While all of hip hop prizes authenticity, as Van Lathan put it in Filthy Slime Pt 1: “In street rap authenticity is more important than skill”. Today we dive into the ways that this genre’s prizing of authenticity has evolved to a point where some rappers aren’t just merely making artful commentary or provocations about gang life, but are using their lyrics to document and at times admit their involvement in serious crimes, including murder.
“There’s a difference between a novel and an encyclopedia”
This is not a function of epic poetry. Achilles is famous for killing Hector. Why? Because the Greeks actually thought this happened.