Jeff Rosenthal

Host

A Waste of Time With ItsTheReal 4

Oct 8, 2013·172 visitors

Eric Rosenthal

Cohost

Stage· 316 messages

Oct 8, 2013

SNOW BUSINESS 101: The importance of rapper Pusha T and the insignificance of everyone else, in a world imagined by Kanye West.

Eric Rosenthal · 5:00 PM

Happy Pusha Day!

Eric Rosenthal · 5:00 PM

WOO

Eric Rosenthal · 5:00 PM

That was my Rick Flair

Jeff Rosenthal · 5:00 PM

Pretty good, not great.

Eric Rosenthal · 5:01 PM

I never thought this day would ever come

Eric Rosenthal · 5:01 PM

Def Jam probably thought the same thing

Jeff Rosenthal · 5:01 PM

I don't think anyone did. Three pushbacks and a long run-up from the "Runaway" verse.

Jeff Rosenthal · 5:02 PM

Do you think he still wears that red suit?

Eric Rosenthal · 5:02 PM

I think it's in the same closet as all the Rosewood suits

Eric Rosenthal · 5:02 PM

Anyway

Jeff Rosenthal · 5:02 PM

Anyway.

Eric Rosenthal · 5:03 PM

So since we're living in a world where personality trumps all...

Eric Rosenthal · 5:03 PM

(Shouts to us)

Eric Rosenthal · 5:03 PM

Does an album like Pusha's stick out for actual hard lyricism?

Eric Rosenthal · 5:03 PM

And does Pusha win, regardless of sales or time spent on talk shows promoting his album?

Jeff Rosenthal · 5:04 PM

I think the argument that "sales don't matter" is dumb -- obviously, sales matter. But I think that Kanye/Pusha are trying to say that he's more IMPORTANT than sales since he's so central to the culture.

Jeff Rosenthal · 5:05 PM

Like, how many major RAP RAP RAP albums have there been this year?

Jeff Rosenthal · 5:05 PM

(That being said, his first single has Chris Brown on it and sounds mighty Drake-ish)

Eric Rosenthal · 5:05 PM

Maybe people don't care about RAP RAP RAP?

Eric Rosenthal · 5:05 PM

We live in a Future world

Jeff Rosenthal · 5:05 PM

Well, sure.

Eric Rosenthal · 5:06 PM

and a Rich Homie Quan world

Eric Rosenthal · 5:06 PM

(and I'm not entirely mad about that)

Jeff Rosenthal · 5:06 PM

But we also live in a Kendrick world.

Eric Rosenthal · 5:06 PM

(though sometimes my brain does feel like mush)

Jeff Rosenthal · 5:06 PM

And a "Drake-needs-to-rap-more" world.

Eric Rosenthal · 5:06 PM

Let's put it this way...

Jeff Rosenthal · 5:06 PM

So I think there's a big segment (usually of men) who want MORE LYRICS, MORE SLAUGHTERHOUSE.

Eric Rosenthal · 5:07 PM

But what's more fun?

Eric Rosenthal · 5:07 PM

Pusha in concert

Eric Rosenthal · 5:07 PM

or Future in concert

Jeff Rosenthal · 5:07 PM

I think they're fun in different ways: Pusha acts out his lyrics, Future freaks the whole place.

Jeff Rosenthal · 5:08 PM

But Pusha's not as fun as he used to be, because he hasn't had the songs to back him up.

Eric Rosenthal · 5:08 PM

ha ha ha

Eric Rosenthal · 5:08 PM

I'll say this

Eric Rosenthal · 5:08 PM

I like lyrics

Eric Rosenthal · 5:08 PM

I grew up on the Clipse

Eric Rosenthal · 5:09 PM

★ Spotlighted from Joel Maffei

“Pusha T is lyrical, without being slaughterhouse.”

Jeff Rosenthal · 5:09 PM

SUCH A GOOD THING.

Eric Rosenthal · 5:09 PM

In a funny way, I think had Pusha taken MORE time off and not been doing features regularly, or putting mixtapes out, people might appreciate this more

Eric Rosenthal · 5:09 PM

people might be like, oh we can't get this all the time, lemme go buy this and sit with it

Eric Rosenthal · 5:10 PM

and appreciate it

Jeff Rosenthal · 5:10 PM

I dunno. I think - with NWTS coming a week ago or whatever, two weeks - it's a really nice balance, a good equalizer.

