DEFINE RAP: Who Are Those Keeping It Real?

This episode of industry diary features Seyi Shakespear’, a hip hop head who’s taken his time to dissect into the rap game thus giving us the real definition of rap and those keeping it real with the game

By Seyi Olaide ‘Shakespear’

The first time I listened VJ Adam‘s “Define Rap”, I indeed tried to define rap. Forget the history about how rap originated from Africa, the feud between Biggy and Pac and how it changed the scene.

So what is rap then? Rap is punchline, metaphor, wordplay, rhyme scheme, pun, hyperbole and rhythm… damn! real rap is only done by the best poets.

Rap evolved from either you spitting cunny punchline or bragging bout what you don’t have and can’t do (contemporaries still do it though). Modern rap is conscious acknowledgement of societal and personal problems, it’s Martin Luther king Jr in demin, its Du bois in timberland, Malcolm X in dreads.

I’m a huge fan of the old school but Drake, Kendrick, J. Cole and few others always take the game to a new place.

M.I. made a comment about Headies not appreciating new raw sh!t, indeed they aren’t. In fact we don’t acknowledge poetry.

I ain’t putting some disrespeck on anyone’s name but those rappers we appreciate are stale and dead. Quick glance at BET best lyricist nominees you’d see the new school not some Tu Pac wannabees.

The best in Naija, I repeat the best in the Nigerian rap game is MI. The most underrated by far is Poe (@ladipoe). You’d be amazed he has a meagre 4k followers and Chinko Ekun (@iamchinko) has got 20k followers ~smh. Even the deaf knows who’s better but then, my prayers goes to the Gees trying to give us real rap even when the money ain’t coming. We got y’all covered like square root over odd numbers.

Seyi Shakespear’ Olaide
@On9jaradios