Seems Dallas Hip-Hop Just Caught The Ear Of Another Journalist...
This time, as a few other area blogs have already pointed out, it's The Fader who checks in on the topic, giving 'bout 2,000 words or so to the cause.
For the most part, it's just a rehash of the same things we've been hearing for the past year or so around town--that a new cast of players seem to be taking over the area scene and have big things on their mind.
But for someone who hasn't been paying attention, it's a great primer on a scene that boasts many an appearance on regional radio playlists, BET countdowns and Billboard charts alike to its resume. And it name-checks all the major players: Play-N-Skillz, Tum Tum, Lil Wil and Big Tuck.
Still, it's an interesting read, if only because of the interesting angle the writer, Felipe Delerme, takes in describing how Dallas has been living under Houston's shadow:
And, as Dallas sets itself up to pop off, it’s finally separating itself from Houston. Though, depending on who you ask, Houston was built on Dallas’ dollar. “I tell Slim Thug, Paul Wall, all the Houston artists, ‘All y’all got rich off of Dallas,’” says Play, of Dallas MC and production duo Play-N-Skillz. “Houston don’t back the Houston artists.” But Dallas did. Their southern neighbors sold massive amounts of mixtapes and rocked shows here, as well as provided guest verses for Dallas rappers, building up their bank accounts and fanbases at the same time. The downside to all that unconditional support was Dallas music built in the image of Houston artists, an identity issue the city is just now getting over. “We’re not having to bite nobody’s slang no more, we don’t have to put in a screwed up hook anymore,” Play says. “Artists are singing their own choruses, with their own draw, their own lingo.”
Check it out here. --Pete Freedman
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