Jeff Rosenthal · 5:10 PM

It sorta came at a GREAT time for Pusha.

Jeff Rosenthal · 5:11 PM

Which is amazing! Because a month ago, no one really cared about this album coming out!

Jeff Rosenthal · 5:11 PM

But in a post-"Control" world...

Eric Rosenthal · 5:11 PM

Let's go back to Kanye's "rant" at Pusha's listening

Jeff Rosenthal · 5:11 PM

Gladly.

Eric Rosenthal · 5:11 PM

when he said that Pusha was the culture, he was exactly right

Eric Rosenthal · 5:11 PM

right?

Eric Rosenthal · 5:11 PM

but the question is...

Jeff Rosenthal · 5:11 PM

I agree with Kanye, yes.

Eric Rosenthal · 5:11 PM

is that time in rap over?

Eric Rosenthal · 5:11 PM

like maybe he was the king

Eric Rosenthal · 5:12 PM

and maybe lyrics used to matter more

Eric Rosenthal · 5:12 PM

but now people don't value that as much

Eric Rosenthal · 5:12 PM

and that's why Jadakiss isn't really Top Five Dead or Alive anymore

Eric Rosenthal · 5:12 PM

I'm not saying I like this, but isn't that a reality??

Jeff Rosenthal · 5:12 PM

Well, also because he's just older.

Jeff Rosenthal · 5:13 PM

I don't know that I agree with that.

Jeff Rosenthal · 5:13 PM

I remember when Kendrick's album was coming out, I thought "wow, this is sorta a shift, this feels like new rappers will want to rap"

Jeff Rosenthal · 5:14 PM

So, I think what you're saying isn't wrong, but I think it was more correct in the mid-2000's

Jeff Rosenthal · 5:14 PM

You know, what with ringtone rap and snap rap and ATL and Dallas. I think the shift is shifting.

Eric Rosenthal · 5:14 PM

Interestingly enough, I also think what I'm saying isn't wrong

Eric Rosenthal · 5:14 PM

I don't know

Jeff Rosenthal · 5:14 PM

Good! We agree.

Eric Rosenthal · 5:15 PM

I think it's a much more current argument what with the Chief Keefs

Eric Rosenthal · 5:15 PM

and the Rich Homie Quans

Eric Rosenthal · 5:15 PM

etc

Eric Rosenthal · 5:15 PM

and it's not to say I don't like Pusha or his album

Jeff Rosenthal · 5:15 PM

(Just as a programming note here: we can't see your comments unless it's upvoted enough. So, upvote if you see good comments we should respond to. See something, say something or whatever.)

Eric Rosenthal · 5:15 PM

SNITCH

Jeff Rosenthal · 5:16 PM

One sec, going to the hospital. Gotta get stitches.

Eric Rosenthal · 5:16 PM

speaking of which, how much do you miss Clipse-Neptunes overall?

Eric Rosenthal · 5:16 PM

And do you think that Chad Hugo gets Christmas cards from the rest of the Re-Up Gang

Jeff Rosenthal · 5:17 PM

I think everyone misses that, right? It's crazy how nostalgic we are for something that only went away 8 years ago.

Jeff Rosenthal · 5:17 PM

Ha!

Eric Rosenthal · 5:17 PM

This is the year of Pharrell

Jeff Rosenthal · 5:17 PM

I don't think Chad Hugo gets mail where he is, behind the fifth dimension.

Eric Rosenthal · 5:17 PM

and yet, he's only on one track on Pusha's album, right?

Eric Rosenthal · 5:17 PM

good point

Jeff Rosenthal · 5:18 PM

Yeah, I bet they'll reconnect post-Def Jam. You saw the news about Nas + DJ Premier.

Eric Rosenthal · 5:18 PM

nope

Eric Rosenthal · 5:18 PM

tell me

Jeff Rosenthal · 5:18 PM

Oh, DJ Premier said that - once Nas gets off Def Jam ("this next album") then he and Nas are doing an entire album together.

Eric Rosenthal · 5:19 PM

wow

Jeff Rosenthal · 5:19 PM

Yeah. I mean, who knows if it'll ACTUALLY happen. But interesting nonetheless!

Eric Rosenthal · 5:19 PM

sure

Eric Rosenthal · 5:19 PM

You know what else?

Jeff Rosenthal · 5:19 PM

Whazzat?

