ODD FUTURE WOLF GANG KILL THEM ALL: Why They Matter
“I created OF cause I feel we’re more talented
Than 40 year-old rappers talkin’ ‘bout Gucci
When they have kids they haven’t seen in years.
Impressing they peers.”
-Tyler, The Creator “Bastard”
A lot has been written about Odd Future Wolf Gang Kill Them All. And if my intuition is correct, plenty more will be written in the coming months. Because Odd Future isn’t just going to become popular; Odd Future is revitalizing Hip Hop music. And more than anything else, the above quote perfectly encapsulates why.
When Nirvana’s “Smells Like Teen Spirit” hit the airwaves in 1991, it was a shot heard ‘round the world. Seemingly overnight, empty, formulaic 80’s hair metal suddenly looked totally ridiculous to critics and fans. Rock music had become so cartoonish and mainstream that it had completely lost its relevance to the collective experience and worldview of the generation coming of age in the early 90’s. Hip Hop is currently in a very similar situation. Unemployment, particularly amongst the youth, is sky-high. Disillusionment with the establishment is also sky-high. I mean seriously; who wants to hear a bunch of aging rappers brag about their “wealth” from half-assed dance-pop singles and pathetically uncool endorsement deals? People need honesty.
Enter, Odd Future Wolf Gang Kill Them All.
As a collective, Odd Future espouses a musical philosophy that is defiantly democratic and all inclusive. You simply cannot put them in a box, which is essential to their undeniable power. The ages of the clique’s participants range from 17-23. Its members include prodigiously talented rappers, producers and visual artists. Domo Genesis’ work tends to hover around stoner rap, Earl Sweatshirt is an absurdly gifted and brutally offensive emcee in the vein of early Eminem, and MellowHype is a traditional-but-solid Hip Hop duo. Producer Super 3 makes otherworldly, jazz funk under the moniker Jet Age of Tomorrow, while Frank Ocean is a captivating R&B crooner. And then there’s Tyler, The Creator, the group’s leader and brainchild. His voice is deep and gravelly, his rhymes toe the line between the nakedly confessional and the genuinely disturbing, and his production is haunting, deceptively complex, and hard as nails.
And they have a DIY philosophy, having released a whopping 12 albums for free through their tumlbr. Not mixtapes; fully realized, consistently above-average, full-length albums.
And then there’s their presentation and live show. The group looks like a bunch of skater kids off the street; no rented jewelry and no Prada belts. In other words, they look like their audience. And there has never been a rap group so adept at harnessing the danger, unpredictability and fun of a no-frills, balls-out punk rock show. The music is imbued with a nihilistic energy that would make Lil Jon blush. The group’s supremely foul-mouthed members are charismatically erratic and manic throughout, antagonizing the crowd and stage-diving with total abandon. In other words, Parents and boring people will not like Odd Future.
httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oXtkSbrWnpU
When was the last time Hip Hop was this exciting and dangerous? Mark my words; Odd Future is the shot of badass, anti-establishment adrenaline Hip Hop desperately needs right now. All these safe, parent-approved rappers are already feeling the heat; flitting around trying to figure out how to co-opt Odd Future and weather the storm.
But it’s probably too late. And that’s a bad thing for them, but it’s a good thing for us.
And it’s a really good thing for Hip Hop.
So, what about these kids subject matter speaks of honesty; raping women? Over the top violent imagery? Very honest of them. They aren’t revitalising anything; they are another blip on the radar of music, and some people care right now because they sound different. However, don’t think that are saying anything that’s brand new. Someone who has listened to rap music for more than five years would be aware of that. And, this is rap music, not punk rock.
So, what about these kids subject matter speaks of honesty; raping women? Over the top violent imagery? Very honest of them. They aren’t revitalising anything; they are another blip on the radar of music, and some people care right now because they sound different. However, don’t think that are saying anything that’s brand new. Someone who has listened to rap music for more than five years would be aware of that. And, this is rap music, not punk rock.
As if the youth of today don’t have enough to deal with, now the devil will once again get his due, via violent destructive lyrics like this.
Dallas if ‘you’ think this won’t eventually reach out and grab ‘children’ and teens who have issues ‘they think no one else understands’, who might end up dead because of this ‘you’ are seriously deluding yourself.
When I look at all the destructive things God said would happen the further mankind got away from the ‘truth’, horrific music like this, the crap in hollowood, and life in itself is ‘proof’ of ALL he said would come true.
So, pat these youngsters on the back, make them feel good about music that does NOTHING to uplift the youth in our society who don’t know where or whom to turn,(which should be God Almighty and Jesus Christ)when they need someone the most (especially if they feel they can’t rely on their parents or others) and see how far that gets you.
My heart goes out to ALL involved in what could very well end up being a terrible tragedy fostered by misguided and ill thought out lyrics, from those who ought to know better than this.
May God/Jesus have mercy on the souls of a society gone astray.
As if the youth of today don’t have enough to deal with, now the devil will once again get his due, via violent destructive lyrics like this.
