Hear No HiP-Hop/ SPeak No HiP-Hop/

PART 1: SEE NO HIP-HOP

Yo, the sun don't shine forever,
But as long as it's here then we might as well shine together,
Better now than never, business before pleasure,
P. Diddy and the Fam, who you know do it better?
                                                         - P. Diddy "Victory"

Can you believe Puff Daddy (aka P. Diddy, aka Sean Combs aka some other name he uses to dodge child support) spent 2.7 million dollars to give the world this 8 minute video. This was for the song....... you guessed wrong. "Victory". It even features Biggie and Busta Rhymes. And after 2.7 million do you think anyone knows one fucking verse to this song? Or who made Busta Rymes where that feather suit? The crazy part is that this is the MOST EXPENSIVE rap video ever......

 This is according to HipHopWired.com. But even more crazy is MC Hammer's video "2 Legit 2 Quit" which cost 2.5 million dollars (He went broke, cough!) we're talking 1991 dollars which back then which would be worth an estimated $4,471,420.70 ( according to CPI inflation data). I don't care what job I have, for 4 million I'm too legit to stay. But with all that said the one thing that is for certain that there are no more big video budgets and the street gutter video in the hood has again become the baseline. 

But some rappers are embracing this and are even taking it further a step further. The rapper Lil Dicky  filmed one of the cheapest videos ever made for his single "$ave that Money" released in 2015, I mean cheapest in the sense driving a Lamborgini or riding on a yaht, or poppin' bottles in the club for free.99. This is wayyyy different from your homie Tyrone with his cellphone and your little cousins pit bull puppies. Naw we talkin real 'Big Pimpin' video type shit. Which either proves that you don't have to spend millions of dollars to have a cool as video. OR their maybe some perks to this 'privilege' thing. And ohh yea over 69 million YouTube Views.

But what about how technology? Technology does what technology always does, it pushes the limits of what's possible. Firsts technology starts out expensive as fuck, then it drops after 2 to 3 years during that Black Friday sale that happens (I ain't never seen anybody get them TV's they advertise). Whether it has been smart phones with video, GoPros, or more recently F-L-Y-I-N-G drones. With technology now everybody is Little X. Chance the Rapper shot a whole video on an iPhone, an iPhone, for his video "How Great" featuring Jay Electronica, you literally have to lock your screen to watch the video. Another artist taking advantage of technology and the social media craze of Twitter, Instagram, and SnapChat is OVO artist PartyNextDoor who released his video to "Come And See Me" initially only on SnapChat which definitely helped his grow his social media following. Since it has been added to YouTube and has over 55 million views.

But also has technology  killed the music video? In a world where there are no more TRL's or The Basement, or 106 & Park (with AJ and Free not Lil Bow Wow). The excitement, the build up is gone, Now all you have to do is get on YouTube and type in a  song and there you have it, a music video and for $5 extra dollars commercial free. But one thing that you can be for sure is that, whether its on SnapChat, or iPhone or shot by directer Little X...Cash Money Records is still taking over for the 9-9 and the 2000,