Eric Rosenthal · 5:20 PM

Coke - and all that goes along with it - doesn't seem so dominant anymore

Eric Rosenthal · 5:20 PM

like, selling it to get rich doesn't seem to be the message anymore

Eric Rosenthal · 5:20 PM

it's just being-rich

Jeff Rosenthal · 5:20 PM

Right, he's not suffocated by literally every rapper talking about their coke empires.

Jeff Rosenthal · 5:21 PM

He stands out more.

Eric Rosenthal · 5:21 PM

no no no

Eric Rosenthal · 5:21 PM

I mean overall

Eric Rosenthal · 5:21 PM

like, the coke scene isn't a big topic anymore

Eric Rosenthal · 5:21 PM

the message from rappers isn't about the process

Eric Rosenthal · 5:21 PM

it's about the end result

Eric Rosenthal · 5:22 PM

or not even about cocaine at all

Jeff Rosenthal · 5:22 PM

That's what I'm saying, too, though: that there was a time when every rapper was doing the coke talk thing to death. And they've moved onto other fantasies.

Jeff Rosenthal · 5:22 PM

But Pusha has stayed true to himself.

Eric Rosenthal · 5:22 PM

which does make Pusha's content unique, and is a connection to older rap, and is perhaps why Kanye was so eager to keep it alive

Jeff Rosenthal · 5:23 PM

Yes yes yes, all of that.

Eric Rosenthal · 5:23 PM

Like, Kanye is a rap nerd

Eric Rosenthal · 5:23 PM

JUST LIKE US!

Eric Rosenthal · 5:23 PM

But the marketplace may have moved

Eric Rosenthal · 5:23 PM

DON'T STOP, POP THAT, DON'T STOP, POP THAT POP THAT POP THAT

Jeff Rosenthal · 5:23 PM

Ha!

Jeff Rosenthal · 5:23 PM

But if Kanye says something, it's probably true.

Jeff Rosenthal · 5:24 PM

So, if Pusha is important then he is.

Eric Rosenthal · 5:24 PM

I agree

Eric Rosenthal · 5:24 PM

You agree

Jeff Rosenthal · 5:24 PM

★ Spotlighted from Joel Maffei

“I think this album is a good balance of rappity rap + song structure/content. Something Pusha hasn't really had since the Clipse days.”

Eric Rosenthal · 5:24 PM

but does the average consumer / radio programmer / person agree

Jeff Rosenthal · 5:24 PM

Totally agree. And it doesn't seem like a reach when Pusha makes singles for this one.

Jeff Rosenthal · 5:25 PM

I don't think Pusha will ever do Drake numbers.

Jeff Rosenthal · 5:25 PM

But I don't think he has to to be relevant.

Eric Rosenthal · 5:25 PM

So just putting the album out is the importance, here?

Eric Rosenthal · 5:26 PM

I appreciate that

Jeff Rosenthal · 5:26 PM

Everyone's just fighting for the attention of their audience.

Jeff Rosenthal · 5:26 PM

THEIR audience, as opposed to THE audience.

Jeff Rosenthal · 5:26 PM

★ Spotlighted from Hershal Pandya

“Can we talk about the song with Rick Ross where Pusha talks about fake coke rappers and then has a Rick Ross guest verse? Do other rappers just believe that Rick Ross has credibility as a former drug kingpin? Is it for promotion?”

Jeff Rosenthal · 5:26 PM

Yes, I have a major problem with that (and I wrote about it for Rolling Stone, who never published that piece).

Eric Rosenthal · 5:27 PM

Preach, Jeff

Eric Rosenthal · 5:27 PM

While Jeff gets his thoughts on that in order...

Jeff Rosenthal · 5:27 PM

" One feels like it must be really frustrating for Pusha: he hates being surrounded by people who wear his past like a Halloween costume, and yet he needs them."

Eric Rosenthal · 5:27 PM

oh, there it is

Jeff Rosenthal · 5:28 PM

I feel like he's gotten pissed at other rappers for less than that.

Eric Rosenthal · 5:28 PM

It's really incredible how Ross has just been accepted as "Rick Ross"

Eric Rosenthal · 5:28 PM

cause he's such a musical force

Eric Rosenthal · 5:28 PM

he can't be denied

Jeff Rosenthal · 5:28 PM

Well, same with Drake.

