Lyricist Lounge: Dirty States of America

Description

The untold story of Southern Hip-Hop! In a commercial music industry which has lost its way artistically and creatively, Southern Hip-Hop is steeped in spirituality and struggle and is deeply rooted in slavery, the civil rights movement, poverty and oppre

Customer Reviews:

Hotness for real.......2006-02-23

i began listening to music from the south in the mid nintees and this music has eveolved into what we hear today this was a great dvd what was missing though to me was outkast they have been missing from most music dvd's ryhme and reason, the show etc and this is a damn shame that is the only draw back to this set other than that it is a great overview of the musical movement going on in the south at the present time.

Right On... On point.......2005-12-27

I originally saw the second half of this documentary on MTV2 (shocking, I know) in June/July 2004. But I'd been talking about buying this to watch it in its entirety for about a year and a half.

It's a must have for both old school and nu skool hip hop heads.

I'm from the North, but have lived recently in the South and the fact of the matter is there are cultural differences between the two regions that play out in music.

This documentary gives a face with historical and cultural backdrops to the roots of Southern hip hop including a thriving and profitable underground culture misunderstood if not altogether ignored by outsiders.

Rap, DJ, hip hop sound and stylistic differences are documented showing the diversity and contributions of everyone from MIA to ATL to Memphis to H-Town (and PAT) and of course The Big Easy are discussed in depth.

You'll see your favorite underground cats like UGK, DJ Screw, Hitman Sammy Sam and the incomparable ESG right alongside your David Banners, Juveniles, T.I.s, Lukes, Paul Walls, Chamillionaires and Geto Boys providing commentary on why they've been so successful, what they've added to hip hop culture and also why Southern hip hop doesn't get the respect it deserves outside the region.

I think most hip hop fans just need to take the time to understand the culture first of all. Secondly, they need to realize that Southern hip hop cats are appropriating the culture (adding on to it creatively). And finally, they should accept and appreciate the fact that Southern hip hop culture is different and that's cool.

I'm from country ass, but citified Indianapolis. I been listening to hip hop, born and raised on the Kool G. Raps, Rakims, LL Cool Js, Jay-Zs, Nas, WuTangs, Fugees, Biggies, TuPacs and Public Enemys of the World.

But you know what? After living in Houston and actually taking the time to learn about Southern hip hop, I can ride to my Nas and AZ just as much as Lil Scrappy, OutKast, Slim Thug, 50/50 Twin and Paul Wall.

The South has a spirit and strength all its own as this documentary reveals. The sooner folks recognize and respect it, the better.

One

Finally...our story.......2004-09-24

This documentary by the people at Lyricist Lounge is what we have been waiting for on the third coast for the last two decades...for our story to finally be told. Our heroes mentioned and acknowledged for the legends they are.

I'm from Austin, Texas. When I heard about this project, I expected so much less. I was expecting to put it on, and listen to people who aren't from the south, talk about mainstream southern rap like the Ying Yang Twins, and Trick Daddy, while leaving out the people who we really listen to down here.

They more than met my expectations by not just naming the most influential southern rappers, but by actually exposing the complex and unique mix of whole genres inside genres that have been created by the people of the south.

Through interviews of a large number of southern rap legends, producers, and CEO's of record labels, the makers of this doc shine the light on Florida's bass sound, Georgia's crunk music, Louisiana's bounce style, and of course, Texas's legendary Screw music sub-culture.

Because of this breakdown, though, I would say that "Dirty States" skims over genres and culture points very quickly, which might make it hard for someone from the east or west coast to really grasp the amount of participation there is in these very different underground sub-cultures. Each one sub-genre discussed on this DVD, runs deep enough in the streets of that region to devote individual documentary films on each one.

But the makers of this movie redeem themselves by giving due respect to our heroes, not theirs. People like Scarface, J prince, 8 ball & Mjg, UGK, ESG, and the godfather, DJ Screw. There is even a number of appearances by our two greatest musical geniuses, Devin the Dude and Cee-lo. All in all, this collection of in-depth interviews with the real top dogs of southern hip-hop, makes it the perfect introduction to our world. Hopefully, this will show the rest of the country how deeply inter-connected we are in the south, and how influential we can be. Thumbs up from this southern child.

One last note for the real down south- I was dissapointed to not see mention of Fat Pat, Lil' Keke, or Z-ro and the Guerrilla Maab...but I was falling out of my chair laughin' when I saw J-dawg was included and given a lot of airtime.

DVD:

DVD

DVD