastWest Coast hip hop is a hip hop music subgenre that encompasses any artists or music which originates in the westernmost region of the United States...
acts such as
The PharcydeThe Pharcyde is an alternative hip hop group from South Central Los Angeles, where the group's members grew up. The original four members of the group are Imani , Slimkid3 , Bootie Brown and Fatlip . DJ Mark Luv was the group's first DJ, followed by producer J-Swift and then the late J Dilla...
,
Digital UndergroundDigital Underground was an alternative rap group from Oakland, California. They could also have been accurately defined as a "project" or "music family" rather than a group as their personnel steadily changed and rotated with each new album & tour...
, and
Jurassic 5Jurassic 5 were an American alternative hip hop group formed in 1993 by rappers Chali 2na, Akil, Zaakir , Mark 7even, DJ Nu-Mark and Cut Chemist. The group broke up in 2007.-History:...
as well as certain
SouthernSouthern hip hop, is a form of American hip hop music that emerged from a late-1990s club-oriented vibe in southern U.S. cities, including Houston, Dallas, Fort Worth, San Antonio, Nashville, Atlanta, Memphis, Birmingham, New Orleans, Charlotte, Virginia, Miami, Orlando, Shreveport, Little Rock,...
acts such as
Goodie MobGoodie Mob is a hip hop act based in Atlanta, Georgia. Members Cee-Lo , Khujo , T-Mo Goodie , and Big Gipp make up the group, which has been functioning since 1995....
and
OutKastOutKast is an American hip hop duo based in East Point, Georgia, a city south of Atlanta, Georgia. They were originally known as The OKB but later changed the group's name to OutKast. The group's original musical style was a mixture of Dirty South and G-Funk...
. Similar to the
alternative rockAlternative rock is a genre of rock music that emerged in the 1980s and became widely popular in the 1990s...
movement, alternative hip hop intially began to segue into the mainstream at the dawn of the 1990s. The classic debut albums
3 Feet High and Rising3 Feet High and Rising is the influential debut album from American hip-hop trio De La Soul, released in 1989.The album marked the first of three full-length collaborations with producer Prince Paul, which would become the critical and commercial peak of both parties. It's consistently placed on...
,
People's Instinctive Travels and the Paths of RhythmPeople's Instinctive Travels and the Paths of Rhythm is the debut album by the alternative hip hop group A Tribe Called Quest, released April 17, 1990 on Jive Records. Though the album was well-received critically, it had little mainstream appeal. The album did earn the band a devoted following,...
, and
Bizarre Ride II the PharcydeBizarre Ride II the Pharcyde is the debut album by alternative hip hop group The Pharcyde, released on November 24, 1992 through Delicious Vinyl Records. The album is produced by former group member J-Swift, and features only one guest appearance, provided by little known Los Angeles rapper Bucwheed...
achieved minor commercial success as they garnered immense acclaim from music critics, who described the records as managing to be both ambitiously innovative but playful masterpieces, hailing the artists as the future of hip hop music as a whole. Christened as "The
Sgt. PepperSgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band is the eighth studio album by English rock band The Beatles. Released in the UK on 1 June 1967, it became a defining album in the emerging psychedelic rock style; it has since been recognised by prominent critics and publications as one of the most influential...
of hip hop", De La Soul's debut album
3 Feet High and Rising was considered the forefront of the sub-genre. As music critic Jon Bush wrote in retrospect:
Decline of Alternative rap and rise of Gangsta rap
The revolution did not take place however. Contrary to alternative rock, which went on to become a mainstay in mainstream music and replaced the
hard rockHard rock or heavy rock is a sub-genre of rock music which has its earliest roots in mid-1960s garage and psychedelic rock and is considerably harder than conventional rock music...
of the previous generation as the most popular form of
rock musicRock music is a genre of popular music that entered the mainstream in the 1960s. It has its roots in 1940s and 1950s rock and roll, rhythm and blues, country music and also drew on folk music, jazz and classical music....