Eric Rosenthal · 5:28 PM

not the same

Jeff Rosenthal · 5:28 PM

nothing ever was.

Eric Rosenthal · 5:28 PM

Drake is who he said he is

Eric Rosenthal · 5:28 PM

his name is his name

Eric Rosenthal · 5:29 PM

Drake is the emotional guy whose heart bleeds for whoever

Eric Rosenthal · 5:29 PM

and he makes music about that

Eric Rosenthal · 5:29 PM

Ross talks a lot of fiction

Jeff Rosenthal · 5:29 PM

Yes, but he's also the guy who can get killers for hire or whatever.

Eric Rosenthal · 5:29 PM

maybe he can

Eric Rosenthal · 5:29 PM

Toronto's not super soft

Eric Rosenthal · 5:29 PM

★ Spotlighted from Hershal Pandya

“But the difference between Drake and Ross is that Drake is completely honest and Ross is completely the opposite.”

Jeff Rosenthal · 5:30 PM

I think everyone's got their own fictions.

Eric Rosenthal · 5:30 PM

Shouts to Hershal

Jeff Rosenthal · 5:30 PM

Ross' happen to be as outsized as his body.

Eric Rosenthal · 5:30 PM

Eric Rosenthal · 5:31 PM

I heard Pusha on Juan Epstein before and he was thrilled to get the best Ross verse

Eric Rosenthal · 5:31 PM

He thinks it's the best Ross verse ever

Jeff Rosenthal · 5:31 PM

Come on, this is the exact conversation we had years ago about Kanye. Just because he says a lot of things that are honest doesn't mean they're true or truthful.

Eric Rosenthal · 5:31 PM

and that's what matters to him

Jeff Rosenthal · 5:32 PM

Right, and I don't hate that.

Eric Rosenthal · 5:32 PM

In terms of the album, he's had FOREVER to work on it

Eric Rosenthal · 5:33 PM

(and in most cases, it wasn't his fault that it took so song)

Eric Rosenthal · 5:33 PM

so long

Eric Rosenthal · 5:33 PM

but how do you feel it fits as an entire package?

Jeff Rosenthal · 5:34 PM

I like it, I think. The Kelly Rowland/The-Dream songs are good, though you can smell the label's influence a bit.

Jeff Rosenthal · 5:34 PM

You?

Eric Rosenthal · 5:35 PM

I like how it sounds all put together - it's certainly a better experiencing it with headphones rather that BLASTED at you at ear-crushing levels, like at his listening

Eric Rosenthal · 5:35 PM

a note about listenings, for a sec...

Eric Rosenthal · 5:35 PM

let's pull the curtain back for a second

Jeff Rosenthal · 5:36 PM

UH OH

Jeff Rosenthal · 5:36 PM

TALK THAT SHIT, ERIC

Eric Rosenthal · 5:36 PM

listening parties here in NYC are meant to get the buzz of an artist and their project up

Eric Rosenthal · 5:37 PM

and the label will bring tastemakers in and wine and dine them (liquor and a vegetable platter, or wings)

Eric Rosenthal · 5:37 PM

and they'll play the music while everyone invited DOESN'T LISTEN TO THE MUSIC

Eric Rosenthal · 5:37 PM

everyone just talks to each other

Jeff Rosenthal · 5:37 PM

Except for like, us two.

Eric Rosenthal · 5:37 PM

right

Jeff Rosenthal · 5:37 PM

Because we're idiots.

Eric Rosenthal · 5:37 PM

it's basically a reunion for people who you saw two days ago

Jeff Rosenthal · 5:38 PM

(That's not true. There's a few of us.)

Eric Rosenthal · 5:38 PM

and that's the process

Jeff Rosenthal · 5:38 PM

Right, yes.

Eric Rosenthal · 5:38 PM

except for three different listenings

Eric Rosenthal · 5:38 PM

1. Watch The Throne

Jeff Rosenthal · 5:38 PM

2. Big Sean's first album

Eric Rosenthal · 5:38 PM

2. Big Sean's Finally Famous

Eric Rosenthal · 5:38 PM

and 3. Pusha's My Name is My Name

Eric Rosenthal · 5:38 PM

and the point of those was to focus on the music

Eric Rosenthal · 5:38 PM

BUT

Eric Rosenthal · 5:39 PM

at the Pusha one, the music was so loud and the lighting was so jarring, that the experience wasn't great

Jeff Rosenthal · 5:39 PM

Totally and absolutely disagree. The problem with the MNIMN listening was that everyone was trying to get cameras in Kanye's face as opposed to the volume and/or lighting.

