The 37th Chamber 12.05.09: He's Making Fun Of Me

Posted by Patrick Robinson on 12.05.2009

This week we're discussing the Canibus/Eminem situation, Triple C's/KRS-One situation, 50 Cent's declining popularity, organizing Year-End features and a look at why exactly I listen to the music I do!

Four and a half years of college education is finally over. I don't think I've ever studied harder for a test in my life than I did for this last Accounting exam, and I really don't think I've done an easier test in my life either. Whether or not that is a product of the study is quite probable, but the exam really was incredibly basic. Given we were allocated 3 hours to do it, and I finished in 1 hour 10 minutes, I'm pretty sure that counts as an easy exam. Everything balanced and worked out the first time around too. Normally I end up with the final result not balancing, going crazy for 20 minutes trying to work out why, then discovering I'd hit the wrong button on the calculator at some point by accident. Not this time though thankfully.

So I now find myself not really knowing what to do with my time. I feel I should be rushing off to study, or do an assignment, but instead, I can actually watch all the DVDs I've bought and listen to some of the music I've downloaded. Life's good.

Reader Feedback

"ugh, it's like high school girls this hop hop world. "HE DISSED ME! IM GOING TO MAKE FUN OF HIS SHOES LOL!" no wonder why Eminem called him can-a-bitch.

But in all seriousness, there are rap battles and there are childish insult trades. I feel this will become the latter." - shaydee

The ridiculous stuff that rappers get so highly offended over makes the Chris Jericho / Kane feud over the coffee seem positively mature. Whether or not this will cause Eminem to channel his old Eminem Show days is yet to be seen, but that could well be a good thing.

"These Beanie Sigel act is ridiculous. It's kind of sad he's taking a page from the 50 Cent beef= sales playbook."

Given how this has been working out for 50 lately, I'm surprised anybody is following his hip-hop acumen when it comes to ways to generate sales.

"He may not have gone triple platinum, or even single platinum, but Sigel has had a really solid career with Jay-Z. Not every rapper is going to be a huge pop-star no matter who they diss and Sigel is a case in point.

It's kind of sad that he's going to willingly damage his own credibility and reputation for the sake of a manufactured beef for publicity and a crappy G-Unit album. He should just switch to E1 (or whatever Koch is called), and keep putting out verses.

Like Bill Parcells says, you are what your record says you are." - Michael James

E1 and more increasingly, Amalgam Digital seem to be the place to go these days for rappers. The major labels aren't really backing anybody who isn't making ringtones. The minor labels at least are encouraging rappers to put out music they are happy with. If Koch was the Independent label to be on during this decade, I honestly think that Amalgam Digital is going to be right up there for the next decade.



"Busta Rhymes, an old man like you rapping isn't going to save anything trust me." - wisecracker

I agree, although it's disappointing to do so. Busta isn't going to singlehandedly change the game at this point in time, but he could sure as hell inspire change if he wanted to. Busta is one of the few artists who can still connect with the mainstream audiences with his singles, but still puts out an album that features his own type of songs. If he was able to start a movement in a different direction than the one we're headed now, I'm sure that he could easily inspire other rappers in his position or younger guys to follow suit.

"WOW so you show absolutely no bias for Jay-Z and The Game. 50 Cent created The Game" - Guest#4144

Ok seriously, I don't think I should have to defend this anymore so here's the abridged version for the last time (this year probably).

- I was disillusioned with hip-hop a bit back in 2002
- 50 Cent came on the scene and blew me away
- I was a big fan bordering on the Stan line
- Come 2005 Game comes into the picture
- He drops some excellent mixtapes and generates a shit load of heat
- Blows up, yes with 50's help, on his debut album
- 50 kicks him out of G-Unit in a typically 50 Cent "Public humiliation for the sake of exploitation move"
- I'm sick of 50's childish bullshit and tried to put up with it for years
- I'm over it. He's not the best rapper, he hasn't put out a Classic and he sure as hell won't at this point
- Why shouldn't I be biased at this point against him?

By the way:

Bias: "favoring one person or side over another"

http://wordnetweb.princeton.edu/perl/webwn?s=biased

"Canibus is prolly the best emcee in the industry today under 40, and he'd totally demolish Em, but yeah the beef is kinda old. He needs to direct it at more deserving peeps like Rick Ross, Lil Wayne and Joe Budden."