, alternative hip hop's commercial momentum was impeded by the then also newly emerging, significantly harder-edged West Coast
Gangsta rapGangsta rap is a subgenre of hip hop that reflects the violent lifestyles of some inner-city youths. Gangsta is a non-rhotic pronunciation of the word gangster. The genre was pioneered in the mid 1980s by rappers such as Schooly D and Ice T, and was popularized in the later part of the 1980s by...
. With its aggressive tone, nihilistic tendencies, violent imagery, gangsta rap was considered to be the more entertaining, more lucrative sub-genre as signified by the high chart placings, radio success and multiplatinum-selling records of gangsta rappers such as
Snoop DoggCordazar Calvin Broadus , better known by his stage name Snoop Dogg, is a Grammy Award-nominated American rapper, record producer, and actor. Snoop is best known as an MC in the West Coast hip hop scene, and for being one of producer Dr. Dre's most notable protégés...
,
Warren GWarren Griffin III better known by his stage name Warren G, is an American West Coast rapper and hip hop producer. He is Dr. Dre's step brother. His biggest hit to date was the single "Regulate" with Nate Dogg released in 1994...
and
N.W.A.N.W.A was a Compton, California-based hip hop group widely considered one of the seminal acts of the gangsta rap sub-genre. Active from 1986 to 1991, the group endured controversy due to the explicit nature of their lyrics. They were subsequently banned from many mainstream U.S...
, who were widely embraced by major record labels and produced a legion of imitators.
Straight Outta ComptonStraight Outta Compton is the second studio album by Compton, California-based hip hop group N.W.A, released August 8, 1988, on group member Eazy-E's record label Ruthless Records. The production developed mainly from Dr. Dre with DJ Yella giving co-production...
and
DoggystyleDoggystyle is the debut solo album from American West Coast hip hop rapper Snoop Doggy Dogg, released November 23, 1993 on Death Row Records. The album was recorded soon following the release of Dr. Dre's landmark debut album The Chronic , to which Snoop Dogg contributed significantly...
redefined the direction of hip hop, which resulted in lyricism concerning the gangsta lifestyle becoming the driving force with sales figures. The situation broke way around the mid-90s with the emergence and mainstream popularity of East Coast hardcore rap artists such as
Wu-Tang ClanThe Wu-Tang Clan is a New York City-based hip hop group. Wu-Tang Clan consists of RZA, GZA, Raekwon, U-God, Ghostface Killah, Inspectah Deck, Method Man, Masta Killa, the late Ol' Dirty Bastard, and Cappadonna...
,
NasNasir bin Olu Dara Jones , who performs under the mononym Nas , formerly Nasty Nas, is an American rapper and actor. The son of jazz musician Olu Dara, he was born and raised in the Queensbridge housing projects in New York City...
, and
The Notorious B.I.G.Christopher George Latore Wallace , popularly known as Biggie Smalls , Frank White , and by his primary stage name The Notorious B.I.G., was an American rapper.Raised in the Brooklyn borough of New York City, Wallace grew up during...
Both West Coast gangsta rap and East Coast hardcore and their many derivatives subsequently became prominent and highly marketable forms of
popular musicPopular music belongs to any of a number of musical genres, and stands in contrast to art music, and traditional music which was disseminated orally...
, to the point where they were erroneously equated to hip hop music at large by the general public, whereas alt-rap became largely relegated to the underground scene. Following this development, many alternative rap acts eventually either disbanded or faded into obscurity.
Due to its emphasis on abstracted artistry,
experimentalExperimental music refers, in the English-language literature, to a compositional tradition which arose in the mid-twentieth century, particularly in North America, and whose most famous and influential exponent was John Cage...
sonancy, and subversive lyricism, alternative hip hop is almost invariably the recipient of critical acclaim but is generally shunned by media outlets and viewed as a financial liability. Rapper-singer
Q-TipKamaal Ibn John Fareed , better known by his stage name Q-Tip, is an American hip hop artist, producer, singer, and actor from Queens, New York City, part of the critically acclaimed group A Tribe Called Quest.-Personal life:...