Eric Rosenthal · 5:39 PM

actually, J. Cole tried to do an innovative listening too

Eric Rosenthal · 5:40 PM

um...

Jeff Rosenthal · 5:40 PM

And such is the upside/downside of Kanye showing up to your event.

Eric Rosenthal · 5:40 PM

I wasn't anywhere near that scrum of people

Eric Rosenthal · 5:40 PM

and I was trying to listen to the music

Eric Rosenthal · 5:40 PM

didn't get much of it

Eric Rosenthal · 5:40 PM

anyway...

Eric Rosenthal · 5:40 PM

I sound like an old man

Jeff Rosenthal · 5:40 PM

Yes. Yes, you do.

Jeff Rosenthal · 5:41 PM

"The lights! The sounds! Ack!" - you

Jeff Rosenthal · 5:41 PM

I think this is an example of DONDA being very DONDA-ish, by the way.

Eric Rosenthal · 5:41 PM

what is

Jeff Rosenthal · 5:42 PM

That listening, the packaging of the album, too.

Eric Rosenthal · 5:42 PM

well, by definition yes

Eric Rosenthal · 5:42 PM

they did do everything

Eric Rosenthal · 5:42 PM

I don't hate on DONDA

Eric Rosenthal · 5:42 PM

It just wasn't it for me

Eric Rosenthal · 5:42 PM

Okay, let's get to the elephant in the room

Eric Rosenthal · 5:43 PM

is No Malice not being on this record take away from it in any way

Eric Rosenthal · 5:43 PM

does, rather

Jeff Rosenthal · 5:43 PM

No. Not at all.

Eric Rosenthal · 5:44 PM

I agree

Eric Rosenthal · 5:44 PM

it's his SOLO album

Jeff Rosenthal · 5:44 PM

Like, I would compare it to Dolla Boy being on 2 Chainz' albums.

Jeff Rosenthal · 5:44 PM

The only issue with the SOLO album argument is that he has 10p2oi4uuo8098 features on it.

Eric Rosenthal · 5:45 PM

interesting point

Eric Rosenthal · 5:45 PM

I wonder how exciting his solo album would be if it truly was just him though

Eric Rosenthal · 5:45 PM

He's not singing hooks

Eric Rosenthal · 5:45 PM

which he says on record

Jeff Rosenthal · 5:46 PM

Now that's a really interesting question! Probably not great? I think he needs some lightness to counterbalance everything.

Eric Rosenthal · 5:46 PM

★ Spotlighted from Hershal Pandya

“Did either of you listen to the No-Malice solo album? How was it? Like, was it good for what it was?”

Eric Rosenthal · 5:46 PM

I did not listen to No Malice's album

Eric Rosenthal · 5:46 PM

and I think I'm okay with that

Jeff Rosenthal · 5:47 PM

We've been to a bar called No Malice (on New York's Lower East Side), though.

Eric Rosenthal · 5:47 PM

this is true

Jeff Rosenthal · 5:47 PM

So, you know, comme si, comme sa.

Eric Rosenthal · 5:47 PM

Only God and No Malice can judge me

Eric Rosenthal · 5:47 PM

I'll say this

Eric Rosenthal · 5:47 PM

I'm happy that Pusha is having his moment

Eric Rosenthal · 5:47 PM

he stayed true to himself

Eric Rosenthal · 5:48 PM

he's put in a TON of hard work

Jeff Rosenthal · 5:48 PM

...a pusha ton. Thank you.

Eric Rosenthal · 5:48 PM

and he's done it without the help of his brother or the Neptunes

Jeff Rosenthal · 5:48 PM

Where do you think it ranks among the albums this year?

Eric Rosenthal · 5:48 PM

and the marketplace will do what the marketplace does

Jeff Rosenthal · 5:48 PM

The marketplace is filled with idiots.

Eric Rosenthal · 5:48 PM

I don't know where it ranks yet

Eric Rosenthal · 5:48 PM

I love the Drake album

Jeff Rosenthal · 5:49 PM

I like Yeezus > Drake > Pusha, so far, but that could be premature.

