Rating:
  Release Date: June 13, 2006
  Website: KRS-One Website
  Label: Image Entertainment

KRS-One “Life” Album Review
I got a little discouraged while researching this album. I could only find three websites that reviewed it, and just one was favorable. One response even contained the phrase “this cat can’t rap no more.” I must say I was quite taken aback by this, because I think “Life” is easily one of the best releases of the year, and among KRS-One’s best albums to date. And with fifteen quality albums to choose from, that’s saying a lot.

To be honest, man … it actually makes me kinda mad. I mean, we all know what’s selling these days and what’s not. And the majority of cats going platinum can’t even hold a candle to KRS-One. He’s keeping it real while they’re selling out. He’s talking truth while they’re spitting science fiction. He’s growing and evolving while they’re staying the same. Yet they’re all over the TV and radio, and you can barely find his album. That’s messed up yo.

But even worse is the simple quantitative reality that the numbers don’t lie. Based on record sales, it becomes obvious that most people would rather listen to fantasy rap than reality-based conscious hip-hop; even to the point that they will clown on the real rappers as if they’re the imposters. I just don’t understand how anyone could listen to anything KRS-One has ever done and not consider it tight, especially in comparison to what you normally hear in the mainstream.

Conscious Hip-Hop?
I don’t know, man … it saddens me that more people don’t view hip-hop with the same importance and potential that I do. Or that KRS-One does. To me, hip-hop culture is all about consciousness. It is a way of thinking. It is about unity; about community; about peace. As KRS-One might say … “hip-hop is the way we live.” But obviously, most people can’t or won’t see that.

I occasionally wonder what if I’m wrong about hip-hop. What if I place some unrealistic importance on the culture? What if the hip-hop generation is no more conscious than those that came before us? What if hip-hop really is nothing but marketable images, materialistic and misogynistic rants, gangster and bling mentalities? I don’t mean to sound like a punk, but the possibility of that being true is terrible to me. And that perception, if continued, will prevent the hip-hop generation from ever creating change or making a difference.

Fortunately, I don’t believe that is true. And cats like KRS-One provide the proof. I believe such MCs are truly representative of the majority, not the minority, of our culture, regardless of what the shot callers are choosing to invest their money in. The hip-hop generation is increasingly aware, increasingly conscious, and increasingly ready to make a difference. Only the future will see if we are also increasingly willing to act. Or as KRS-One might say, “You know, there’s a difference between dreaming and visualizing. Which one are you doing?”

Even if you’ve never taken my advice, cop this album. “Life” is exceptional and possibly my favorite hip-hop album of the year. It represents the viewpoints, stories and experiences of an MC who is representative of real hip-hoppers. It talks about issues that are of concern to the hip-hop generation. And it gives great insight into the perspective of a person who views hip-hop as a way of life; a worldview; something greater than music or dance or fashion (read KRS-One quotable top left for example).

If we’d start to pay attention to the underground a little more, we would realize how widespread this conscious hip-hop really is, and maybe have a better understanding of where the culture is headed in the future. Peace.