Ghostface Killah Says Modern Hip-Hop Has No Storytellers
He did, however, namedrop Lil Baby and A Boogie Wit Tha Hoodie as rappers that he like.
Ghostface Killah shared his thoughts on the state of modern hip-hop in a new interview with Rolling Stone, stating that “[e]verything is the same” nowadays.
The Wu-Tang Clan staple explained that the younger generation of rappers don’t practice the art of “storytelling” anymore and are more about clubs. “A lot of p*ssy getting thrown around and sh*t,” he said, comparing the likes of MC Lyte, Lil Kim, Erica Cane, Lauryn Hill and “the Foxys” to the new breed. “Even when Lil’ Kim did it, she was gangsta with it. She was a rapper’s rapper. She was Erica Cane with it. But the Lauryn Hills of this sh*t [are] gone. Even the Foxys and shit like that, like a lag came over it,” he continued. “But all this other ‘lick my ass,’ ‘my butthole brown’ sh*t, it’s like … it’s too much.”
The rap vet did acknowledge, however, that the genre has changed over time, and that the rappers of today can’t “rhyme about an eyeball falling out your face, and having the police pick it up and put it in a plastic bag” the same way his generation did. He continued, “Because we was rhyming about [raps] ‘smoking woola’s at 16.’ Now you’ve got these n****s [and] pills is off the meat rack with the lean and sh*t. But at least we had substance in our music. Everything is the same now.”
Although the 54-year-old has his grievances, he also praised a few of the younger rappers and their ability to release more melodic music as it “changed the game” — although it seems like no one else is able to create their own unique sound. “I like my little n***a, Lil Baby, and A Boogie Wit Tha Hoodie and all that. Melodies is good for the kids; you’re singing a lullaby to them, they go off the melody, and they like it,” he revealed, even namedropping Barney’s popular “I Love You” children’s song.
“I like some of that sh*t. But sometimes you got all these other motherf*ckers biting n***as and all of y’all sound the same,” Ghostface continued. “Why you got to sound like him? Why do you got to sound like Lil Baby? Why you got to sound like this n***a? Why you ain’t just doing your own sh*t?”
