NFL
By: Mark T. Wilson
It doesn’t matter what the new generation of Hip Hop adds to the legacy; it’s clear that the older generation is still holding the keys to the kingdom. Case in point, 2024-2025 has been the year of Hip Hop. First up was the beef between Drake and Kendrick Lamar. I mean, hell, a Hip Hop beef took center stage at the Super Bowl.
Following that was the reemergence of Meek Mill in what is still described as the verse of the year on ‘Proud Of Me’. But Meek didn’t stop there; he’s still dropping hot 16s on any track he’s featured on. But the OGs weren’t done, they were just getting started.
The Clipse set the Hip Hop world on fire with their new album, ‘Let God Sort Em Out’. From the production to the lyrics, they took old fans back to their debut style and brought some new ones along for the ride. And just when you were getting ready to give a solid review for that album, Raekwon blessed the Summer of ‘25 with another crown jewel.
Then, to add more pain to the mumble and drill rappers who have taken over Hip Hop the last few years, another member of Wu-Tang took center stage with a classic of his. Ghostface followed his brother Rae with Supreme Clientele 2.
In an era where these new-age rappers are being caught up in RICO charges and snitching allegations, the OGs are expanding their reach with podcasts. Drink Champs is still the blueprint, but with that, Memphis Bleek has emerged as an up-and-coming host with his new Podcast “Roc Solid”. And shit, we still can’t forget about the success of Joe Budden, and now we have another team-up podcast with Fat Joe and Jadakiss.
The Hip Hop OGs have taken a back seat at times, but not by choice. The world tried to tune them out, but it’s hard to keep good quality down for too long. The issue with Hip Hop has been its lack of substance. The new era has become the old era and rightfully so. The OGs are selling out tours left and right while the new generation is trying to grasp at a dwindling audience.
50 Cent had a successful tour, as did Wu-Tang. Jay Z is shutting down other countries with his wife, Beyoncé. Nas is making classic guest appearances on albums. And while all this is going on, these new-age rappers are steadily beefing within themselves. Everyone wants to be a gangster in the booth and outside of it, with nothing substantial to say in between.
There was a time when most couldn’t wait to see what the future of Hip Hop held. Now, we all want to rewind time and go back to simpler days where words had meaning and we just didn’t wait for the hook of a song. What happened to the days when we said, “Rewind that?” It’s hard to understand what half of these rappers are saying. If our parents hated our music back then, when we had a young LL, Jay, or Nas, imagine what they are saying regarding Young Thug, Boosie, or Kodak Black? It’s not that times are changing, it’s that Hip Hop is becoming Hip Hop again.
