Alternative Rap aka Underground Hip Hop

[smokey_locs2002]

Alternative Rap refers to hip-hop groups that refuse to conform to any of the traditional stereotypes of rap, such as gangsta, funk, bass, hardcore, and party rap. Instead, they blur genres, drawing equally from funk and pop/rock, as well as jazz, soul, reggae, and even folk. Though Arrested Development and the Fugees managed to cross over into the mainstream, most alternative rap groups are embraced primarily by alternative rock fans, not hip-hop or pop audiences.
That summary has been said over 1 million times no remembers who started it but... I got it from
 ~mp3.com~


Now detailed one. From Wikipedia.

Alternative hip hop or Underground rap is a style of hip hop music distinguished by beats, samples, and lyrics that differ from the general template of popular commercial hip hop. Positive lyrics are often a hallmark of alternative hip hop, which detract from the materialistic and sexually fueled lyrics of mainstream hip hop. Although some listeners may associate live instrumentation with alternative hip hop, this distinction is invalid because popular rap acts like J-Kwon and The Roots use live instruments as well. Alternative hip hop artists generally have not achieved the same level of mainstream success that commercial rap and other forms of the genre have seen, although they are often critically acclaimed. Interestingly, alternative hip hop has developed differently from virtually every other musical genre, with its originators (De La Soul, A Tribe Called Quest) being more popular than later innovators (Guru, Mos Def, Common). This is why some consider alternative hip hop more a trend than a rigid genre within hip hop.

The term "alternative hip hop", coined by music scholars, can be considered something of a misnomer: artists labeled as "alternative hip hop" musicians usually record and perform in styles that are more closely related to the original concepts and styles of hip hop music and hip hop culture, as opposed to their more popular commercial counterparts. DJ Kool Herc, the inventor of hip hop music, once said in an essay about hip hop, that "it's not about keeping it real. It's about keeping it right." In this sense, many would argue that alternative hip hop might not be so much an alternative as much as it is a continuation of the original concepts and ideals of hip hop.


After the turn of the millennium, as the United States (still by far the world capital of hip hop) found itself confronted by the War on Terror, lyrics grew increasingly anti-mainstream, with some advocating radical actions on the behalf of various anarchist and socialist ideas. The cover for the album Party Music (2001) by the openly marxist band, The Coup, proved controversial after the September 11, 2001 attacks due to its depiction of the duo holding a stick of dynamite and a detonator, ready to blow up the World Trade Center (though the band itself had been well known in alternative hip hop circles since the early 1990s); other groups like Dead Prez (Let's Get Free, 2000), Mr. Lif with his EP, Emergency Rations, and Emcee Lynx (The Black Dog EP, 2003, and The UnAmerican LP, 2004) similarly raised controversy with militant and confrontational lyrics.

more at http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alternative_rap

Here's a list of Underground Artist. Some are mainstream now but most are still in the Under.

  1. A Tribe Called Quest
  2. Outkast
  3. The Beastie Boys
  4. GangStarr
  5. De La Soul
  6. The Roots
  7. Queen Latifah
  8. Stetsasonic
  9. The Pharcyde
10. Digital Underground
11. Talib Kweli
12. Common
13. The Fugees
14. Arrested Development
15. Digable Planets
16. Lauryn Hill
17. Brand Nubian
18. Missy "Misdemeanor" Elliott
19. Mos Def
20. Tha Alkaholiks
21. Ultramagnetic MCs
22. Kool Keith/Dr. Octagon
23. Channel Live
24. Wyclef Jean
25. Organized Konfusion
26. KRS-One (later work)
27. Jeru the Damaja
28. Black Sheep
29. Jurassic 5
30. Goodie MOB
31. MF Doom
32. Slum Village
33. Company Flow
34. Jedi Mind Tricks
35. Esham
36. Jungle Brothers
37. Pete Rock & CL Smooth
38. Main Source
39. 3rd Bass
40. Busta Rhymes
41. Big L
42. Dead Prez
43. Blackilicious
44. Black Moon
45. Dilated Peoples
46. Souls of Mischief
47. Bahamadia
48. Aceyalone
49. Leaders of the New School
50. Pharoah Monche
   51. Dan the Automator
52. Del the Funkee Homosapien
53. Kanye West
54. The Coup
55. Prince Paul
56. Antipop Consortium
57. Guru
58. Nappy Roots
59. Boogiemonsters
60. Lords of the Underground
61. Peanut Butter Wolf
62. Cee-Lo
63. The Beat Junkies
64. Atmosphere
65. Black Eyed Peas
66. Thirstin Howl III
67. Deltron 3030
68. Poor Righteous Teachers
69. Aesop Rock
70. All Natural
71. X-Clan
72. Grand Puba
73. Dream Warriors
74. JVC Force
75. N.E.R.D.
76. Spearhead
77. Intelligent Hoodlum
78. P.M. Dawn
79. Camp Lo
80. Funkdoobiest
81. Witchdoctor
82. Da Bush Babees
83. Kwame
84. The Beatnuts
85. Isis/Lin Que
86. Raw Fusion
87. Jean Grae
88. Sadat X
89. Basehead
90. Handsome Boy Modeling School
91. Q-Tip
92. The Arsonists
93. Questionmark Asylum
94. Monie Love
95. KMC
96. Imani Coppola
97. UMC's
98. The Disposable Heroes of HipHoprisy
99. Gorillaz
100. Nonchalant