Eric Rosenthal · 5:49 PM

I like the Cole and Wale and Sean albums

Eric Rosenthal · 5:49 PM

the Kanye one is okay

Eric Rosenthal · 5:49 PM

the Jay one is okay

Jeff Rosenthal · 5:49 PM

I feel like those are in an entirely different bracket. I almost forget what the Wale/Cole/Sean ones sound like.

Jeff Rosenthal · 5:50 PM

Same with Mac Miller and everyone else who came in during the summer.

Eric Rosenthal · 5:50 PM

that's because there SO MUCH to listen to

Jeff Rosenthal · 5:50 PM

Sure, but no one broke out of that the way I would've wanted them to.

Eric Rosenthal · 5:50 PM

I don't know if that's possible right now

Jeff Rosenthal · 5:51 PM

Sure it is! Pusha/Drake/Kanye did.

Eric Rosenthal · 5:51 PM

maybe Drake

Eric Rosenthal · 5:51 PM

but Kanye didn't have anything that ran the summer

Jeff Rosenthal · 5:51 PM

You mean, on radio?

Eric Rosenthal · 5:52 PM

On radio or any other scale

Eric Rosenthal · 5:52 PM

And he acknowledged that

Jeff Rosenthal · 5:52 PM

I'll agree that nothing was dominant; there was no artist or song of the summer.

Eric Rosenthal · 5:52 PM

like, think about Dudes in Paris

Eric Rosenthal · 5:52 PM

what has been bigger than that since then

Jeff Rosenthal · 5:52 PM

I feel like "Started from the Bottom" STILL gets played, and that came out in February.

Jeff Rosenthal · 5:53 PM

PEOPLE ARE STILL MAKING "STARTED" JOKES

Eric Rosenthal · 5:53 PM

mmm

Jeff Rosenthal · 5:53 PM

Unbelievable the stranglehold Drake has.

Eric Rosenthal · 5:53 PM

I don't know

Jeff Rosenthal · 5:53 PM

Nah?

Eric Rosenthal · 5:53 PM

I'm trying to think nationally

Eric Rosenthal · 5:53 PM

not just NYC-based

Jeff Rosenthal · 5:53 PM

Drake has two Top 10 singles, I think.

Eric Rosenthal · 5:53 PM

or internet-music-business-based

Jeff Rosenthal · 5:54 PM

Oh. No. You know who's "national"?

Eric Rosenthal · 5:54 PM

yeah, but nothing has shifted the paradigm

Jeff Rosenthal · 5:54 PM

...

Jeff Rosenthal · 5:54 PM

Macklemore.

Eric Rosenthal · 5:54 PM

I knew you were gonna say that

Jeff Rosenthal · 5:54 PM

Stupid terrible Macklemore.

Eric Rosenthal · 5:54 PM

and that may be true, sadly

Eric Rosenthal · 5:55 PM

but to be completely truthful, no one else has done what he's done this year

Jeff Rosenthal · 5:55 PM

But I don't want to talk about these other guys:

Eric Rosenthal · 5:55 PM

I don't like it

Jeff Rosenthal · 5:55 PM

Back to Pusha.

Jeff Rosenthal · 5:55 PM

I think this is part of this shift back to lyrics. I really do think that people are headed back to a 90s music mentality -- and if hip-hop as a culture gets smaller because of it, it'll also get stronger.

Eric Rosenthal · 5:56 PM

I don't agree

Eric Rosenthal · 5:56 PM

but here's a bigger question

Eric Rosenthal · 5:56 PM

how about this

Eric Rosenthal · 5:56 PM

are you a bad hip-hop fan is you don't like this Pusha album

Eric Rosenthal · 5:56 PM

Jeff Rosenthal · 5:57 PM

Wow. That's a great question. My answer is no.

Jeff Rosenthal · 5:57 PM

Because taste is personal. I think if you don't respect it, then you're a bad hip-hop fan.

Jeff Rosenthal · 5:58 PM

What do you think?

Eric Rosenthal · 5:58 PM

hmmm

Eric Rosenthal · 5:58 PM

Eric Rosenthal · 5:59 PM

I don't think people are bad hip-hop fans if they don't support Pusha's album

Eric Rosenthal · 5:59 PM

I think they're bad if they like it and don't then go and buy it

Eric Rosenthal · 6:00 PM

but if you're so-so on the album, or don't like it, you're allowed

Jeff Rosenthal · 6:00 PM

Yeah, I think that line of thinking - "you have to support this to support the culture" - is really problematic. Because:

Jeff Rosenthal · 6:00 PM

"Red Tails," that movie that came out a year ago, and people were cheering for it because FINALLY FINALLY FINALLY a movie had black actors and was "important"?

