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Thursday, September 06, 2007

Today’s Hip Hop Battles Put Sales & Reputations at Risk

Hip-hop and public beefs unfortunately seem to go together.

When rappers, dancers or DJs go head to head to test their skills, hip-hop is at its best. Two MCs going toe to toe is rap’s version of the battle of the bands. KRS-One vs. MC Shan, MC Lyte vs. Antoinette, Ice Cube vs. NWA and LL Cool J vs. Kool Moe Dee became legendary battles.

However, sometime in the late ’80s or early ’90s, when big money interests got involved, things changed. Artists stopped simply being artists and became businessmen. Jay-Z touched on this in the hit song “Diamonds From Sierra Leone,” where he raps “I’m not a business man/ I’m a business, man/ Let me handle my business, damn!”

His play on words described what’s at stake. And while Jay-Z is an East Coast artist, it was actually West Coast artists who laid the foundation for the change. I recall talking with Ice T in the early ’90s, when he made the same point as Jay-Z makes in “Diamonds.” Ice T felt there was too much at stake, too many mouths to feed for him to battle rappers who wanted to garner fame for themselves by invoking his name.

When first arriving on the scene, MC Hammer treated rap as a contact sport and responded aggressively to artists who took swipes at him. More than few found in a hurry there was a lot more to Hammer than his trademark genie pants. He was known to pull out boxing gloves and challenge rivals to a few rounds.

None dared take him up on the offer.

What prompted West Coast artists to become business-minded was the fact that, for a long time, doors had been closed to them on the East Coast. They could not depend upon airplay and other traditional means to become better known. So they positioned themselves as entire business enterprises.

Today, the art of battling is a high-stakes game that can lead to career suicide, if one steps into the arena with the wrong opponent. The loser in this winner-take-all environment may find his name tarnished and his business shut down when fickle fans don’t buy his album. If the commerce dries up, it’s not just the artist who’s hurt but also the record label, the entourage and the merchandisers.

Two notable examples: First, Ja Rule did battle with an up-and-coming 50 Cent and found out the hard way what can happen when the public perceives you as a loser. The once chart-topping artist can barely sell a record five years after that battle.

Second, many believe the infamous Bad Boy Records vs. Death Row Records rivalries resulted in the deaths of Tupak Shakur and his rival, Notorious B.I.G. People on both sides saw how much there is to lose.

Jay-Z and Nas deserve props for getting over their 2001 battle. Their heated words could have led to drama on the streets. But instead, the two worked overtime to prevent that. The result was that Jay-Z took a loss, and Nas revitalized his career. Since then, the two have recorded together, sending a message that the art of battling can still be enjoyable.

50 Cent has pushed the envelope over the past few years, engaging in wars of words with everyone from Fat Joe and the Terror Squad to Jermaine Dupri, the Game and Diddy. Most recently 50 Cent issued a challenge to Kanye West over the albums both artists are scheduled to release Sept. 11. 50 Cent wanted to make it a winner-take-all contest, boasting he could outsell West and adding, if he didn’t, he would never make another album.

West took the high road with a statement saying competition over album sales was the most ridiculous thing he ever heard. He questioned why it had to be an “either-or” situation and noted that Sept. 11 should be a day for the public to enjoy a lot of good music.

In an unexpected twist, country artist Kenny Chesney took up 50 Cent on the challenge, noting that country music is also on the record sales charts.

It’s too bad 50 Cent and others can’t challenge someone over the mistreatment of Katrina victims or the suffering in Dafur. But I guess that’s just wishful thinking.