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Looking back at RZA's comments on the South

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  • Lab BabyLab Baby Posts: 5,475
    BlackAX410 wrote: »
    Lab Baby wrote: »
    BlackAX410 wrote: »
    Lab Baby wrote: »
    BlackAX410 wrote: »
    Lab Baby wrote: »
    On some real shit, RZA spoke the truth. Hip hop is a reflection of the environment, as he explained. East coast, particularly NYC is so lyrically inclined cuz of the big city living and the artistic renaissances taking place there. The west is more culturally and economically diverse, so musically it's more eclectic. The south is smaller community wise, and more solid on old time tradition, so the music is bound to be a little simpler, but more solid musically. The negative effects of our communities have adverse effects on our lyrics as well. The crack era got NY stuck on grimey, the gang culture in Cali got them on that level, and so forth. Same with the south, economically it's a shithole, and a lot of people there are stuck in the 50s anyway. So of course that's gonna reflect on the lyrics and the music.

    yea last time i went down to florida due to dat humidity i made sure i used da colors only water fountains. nd in my hotel we had to use an outhouse. when i was takin a bus to amusment parks i made sure to sit in da back, jack

    Not saying that's the case, but some people over there still have that mentality. They're still antsy about interracial relationships, acknowledging religions outside of their own, etc. Of course there are anomalies to this, but let's not act like our past isn't still haunting us. Again, it's not law, but the effects of shell shock from the racism that has and still exists. Like NY, no one sells crack anymore, but we're still feeling the effects of it. Remember, our parents went through these struggles, so they raised us with the same traditions as if those conditions still existed. Anyone not willing the break the cycle is bound to pick up the same habits.

    to say da south is stuck in da 50's was a horrible choice of words tho lol. serious question when was da last time u been down south? cuz u trynna make it seem like its still like Mississippi Burning or sumthin

    Had to go to a funeral in NC last summer. I got fam there, SC, Florida, VA, GA, all over. I'm actually related to RZA and the Wu fam on some 3rd cousin by marriage shit, so I feel what he's saying. A lot of my family came from the south as well. Matter of fact, a lot of NY families came from the south. And a lot of their ideologies, especially the older folks, are stuck in a certain paradigm where they're scared to advance. If it doesn't uphold to traditional Christian morals and the system they were raised under, they want no part of it. I remember bringing a white girl around my grandmother and getting looked at funny. The younger generations branch out eventually, but they still have memories of it, and it shows in the music.

    And it's not necessarily Mississippi Burning, but racism is still alive, especially down there. The KKK and a myriad of other hate groups still exist. Some people are still proudly waving confederate flags. Every month or so I hear some story that could've been a headline in the 50's, hence my statement. It may be a broad generalization, but it doesn't make the problems non-existent. Seems like some of us have issue with analyzing our environments and admitting we still have a long way to go. Yes, the crack babies born in the 80s in NYC are having babies of their own. Yes, the gang culture in Cali left a lot of kids fatherless and paranoid of their own kind. And yes, the racism and closed mindedness that was the driving force of the south is biting us in the ass now. Am I wrong?

    And I'm not gonna speak on public education. Nas is a drop out, and Gucci Mane went to college. Public school education FTL.

    dont try to paint NY as some perfect utopia tho man. racism exist up there wit there stop nd frisk policy, nd a lot of da older generation is uptight about there religion not just southern senior citizens

    Nah, of course. That's why I said especially down there, meaning it exists everywhere to some degree. We all have the same problems, I was just pointing out the main ones for each region and how they shaped the music.

    Oh yeah, and they outlawed the stop and frisk... shit bout to get hot.
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  • Monizzle14Monizzle14 Posts: 8,357
    edited January 11
    KingJamal wrote: »
    New York The northeast region has more covert racism than anything

    Just cuz it ain't overt don't mean it ain't there

    fixed for accuracy....you right on tho ive lived in new england my whole life and have seen some of the most ignorant racism in the area. From where i live in CT to boston (where my dad moved to when he was 7) all the way down to new york city and state.

    Now the best thing about racism up north is when you point em out and they get embarassed the liberal media eithers them. My bro and I have both been called niggers because we were smoking these rick kids on the ice hockey rink. In my brothers case kids got suspended for games and had to hand write apology letters and shit. One kid even cried lmao. Then you had the whole bruins game when the brotha joel ward scored. again 2 kids at my school sent to tweet and were shook after it was on the local news.

