You Need A University Degree To Listen To Rakim’s ‘Microphone Fiend’, And Junior High To Listen To 50 Cent’s ‘I Get Money’
According to the analysis that drives Hip Hop Word Count. Peace to Tahero and StapleCrops.
We have developed a rubric that estimates the education level needed to understand each rhyme as well as, rates the artistic sophistication employed through the metaphors, similes, cultural references, consonantal/vocalic alliteration and overall pattern of each rhyme. We calculate the final score by averaging the syntactic (readability measures) and semantic (artistic sophistication) scores of each rhyme. On a scale from 0 (illiterate) to 20 (post-graduate degree).
dope post!
You know I truly think things like this are ridiculous. Big words don’t necessarily make someone smarter or a better artist. And, the songs picked and artists compared are really convenient for one of these kinds of studies. Some MCs are more straight forward and blunt with their message. For example I dont hear to many triple syllable words in Jay-z’s music but it is very layered and contains double and triple meanings.
If an artist uses bigger words, more power to them But all that proves to me is that they own a Thesaurus. I’m sure if you compared Slick Rick’s music who most people would consider classic to a word smith like Canibus you’re telling me that somehow you have to be smarter to listen to him or that that makes him better because Canibus uses bigger words? I think these kind of things are painted in extremely condescending terms and prove nothing.
Yet another attempt at us vs. them…old school v. new school…youth v. old heads and it keeps driving a wedge in Hip Hop. I for one am not a big fan of 50 cent, but not because he doesn’t use big words. I am also a fan of Rakim, and not because he uses larger words.
Where’s the breakdown of I Get Money?
oh…found it.
same score for Jay-Z, Dead Presidents.
aesop rock and busdriver would be interesting.
This is a lot like Dalllas Penn’s polysyllabic word count machine. I think its a hot concept, but I wish someone would make a program where you could input the lyrics of a song and it would give you one of these stat sheets like the one above. I give you guys credit, it takes a while to break one of these joints down.
Not necessarily many of the words in Microphone Fiend, are not university level rather they are high school level, Hypochondriac among others can be learned in high school easily. I hate 50 cent’s rhymes though, hasn’t made anything decent in years.
I also agree with Jungle, the comparisons do draw a wedge in hip hop that never stops growing, think about how good it’ll be to get a mainstream rapper like Jay-Z and have a collaboration say with RZA, with the argument of smart rap vs basic rap, old school vs new school, such a collaboration will never be possible.
rza is new school then?
Articles like this, while well researched, are proof as to why Hip hop elitism amongst the nose in the air crowd is at an all time high. Proof as to why the underground, indie and now the internet hip hop scene is filled with blowhards who are more concerned with big words and intellectual masturbation then being relatable, having coherence and actual good songs.
Have you ever heard of the saying that there can be art and beauty in simplicity? Have you ever read the works of the layered simplicity of Kurt Vonnegut or the raw power and profoundness of early punk music like The Clash? Listened to the double and triple entendres in one single bar written by Jay-z? Who wrote the rule that a party starting Hip Hop joint has to be filled with four syllable words? Rakim is the exception in that respect rather then the hard lined rule.
I agree with Jungle that the selection of artists on this one is ridiculous. You pick someone who is possibly the best lyricist of all times to go toe to toe with a rapper who is known for his flat footedness and who’s popularity is on the down slope? It’s a safe, no brainer choice that will simply have the yes men shaking their heads in agreement into why they think Hip Hop sucks now. If you where to pick a respected MC from the past who’s diction wasn’t as extensive as Rakim and pit him against someone like Lil Wayne who’s word count, similes and cultural references would be through the roof and would easily beat them out you would be bombarded with negative responses.
I am a huge Rakim fan. I discovered him and this song when I was maybe 12 years old. Let me tell you, I was no kid genius and I understood every word. I realize that this stuff may be intentional exaggerations but it’s also giving the old school inflated and false sophistication over the new school. This is Hip Hop, not rocket science.
Why even comment on the ability of this experiment to quantify the “value” of the works in question? The experiment does not try to comment on the qualitative nature of the songs.
Things don’t have to be explicitly said to be obviously implied. Even if the implication here wasn’t that Rakim is better and then by deduction the old school is better I’m not the only one who thought that this was the intention of the writers. It’s not that far fetched of an assumption when you consider the artists involved. You pitted one of the premier lyricists of all times against one of the most reviled (at least on the internet) and simple lyricists.
I would consider this more of an experiment and a study of using big words in Hip Hop songs if the author didn’t inflate the diction on Rakim’s song and claim that you need a college degree to understand it and a jr. high diploma to get 50s. Now this isn’t an explicit reference to quality but by basically saying (whether directly or indirectly) that Rakim’s shit is smarter and therefore the listener has to be smarter. Im sure you can see how that can be taken as condescending or a statement on quality for 50 cent fans in particular and newer Hip Hop fans in general.
I don’t think anyone needs to beat around the bush when it comes to stating that the majority of Rakim’s recordings present a more technically sound, innovative and ground breaking mc than the majority of 50 cent’s recordings. Doesn’t mean one makes better music than the other, that’s relative. If you feel the need to defend that, more power to you, I guess someone should. But let’s not confuse the core issue here. There are differences that present themselves between groups of individuals who spend time pursuing a higher education and those that do not. Does it mean college grads are better people? No. Does it mean they tend to attain higher levels of income? Yes. Does it mean there are no autodidacts? No. Same generalizations can loosely apply to music, and other forms of expression, and their consumers. Is it black and white? No. Is it somewhat interesting to contemplate? Yes.
I agree with you. These issues of education and intelligence are definitely not black and white. Now with that said, the article and study is written in very black and white terms. Saying you need to have a college degree to listen to an artist and not so much for the other is in no ambiguous terms saying not only are you not as smart if you listen to 50… it’s saying you are probably kind of dumb.
Are there differences between people that have degrees and those that don’t? Absolutely. But to equate those differences down to polysyllabic words in a Hip Hop song and to question the intelligence of someone who enjoys wilding out to a party based Hip Hop song is a vast over generalization and can be insulting.
by the way…never once did I “defend” 50 as an artist. I never stated my opinion on his music. But, since it’s brought up…I never once liked any 50 cent songs. But, I did state I’ma a big Rakim fan. I just don’t think equating 50 fans to simplistic jr high students because he uses smaller words is a very accurate way to determine some ones intelligence. But hey, if you want to look at it like a simple study of large words in Hip Hop songs and not an obvious implication of quality or intelligence, more power to you.
you’re taking this way too seriously. it’s kind of like when teachers say, oh, you’re son is reading at a 10th grade level, meanwhile you know he’s been reading The Watchmen and enjoying it and understanding it thoroughly. it’s just an estimate, a loose generalization to help us define and compartmentalize our world. at least to me it is.
It’s not so much that I’m taking it seriously as that I’m voicing my opinion on how these kinds of things are divisive and add to the wedge that is in Hip Hop. Of course I know this isn’t an absolute assertion on people’s education level and in a way it’s tongue and cheek and a half joke. But, I see so many of these things on the internet and how condescending and elitist people can be about Hip Hop music even without knowing it. It’s a small thing. But, it’s also a prime example of the divisions that exist and how people justify their choice in music by saying it’s superior because it’s smarter. Just my thoughts on it.
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