Expectations for 2020
The decade of the 2010's is gone, leaving us with a decade with promise. That is in music, the entire socio-political landscape is messed up in ways that can't be understood. Everything having to do with Iran is a problem. Having memes about the potential for World War III is a problem. Most people don't even care about who is the next president of the United States because the entire process is a problem. Let's regain a bit of composure - and hope - by going through expectations for the year!
More Artists, More Projects, Longer Run Times
At the current rate, it is near impossible to listen to every project in Hip-Hop that is released. With time, it'll become clear that longer projects allow for more revenue. Drake's Scorpion and Chris Brown's Heartbreak on a Full Moon won't be outliers, but the norm. Two hour long projects may become what's expected and as someone who listens to an already egregious amount of music, I fear for my own personal sanity. With so many artists teasing projects, it makes me almost yearn for Kanye's 30 minute projects. The biggest downside is the watering down of quality albums in order to get a longer run time. It's going to be hard.
Women Take the Stage
The end of the 2010's saw the rise of many female artists to the top of Billboard charts and more. I expect the year will see more female artists in the drivers seat. Nicki Minaj, Remy Ma, Cardi B, Megan Thee Stallion and even Doja Cat took the world by storm. This small selection helped give women a much louder voice in the male dominated genre of Hip-Hop. I truly hope to see woman get a Hip-Hop Grammy this year or the next to really open the floodgates.
Big Name Takeover
Last year saw a lot of artists put out their first major albums and take the reins. These are your DaBaby's, Lil Nas X and the aforementioned Megan Thee Stallion. However, can their flame keep on when bigger artists realease full projects? If J. Cole, Kendrick Lamar and Drake all release this year, I don't know if it'll be possible. I would like to see artists on the come up, but that triumvirate is too strong for anyone to really stand to them at this point. That is accounting for Big Sean's newest project, Don Life and Mac Miller's posthumous project, Circle, being released this year.
More of the Same News
The sad fact is that the Hip-Hop community is getting numb to hearing about a young star dying of an overdose. From Lil Peep to Juice WRLD, it's been a tough couple of years. My morbid expectation is that there may be more of the same news if we don't make a change in the culture. Let's stop making taking prescription drugs cool and acceptable. These kids don't need codeine, they don't need lean. I'm not going to sit on a soap box and preach, but it's needed. I'm not going to call for more conscious and socially aware Hip-Hop, just less stupidity. Hip-Hop was made to give people a voice and a good time, not to become the soundtrack to a dangerous addiction.
And there go my expectations for 2020. I hope that this beginning of the decade will be positive. I want the best for the community of Hip-Hop and the culture. Thag goes for the b-boys and b-girls and the graffitti artists that make our cities beautiful. I can't exclude DJ's, all of the producers and engineers that keep the parties going long after everyone left the venue. To the writers and spitters alike, kill your verses. Let this be the beginning of a decade filled with successses for the entire genre of Hip-Hop.