fifty & Waning, witnessing rap’s Decimation

L. B. Mek


Notice of absence from L. B. Mek
'fare ye well' kind friends


 

 

fifty & Waning, witnessing rap’s Decimation

 

Fckr’s, they took Nippsey and left us with Drake

Some of us still grieving 2Pac

They always take our realest

Leave us with those flinching hollow pretenders

 

Profiteering by perpetuating violence 

Thuggery and crime as a way of life

Generation after wasted generation

Indoctrinated in a degenerate mindset

 

Gang, gang make guns with your fingers, graduate

To inking veracity’s crimson rhymes

That the whole world connects with

Then watch them come for your greatness, Fckr’s.

 

Sellout’s!

Pushing a get rich or die trying toxic propaganda

Now, we have college dropouts as manufactured

RapGod fallacies selling out stadiums

Meanwhile 8 bar’s true kings & queens 

Reduced to living legend, afterthoughts

Bouncing debts of ignorance mistakes

Dodging those jail or addiction industry trappings

Barely miles from the same ghetto’s they strived

to Escape!

 

We’ve got pathetic fakes talking about signing cheques

Because they’ve built a career 

On the back of ghost writers

Parade their wealth in all their depraved video mirages

Teaching yet another false narrative 

About how to be a talentless success

In a society devoid of morality, refuting merit’s necessity 

 

Yeah, happy 50th birthday rap

Or is that ‘urban culture’ pop rhymes now?

Sad to admit, I’ll be surprised

If you’ll be celebrating any centenary feats!

 

Life’s a ditch, we dig six inches in every sigh

While witnessing life’s incessant absurdities

Trying to survive our moonless nights

So we can be scorched under sunlight

Smiling, to repress trepidation

Beneath every new sensation

 

Our good one’s, all die young

Explains why fools like me are left behind, cursed

To witness decimation & verse

 

 

© L. B. Mek

February 2023

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Comments +

Comments12

  • LIZ

    You already know how I feel about this....especially because you and I have the exact same playlist 😏
    This is absolutely incredible! And the video goes perfectly with it!!!

    "Fckr’s, they took Nippsey and left us with Drake"- A very bold statement....but you ain't lying! 🤷‍♀️ "The killing of rap"! This is why I gravitate towards..'back in the day' rap...or any type of music for that matter...when lyrics were based on real life situations. It was a way of life! Raw feelings. Real stories about the person's past...and struggles/circumstances.

    Now we got fake shit! Everyone's CREATING a "hype" in order to get paid. And those who've truly lived the life, paved the way, and have struggled to survive are left behind...forgotten. Time has been overtaken by "RapGod fallacies"--false truths....just to rise to fame. Fuckers!! There's no true RAP (rhythm and poetry) anymore! Where it used to express a person's Identity and characteristics, it now shows someone's crave for a quick check.

    MFs can't even own their own lyrics.
    "they’ve built a career On the back of ghost writers" - You're not kidding!

    I can hear the frustration in every word. It's unfortunate really...but it's reality.
    Thank you so much for sharing this!
    Let's keep the "real" ones alive! I love your mind!! 💫💫💫

    • L. B. Mek

      'Let's keep the "real" ones alive!'
      amen!
      Play them loud in our living rooms
      let the neighbours hear
      There was a time when rap stood
      for the realest sound of all!

      Thank you cherished Poet
      I'm in awe of your
      empathetic genius!

    • Teddy.15

      Having been born close to Brixton in 1974 I know the culture of rap and what it means to be an artist of it, it's poetry in a different form and it only works if the words mean something.this is another amazing feast dear Mek. A culture that is a dying breed. We need to bring the education back because music of all types is incredibly important. I grew up with breakdance and I really appreciate this fact. ❤️ a wonderful poet you are. Now I miss London.

      • L. B. Mek

        London misses its favourite Poetess daughter
        but Dante's essence is keeping your artistry fed
        So you're doing just fine! London won't go anywhere
        be here when you're good n ready..
        (I really appreciate how many diverse things
        we share from our past cherished friend)
        Thank you!

      • sorenbarrett

        I have been biased in the past with a generally all inclusive love for music except for rap. Sure there were a few pieces I liked but generally I steered clear. Until recently I discovered Ren a non commercial (until his recent internet success) rapper, singer, actor, guitar player and message giver, against violence, against suicide, against large pharmaceutical corporations, greed etc. There are always exceptions I guess. Oh he's English too. Nice write L.B.

        • L. B. Mek

          yeah Mr 'Hi Ren'
          is well know to me, my friend
          (have you read lyrics to his genesis?
          he is a well read individual
          did his homework before he inked
          his first rhythmic thought)
          But i recommend
          you try Talib Kweli's work
          One of the realest to ever do it
          (
          https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Knz26sNBvwo
          )
          But yes I understand your perspective
          although there really are true geniuses being muffled
          by all the bulsht debris piled high by the money men..
          (appreciate you trying to connect
          with this polarising content cherished friend)
          Thank you!

