The Miseducation of Hip-Hop: Golden Age
The Golden Age. It is one of the most talked about eras in Hip-Hop history - just like in any history - for how it was glorious and good. However, what I've found in the creation of this timeline is the fact that I am very different in my approach to the Golden Age. To me, it's a distinct period that goes from the summer of 1986 to the Spring of 1997. I put guys like LL Cool J, Rakim, Tupac and Biggie in the same breath. I have no chill about it.
Why does it start then? Simple. The beginning is what was previously discussed: the formation of the NWA and the release of Run DMC and Aerosmith "Walk This Way". Hip-Hop is now seen as being a bigger force than just New York, all while being commercially viable. The proof of this comes from the amount of one hit wonders. In Complex's list of 100 greatest Hip-Hop One Hit Wonders, compiled in 2012, 68 of them came from the period of 1986 to 1997. What shows another increase of the popularity of Hip-Hop is the discrepancy between the amount of hits on that list between those before the era and after, which is 8 to 24.
But what makes it the Golden Age? Another simple question that can be answered by a complex term: diversity. With the geographical growth of the music and its commercial viability, more rappers were able to make a name for themselves. More rappers meant more variety in terms of listening experiences, as each brought something different to the music. If you wanted a clean cut flow, you could go to Rakim. If you wanted clean family fun, you could listen to The Fresh Prince. If you wanted some thugs and mafioso raps, go to Tupac and Biggie respectively. There was a little something for everyone, no matter the creed, lingo or dialect needed.
What overshadows the growth in musicality and diversity is the battle between the East Coast factions, led by Bad Boy Records and the West Coast, led by Death Row. This leads to certain parts of the culture not getting enough time to shine or to be properly studied, such as the rise of female rap during that exact same time frame. As well, what that same battle does is inadvertently create a series of fractured histories. As it had so many different actors in the conflict, it made everyone have their own interpretations of the story. Not to mention the media attention that the genre would garner due to its ever growing popularity in non-urban areas.
The Golden Age of Hip-Hop should continuously be seen as a period of unprecedented and powerful expansion. It truly became a nationwide phenomenon during this period. It created the first ever superstars in the business: Tupac Shakur and the Notorious B.I.G. It also took them away. The death of Tupac Shakur shook the world due to him becoming a cultural touchstone being taken so soon. The death of the Notorious B.I.G had a similar effect, but his death had more of an impact on the timeline due to the shocking nature of their deaths coming so short from one another. It was known that they had been rivals for years, but no one knew that the culture could escalate to this matter. To this day, no major artist has attempted to do a battle of this magnitude due to the aforementioned deadly consequences.
In conclusion, the Golden Age of Hip-Hop was important for so many reasons. Tupac was the quintessential rapper of the time. What he brought is exactly what the Golden Age was: powerful, impactful, diversified and soulful. There is no growth of the culture as it is today without it. But it's ending was tragic and painful, leaving a sour taste in the mouth of many and a shadow over the industry that would last the entirety of the silver age.