Jeff Rosenthal · 6:00 PM

Was supposedly not good at all.

Jeff Rosenthal · 6:01 PM

We should support good art.

Eric Rosenthal · 6:01 PM

I agree with that

Jeff Rosenthal · 6:01 PM

But not for the sake of its "importance."

Eric Rosenthal · 6:01 PM

exactly

Eric Rosenthal · 6:01 PM

Like I said, I'm glad that Pusha has stayed true to himself

Eric Rosenthal · 6:01 PM

and put his work out there for the public to buy or not buy

Jeff Rosenthal · 6:01 PM

I think this album, though, hits on both of those metrics: it's good AND important.

Eric Rosenthal · 6:02 PM

this is the best Pusha T solo album yet!

Jeff Rosenthal · 6:02 PM

BAM

Jeff Rosenthal · 6:02 PM

or rather:

Jeff Rosenthal · 6:02 PM

WOO

Eric Rosenthal · 6:02 PM

WOO!

Eric Rosenthal · 6:03 PM

Thanks to everyone who came through and submitted questions and participated in the conversation!

Eric Rosenthal · 6:03 PM

We do these every few weeks

Eric Rosenthal · 6:03 PM

and there's a lot of great content across the board here

Jeff Rosenthal · 6:03 PM

I just got a call from a record label, who offered up an artist for us to Tawk to. So, that might happen!

Eric Rosenthal · 6:03 PM

!!!

Eric Rosenthal · 6:03 PM

I'm Eric

Jeff Rosenthal · 6:03 PM

I'm Jeff.

Eric Rosenthal · 6:04 PM

We're ItsTheReal

Jeff Rosenthal · 6:04 PM

And this is our CRWN, I guess? Should we make this our CRWN?

Jeff Rosenthal · 6:04 PM

sorry: #CRWN

Eric Rosenthal · 6:04 PM

We put the Oh in #CRWN

Jeff Rosenthal · 6:04 PM

Or try to.

Eric Rosenthal · 6:04 PM

thanks again!

Forum · 14

Forum· 14 comments

172 visitors

Tawkers AdminOct 7, 2013, 8:37 PM

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Jordan BirnbaumOct 8, 2013, 5:04 PM

Do I need to start an account for buying all the music I learn about in these Tawks?

Joel MaffeiOct 8, 2013, 5:07 PM★ Spotlighted

Pusha T is lyrical, without being slaughterhouse.

Joel MaffeiOct 8, 2013, 5:07 PM

That's a good thing.

Joel MaffeiOct 8, 2013, 5:12 PM★ Spotlighted

I think this album is a good balance of rappity rap + song structure/content. Something Pusha hasn't really had since the Clipse days.

Hershal PandyaOct 8, 2013, 5:25 PM★ Spotlighted

Can we talk about the song with Rick Ross where Pusha talks about fake coke rappers and then has a Rick Ross guest verse? Do other rappers just believe that Rick Ross has credibility as a former drug kingpin? Is it for promotion?

Hershal PandyaOct 8, 2013, 5:29 PM★ Spotlighted

But the difference between Drake and Ross is that Drake is completely honest and Ross is completely the opposite.

Hershal PandyaOct 8, 2013, 5:31 PM

Also, do we miss Malice on this? Would we want to hear a Clipse album with No-Malice? This is the best way to not do work at the office...

Hershal PandyaOct 8, 2013, 5:44 PM★ Spotlighted

Did either of you listen to the No-Malice solo album? How was it? Like, was it good for what it was?

Hershal PandyaOct 8, 2013, 5:57 PM

It feels weird to compare Drake and Pusha...like almost strange that both can have a song which features 2 Chainz and Big Sean and be artists within the same genre, make music for the same fans, yet they have very little in common content-wise.

Lana JayOct 8, 2013, 6:03 PM

enjoyed it as always!

Blake IanOct 9, 2013, 1:31 PM

On a scale of 1 to PASTEY, how WHITE am I that I had to go to Google "Pusha" while I read this Tawk?

john beakOct 23, 2014, 3:11 AM

Hmmmm