[Almeidaboo]

I dunno man...I think itīs the beat and the vocals that doesnīt appeal me...or maybe I just need the cracking guitar trembling through my skull bones.

Maybe itīs the lyrics theme.

I just canīt like it. Xcept for Eminem, but just because heīs funny.

And now you want to kick my a$$.

[Desimodontidae]

Yeah, it sucks.

[Almeidaboo]

Originally posted by Desimodontidae
Yeah, it sucks.

I didnīt mean to be rude, and no offense too.

[drenrin2120]

Never heard of it, but it seems like just another branch of hip hop. And I'm a rocker, so I prolly wouldn't like it.

It's like rock, there are so many branches of rock; Alternative, Punk, Rap Metal, Death Metal, Hard Rock, Industrial, Emo... the list goes on. Rap and Hip Hop have got just as many branches, I just don't know what they are.

[Revolution911]

I love underground. Jedi Mind Tricks rules over all.

[Meiscool-2]

Meh, how many rap threads does this make now.....

I still hate rap.

[Revolution911]

Originally posted by Meiscool
Meh, how many rap threads does this make now.....

I still hate rap.

Die.

[Cerebus]

I hate rap too mostly because of the lyrics.

[Meiscool-2]

Originally posted by Cerebus
I hate rap too mostly because of the lyrics.

That would be popular rap though, these guys are talking about Underground rap, where the lyrics arn't quit as hostile and valgur as pop rap is.

That said though, it still sucks.

[Razor]

Originally posted by Meiscool
Meh, how many rap threads does this make now.....

I still hate rap.

Live!

Anyway, I hate rap, R&B, and Hip Hop. With exceptions of course.
But people like "Fiddy" (retard) "Usher" (retard), all of those 600 new rappers who release one psuedo-hit and then drop off the market forever (Remember "Selwyn", anyone?), and then people like Missy Elliot (I hope she dies in a pit of eternal flames for the rest of eternity because of "lose control" aka the most **** SONG EVER) Ciara, whoever released that "One Thing" song (which makes no sense lyrically; Why would you want to trip the cops up? They're hard working people who enforce the safety of society as much as possible) Oh Christ, that/those Jennifer Lopez song/s suck/s so terribly.

Writing this post is aggrivating me.

Anyway, the exceptions include Eminem (his earlier stuff was crazy, his recent stuff is about his home life and what not), Will Smith (I can tolerate his stuff, and I don't know why) and specifically White Lines by Grandmaster Flash (which is like, 80s GET).

Someone kill Missy Elliot now. Before it's too late.

[Bluhman]

I thought White Lines was a rock group, or am I thinking something else?

[Razor]

White Stripes, The.

[Shadowless1]

guess what?,.................RAP SUCKS! and anyone who dissagrees with me should be shot!, eminem is allrite but 2pac, 50 cent etc... gangster wannabees are looosers saying they'll f*** are b******, there showoffs and they suck big balls!

[Shady Ultima]

I think people who say Rap sucks are close minded. There are always gonna be people who like a genre, hell, I'm sure there are still people who listen to disco... o wait I'm one of them (even though I wasn't born when disco was a phenomenan)

I like rap, there are some rappers I hate, but will never say they suck. It's all a matter of opinion...

Except in the case of Kevin Federline, who really does suck...