Hip-hop/Rap has been declared the dominant genre of music in the US for the past five years according to data provided by Billboard. From 2015-2018 hip-hop experienced a golden era, with Drake and Kendrick Lamar reaching global stardom and artists like Kanye still dropping hit records. But today the genre is starting to show fatigue commercially.
According to Lumnates 2023, end-year music report hip-hop/rap is still the top genre in the US but has been showing a decline in listeners, all while we are experiencing record-breaking streaming numbers. One reason for this could be due to artists like Drake and Kendrick Lamar starting to explore different phases of their careers and focusing less on producing the next big hit, and so reaching a smaller, but more engaged audience.
Other possible factors could be the rise of social media, encouraging instant gratification, pressuring artists to produce faster, and putting less effort into the production. Social media has consumers pushing for new and engaging content more than ever before. Artists are encouraged to produce the next big hit rather than genuine music that connects with the listener.
Hip-hop was originally inspired by the spirit of rebellion, creating a platform that fused storytelling and social commentary. Hip-hop became an outlet for marginalized voices to testify their stories; and their resistance against struggles and injustices. This started a raw original form of expression with artists embracing a do-it-yourself approach that rejected commercialization and depended on self-production. This made the music raw and expressive, serving as a true testament to the writer’s story.
As hip-hop became more popular and mainstream, it became diversified and commercialized. The early 2000s is when we started to see this shift into a commercialized genre. For example, rappers like JayZ took advantage of the opportunity to capitalize on the growing genre and allowed artists like Drake to thrive in the industry with a more pop and polished sound that appeals to a broader mainstream audience.
Then there is someone like Kanye who contributed to the commercialization of hip-hop while defying it in unique ways. He changed music’s dominant genre by offering more introspective lyrics while experimenting with new sounds and showing a willingness to go against popular opinion. “His willingness to go against the mainstream ideas and opinions is what is keeping him famous.” Says Jaeda Cruz. “He made contributed to the genre’s unique production by bringing back old ideas and production while adding personality to the track”
Nowadays, as hip hop has become more commercialized, tracks are produced to ensure success with a large audience, shifting away from the genre’s origins which valued rebellion and originality. Many of hip hop today’s mainstream artists lack the rawness and social commentary that defined the genre thirty years ago. Now this isn’t to say that the genre isn’t still rich with unique and rebelling artists, it just is happening a little bit differently. The rise of technology is the reason for this. Technology has changed the way artists can produce music, giving more opportunities for creativity and expression.
As technology and society advance it makes sense that music consumption and production do too. Another reason for the shift. Technology has given hip-hop us the ability to manipulate sounds in ways that were not possible even just twenty years ago. This is how artists like Jpegmafa can utilize the clicking of a pen to make music the way he did in his song ‘Thug Tears.’ We can thank technological advancements for wide access to digital audio workstations, as studio equipment becomes increasingly affordable and portable more artists have access more of the time. The bedroom has become the new studio, or in the case of the artist group Injury Reserve, they could record multiple albums inside a dental office. Technology has allowed artists to create music like never before, hip-hop is an amazing example of this; even if hip-hop is declining in popularity, it is becoming more expressive than ever before.
Hip-hop is more prevalent than ever with artists experimenting with tracks. The best example of what inspired artists to use unusual sounds and resources isn’t Deathgrips or even Yeezus, I think the best example is MIA’s 2010 release of ‘Maya.’ This album brought never-before-seen experimental elements that pushed the boundaries of genre and controversial reviews and inspired artists to experiment with production. This was clearly what laid the foundation for the evolution of hip-hop. She incorporated a sort of glitch in her music not seen in the mainstream this way before. Intentionally distorting and manipulating audio to create distorted sounds that initiated the unique type of rebellion we’ve seen in hip-hop and rap in the past decade. MIA still addressed complex themes such as ensuring authenticity in technology and government policies in a way that kept the rebellious spirit familiar in the genre, while introducing new ways to enrich and antithesis music.
We are seeing artists starting to embrace the current digital age while rejecting commercialism. Jpegmafis says “If more risk can be taken, I think creatively, rap could become so much more interesting.” Artists are still taking time to produce genuine tracks, but are pushing boundaries by experimenting with sounds and incorporating influences into their music. Technological advancements have allowed for production to quality and creativity to improve. Hip-hop may be showing signs of fatigue commercially, but artistically it is thriving like never before.