    My dad in boston and his bro had hella incidents outside of boston. Some whtie kid a college a few years ago was dropping the n word behind closed doors about 2 black female friends i knew i knocked on the door brought the girl up and asked him to repeat what he was saying lil white boy was shook as fuck.

    up here ive learned not to fight these racists you gotta mind fuck with them and call em out and let the public know waht they be sayin cause then they get scared and break down.
    Wild Selfblackgod813
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  • BlackGeraldBlackGerald Posts: 12,837
    Monizzle14 wrote: »
    KingJamal wrote: »
    New York The northeast region has more covert racism than anything

    Just cuz it ain't overt don't mean it ain't there

    fixed for accuracy....you right on tho ive lived in new england my whole life and have seen some of the most ignorant racism in the area. From where i live in CT to boston (where my dad moved to when he was 7) all the way down to new york city and state.

    Now the best thing about racism up north is when you point em out and they get embarassed the liberal media eithers them. My bro and I have both been called niggers because we were smoking these rick kids on the ice hockey rink. In my brothers case kids got suspended for games and had to hand write apology letters and shit. One kid even cried lmao. Then you had the whole bruins game when the brotha joel ward scored. again 2 kids at my school sent to tweet and were shook after it was on the local news.

    My dad in boston and his bro had hella incidents outside of boston. Some whtie kid a college a few years ago was dropping the n word behind closed doors about 2 black female friends i knew i knocked on the door brought the girl up and asked him to repeat what he was saying lil white boy was shook as fuck.

    up here ive learned not to fight these racists you gotta mind fuck with them and call em out and let the public know waht they be sayin cause then they get scared and break down.

    c/s, everywhere is racist
    CashmoneyDux
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  • zombiezombie Posts: 2,548
    memphis10 wrote: »
    zombie wrote: »
    When my lil cuz moved down south they skipped him two grades. The south has always been backward. Nyc has always been forward thinking. Showing pics of buildings means you miss the point. In nyc you can walk down the block and hear ten or more different languages. In the south every body is the same and the land you do own is not valued as much as what nyc people own. Because the south overall is worth less.

    Really bruh? So if I miss the point by showing corporate buildings, if you removed all of the corporate buildings out of NYC wouldn't it just be rural land, like the land you just said was worthless? To be honst I don't care to hear 10 diff languages. On the same street. I grad in HS in Memphis. School was 80% black, prob 10% spanish and another 10% African and Asian. Them ppl have to live somewhere in the city right? I like bein wit my ppl my nig. Imagine. Owning your own land being worthless. This ain't swamp land bruh. Nigga, it's you that's got a slave mentality lol.

    Unless someone wants to buy your land or you produce something that someone wants to buy with your land it is generally considered of lower value. In terms of culture if an area has a diverse population it will be Culturally vibrant. If everyone is the same it is not. There is no slave thinking here. I am black but not american after living here for more than ten years. Living all over this nation I deem the south to be the most backward section of america.

    Niggas from the south tend to be more ignorant because you do not experience other black folk.
    PK_TK_187blackgod813SwampNigga
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  • RodrigueZzRodrigueZz Posts: 6,328
    edited January 12
    PK_TK_187 wrote: »
    zombie dumb as fuck.
    more land=less value on said land.

    I am doubtful. While supply definitely affects price location is probably a bigger factor.
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  • zombiezombie Posts: 2,548
    memphis10 wrote: »
    zombie wrote: »
    memphis10 wrote: »
    zombie wrote: »
    When my lil cuz moved down south they skipped him two grades. The south has always been backward. Nyc has always been forward thinking. Showing pics of buildings means you miss the point. In nyc you can walk down the block and hear ten or more different languages. In the south every body is the same and the land you do own is not valued as much as what nyc people own. Because the south overall is worth less.

    Really bruh? So if I miss the point by showing corporate buildings, if you removed all of the corporate buildings out of NYC wouldn't it just be rural land, like the land you just said was worthless? To be honst I don't care to hear 10 diff languages. On the same street. I grad in HS in Memphis. School was 80% black, prob 10% spanish and another 10% African and Asian. Them ppl have to live somewhere in the city right? I like bein wit my ppl my nig. Imagine. Owning your own land being worthless. This ain't swamp land bruh. Nigga, it's you that's got a slave mentality lol.

    Unless someone wants to buy your land or you produce something that someone wants to buy with your land it is generally considered of lower value. In terms of culture if an area has a diverse population it will be Culturally vibrant. If everyone is the same it is not. There is no slave thinking here. I am black but not american after living here for more than ten years. Living all over this nation I deem the south to be the most backward section of america.

    Niggas from the south tend to be more ignorant because you do not experience other black folk.

