Bruh RTJ is my mothafuckin jam. But again, most hip-hop is like that. But Killer Mike doesn't go around telling black people to respect themselves when he's not on the mic. Dude's WAY more educated on the black experience from an academic standpoint - twice as much K-dot. That's really what it comes down to. Hip-hop, I would say more than any other genre, is the type of music that makes what you say in AND outside of the music important. It's a genre that's entrenched in Black history and culture, so when you fuck it up by saying stupid shit like that, you fuck it up. I dunno. It's ten times more annoying when the message comes across as disingenuous - which is the feeling I get listening to TPAB.
Hmmm, I see what you're saying. I've listened to TPAB (and liked it) and didn't get the feeling it was disingenuous. Then again, as a white middle class man I'm in no position to comment, nor am I informed enough about the situation anyways. I DID get the feeling that the whole album was almost unbearably pretentious. Only some good tunes saved the whole thing.