Dallas if ‘you’ think this won’t eventually reach out and grab ‘children’ and teens who have issues ‘they think no one else understands’, who might end up dead because of this ‘you’ are seriously deluding yourself.
When I look at all the destructive things God said would happen the further mankind got away from the ‘truth’, horrific music like this, the crap in hollowood, and life in itself is ‘proof’ of ALL he said would come true.
So, pat these youngsters on the back, make them feel good about music that does NOTHING to uplift the youth in our society who don’t know where or whom to turn,(which should be God Almighty and Jesus Christ)when they need someone the most (especially if they feel they can’t rely on their parents or others) and see how far that gets you.
My heart goes out to ALL involved in what could very well end up being a terrible tragedy fostered by misguided and ill thought out lyrics, from those who ought to know better than this.
May God/Jesus have mercy on the souls of a society gone astray.
Bea,
You are completely entitled to your opinion on Odd Future, but I take issue with your assertion that I am somehow “diluting” myself with my opinion on a rap group. What God thinks of Odd Future’s music is entirely irrelevant here.
For one thing, as far as many ‘Christians’ are concerned, God apparently hates Black music. When the Blues came around, Church-going folk blasted the music as the work of Satan. They said the same thing about R&B, Rock, Funk, and Hip Hop. If the youth of America can survive Robert Johnson (who was famously rumored to have ‘sold his soul to the devil’ in exchange for mastery of the blues), Ray Charles, Elvis, James Brown, George Clinton, and Snoop Dogg (whose early lyrics were just as, if not more violent, misogynistic, and nihilistic than Odd Future’s), then I think they’ll survive Tyler, The Creator.
And to rebuke Odd Future’s work for not uplifting black youth is ridiculous. THEY ARE THE YOUTH. These are a bunch of talented kids from the street, between the ages of 17-23. To blame them for the troubles facing our youth today (and into the future) is essentially blaming the victim.
Instead of worrying about what God will think of Odd Future’s music, let’s try and figure out how to fix the problems in our community that breed the nihilism, hopelessness, and anger that Odd Future’s music reflects.
If you’ve read the article I’d written prior to this one, then you know that I sincerely value Black music imbued with a conscious, sociopolitical perspective. But I’m also a firm believer in FREEDOM OF EXPRESSION.
Any society that places moral imperatives on its artists and thinkers is “diluting” itself.
Bea,
You are completely entitled to your opinion on Odd Future, but I take issue with your assertion that I am somehow “diluting” myself with my opinion on a rap group. What God thinks of Odd Future’s music is entirely irrelevant here.
For one thing, as far as many ‘Christians’ are concerned, God apparently hates Black music. When the Blues came around, Church-going folk blasted the music as the work of Satan. They said the same thing about R&B, Rock, Funk, and Hip Hop. If the youth of America can survive Robert Johnson (who was famously rumored to have ‘sold his soul to the devil’ in exchange for mastery of the blues), Ray Charles, Elvis, James Brown, George Clinton, and Snoop Dogg (whose early lyrics were just as, if not more violent, misogynistic, and nihilistic than Odd Future’s), then I think they’ll survive Tyler, The Creator.
And to rebuke Odd Future’s work for not uplifting black youth is ridiculous. THEY ARE THE YOUTH. These are a bunch of talented kids from the street, between the ages of 17-23. To blame them for the troubles facing our youth today (and into the future) is essentially blaming the victim.
Instead of worrying about what God will think of Odd Future’s music, let’s try and figure out how to fix the problems in our community that breed the nihilism, hopelessness, and anger that Odd Future’s music reflects.
If you’ve read the article I’d written prior to this one, then you know that I sincerely value Black music imbued with a conscious, sociopolitical perspective. But I’m also a firm believer in FREEDOM OF EXPRESSION.
Any society that places moral imperatives on its artists and thinkers is “diluting” itself.
Ya know, I had something to say about the God and Christians but I think Dallas you said it better then I could have. I commend this group of youth for speaking those words so many our afraid to say. The truth is they are our youth and this is how they and many of us feel. They arent creating problems they are bringing the problems to a for front. I agree 100% with you Dallas. If people have a problem with this music then stop blogging and go into the communities and fix them. I just hope you dont do it with a Bible in one hand and a riffle in the other like Europeans did to every brown person on this planet.
Freedom of Speech is contagious once you get use to it. These kids are ready for a Revolution and so am I!
Ya know, I had something to say about the God and Christians but I think Dallas you said it better then I could have. I commend this group of youth for speaking those words so many our afraid to say. The truth is they are our youth and this is how they and many of us feel. They arent creating problems they are bringing the problems to a for front. I agree 100% with you Dallas. If people have a problem with this music then stop blogging and go into the communities and fix them. I just hope you dont do it with a Bible in one hand and a riffle in the other like Europeans did to every brown person on this planet.
Freedom of Speech is contagious once you get use to it. These kids are ready for a Revolution and so am I!