I don't know about Joe Budden as such. It's not like he's done anything totally brainless apart from the whole Method Man + Raekwon thing. Even still, after Raekwon's entourage knocked him down, he didn't start going off on Method Man or Raekwon after. He did the MAN thing and talked with them, as opposed to doing the kid thing and beefing with him.

But yes, Mark II and Mr. "Somehow manages to impregnate hot women" do deserve his ire.



"Speaking of beef, Ross taking shots at KRS? How laughable. KRS is a man that's trying to preserve what's good about hip-hop and collaborates with many different artists. Not to mention he's a much better rapper too."

KRS went through his slightly crazy phase claiming to BE HIP-HOP etc., but since then, he's chilled a bit, and apart from the occasional random outburst, he appears to be a much more relaxed guy when it comes to hip-hop. The fact that he went on air with Soulja Boy and ‘officially' welcomed him to the hip-hop world was something unprecedented and I think, goes to show that KRS is definitely trying to preserve the spirit of hip-hop in the younger generation. Or at least get them to recognize what it is the old-school cherishes so much about it.

Although I seriously do not want to see a Soulja Boy appearance on KRS' next album.

"Busta coming out with a new album is never a bad thing, as he's one of the old school rappers who still hasn't forgotten his early style of emceeing. He can't do it by himself though. If Canibus can get mainstream appeal, then Hip-Hop will indeed be alive and kicking at full blast again." - Guest#0456

The day that Canibus hits Platinum is the day I can officially die happy, regardless of whether I've heard Detox or not yet.



"Pat, Lupe's mixtape is called Enemy of the State and it's DOPE as fuck. My favorite track is the one he rapped over Slaughterhouse "The One". Can't wait for mixtape #2 then the album...especially the damn album."

I'll definitely be checking it out over the next few weeks then.

"Canibus dissing Eminem...still?

"Triple C's Attack KRS-One And The New Boyz"

I get it. Ross disses a dude who chooses to mock him instead of RAP about him now he feels like superman...cool.

But fuckin with a legend like KRS ain't getting your ass NOWHERE!

All Triple C has is pretty dope production (tho I have yet to hear the album honestly) and KRS has...um 20 fucking years under his belt.

Hell even if it's only The New Kidz they got KRS-One behind them! That's lose-lose-lose situation.

I'll admit I didn't like Busta's last album, but its Busta Rhymes I'll still give him a try" - Dab

I seriously can't see a good ending for Triple C's and Mark II if they decide to go after KRS-One. As you said, a legend in the game, with 20+ years experience, not to mention one of the most powerful voices in hip-hop…not looking good guys!


My new favorite picture to post if anyone was wondering

"Award for dumbass of the year...scratch that decade:

50 Cent
This guy needs to stop this beef shit and Sigel come the fuck on man. I know his ass criticized 50 for this shit when he was with Jay...

And Canibus, I don't give a fuck who he disses; all I know is we're gonna get some good music if Em chooses to respond. Canibus is a lyrical master. The only problem is that he'll probably lose because the fan ratio is like Em 1000: to Bus 10. See how that can pose a problem?" - The Rapper's Rapper

50 really needs to find a new method of marketing himself. It's not as if he can't make catchy singles any more, it's just that he never actually gets around to promoting them as he's too caught up in his latest wacky adventures in beef.

And how is it that Canibus always ends up beefing with rappers who have ridiculously large fan bases? It's like, even if Eminem puts out a record with him singing the National Anthem of Ireland that has nothing to do with Canibus, and Canibus puts out the lyrical equivalent of "Ether II", ‘Bis is at a serious disadvantage due to the fact that Em simply has more fans who will get around to listening to whatever it is he puts out. And this time, 99% of the fans aren't wearing high heels.

Just a quick note, I won't be commenting on anybody's lists at this point. I'm going to be saving them for the time being, and organizing the poll for the end of the year.



"I have no clue what the Brian Griffin rule is but if it means pics of Lauren London I'm all for it" - Patrick's friend Spongebob

Ah the Brian Griffin Rule states that should a news piece involve an attractive female in some way; their picture shall be posted over anybody else involved in the story. For example, if I were to bring up a story regarding Chris Brown and Rihanna again, I would post a picture of Rihanna (before the beating).

The exception to this rule is when I come across a particularly hilarious picture, such as the Ja Rule "iPhizzle" picture.

