Yeah, I COULD also like more kinds of food if I tried every food there was, and I COULD like more games if I tried every game out there, etc. But as of now, the only rap that I like (that I heard, as I can't like something if I haven't heard it before) is from Eminem, which was my original statement, and nothing has changed. Therefore, this little debate was a waste of time wouldn't you say?

O.k, well yes, of course chances are that people don't like them as much as Eminem...ya know why? Because people obviously haven't even heard of these people being how ****ed-up the music industry is. And you mention that you aren't going to out of the way to hear new music? Than I guess you will never hear anything better than Eminem in your opinion if you don't try. Deltron 3030 (AKA Del Tha Funky Homosapien) single-handedly got me back into hip-hop, it only took me a couple listens of his record to get me into the underground/ indie hip-hop scene. Same goes with Mos Def...Than, once I heard them, I start ed listening to other rappers on the same labels, then I read reviews on new "up and comers" on the scene and the process continues. Basically, it was 2 artists that got me into it, and now that I know so much more about it I haven't stopped. Maybe it's just me, but listen to Deltron 3030 and Mos Def's "Black on Both Sides" (both probably can be found fairly easily, they both have had mild commercial sucess) and maybe, just maybe it will get you intrigued or interested. Also read http://www.pitchforkmedia.com and check out the new reviews everyday because that has kept me updated day to day on not only the newest indie-rap, but indie-rock and other interesting original music. The indie-scene in general is difficult to get into because frankly it's a minority industry at this point. I mean, I know I would have never gotten into it all if my friends hadn't showed me some of that good stuff and now that I read about and purchase this music on my own, I'm at an all-time high in my music listening days. See, the problem is that people don't know what they are missing...Mainstream music is just so much in all of our faces that it's really tough to see anything else. This reason itself is why this other music IMO is better, because they aren't trying to impress anyone, they are doing what they want basically and as a result the music is usually of a higher quality. And about it being difficult to find...go to CDnow.com, they have any CD you could pretty much ever want or even half.com because it is cheaper. And if anyone is interested in some quality indie music, PM or IM me or something. Not that I'm an expert or anything, but I could at least give you some good direction as to where to start with indie-rock, indie-pop, or indie-hip hop. Allright...that was stupid sorry, but I don't feel like deleting it, so deal with it! :p

So white folks get rap, heavy metal and the majority of pop music. Black folks get rap and R&B. Once again, the Asian folks get left out. :mad:

*goes back to driving his jacked up car to private school*

Kidding, just kidding. But let's get down to some substance now.

Germanator, I see you mentioned The Roots in your list. I'm not a hunter of indie records by any stretch, but I imagine you've heard Rahzel singing "If Your Mother Only Knew." Man, when I heard that I knew I would have to go out and get a Roots CD. Sure, The Roots don't use double-voicing as their entire act, but it still got me hooked.

You seem to believe that public opinion shapes programming on TV and radio stations. You would be quite wrong. The truth is more the other way around (although the public still has some say). It's a known fact that most people will just settle for mediocrity instead of the best. The majority of people will settle for something that might be downright awful compared to the best out there. This doesn't just apply to pop culture (where the judgment of "best" is too nebulous to really analyze closely) but also to just about any other market. Rather than people liking Eminem just because they do, the reason they like him is probably something more like this.

This is not to say that Eminem is bad. I personally wouldn't know since I don't listen to his music, but he certainly seems much better at rapping than I could ever hope to be. I'm just pointing out that your contention that certain artists don't get exposure because most people don't like them is flawed.

Nope, I proved my point with you, and you are basically agreeing with me in this post. I also made solid observations of certain issues I agree with said by all three parties of this political interview, and spoke my opinion on why.

So in fact, it wasn't pointless at all, I got to speak for once on something serious at GT (very, VERY rare occasion), and you got to learn that ALOT of rap industry artists have the very same qualities you like Eminem ONLY for.

Definately not a waste of time to me.;)I couldn't agree more.

*high-fives Xantar*

*leaps into tree with Mya*

-...??

Xantar, you implied that the reason so many people like Eminem is probably because "you can easily find his CD or music on TV"and whatnot, right? I do agree, but why do you think his CD's are everywhere and his music videos are always on TV? If he wasn't popular as he is, then he'd never get the chance to get so much time on TV. if people didn't like him in the first place, there wouldn't be a big demand for his stuff, thus it wouldn't be played nearly as much. It's just a big cycle, people like his stuff, and it's played a lot.

Yes, it is a big cycle, but you also have to consider that Eminem and his record aren't the only force working in the industry. Eminem fans listen to other music, too. The vast majority of people listen to mainstream music, and so probably do Eminem fans. So the reason so many people like Eminem is in part because he is more mainstream than a lot of rappers. His music is more similar to the other stuff they listen to than the music of some other rappers. This isn't to say that he uses the same theme or the same kind of lyrics or anything like that. It could be something as simple as the fact that he sometimes uses catchy background music. But I won't go into a deep analysis here.

There is such a thing as an artist who produces something absolutely brilliant and creates a fanbase around himself purely on the strength of his talent. But such an artist is someone who redefines or completely invents a genre, puts it on the cultural map. I'm talking about something like The Beatles coming onto the scene and ever afterwards every rock and roll band using a strong drum beat and a set of guitars and singing songs with a repeating chorus. So it is with rap. Somebody at a point in time created the form and popularized it (I don't know who, but the genre had to be born somewhere). Afterwards, other rap artists come on the scene. They may be talented, but in the end they are riding on the coattails of this first person. I do not believe that Eminem is such a genre defining artist. He is one of the people who follow. This isn't a bad thing at all, but it gives you an insight into how he got his publishing deals with his record company. He did some songs and somebody realized that his songs would sell because they were in some way like the other stuff that sells. So the record company takes some risks in promoting Eminem, but they know that his songs will sell and moreover they know that marketing is going to have a big effect. How did Scooby Doo make money? The initial approval of the project was something of a gamble, but movie studios also know that having lots of TV commercials, trailers and billboards everywhere is also going to bring in quite a lot of people. They create their own demand. I certainly don't think they benefited from people thinking, "Hmm...a live action version of Scooby Doo. Sounds like a gread idea!"