The home opener of the Detroit Pistons had Kid Rock singing America the Beautiful with a couple of backup singers. When I first saw him I thought it was a joke...but he didn't do badly. In fact, when I heard him I realized he had some serious country skills. Not Garth Brooks country...Johnny Cash country. So I'm flipping through the Free Press, and check this article out.
What jumps out at me are his comments about hip-hop. How the hell can you be 32 years old and still be in the same artistic place you were at 23?
Here's another way to think about it. Last night I got food poisoning. Like an idiot, I ate some food that was bad...thinking that it didn't matter.
And it didn't. Like TEN YEARS AGO!
So here I am writhing in pain with four kids to take care of, and a basketball game at 3:30. I make the game in time for the beginning of the second half...but it dawns on me. While I have known for quite some time that I am now in middle age--I had a middle aged revelation this summer--I hadn't yet made the transition in my eating habits. I just can't down anything like I used to. I'm in another place.
So when Kid Rock talks about having a 10 year old kid and not wanting to be about wearing bulletproof vests and issuing vendettas I see exactly what he means. MCs are now at the point where they have to make a choice. Mick Jagger in the early seventies said he'd NEVER be playing rock n roll at 50 or 60.
Yeah right.
How would we judge DMX as an artist, as an MC, if at 35 all he's got going on is still the growl?
Outkast has got it right I think.
Posted by at November 9, 2003 05:01 PM | TrackBack