"Patrick, no offense man but when it comes to music listening you're kinda strange. The Roots are one of the best hip-hop groups to ever do it and you have never really gotten into them, yet you're quick to listen to 50, Maino, Rick Ross and Soulja Boy. I worry about you kid." - Jeremy

"I sort of agree with you when it comes to not knowing about the Roots but in his defense with 50 and Maino he mentioned a while ago that his reviews come from what people request or something along that lines." - Dab

Hahaha yeah I have extremely bizarre taste! I'll try and make an example to attempt to explain my mindset to start with.

So imagine a week where Method Man, 50 Cent, Jay-Z and AZ are dropping…which would be a hell of a week, but moving on. The order I would listen to the albums, given I get them at the exact same time, would probably be:

- Method Man
- 50 Cent
- Jay-Z
- AZ

Why? Firstly Method Man because anything Wu-Tang Clan usually takes priority given my fandom for the Wu borders on the Stan-dom as I have mentioned many times.

But 50 Cent above AZ and even Jay-Z? Like, even if this was a Reasonable Doubt level Jay-Z?

Simply put, there are certain artists out there who I KNOW will consistently put out quality work and as such, I suppose there isn't as much of a desire to listen to it, when I KNOW the end result. Or at least assume it. With artists like AZ, Common, Ice Cube etc., I KNOW these guys will always (with one occasional blip) put out quality work, I've come to expect that from them. So when I hear a new album is dropping from one of the artists on that list, I generally don't anticipate it as much as I would a questionable release, certain circumstances apply of course, such as if Common announced a track with Eminem was making the cut on his album.

In a way, I anticipate reveling in just how BAD some releases can be. Why else would I review Soulja Boy albums hahaha. In a past life, I guess I was a masochist because I tend to get a kick out of how awful some music can be, mainly because it makes the good music seem REALLY good by comparison after.

When it comes to The Roots and A Tribe Called Quest, two MAJOR groups who I've never really gotten into, it's a bit different. I KNOW their music is excellent, and I will certainly not disagree with anyone who says so, nor will I ever try and lessen the impact they have had on hip-hop and music in general. For whatever reason, I just don't seem to be able to enjoy it as much as other people do.

I am a very weird individual in most aspects of life, music being no different, but I hope this clears things up a little. And as Dab said, when there's a request for an album which falls into the "could be good, could be REALLY good, or could be totally abysmal", I'm often interested to see how the album turns out in the end, and I listen to it.

Don't worry though, with this extended break (I have no intention of looking for a job in any serious capacity until at LEAST January), I'll be churning through as much music as humanly possible.

"Man, 160,000 first week for 50...that's hopefully a wake-up to him that something needs to change. A lot of people will say that the early leak had something to do with it, but look at BP3--it leaked early too, but Jay still killed the chart in the first week. It's time for 50 to step back and re-assess what he's been doing the last few albums. Oh well, the old mixtapes are still sick."

I agree, albums HAVE leaked early, very early in some cases, and still dominated the charts. I read on another message board, a comment posted by an actual fan of 50 Cent, he believed that it wasn't necessarily the earlier leaks of music that was MEANT to be on BISD that killed it, it's that when the official album leaked, the music was, to him, unbelievably mediocre and the sales suffered from it. It's an interesting perspective, and the first intellectual comment I've read defending 50 Cent as most of them involve terrible abbreviations such as leaving the ‘e' off ‘the' or questioning my choice of music preferences. Seriously, not ONE comment on the BISD review; defending the album was able to properly formulate anything remotely resembling a defensive point. Instead it's attacks on me, or simply saying it's the best he's done since GRODT. That's nice and all, BUT WHY?

"Hey, Gucci's new album comes out Dec. 8--I bet it does better 1st week numbers than BISD. I won't be picking it up though...maybe the new Clipse instead." - mr_carpenter1982

Hahaha can you imagine that? Gucci "Inexplicably Popular" Mane outselling 50 Cent? Actually, when Kurruption said earlier in the year that he expected Game out outsell 50 dramatically, I expected Game to outsell him, but not dramatically. Now it looks like that Game, given the right single, could easily outsell 50 by even up to 200,000 copies I reckon.

"I loved Ghostface's Fishscale, but what I'm really looking forward to is Vakill's The Armor of God, whenever that comes out." - Serial

I think one day I'll get around to finishing my Wu mission where I decided to listen to every Wu release in order by release date. I got heavily bogged down when I randomly decided to throw in strong affiliate releases such as Cappadonna and Killah Priest albums. I think this time around, I'll just stick with Wu-Tang releases. I might actually make it past 1997 this time.