, frontman of the highly influential alternative rap group A Tribe Called Quest, had his sophomore solo effort
Kamaal/The Abstract shelved for nearly a decade after his record label deemed the genre-bending album as sounding uncommercial. Q-Tip was quoted as saying:
Similarly,
Black Entertainment TelevisionBlack Entertainment Television is an American cable network based in Washington D.C., and targets young African-American audiences in the United States. Robert L. Johnson founded the network in 1980...
infamously refused to play "Lovin' It", the
lead singleA lead single is usually the first single released by a musician or a band from a given album. Sometimes, the lead single is not the first single . The first single could be a radio promotion that ends up being part of an EPK...
of
North CarolinaNorth Carolina is a state located on the Atlantic Seaboard in the southeastern United States. The state borders South Carolina and Georgia to the south, Tennessee to the west and Virginia to the north. North Carolina contains 100 counties...
-based alt-rap duo
Little BrotherLittle Brother is an American hip hop group from Durham, North Carolina that consists of Phonte and Rapper Big Pooh. Producer 9th Wonder was a part of the group since its inception, but left before recording the album Getback...
's socio-politically charged
concept albumIn popular music, a concept album is an album that is "unified by a theme, which can be instrumental, compositional, narrative, or lyrical". Commonly, concept albums tend to incorporate preconceived musical or lyrical ideas rather than being improvised or composed in the studio, with all songs...
The Minstrel ShowThe Minstrel Show is the second studio album by hip hop trio, Little Brother. It followed the critical success of their 2003 debut, The Listening. The album was highly anticipated and touted as a probable breakthrough for the group, even before its release...
, which provided a tongue-in-cheek critique of African-American pop culture, on the grounds that the group's music was "too intelligent" for their target audience. The network was subsequently satirized by the animated series
The BoondocksThe Boondocks is an American animated series created by Aaron McGruder for the Adult Swim programming block of Turner Broadcasting's Cartoon Network, based upon McGruder's comic strip of the same name...
–which regularly features underground/alternative rap as background music–in the banned episode
The Hunger Strike"The Hunger Strike" is a second season episode of the Adult Swim animated television series The Boondocks. It was set to premiere on January 7, 2008, between The Story of Thugnificent and Attack of the Killer Kung-Fu Wolf Bitch, but has not yet aired in the United States...
. The episode, which humorously portrayed BET as an evil organization dedicated to the self-genocidal mission of eradicating black people through violent, overtly sexual programming, was banned by Cartoon Network and has yet to be aired in the
United StatesThe United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
. As a result these complications and more, most alternative rap groups tended to be embraced primarily by alternative rock and indie music fans, rather than hip-hop or
popPop music is a music genre that developed from the mid-1950s as a softer alternative to rock 'n' roll and later to rock music. It has a focus on commercial recording, often orientated towards a youth market, usually through the medium of relatively short and simple love songs...
audiences. In his 1995 book on the current state of hip hop culture, music critic Stephen Rodrick wrote that at that point, alternative hip-hop had "drawn little more than barely concealed yawns from other rappers and urban audiences" and came to the conclusion that the sub-genre was a complete failure.
Revival and popularization
However, a resurgence came about in the late 1990s-early 2000s with the rejuvenated interest in indie music by the general public.
Arrested DevelopmentArrested Development are an American alternative hip hop group, founded by Speech and Headliner as a positive, Afrocentric alternative to the gangsta rap popular in the early 1990s.-History:...
, along with
The FugeesThe Fugees are an American hip hop group that rose to fame in the mid-1990s, whose repertoire included elements of Hip hop, soul and Caribbean music, particularly reggae. The members of the group are rapper/singer/producer Wyclef Jean, rapper/singer/producer Lauryn Hill, and rapper Pras Michel...
