Whaddaya want? Is it beats or rhymes? If it's lyrics you want, sweet sugar, don't go to Wacka Flocka Flame. "If you're looking for lyrics, throw it out the window. Go throw on Watch the Throne," says Flocka Flame of his sophomore release, Triple F Life: Friends, Fans and Family.
I found that quote on a Billboard.com article which also points out that Flocka's Drake-assisted single "Round of Applause," featuring the line "Round of applause, baby, make that ass clap," has sold 304,000 downloads. "Hard in Da Paint" has managed 432,000, while his most successful single to date remains "No Hands" with 2.8 million units.
Of course, Flocka isn't the first rapper to shun complex lyrics. Back in 2010, Soulja Boy told XXL that he doesn't want to be know for being "super-Lupe-Fiasco-lyrical and n-ggas don't know what the f-ck I'm talking about." Lupe responded with a song titled "Super Lupe Rap."
Comments
He forms part of those dudes that made Hip-Hop lose his substantific identity. Rappers are appreciate for their lyrical skill, not for the beats. For beats, there are producers. By the way, whether you’d prefer beats than lyrics, listen carefully and you’ll notice that both are weak.
@Snorunk, I wouldn’t say the beats are weak, just OTT. Like they’re big and rich and overproduced and after a while they make you feel bloated, kinda like after you eat a ridiculous amount of sugar.
Also Hip-hop hasn’t had a unified identity for a long time. Hip-hop covers a huge spectrum of peoples and tastes, which I think is one of hip-hop’s greatest strengths. But if you want lyric-driven hip-hop, or challenging, unorthodox rap music, the mainstream is not really the place to go.
Finally, what does substantific mean? I can’t find it on any online dictionary.