Thug Life Army

The State Of West Coast Hip Hop
Written by Mr. Cynical

As of right now, the West Coast is in a state of turmoil, and although beef is something that is ultimately frowned upon, it seems to be adding fuel to the fire so to speak. In the last year, we have seen some of the Wests top artists going at each others throats. And most recently, we have witnessed a couple high profile beefs between newcomers as well as veterans. While all this beef may be causing some rukus in California, as well as on the internet, it doesn''t seem to be helping out the West. Being born and raised in California myself, I know first hand that unity was what made the West such a demanding and dominating presense in the music industry in the early-mid 90s. Everyone was collaborating with everyone and when such awesome talent merges into one in the form of music, it is an unstoppable force. Before I continue I would just like to say that I am not condemming beef what so ever, in a sense it is healthy, and there are quite a few fake MCs in this game, and it is the job of the REAL MC to destroy the fake, IN THE FORM OF RHYMES.

In 1996-1997, we lost two of the most talented artists the rap game has ever seen, I am talking about Tupac Shakur and Christopher Wallace aka Notorious B.I.G. That was at the heighth of the so called "East Coast Vs West Coast" rivalry. As we have learned from that experience, the media tends to blow things way out of proportion and create war between two different regions when in reality it is conflict between two individuals, or shall I say two record labels. Now I can not see the future, but with all the unnessesary beefs (let me remind you not ALL beefs are unnessesary) that are brewing right here in the Golden State, whose to say that one day we wont see a headline somewhere that reads "Rapper shot and killed due to Southern California/Northern California beef"??

The West Coast has so much promising talent right now, and one of the key objectives of this website is to help promote the music, as well as to provide a place for artists from all over to network with eachother, and I feel that if this is utilized correctly this website can be just a small portion in the full unification of the West. Imagine if some of the big shots from California, as well as the many up and coming underground artists all united, we would be unstoppable! All that talent working together and being on the same page is what the West needs right now. I am sure most of you West Coast hip hop fans feel the same way I do, which is that the music industry right now is flooded with garbage. How many people out there can relate to the music videos and songs we hear on the radio? Not everyone has millions of dollars. It seems as though all genres in the mainstream music industry have all merged into one genre which is POP. In tha late 90s mainstream music ceased to produce music we can relate to, and instead became more focused on an artists IMAGE as opposed to their music. West Coast Hip Hop has the power to change all that, it just needs to be utilized.

In closing, I would like to say that right now the West is getting stonger by the day, and eventually I see us back at the top of the music industry. We had the power to change the whole face of the industry once and we sure as hell can do it again. I am speaking from the perspective of millions of fans when I say that we want music we can relate to. I know alot of artists visit this page so hopefully when theyre in the studio, they will take this into consideration when their diamond ring inspires a song. This editorial does not reflect the views of this website, it reflects the views of myself. Although im certain that other staff members would agree that I have some valid points in what I have said. With that being said, all i have to say is CONTINUE TO SUPPORT THE WEST!

Source: WC Rydaz