22 Years Ago in Hip-Hop, Sports, and Life...

So recently we decided to take it back 11 years to the year 2000, to see what was good in Hip-Hop, sports, and all that good stuff. Even though the year 2000 was a true transitional year for Sports, Style, and Hip-Hop…. we can’t stop there. 

Let’s take it back 11 more years to 1989.

Back when I used to chase girls at OXR but none of them chased me back. 

Back when Joe Montana led the San Francisco 49ers over the Cincinnati Bengals in Super Bowl XXIII

Back when Joe Dumars and Isaiah Thomas led the Detroit Pistons in a 4-0 sweep of the showtime Lakers. 

The Fighting Lou Holtzies won the National Championship after beating then #3 West Virginia in the Fiesta Bowl, #2 USC on the road, and #1 Miami in the classic Catholics vs. Convicts game. 

Duke, Seton Hall, Michigan, and Illinois were in the Final Four, with Michigan beating Seton Hall by 1 in the championship game. 

Kids were watching Inspector Gadget, the original Transformers, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, Double Dare, and You Can’t Do That on Television. 

Adults were watching Cheers, Night Court, Cosby Show, and Steve Urkel was introduced in the first season of Family Matters.

And the Air Jordan III’s dropped.
Yes, I was into all of that, but mostly I was into the music. I kept fresh batteries for my Walkman. 

I even had electrical tape that I used to stick my walk man to the handlebars on my bike. 

Oh and when I say Walkman, I’m not talking bout the CD Walkman or those lil TVs… I’m talking about the old school tape deck Walkman.

So get in where you fit in on the 1989 Hip-Hop rotation…

De La Soul - Me Myself and I:
This track was nothing short of fun. When I got to high school, I was pissed to find that it was NOTHING like this video.

Nice and Smooth - Sometimes I Rhyme Slow:
This is still a classic… I remember where I was the first time I heard it

The D.O.C. - The Formula:
This entire album was far underrated.  I could easily put Funky Enough, or the Grand Finale on here too.

LL Cool J - Jingling Baby:
After rocking the bells, and telling the world that he’s bad and needs love…. LL came back with this party track that still goes hard today.

Sir Mix A Lot - My Hooptie:
From the west to the east and the dirty dirty….. we ALL could relate to this one at one point in our lives.

EPMD - So Wat Cha Sayin:
This track was simply a foreshadowing event of what this group was capable of putting together. This one still hits hard.

Geto Boys – Read These Nikes:
There is NO REASON I should have been listening to this when I was 11 years old. After listening to Willie D go HARD on this track. Nikes was all that I wanted (and never got) 

(Disclaimer – this song is gangsta! Harsh lyrics and all that, I’m just saying. Feel free to click the link - http://youtu.be/U1iY5a1D3zs - if  you still want to listen to this track,) 

Biz Markie - Just A Friend:
You could be living in a mud filled hole, under a barn, 80 miles deep in a corn field in Nebraska… and  you would have STILL heard this track.  This one will go on until the end of time.


Biz Markie - Just A Friend by Warner-Music

1989.. what seems like yesterday is actually 22 years ago... 

- Slim

11 Years Ago in Hip-Hop, Sports, and Life...

Yes… Technically I am getting aged as I turn 33 today. However, I don’t feel as if I am aging at all…. I hit the gym daily, I still consider myself as being fly (no FILA short sets with knee high church socks), and I still run Madden and Black Ops with the best of em . 

But being 33 makes me think back to when I turned 22. The year 2000 was supposed to be the year that the earth came to a standstill.

I was in Nashville, Tennessee embarking on my last year of college, having pool parties, road trips, and the thing I miss most which is just sitting around and doing nothing every now and then. 

 

 But what was really hot in 2000….

* Well every rapper that was hot at the time had to have their own clothing line…
* No Limit was on the way out.. Three 6 and Cash Money were beast mode. * Love and Basketball was and still is one of my top 5 movies of all time….

* Peter Warrick stunned the crowd as his performance paced a BCS championship for Florida State. 

However, young Michael Vick stole the show in a losing effort. One has become an NFL great while the other…. 

Could someone please.... please put out an APB for Peter Warrick???? ....  Please

* Steve McNair and the Titans fell a yard short as the Rams “featuring the greatest show on turf” won Super Bowl XXXIV

* Mateen Cleaves lead Michigan State over Florida in the NCAA Men’s basketball championship…  Honestly this game was mad boring. It was never close and it was lacking star power. Needless to say, I had to put a dent into a bottle of Crown during that one.  

* The series went 6, with Kobe and the Lakers… or should I say Shaq and the Lakers….  Either way, they closed the Pacers out on this day. It wasn’t as exciting as watching MJ dismantle the Utah Jazz two years earlier, but it was still fun to watch. 

With all that said, I have to focus on what was in everyone’s cd player back then. Things were different with both BIG and PAC leaving us years earlier. Diddy became a sucker for love with every song having and underlying message for J-LO. (I NEED A GIRL – WTF WAS THAT?) 

Anyways… this not a straight top hip-hop top 10, however these are the tracks that came to mind first when I thought back to the year 2000…. See if you can remember what you were doing when you heard these for the first time…. 

OutKast – So Fresh and So Clean
Everybody feels it…. Everyone says it….  But only a few can achieve it…. Andre 3000, Sir Lucious Left Foot, and Sleepy Brown showed us that fresh and clean aren’t just adjectives, but a way of life.

OutKast - Music - More Music Videos

Black Rob – Whoa
Lox left and Mase retired like Whoa….. So I put the Label on my back like Whoa. (Yeah, that was the remix, but the track is still hot)

Lord Tariq and Peter Gunz – Uptown Baby
Party Track that will get continuous airplay… I am sure Peter is lacing Cory with some of that studio knowledge.


Method Man – Break Ups 2 Make Ups
Meth and D’Angelo… Hopefully D’Angelo had his clothes on for this track. Meth always goes hard when he graces the Mic.


Jay Z – Change the Game
Jay, Beans, and Bleek…. Jump off to the Dynasty album.. What more need I say?

Talib Kweli – The Blast
This was forever on rotation, however the final track of the Album “Four Women” was one of the most lyrically advanced tracks that I have ever heard.

Eminem – The Way I Am
Whenever you need to get hype for a game, a workout, or just need to vent, Eminem is the way to go. I am positive that The Way I Am served as a release for a few Million people.

You think it’s over now… we gonna have to take it back 11 more years to 1989 and see what you youngin’s were really about...(Skating Rink... Ice Ice Baby.... Don't act like you don't know)

-     

       - Slim