The Roots' 'Illadelph Half-life': Rap Music In-Flux In 9-6

Whenever hip-hop fans discuss The Roots' discography, the cream-of-the-crop at the top of everyone's Best Of... list is usually either their (and ONLY their first release too!) street-rap-jazz hybrid 'Do You Want More!?!' or Neo-soul/rap hybrid and Grammy-darling 'Things Fall Apart'. But there was an album in the middle of those two rap album triumphs (and many, many more excellent albums after...). That album is 'lladelph Half-life'. And it's equally amazing - if not better than it's siblings.

1996 was a pretty epic year for hip-hop culture and the music it gave birth to. It was rap music's peak, yet also a time of transition. Rap had been bursting at pop music's collective seams for years, and it was finally time to shine in 9-6. But commercial music demands a formula to follow. That (usually) means repeating what works - over and over again until it's repetition turns redundant, and the source material becomes completely watered-down. But not all artists were down for the sell-out. De La Soul famously released 'Stakes Is High' in a direct attack on the commercialism of hip-hop. Likewise, fellow "alternative" rap artists' The Roots decided to join the fray, producing what would become 'Illadelpo Half-life'.

They were riding high on the well-deserved critical success of 'Do You Want More!!?!"; and The Roots' label, Geffen Records, wanted them to avoid the slump that so many artists'  sophomore albums fall victim to. Just because The Roots' emcees' Black Thought and Malik B. didn't rap about  cars, hoes, and clothes much at all, doesn't mean they still can't fall victim to formulaic redundancy. Indeed, when 'DYWM!??" was released, jazz rap was a burgeoning subgenera of hip-hop music and The Roots did kinda ride it's coattails to (somewhat) success...moreso critical than sales-wise. This would be a trend that The Roots would fall prey to time and time again, but in 1996 group co-leaders Questlove and Black Thought were still young and (somewhat) fresh on the scene, eager to impress and take their group in new, unexplored directions. Questo saw that jazz-rap was on it's way OUT in Top 40 success terms, and that his group needed to explore something new.


Fortunately, Black Thought was thinking the exact same thing. And his tongue was as sharp as fucking ever. Probably the best it ever would be. Black Thought goes track-for-track, bar-for-bar, for complete broke-ness. He was telling every other emcee to run their jewels, and run them fast. And nobody else was fast enough for him. Tracks like album-opener 'Respond / React', 'Push Up Ya Lighter', and Q-Tip-assisted 'Ital' are evidence of Thought's wordplay prowress. 'The Hypnotic' is basically a sequel to 'DYWM!?!?' stand-out 'Silent Treatment'. Both are Black Thought at his most romantic introspective, and we're lucky enough to be able to experience a small dose of it again.

Malik B. does his best to keep lyrical pace - and what he produces is impressive. No, it's not in the same league as Thought, but it's damn close. Basically, Black Thought and Malik B. are like the Steph Curry-Klay Thompson tandem; with Black Thought being Curry, obviously. It's not a diss to Malik B.'s abilities on the mic - dude can spit. Honestly, there's very few Steph Currys out there in the world, and to be their sidekick means that you can compete in their arena - and that alone is a great accomplishment. Every great leader needs a great sidekick - and Malik B. is that person for Black Thought. He's the Robin to Thought's Batman. And they go track-for-track; slaughtering vowels, verbs, nouns and adjectives; and twisting them with wordplay that rates a hard 100 on the complete bonkers scale.

Questlove doesn't slack on the instrumentals that accompany Black Thought and Malik B.'s verbal showmanship, either. ''Illadelph Half-life'  goes in a musical direction that is a complete predecessor to the net-soul movement that Questo would lead into the pop-music spectrum just a couple years later with releases by artists such as D'Angelo (Voodoo) and Erykah Badu (Baduizm) as well as The Roots' own album, 'Things Fall Apart'. Quest love uses instruments and samples unknown to The Roots' music thus-far. Things such as classic music strings on 'Concerto Of The Desperado' and exploring the use of group member Rahzel's beatboxing abilities. Cymbals, horns, piano keys, even freakin' tambourines are all used to full-effect on gems such as 'The Great Pretender', 'One Shine', and 'No Alibi'. Questlove's use of drums is bananas as well. Every single track features hard-hitting snares and bass that vibrates and trembles out of my speakers in epic proportions. Being a boom-bap fanatic, I devoured every single second. 'UNIverse At War', 'Clones', 'Push Up Ya Lighter', 'Panic!!!!'...all smack with intensity not seen before on previous releases 'Organix' and 'DYWM!!?''. Every great hip-hop producer has a signature drumline, Quest knows this. And his is most-effective, especially here.
As stated before, hip-hop was in-flux in 9-6. Bad Boy Records, with Puff Daddy at it's helm; was literally adding a gloss and shine to the rap music produced on Billboard charts. And he was having enormous financial success. Obviously, everyone else followed suit. Well, the artists concerned with their bank account numbers did, anyway. And thus, hip-hop split into two groups. The eternal divide between what was deemed "authentic" and what, well, wasn't. Basically, anything making oodles of zero's was inauthentic, watered-down music and should be avoided at all costs. And, to a certain extant, this was (kinda) true.

Now, in 2016, the debate on rap's authenticity still rages-on, but ironically the underground rap fan's argument is just as watered-down and formulaic in approach as their opponent's. But it wasn't so in 1996. No, this debate was just beginning. So artists like De La Soul and The Roots' pleas for rap music to stay focused on creativity and originality was pure and had an especially strong sense of urgency. They were literally seeing rap music change before their very eyes. And artists didn't know how to react. This is showcased on tracks such as 'Clones', 'UNIverse At War' featuring emcee Common on a warpath, and (especially) album single 'What They Do' and it's accompanying, and definite-classic, music video.  Did The Roots' pleas eventually get heard? Thats honestly a matter of debate. Though Im sure it seemed at the time that hip-hop was heading to hell in a hand-basket - it survived. Rap music is just as big as before; it's if what's being produced as gotten better is the ultimate question. And probably a relative one, as everyone's tastes are different. But one thing did survive intact - and that's 'Illadelph Half-life', in all it's glory. Like fine wine, this album has only gotten better with age. But so has 'Do You Want More??!' and 'Things Fall Apart', which (sadly) centers the attention on themselves instead of 'Illadelph'. And it's a shame.