, stand as the some of the first few alternative rap groups to be recognized by mainstream audiences. Rodrick cites
Arrested DevelopmentArrested Development are an American alternative hip hop group, founded by Speech and Headliner as a positive, Afrocentric alternative to the gangsta rap popular in the early 1990s.-History:...
,
BaseheadBasehead, also known as dc Basehead and Basehead 2.0, is an American alternative hip hop group known for its distinctive sound, which fuses rock, blues and hip hop music.- History :...
, and
The Disposable Heroes of HiphoprisyThe Disposable Heroes of Hiphoprisy was an industrial hip-hop band active during the early 1990s.The band was formed in 1990 by Michael Franti and Rono Tse, who had been in the Beatnigs, and introduced the work of guitarist Charlie Hunter...
as examples of such "alternative" hip-hop. Since the mid 90's, indie labels such as
Rawkus RecordsRawkus Records is an American hip hop record label known for jump-starting the careers of both Mos Def and Talib Kweli. Rawkus was searching for a new sound at first, with initial releases being in the genres of House and Drum & Bass...
, Rhymesayers,
Stones ThrowStones Throw Records is an independent hip hop record label based in Los Angeles, California.It was started in 1996 by DJ/Producer Peanut Butter Wolf...
and
Definitive JuxDefinitive Jux is an independent record label based in New York City, United States. It was co-founded in 1999 by Jaime Meline and Amaechi Uzoigwe. The label was initially known simply as Def Jux, but in 2001, however, popular hip hop label Def Jam Recordings sued Def Jux over the name similarity...
have experienced lesser mainstream success with alternative rap acts such as
MF DOOMDaniel Dumile is a British-born American hip hop artist who has taken on several stage names in his career, most notably MF DOOM , where the "MF" stands for Metal Face or Metal Fingers...
, Atmosphere,
Black StarBlack Star is a hip hop group formed by MCs Mos Def and Talib Kweli. Affiliated with the group is DJ Hi-Tek, who formed producer/MC duo Reflection Eternal with Kweli for the album Train of Thought and produced a portion of Black Star's debut album....
,
Pharoahe MonchTroy Donald Jamerson Troy Donald Jamerson Troy Donald Jamerson (born 31 October 1972, better known as Pharoahe Monch, is an American hip hop artist. He is known for his complex delivery, internal and multi-syllabic rhyme schemes.-Biography:...
, and
Aesop RockAesop Rock is an American hip hop artist and producer. He was at the forefront of the new wave of underground and alternative hip hop acts that emerged during the late 1990s and early 2000s. He is signed to El-P's Definitive Jux label and is a current member of The Weathermen...
. It was in the 2000s that alternative hip hop finally secured a place within the mainstream, due in part to the declining commericial viability of gangsta rap as well as the crossover success of artists such as
OutKastOutKast is an American hip hop duo based in East Point, Georgia, a city south of Atlanta, Georgia. They were originally known as The OKB but later changed the group's name to OutKast. The group's original musical style was a mixture of Dirty South and G-Funk...
,
Kanye WestKanye West is an American singer/rapper. He released his debut album The College Dropout in 2004, his second album Late Registration in 2005, his third album Graduation in 2007, and his fourth album 808s & Heartbreak in 2008. His first three albums have received numerous awards and critical acclaim...
, and
Gnarls BarkleyGnarls Barkley is a Grammy award-winning American musical group collaboration between multi-instrumentalist and producer Danger Mouse from New York, and rapper/vocalist Cee-Lo Green , from Atlanta. Their first album, St...