        • 2781

          We are what we eat.

          • L. B. Mek

            a diverse menu is needed
            or else we're just what we
            believe
            which, however comforting
            is a shallow lake to hide-in
            while ignoring the wisdom fish
            in that depressing sea of reality

          • aDarkerMind

            well Mek, the gloves were off for this masterpiece, and oh my! straight to the point - strong as an ox -;
            not one word out of place, and here am I....100% behind you.

            • L. B. Mek

              this is why i cherish your guidance kind Poet
              your work screams 'veracity in its rich imagery'
              reading geniuses like you sculpted my ink
              So i'm humbled by your generous support
              Thank you!

            • Neville


              I have a confession to make and because I know that this is going to be seen by minions of folk out there am prepared to take some flack .. I have never been that much into rap but my son grew up with Tupac and we have had many discussions about the merits of rap and I am happy to accept the poetic merits so much of it contains .. I still think Dylan was the original rapist .. with Johnnie's in the basement .. I also caught the news about Tupac's killer finally being caught .. I'm a bit out of my depth here but as always found todays offering thoroughly enjoyable and again take my trilby off to you brother .. Neville

              • L. B. Mek

                ha! destiny has aligned me with your family
                a fan of Tupac's words, is instantly a poetic kin to me
                (have you both read his poetry book,
                that might help bridge the gap of any
                disconnect)
                but yes Rap, in its current state
                I have little time for as well
                but there was day, when a lady
                could be in a rap video without being naked
                or having been a stripper before being 'found'
                and the guys
                had some genuine connection
                to the words they were 'shouting'
                not just living their ACT
                and calling it 'real' life...
                (always grateful for how much
                transparency and essential trust
                you imbue in-to our friendship
                Hyung)
                I read and learn, and appreciate
                more than my feeble words
                could ever express, thank you!

              • Parisab

                I love this topic and can go on forever. Indeed the rap and hip hop industry is mutating into more commercialism and for a wider audiences. At the same time, I have personally seen it is still unapologetic, oppositional, and full of contradiction, at its core. I have hope for the generation of very special talent and invention. It is a cultural phenomenon so it changes as the American values (and those of the world) change. You may not get shot at but people can forget you, no matter the talent, in all the noise that is in the cloud space. I think that gangster rap is 50 but the offspring can have great potential. Thanks for the well penned poem as always.

                • L. B. Mek

                  Amen!
                  (In your words of hope
                  Every fan of rap, chooses
                  To hold-on and believe
                  Waiting for that evolution
                  So we can reclaim
                  That music and artform
                  we once connected with
                  like nothing else..!)
                  Thank you wise Poet
                  I choose to share
                  In your hope fuelled
                  perspective
                  Than my own cynical
                  outlook..

                • Introverted Sage

                  I feel like it's by design. So much knowledge was laced within rhymes and now it's all bs and lies.
                  Great write!

                  • L. B. Mek

                    very much so, wise Poet
                    that modernity push
                    to dumb-down available content
                    and our schools
                    is very much a work of 'design'..
                    they knew they had our minds
                    before they unleashed
                    that search engine access
                    to overwhelm us
                    with all the knowledge
                    we could ever want and need..
                    indeed, all by design
                    but what to end I am too limited
                    to fathom..
                    (still, at least a few
                    see 'their' machinations
                    even if our rage
                    is impotent and incapable
                    of preventing
                    what is seemingly a widespread culling
                    of individuality
                    and capacity for thought, free
                    of corruptive influence..
                    a world
                    watching zombie movies
                    without realising
                    that subtle suggestive lobotomy
                    being inflicted on us
                    generation after wasted generation..)

                  • 🐤s.zaynab.kamoonpuri🌷🐦😽

                    Woah a hardhitting ranting slam like poem expressing criticism eloquently. Kudos!!

                    • L. B. Mek

                      thank you! kind poet
                      glad you could relate and enjoyed the read

                    • Bella Shepard

                      I must confess I know very little about rap, but I can understand the compelling nature of it, and the need of expression for those who began by talking about life in the streets, real life events. You spurred me to do some googling and I learned quite a bit. It is a remarkable genre of music, and I can appreciate your feeling of loss for the genuine article. A great write my friend!

                      • L. B. Mek

                        yes, you've revealed a truth about my own words
                        yet again, my wise friend
                        these words are a cry of 'loss'
                        because I do feel like, a large part of the world
                        has 'lost' out by the commercial demise
                        of a genre that once
                        imbued that radical spirit
                        of rock n roll
                        combing it, with rhythm and soul
                        of jazz and blues
                        and the ancestral drum beat legacies
                        they kept alive..
                        (thank you! cherished friend and respected Poet)
                        I read and learn

                      • Thomas W Case

                        You nailed it.

                        • L. B. Mek

                          thanks, very kind of you dear Poet

                        • AnxiousMane

                          wow, that was FANTASTIC



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