Hip Hop In The 90s

When I think about hip-hop culture in the 90s (early 90s mostly) I think about harmless lyrics wrapped in beats that you can't help but tap your foot to. Songs about wanting (or even wishing) to be taller, finally reaching the point of fame and success but only having more problems because of it, and songs about not being a player anymore. When remixes were as good or even better than the original. Of course you still had the East vs. West, Tupac vs. Biggie. But that type of mentality and rivalry has and will always be around in hip hop. This was a time when Puff Daddy was the "Tiger Woods" even before Tiger Woods. A time when you had computer animated cats singing alongside of Paula Abdul in her music videos (by the way, Opposites Attract is def one of my all time favorite music videos). Why aren't there anymore movies like "Friday", or "Who wants to be a menace in south central while drinking your juice in the hood" (greatest movie title ever!)? Movies that entertained and made a point at the same time. TV shows during this period achieved this as well. With shows like, "The Fresh Prince Of Bel Air" and "Martin" (Damn Gina!). I remember being so influenced by "Kriss Kross" that me and my two buddies danced around on stage with our clothes backwards to their song "Jump" at an after school talent show. Hip hop back then wasn't about lollipops and half dollars. It was about the love of music and expressing yourself through it in a positive way. I was right there, tuning in, when R. Kelly introduced Ronald Isley's character of "Mr. Biggs" to the world in his music video "Down Low". A time when getting your "booty on the floor" (Coolio's song "1,2,3,4") seemed so innocent. Speaking of Coolio, who could forget his song "Gangsta's Paradise" from the movie "Dangerous Minds" starring Michelle Pfeiffer, who plays a naive but inspirational school teacher. This is why I love mostly everything about the early 90's. I was young, impressionable and wanting to get out of school so I could go home, turn on MTV and watch MC Hammer's music video "2 legit 2 quit". Who doesn't like parachute pants? Here's a short list of songs that made the biggest impression on me at that time:
"I Wish" by Skee-Lo, "Hip Hop Horray" by Naughty By Nature, "Crossroads" by Bone Thugs-N-Harmony, "I Got 5 On It" by Luniz, and "California Party" by Tupac
Honorable mentions include: "Ready Or Not" by The Fugees, "93 'Till Infinity" by the Souls Of Mischief, and Montell Jordan's "This Is How We Do It".