Hip Hop Roundtable

The Censoring of Hip Hop

Censoring isn't new to hip hop. However, in the wake of people trying to "censor" and "cancel" Dave Chappelle and DaBaby, we revisit the idea in the context of modern day hip hop. We discuss if it's possible for hip hop to be censored, who actually does the censoring (has it changed over the years?), and what it looks like if it can be. So you know the drill, #PullUpAChair, press play, and let us know your thoughts. 

The [Perceived] Safety Risk of Being a Rapper

The tragic murder of PnB Rock forces us to once again have to examine what's going on with, what seems to be, increased violence and attacks on hip hop artist. We react to the unfortunate circumstances surrounding PnB Rock in particular, but also examine what is creating the circumstances that make it feel as if simply being a rapper is one of the most dangerous professions you can choose. While this may not actually be the case, we discuss reasons hip hop continues to find itself in this situation and what can be done to help us get out of this vicious cycle. #PullUpAChair, press play, and please let us know your thoughts in the comment section wherever you may be listening. Stay safe.

Reactions to Kool Moe Dee’s Rapper Report Cards

An image of Kool Moe Dee's report card to rate MCs was resurfaced online  and got everybody talking. Of course, we had to discuss this at the roundtable. As you can imagine, there was plenty to discuss and disagree with. #PullUpAChair, press play, and leave a comment with your thoughts.

Responding to & Learning From Astroworld Tragedy

Recorded just after the tragic incident at Travis Scott's Astroworld concert, we discuss what hip hop's response should be and lessons learned for the culture. We always want to make sure that hip hop is growing and getting better, even in the midst of tragedy. So #PullUpAChair, press play, and give us your thoughts on what lessons hip hop can take away from this unfortunate situation. 

Funk Flex and the Gatekeeping of Radio

Although Funk Flex and Conway have since made peace, what came out of their back-and-forth was a need to discuss the responsibility of radio and DJs to promote artists--or establish if that even is their responsibility. Has Funk Flex turned his back on "real" hip hop? Was Conway wrong for being upset with Flex? We start there, but go beyond to explore what all this means for the culture, as a whole. #PullUpAChair, press play, and leave a comment with your thoughts. 

Mental Health & Accountability in Hip Hop

Kanye's public bout with bipolar disorder is not necessarily a new discussion. However, at the time that he released the album Donda (in honor of his mom), we bring the conversation about mental health and who is looking out for our the faces of our culture to the roundtable. Of course, this conversation is much greater than Kanye himself is one we need to continue to have in our culture. #PullUpAChair, press play, and make sure you let us know your thoughts on all that we cover in the discussion.

A Jeen-Yuhs at Work: Reactions to Kanye West Documentary

Recorded during the same time we discussed our reactions to Bel-Air (way before all the recent antics), we turned our attention to Netflix's Kanye documentary Jeen-Yuhs. It's no secret that Kanye has been polarizing the last several years, but did this documentary provide any new insights? Help us understand him more? Provide answers to things we may have questioned? That's what we're here to discuss. #PullUpAChair, press play, and leave your thoughts on the doc.

Reactions to Bel-Air

Recorded when the show was first airing, we give our thoughts and reactions to the return of a classic in drama form. We all know and love Fresh Prince of Bel-Air, so of course we had to discuss the reimagined series and how we felt about it after watching the first couple of episodes. Fresh Prince is a significant part of hip hop culture, so we were all interested to see how this dramatized version did and if it did the original any justice. #PullUpAChair, press play, and give us your thoughts after listening to ours.

Can Woke & Trap Mix?: Exploring the Blend of Content and Beats

If you watch Issa Rae's latest show Rap Sh!t, you're familiar with the main characters Shawna and Mia. You probably also know about the struggles you they had with finding their sound, with Shawna trying to rap "woke" lyrics over trap beats. That led to our conversation about the marriage between the content of raps and the beats they're laid over. Is it that certain lyrics that are deemed to be "negative" actually sound better over certain beats? Is it possible to be "conscious" and still be appealing when rapping over trap beats? We discuss all this and more. So, #PullUpAChair, press play, and leave a comment with your thoughts. 

Subjectivity on Trial

If you have listened to our podcast in the past, you know that subjectivity is a common theme. Some people--*cough* Milan *cough*--seem to struggle with what is a fact versus opinion when it comes to music. When it comes to hip hop debates, separating what we like from what is objectively bad can sometimes be challenging. In this episode, we make subjectivity the main focus to solve this disagreement once and for all. At least that was the hope. We failed miserably, but there was plenty of debate and maybe, just maybe, some points were made here that help you distinguish what is your personal preference from what is just, by pure definition, good or bad music. #PullUpAChair, press play, and leave a comment with your thoughts.