roaches said:
I don't know, those seem like two different things to me. Breaking down the elements of a record and looking at its mechanics analytically is a good way of figuring out what you like or don't like about a record. Numerical ratings are what message board kids do in lieu of an ability to consciously do that or properly articulate that.
"I'm not feeling Talib Kweli. His overusage of bad similes is getting more annoying with the passage of time, and he still hasn't figured out how to write to the beat. Some rappers just rap through the loop and compensate by shortening the next rhyme or rapping a little faster or slower throughout the line to keep their flow, but Kweli tries to cram it all into the last bar of music, and he's been doing it for so long he probably thinks it's dope and part of his signature style. You used to be able to overlook that shit before because of his subject matter and production, but nowadays he's watered down his content to fit in with the mainstream hip-hop audience. As for the beats these days, the beats on this album seem like a haphazard collection of different styles in hopes of eventually pleasing everyone."
vs.
"Talib Kweli's new CD is wack. I rate it:
Track 1: 2/5
Track 2: 3/5
Track 3: 1/5
Track 4: 0/5 (so wack lol)
Track 5: 2/5
Track 6: 2.5/5
Track 7: pi*2/3 / 5
Track 8: square root of 2 / 5
Track 9: 5/5 (best song on the album, he should do the whole thing this style!!)
Track 10: 2/5
Track 11: 3/5
Track 12: 2/5
Track 13: 1/5
Track 14: 3.25/5"
Different things, mayne.
The Beautiful Struggle? That shit was good!
"You say you never scared
there's kids in other countries making jerseys, jeans, and sneakers they could never wear
parents never there
They're busy building homes they cant affod to buy
Cars they cant afford to drive, working jobs that dont support their life
You busy screaming gangsta gangsta all that talk is trife
you already lost the fight if you dont know the cost of life
These kids are forced to fight a war they cant outrun
aint got no shoes but got a gun now where the fuck he pulled that out from
people ask me how we wearing diamonds
when theres little kids in Sierra Leone losing arms for crying while they're mining
probably an orphan whos momma died of AIDS
he built a coffin working often but he never paid
forever slaving in the world thats forever cold
becoming the man of the house at 11 years old
this reality rap i get inside the mentality that
terrorize you like a cowardly act"