Tupac or Biggie?

Just curious what WATMM's demographic thinks. If you're having a hard time deciding, try listening through Ready 2 Die, Life After Death, 2Pacalypse Now, Strictly 4 My N.I.G.G.A.Z, Thug Life: Volume 1, Me Against The World, All Eyez On Me and The Don Killuminati: The 7 Day Theory.

If you think neither of them was the greatest and someone else was better, please motivate your response.

Inb4 LIL B worship

Kool Keith, Q-Tip, Madlib (although objectively his flow isn't that great, he just oozes style), any and all members of the Wu-Tang, probably a whole bunch of others I can't think of at the moment. Even Kanye is better than Biggie or Tupac, at least he can be funny sometimes.

Also, Kool Keith is surely the WATMMest of rappers.

Kool Keith was really damn good but I can't believe you compare him to 2pac or biggie.

I just don't get what's so great about Tupac or Biggie. They were well-loved top 40 rappers and they're both dead now, RIP. No disrespect intended, but there were people with better flow and better rhymes in their day and there's certainly no shortage now.

Opinions, assholes, etc.

Del The Funky Homosapien & Vinnie Paz both get my vote

I wish bone thugs would do a collab with AE

  On 12/23/2011 at 3:53 AM, sweepstakes said:

I just don't get what's so great about Tupac or Biggie. They were well-loved top 40 rappers and they're both dead now, RIP. No disrespect intended, but there were people with better flow and better rhymes in their day and there's certainly no shortage now.

 

Opinions, assholes, etc.

With all due respect, I'm not trying to be agitatory but do you really think they didn't raise the standard, or, at the very least, defined the genres of east and west coast hip-hop?

Not really. I think the East Coast / West Coast bullshit conflict thing was easy money for the media and record labels. And I don't think they really raised the standard. They were pretty run-of-the-mill for the time as far as I can tell.

Also, NYC was always where it was at as far as hip hop in the 80s and 90s. No contest for Cali, really. I think there's been cool stuff coming out in the last decade, but as far as the 90s I don't think West Coast hip hop was ever really that interesting... struggling to think of some examples. Oh yeah, Pharcyde was fun, if immature, but they only got really nice when Dilla (reppin' Detroit, btw) did some beats for them and made them sound a hell of a lot more grown-up. Dre's Chronic was classic but it's more to do with being a zeitgeist more than particularly good rapping or production. Perfectly competent in both departments, though.

Yeah, Kool Keith is totally IDM. I mean, he's on an album all about analog synthesizers ffs.

  On 12/23/2011 at 5:12 AM, ganus said:

Yeah, Kool Keith is totally IDM. I mean, he's on an album all about analog synthesizers ffs.

See also: Squarepusher - Schizm Track #1, Autechre - Goz Quarter ... others? Prodigy - Smack My Bitch Up, Out of Space but they're not very IDM lol. I think Prodge sampled a buttload of Kool Keith/Ultramagnetic MCs tracks, actually.

Im not a big hip hop fan at all, like even a little. But if its a choice between Tupac and Biggie, I clearly know Biggie was better.

edit: thats not from people tellin me 2nd had nonsense shit. Its from hearing both their shit and knowing.

also Kool Keith sample used in Jega - aerodynamic

I've always found both to be a bit overrated... With Minneapolis as my hometown I'd have to give my vote to Slug (Atmosphere). Also love P.O.S., Doom, and Aesop Rock a ton more than Tupac or Biggie, they had talent sure, but it seems the always get put on this pedestal because of all the East Coast/West Coast drama and the two of them being the frontrunners of the whole bs. One of my roomates is always going on about the great depth in Tupac's lyrics, and how behind all the gangsta stuff he was such a great story teller and so poignant talking about the real hardships of the hood and such. I always get a laugh cause I'm like, even if that were true to the extent he says he's still a white kid born and raised in Sioux Falls, SD what the hell do you think you know about the hood?

Also, Kool Keith is pretty dope as well.

MF DOOM

Can't move for backpacks in here.

Biggie was the greatest... in girth.

  On 12/23/2011 at 9:40 AM, Dan C said:

Can't move for backpacks in here.

 

hahahahaha

I guess the problem is, how do you define the greatest..?

Flow, Ability, Mass appeal?

Biggie.

But still think they both where overrated.

i love both biggie and tupac. they are amongst the most charismatic mcee's i know.

biggies flow was (at the time) unbeatable.

and tupac, what more can i say:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y1LXb8RAOtA

(plus i was there when it all happened..., figuratively)

  On 12/23/2011 at 9:40 AM, Dan C said:

Can't move for backpacks in here.

 

Ha. I don't really care about popularity, I just thought these guys had corny flow/rhymes. That's forgivable when someone's entertaining like Busta Rhymes or Das EFX. But people are so po-faced about these two guys, and they were even when they were alive, it's just not my scene maaaan.

so I guess this is about dead rappers with some mainstream success?

Eazy-E, I choose you.

Good call.

Ol' Dirty Bastard

i dont think biggie is even close to tupac at all. it baffles me that they are compared. neither are my fav ever though.

  On 12/23/2011 at 5:01 AM, sweepstakes said:

Also, NYC was always where it was at as far as hip hop in the 80s and 90s. No contest for Cali, really.

nwa was as big as you could get though.