    So your land only holds that value if someone else wants to buy it? it doesnt matter if you build a business on the land worth more than the land itself, or sell it to your city gov for 3x what you paid for it? It don't matter if you get land fertile enough to feed your entire family and sell the other fruits and vegetables for crazy profit? It doesn't matter to you if you have land that attracts deer that you can hunt and feed your family without out going to the grocery store? It doesn't matter if this land feeds cattle that you can sell for much more than you ever paid for the land or the cattle? Bruh we are OWNERS in the south. You don't have an owner's mentality. You have a worker's mentality. So you too caught up on other ppl validating your worth. also what makes you think only black people live where there is mostlyl sunny climate, beautiful women and beaches? you foolish bruh. You can respond a thousand times but I don't really don't fuck wit niggas who got a mind state like you. I'm done. No more responses.

    I don't work. I own serveral houses that I rent to others. Your whole slave mentality talk is bullshit to me. If you build all those things on it then you increase the value of it. But that does not mean that your land will be worth more than even one apartment across from central park nyc. The worth of a business is often times not linked to the land it is on. I also never said anything about the climate so I don't know what the fuck you are talking about.

    Look nigga new york is the empire state and nyc is a world class city for a reason.
    blackgod813
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  • Reggie80Reggie80 Posts: 2,402
    BackInWhite wrote: »
    you niggas in here arguin about land
    a nigga that can't say the word "sword" without pronouncing the fuckin W got yall arguin about land


    memphis10
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  • Ear2DaStEar2DaSt Posts: 2,879
    Yall got different style out there and lingo it may take alot to impress certain crowds. mad crazy lyrical shit but in the end yall all sound like Busta Rymes I know dang well thats not what your tryna do!
    Then you got real talented mcs not being recognized I know dang well they aint simple but they keep it on point and have a more universal sound! I know yall got your set opinions but it sucks cuz I done learned shit from Southern mcs comin up!
    S.P.C./S.U.C./Killa Klan
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  • 7_rolls_royces7_rolls_royces Posts: 2,858
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  • poindexter2poindexter2 Posts: 3,461
    Right to work laws and miseducation ruined the south
    Especially down here in fl.
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  • MosIncredible.comMosIncredible.com Posts: 629
    edited January 12
    The only people that have such a blind outlook on the south haven't been down here. That's all I got to say. Everyone I meet from up north tells me the same thing, "I had no idea it would be like this". They come down here, fall in love with the people, the weather, and overall cost of living, and have no intentions of returning up north. In fact, they try to get other family members and friends to do the same. Maybe I'm just speaking for Texas, but that's what it is here.
    Stomp JohnsonShiveDreadzbkkbully7_rolls_royces
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  • NoCompetitionNoCompetition Posts: 1,974
    The South definitely aint perfect. But people wanna move South way more than move North. The reason is the South is generally a more enjoyable place to live. Look how angry these north people stay. And they stay mad at the South. The North tends to have better laws for workers. The South has warm, sun, friendly people, nature, scenery.....keeps you in a good mood. I been up north a lot and know from personal experience. But dont get me wrong no hate for Northerners. I dont care.
    icecoldstew32DaysOfInfinitiStomp Johnson
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  • Wild SelfWild Self Posts: 3,606
    Lab Baby wrote: »
    KingJamal wrote: »
    Lab Baby wrote: »
    On some real shit, RZA spoke the truth. Hip hop is a reflection of the environment, as he explained. East coast, particularly NYC is so lyrically inclined cuz of the big city living and the artistic renaissances taking place there. The west is more culturally and economically diverse, so musically it's more eclectic. The south is smaller community wise, and more solid on old time tradition, so the music is bound to be a little simpler, but more solid musically. The negative effects of our communities have adverse effects on our lyrics as well. The crack era got NY stuck on grimey, the gang culture in Cali got them on that level, and so forth. Same with the south, economically it's a shithole, and a lot of people there are stuck in the 50s anyway. So of course that's gonna reflect on the lyrics and the music.

    RZA did not speak the truth becuz like @Already Home_17 already said brothas dropping out and not getting there proper education is a nationwide problem NOT a just a South problem. As if a bunch of Poindexter's are walking around NY all day

    NYC is so lyrically inclined cuz of the big city living and the artistic renaissances taking place there

    I really don't wanna turn this thread into sum who got the best lyrics type of shit. But NY has its share of booty juice rappers.

    economically it's a shithole

    Yea cuz the entire country besides the South is having an enormous economic BOOM right?
    people there are stuck in the 50s anyway

    people there are stuck in the 50s anyway

    Really now lol

    Tell anyone that knows anything about hip hop to make a top 5 lyricist list. I bet you 3 out of 5 minimum would be from NY, or they're trolling.

    Yeah, the whole country's in a mess right now, but the poverty rate is still the highest in the south.