. Not only did OutKast's
Speakerboxxx/The Love BelowSpeakerboxxx/The Love Below is a double album by American hip hop duo OutKast, released September 23, 2003 on LaFace Records. Clocking at over two hours and a quarter, it includes a solo album from both of the group's members...
receive universal acclaim from music critics and manage to appeal listeners of all ages spanning numerous musical genres–including rap, rock, R&B, punk, jazz, indie, country, pop, electronica and gospel–but also spawned two number-one hit singles and has been
certifiedIn the United States, the Recording Industry Association of America awards certification based on the number of albums and singles sold through retail and other ancillary markets. Other countries have similar awards...
diamondMusic recording sales certification is a system of certifying that a music recording has shipped a certain number of copies.Almost all countries follow variations of the RIAA certification categories, which are named after the precious materials gold, platinum and diamond...
by selling 11 times
platinumMusic recording sales certification is a system of certifying that a music recording has shipped a certain number of copies.Almost all countries follow variations of the RIAA certification categories, which are named after the precious materials gold, platinum and diamond...
by the
RIAAThe Recording Industry Association of America is a group which represents the recording industry distributors in the United States. Its members consist of record labels and distributors, which the RIAA say "create, manufacture and/or distribute approximately 85% of all legitimate sound recordings...
for shipping more than 11 million units, becoming the best selling rap album of all time. Industry observers view the sales race between Kanye West's
GraduationGraduation is the third studio album by American hip hop artist Kanye West, released on September 11, 2007. The title of the album concludes the college theme of Kanye West's previous two studio albums, The College Dropout and Late Registration. The album artwork was designed by Takashi Murakami...
and
50 CentCurtis James Jackson III , better known by his stage name 50 Cent, is an American rapper. He rose to fame with the release of his albums Get Rich or Die Tryin and The Massacre...
's
CurtisCurtis is the third studio album by rapper 50 Cent. Released on September 11, 2007, the album features production from Dr. Dre, Eminem, and Timbaland, among others. Guest appearances include Akon, Justin Timberlake, Nicole Scherzinger, and other notable musicians.Music critics have noted that 50...
as a turning point for hip hop. West emerged the victor, selling nearly a million copies in the first week alone, proving that innovative rap music could be just as commercially viable as gangsta rap, if not more so. Although he designed it as a melancholic
popPop music is a music genre that developed from the mid-1950s as a softer alternative to rock 'n' roll and later to rock music. It has a focus on commercial recording, often orientated towards a youth market, usually through the medium of relatively short and simple love songs...
rather than rap, Kanye's following
808s & Heartbreak808s & Heartbreak is the fourth studio album by American hip hop artist Kanye West, released November 24, 2008 on Roc-A-Fella Records in the United States. Recording sessions for the album took place over a period of approximately three weeks during September and October 2008 at Glenwood Studios in...
would have a significant effect on hip hop music. While his decision to sing about love, loneliness, and heartache for the entirety of the album was at first heavily criticized by music audiences and the album predicted to be a flop, its subsequent critical acclaim and commercial success encouraged other mainstream rappers to take greater creative risks with their music. During the release of
The Blueprint 3,
New YorkNew York is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern regions of the United States and is the nation's third most populous. The state is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
rap mogul
Jay-ZShawn Corey Carter , better known by his stage name, Jay-Z is an American hip hop artist and businessman. He is one of the most financially successful hip hop artists and entrepreneurs in America, having a net worth of over $150 million, shipping over 30 million copies of his albums in the United...
revealed that next studio album would be a an experimental effort, stating, "... it's not gonna be a #1 album. That's where I'm at right now. I wanna make the most experimental album I ever made." Jay-Z elaborated that like Kanye, he was unsatisfied with contemporary hip hop, was being inspired by indie-rockers like
Grizzly BearGrizzly Bear is a Brooklyn-based indie rock band, comprising Daniel Rossen , Ed Droste , Chris Taylor and Christopher Bear . The band employs traditional and electronic instruments...
and asserted his belief that the indie rock movement would play an important role in the continued evolution of hip-hop. The alternative hip hop movement is not limited soley to the United States, as genre-defying rappers such as
SomalianSomalis are an ethnic group located in the Horn of Africa, also known as the Somali Peninsula. The overwhelming majority of Somalis speak the Somali language, which is part of the Cushitic subgroup of the Afro-Asiatic language family...
poetA poet is a person who writes poetry. A poet's work can be literal, meaning that his work is derived from a specific event, or metaphorical, meaning that his work can take on many meanings and forms. Poets have existed since antiquity, in nearly all languages, and have produced works that vary...
