Damn, Cole Alexander from the Black Lips gets down to it on why he’s not into Drake, Lorde or Macklemore…full interview at the AV Club, excerpts below. He then clarified his remarks with Creative Loafing Atlanta, saying “I didn’t realize my detractors held the stereotype that rap is simply a black thing. That ignorance is just a black thing. I never got that memo. There are plenty of white rappers on the scene singing dumb shit and I love it. Really, trap is just my preference in hip-hop. I don’t completely dislike conscious rap… Also, those interviews aren’t verbatim, but I was trying to explain that I come from an upper middle class neighborhood. So I’m not some artist claiming I have had some crazy struggle.”
Lorde’s “Royals”:
It’s hard to say I actually hate it, but it’s a bit confused. I was looking over the lyrics and in the song she seems to be criticizing what’s going on in pop music, like when people are talking about excess opulence, gold teeth, and Maybachs. In the lyric she says she’s “Never seen diamonds in the flesh / I’ve cut my teeth on wedding rings in the movies / And I’m not proud of my address in the torn-up town / No postcode envy.” Most of the people that are rapping about Maybachs and diamonds come from really “torn-up towns.” I’m going on assumptions, but I feel like a lot of these guys are from Compton or these fucking ghettos like Memphis, and their parts of town are way more torn up than hers. That’s a mere assumption from seeing her in interviews and stuff, but I feel like they come from worse parts and they aspire to get Maybachs and diamonds because they come from ratchet-ass ’hoods where they have no hope. I think it’s a bit righteous of her.
Drake:
I grew up in a decent suburb in Atlanta, but I do think sometimes in hip-hop, you can hear it in his voice. He didn’t have that pain in his voice, but it’s a subtle nuance. I’m sure he has some struggles in his life like everyone does, but I just don’t like Drake. He seems kind of fake to me.
Mackleore’s “Thrift Shop”
Again, I kind of feel like it’s confused. There’s that one line where they’re like, “That’s a cold-ass honky.” I really don’t like that line. First of all, it’s a racist word. I feel like white people, when someone says something racist against them, they’re not very offended. They’ve never had to deal with racism so it’s almost a kind of white guilt, or a subtle kind of action.