"You know if Eminem's Relapse is actually considered anywhere in the top ten for this year, other than for top CDs to use for a Frisbee, then it shows Eminem is the most OVERRATED rapper of all time. This is getting out of hand; he can literally put out garbage and be praised for it." - John

I don't know if it was THAT bad. The more I listen to it, the more I sadly come to notice that it's a fairly good album, with questionable execution (such as that bloody accent. Chop that out, throw in "Forever" voice tone and you suddenly have a better album). It's an interesting pre-cursor to Relapse 2 whenever that comes out though, and if it was just the teaser on what to expect, it's getting people talking either way about the album.

"I was thinkin the same thing about the 50 album. It's like after So Disrespectful & Psycho the album goes to shit. I think So Disrespectful is the best song he's put out in years. There's a lot of songs that just sound cluttered and old. It's like he recorded them right after he got shot cuz his raps sound like shit." - JBass24

I was bumping "So Disrespectful" and "Psycho" just today in the car incidentally. The main thing I like about "So Disrespectful" is that 50 is just coming out and calling names. There's no pussy-footing around or subliminal threats, it's just flat out calling it like it is. Now I probably sound hypocritical claiming to enjoy a track like this at the same time despising his marketing tactics, but consider T.I.'s Paper Trail. That had "What Up, What's Haapnin" on it, but T.I. actually promoted the album as opposed to letting the beef promote the album.

So when 50 comes out with a good song, I recognize it as a good song, regardless of the content. Plus it's good to hear him get that cocky attitude he had from his first album back. The diss tracks on The Massacre and Curtis were pretty weak, mainly because 50 didn't sound particularly enthused.

I think 50 has the same time machine that Canibus does somewhere…

"Do a poll I don't mind if you provide YOUR list but the poll is "fan interactive" (as if that brings rating or something?)" - Guest#4516

I think I will do both lists, mine and a fan determined one. More on that in a bit though.

"*Went to a Jay show in mid-November, worth every dollar

*I didn't know that was Nelly Furtado on "Sacrifice," back to the liner notes

*I dig both ideas about the Top 10, the reader's and reviewer's versions" - Joe

One day, when I have time and money, I'll actually get down to a show somewhere. Hopefully those days will come soon because at this rate, I'm going to have to move to America and stalk my favorite artists until they put on a show I can get to.



"Also do a poll on who's the best in Slaughterhouse. My vote Joe" - Guest#8718

That's actually a really interesting question. Each artist has their own distinct style and appeals and flaws as well. I can't say that any artist in the group is BAD or a weak link (kind of like U-God during the early-mid Wu days) when compared to the rest and it's hard for me to pick a favorite member myself.

Poll: Who is the best member in Slaughterhouse?

Poll 2: Who is your favorite member in Slaughterhouse and why?

Unofficial Poll 3: Anybody object to me doing Polls like that in the future? It just came to me that it might be a really easy way to do it from now on.

The Mini Rant

Ok so the decision to go with is a fan poll and my own list. My list will only include albums I have listened to and I will make a note of notable releases this year that I didn't quite get around to, to hopefully avoid responses of "Where is XYZ?" or "This list sucks because XYZ isn't on it!".

For the fan poll, the method I'll use will probably involve scoring each album on everyone's list. For example, the Number 1 choice on a list will get 10 points, the Number 2 choice 9 points, so on and so forth until the Number 10 choice gets 1 point etc.

I THINK that's a fairly balanced way of doing this, although I can't be totally sure having not done this before. If you can't think of 10 albums, that's fine, just put as many down as you can, also, feel free to include Honorable Mentions, for which I may or may not designate a half point to or just keep in mind when making the final list. I will also put up, along with the final 10, the scores each album received, as well as publish everyone's list and comment on them.

So in order for this to work, I need everyone to send me a Top 10 list of albums for 2009 as soon as possible. Drop it in the comments, or send me an email, but try and get them to me quickly, so I can get this feature going before the end of the year. There are a couple of albums coming out soon that may or may not make the list, so feel free to wait, and actually, since the 31st falls on a Thursday this year, the first 37th Chamber will fall on the 2nd of January which kind of makes it good timing.

So get those lists to me by that last week of December!

The Signoff

Time for me to get started with the rest of my life I guess! Catch you next week!