    The point is, not dissing the people in these areas, but pointing out the environment. NYC has more access to culture and money than any city in the south. Fact. Some people take advantage of it, some don't. Trust me, there's a lot of dumb ass niggas out here too, and some of the most intelligent people I've ever met came from the south. But the reality is we have more opportunities to expand our minds. Word to Waka Flocka not wanting to hear "dictionary rap".

    "Dictionary rap" is something that is a generational thing. Look at them old school southern artists that are mad lyrical (Outkast, Scarface, UGK). RZA fucked up on not being specific enough and being precise enough on a controversial topic like that, and even a slight miscommunication of that can get people in a lot more trouble than it is suppose to be.
    SwampNigga
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  • Wild SelfWild Self Posts: 3,606
    Stomp Johnson wrote: »
    When on the mainstream level, hip hop has finally perished and has gone the way of jazz and the white folks have finished infiltrating it, corporately AND artistically, maybe then you dumb fucks will looks back and realize how stupid regionalism in a musical/cultural artform is.

    Sure we got differences, we can learn a lot from each other as well.

    Living like the 50's?! Word?

    Man what a load of dumbfuckery.

    Black folk need to get off the regional shit and stop being caricatures of their environment and start being individuals with individual interest.
    Stomp JohnsonSwampNigga
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  • ohhhlaohhhla Posts: 8,275
    The South is still backward
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  • hiphop12345hiphop12345 Posts: 497
    edited January 12
    memphis10 wrote: »
    I think ppl like the RZA have this preconceived notion that all of the south looks like this with these kinds of people

    mississippi.JPG


    when really we live like this in the south

    atlanta39.jpg

    houston-skyline.jpg

    hdr-wide_cropfinal.jpg

    tumblr_lrolooyawL1qhbk2uo1_500.jpg

    famu_entrance_920_medium.jpg

    interfaq.jpg

    alot of us own our own land that has been passed down, own houses, own cars etc. there are black owned colleges. so for all the dumb dumb shit they say about southerners, somebody let us know that it wasnt dumb to own your own land and live off of it. compared to renting brownstones or apartments in a crammed in area, ridin trains all the time and the like.

    yes there are country ass dumb toothless backwoods niggas and rednecks, but I guarantee you that us that live in the south look at them ppl the same way anybody else do lol. he brought up alot of good pointsm, but he painted a picture like only dumb niggas were here while glossing over the fact that some of the most intelligent and influential ppl in history are from the south.


    Those are some ugly ass simple skylines. Also you hardly rent a Brownstone, if you do it's because you have Bread these days. Brownstones are homes not apt buildings. Also during this recession the value of Brownstones didn't really take a hit. Prices stop skyrocketing in some areas but they didn't lose value like most of the country homes.

    Black collages I think are dated to be honest. That's a whole different topic but yea, dated.


    Also trains isn't a knock on a city, it's a plus. Can you name one major city beside L.A that doesn't have a legit mass transit system? Mass transit is actually a sign of how major a city is.
    zombie
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  • hiphop12345hiphop12345 Posts: 497
    edited January 12
    CashmoneyDux wrote: »
    Vaas wrote: »
    Niggas acting like the south beach front condos ain't shitting on ny condos.

    http://www.forbes.com/sites/kymmcnicholas/2010/08/30/ten-most-expensive-apartments-for-sale/


    Nine out of 10 of the most expensive luxury apartments (co-ops and condos) publicly listed in the United States are located in New York.

    The only one on the West Coast is the newly constructed 20,000 square-foot penthouse atop the 5-star St. Regis Hotel in San Francisco.

    It’s the largest newly constructed condo on the market in the world.

    It’s listed for $49 million.

    So, it’s the least amount per square foot (Approx. $2,865 per square foot), than any of the other apartments in the top ten based on the available data.

    The most expensive publicly listed apartment on the market is located in New York.

    The $60 million East 77th Street property is about 10,000 square feet (Approx. $6,123 per square foot).


    Just shit on your thesis....
    Not to mention South Beach is about as southern as Puerto Rico. Also NYC is about to have a major restoration/new building of it's cost lines which is the largest of any U.S city and one of the largest in the the world. I always thought NYC neglected it's coast.

    I love what the south is doing though, and I wish New Orleans would rise again. A true American gem.
    zombierip.dilla
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  • a_lista_list Posts: 3,027
    Seems like Rza watched some shyt like To kill a Mockingbird and drew that conclusion.....Like them cats drop out of school to go to work in the fields.....Alot of these post seem to show that a lot of people go by stereo types and what they see on tv...lol...same shyt that white folks do then pass judgement on us, we do to ourselves.....When has nyc only been Manhattan and why do some people feel that its still 1940 down south?..lol
    SwampNigga32DaysOfInfiniti
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