Rapper Resolutions for 2010

There are a few constants when a year comes to a close; people who don’t normally go out and party will drink more than they can handle and do something painfully stupid, champagne will suddenly become everyone’s favorite drink of choice for a whole five minutes before they return to whatever libation they normally enjoy, and the next day, while groggily waking up to the sounds of Lee Corso and Kirk Herbstreit discussing the day’s bowl games, many people will hastily sketch out a few new year’s resolutions.

Although a select few rappers may pop champagne a little more often than the rest of us, our favorite crowd controllers are just like everybody else when it comes to these new year’s traditions. With that in mind, I think it’s the perfect time to help a few of hip-hop’s most prominent people, as well as our local artists, with their new year’s resolutions.

Dr. Dre - After having Detox hailed as the most anticipated album of 2007, 2008, and 2009, Dr. Dre needs to resolve to finally set a hard deadline for the album and release it in 2010. Over the past few years I’ve spoken with a number of people who, at different points in time, have been involved with the project. From Anthony Hamilton, who wrote and sang for a few songs that may, or may not, end up on the final track listing, to Dawaun Parker, who is Dre’s production protege, the one thing everyone has noted is that Dre is a perfectionist. I can understand how that affects his work, being a perfectionist myself, but at some point you have to give the people what they’ve been waiting literally over a decade for (2001 dropped in November of ’99). The five second snippet during the Dr. Pepper ad is NOT enough. If history is any indicator, Dre’s probably already ditched that track from the album, anyway. 2010 must be the year of Detox.

Lil’ Wayne - In 2010 Lil’ Wayne should resolve to quit drugs for at least ten minutes. Already set to spend a year in jail for criminal possession of a weapon stemming from a 2007 incident, a couple drug sniffing dogs found some marijuana on both of Wayne’s tour buses earlier this month. Do you think it’s considered profiling if the occupant of the buses has named his last three albums after the crack house from New Jack City and was recently the centerpiece of a fake news feature on The Onion which said America is planning on curing its drug problem by sending him out to do all the drugs there are? Even though no charges ended up being filed, it might do Wayne some good to lay off the lala for a little while. Maybe his lyrics might even start making sense again.

Kid Cudi - After having to bow out of Lady Gaga’s current tour thanks to a Mike Tyson’s Punch Out!! incident with a fan, signing up for some anger management classes should be Kid Cudi’s 2010 new year’s resolution. Cudi was doing double duty, scheduling solo dates while also doing the tour with Gaga, but when you’re on the road with the biggest pop act in the world you can’t be flying off the handle. Earlier in the year I spoke with Cudi and he told me about his personality, saying, “I kinda just do things. I have a plan and I just do it, but I always try to make sure that my moves are in a positive motion because being that I don't think and I just do things and I don't care about the repercussions, I don't want to use that power in the wrong sense. It's something I'm still trying to control, but I'm using it in the right manner now.” It seems as though he lost control while on tour. Let’s hope he regains that control in 2010. He could even try calling up Dr. Drew, because you know VH1 would be down to film Celebrity Anger Management.

All Our Local Emcees - We have a plethora of fantastic emcees here in Connecticut and I have one resolution for 2010 that applies to all of them; every local emcee should resolve to check out a show featuring another local emcee that they have no affiliation with what-so-ever. Support is one of the biggest aspects of any scene. Nobody likes playing to an empty house, but if you’re only supporting your own crew, why should anyone else support you? Check out another artist’s show and do it with an open mind. Don’t come in with a mindset that you need to be impressed. Just take in the show the way you’d want someone to take in yours. Maybe you’ll find you dig the artist and end up collaborating on a few things. Remember, the bigger our scene gets, the more likely you are to have packed houses when you perform.

Finally, as a hip-hop community let’s make 2010 a year filled with good music, new stars, and a bevy of positive news stories. You know I’ll be continuing to highlight everything that happens, so let’s make it a great year.

Story originally ran in the FairfieldWeekly.