K'naanK'naan , born Keinan Abdi Warsame in 1978, is a Somali-Canadian poet, rapper and musician.-Early life:Born in Mogadishu, Somalia, K'naan spent his childhood in Mogadishu and lived there during the Somali Civil War, which began in 1991. His aunt, Magool, was one of Somalia's most famous singers....
,
Japanis an island country in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, People's Republic of China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
ese rapper
Shing02Shingo Annen , better known by his stage name Shing02, is a Japanese rap artist and producer. Due in part to growing up in Western cities, Shing02 stands as one of the few multilingual rappers from Japan able to compose songs entirely in either Japanese or English...
, and especially
Sri LankanSri Lankan can refer to:*Someone or something from the country of Sri Lanka.*SriLankan Airlines, formerly Air Lanka, the national airline of Sri Lanka....
artist
M.I.A.Mathangi "Maya" Arulpragasam , better known by her stage name M.I.A., is an English songwriter, record producer, singer, fashion designer, and artist of Sri Lankan Tamil origin....
have achieved considerable worldwide recognition. In 2009,
TIMETime is a component of the measuring system used to sequence events, to compare the durations of events and the intervals between them, and to quantify the motions of objects...
magazine placed M.I.A in the
Time 100The Time 100 is an annual list of the 100 most influential people in the world, as assembled by Time. First published in 1999 as a result of a debate among several academics, the list has become an annual event.-History and format:...
list of "World's Most Influential people" for having "global influence across many genres."Today, due in part to the increasing use of music distribution through the
internetThe Internet is a global system of interconnected computer networks that use the standardized Internet Protocol Suite to serve billions of users worldwide...
, many alternative rap artists are able to find acceptance by far-reaching audiences. Several burgeoning artists such as
Kid CudiScott Ramon Seguro Mescudi, better known by his stage name Kid Cudi , or also known as Cudder is an American rapper and singer. He first gained major attention after the release of his debut mixtape A Kid Named Cudi...
and Drake have managed to attain record-breaking, chart-topping hit songs, "Day 'n' Night" and "
Successful"Successful" is the second single from Canadian rapper Drake's EP and mixtape, So Far Gone. It is his second single with Lil Wayne or Beans, the first being "Every Girl", and his second single with Trey Songz, the first being "Replacement Girl" in 2007...
" respectively, which they both released on free online
mixtapeA mixtape or mixed tape is a compilation of songs recorded in a specific order, traditionally onto a compact audio cassette.A mixtape, which usually reflects the musical tastes of its compiler, can range from a casually selected list of favorite songs, to a conceptual mix of songs linked by a theme...
s without the help of a major record label. The pair, along with other new artists such as
WaleOlubowale Victor Folarin , better known by his stage name Wale , is an American hip hop artist. He rose to prominence in 2006, when his song "Dig Dug " became popular in Washington, D.C. Wale has released five widely recognized mixtapes...
,
Asher RothAsher Paul Roth is an American rapper. He was signed to a joint venture between Scooter Braun's Schoolboy Music and Steve Rifkind’s SRC Records. His first professional release was on June 13, 2008 when the DJ Drama and Don Cannon-helmed The GreenHouse Effect Mixtape was released for free via...
,
The Cool KidsThe Cool Kids is an alternative hip hop group from Chicago, Illinois and Detroit, Michigan. The duo consists of Antoine "Mikey Rocks" Reed and Evan "Chuck Inglish" Ingersoll...
, and
B.o.BBobby Ray Simmons , also simply known as Bobby Ray, formerly B.o.B, is an American recording artist and producer from Atlanta, Georgia. He is currently signed under the labels of Grand Hustle and Atlantic Records...
, openly acknowledge being directly influenced by their '90s alt-rap predecessors in addition to alt-rock groups while their music has been noted by critics as expressing eclectic sounds, life experiences and emotions rarely seen in mainstream hip hop.
External links