Diggin' In The Digits

The third verse. What used to be something that made Hip-Hop special is now on life support. In recent years, entire albums have been dropping that have no third verse to be seen. One could say that this is a concerted effort to make music shorter for the short attention masses.

So what is going on? Why are artists omitting third verses? And what are the implications for mainstream Hip-Hop catering to the masses and not to the true essence?

TIMESTAMPS:
Weekly Music Roundup - (1:55)
Topic Intro - (11:38)
Statistics on the 3rd Verse - (17:42)
Is it just "evolution" or is there more to it? - (20:22)
Is Pop & Hip-Hop blending together? - (29:47)
What are the long-term ramifications? (40:05)
Does K-Pop show a glimpse of mainstream blending? - (53:39)
Lighter Note - (55:38)

Thanks for listening. Below are the Social accounts for all parties involved. Be sure to let us know that you're supporting us!

Music - "Pizza And Video Games" by Bonus Points (Thanks to Chillhop Records for the right to use)

HHBTN (Twitter & IG) - @HipHopNumbers
5E (Twitter & IG) - @5thElement_UK
5E Community Discord
ChillHop (Twitter) - @Chillhopdotcom
Bonus Points (Twitter) - @BonusPoints92

Other Podcasts Under The 5EPN:
"What's Good?" W/ Charlie Taylor
In Search of Sauce
Black Women Watch...
5EPN Radio
The Beauty Of Independence

DMX. Everybody knows DMX off the name alone. Even if you haven't heard a DMX album, you know what DMX sounds like. You may even know his motifs. "Rrrrr" "AR, AR" "WHAT!" "UH HUUUUUH!" "WHERE MY DOGS!". I guarantee you read those and heard him in your head.

He's an iconic artist for more reasons than one. The DITD duo explores DMX. From his music, to his lyrical content, to his influence.

TIMESTAMPS:
Weekly Music Roundup - (1:52)
Topic Intro - (11:13)
Is DMX' realness the key to his cultural longevity? - (17:56)
DMX from a lyrical perspective - (23:14)
DMX & Religion - (34:26)
It's nearly impossible to break down DMX as a person - (46:54)
Lighter Note - (57:34)

Thanks for listening. Below are the Social accounts for all parties involved. Be sure to let us know that you're supporting us!

Music - "Pizza And Video Games" by Bonus Points (Thanks to Chillhop Records for the right to use)

HHBTN (Twitter & IG) - @HipHopNumbers
5E (Twitter & IG) - @5thElement_UK
5E Community Discord
ChillHop (Twitter) - @Chillhopdotcom
Bonus Points (Twitter) - @BonusPoints92

Other Podcasts Under The 5EPN:
"What's Good?" W/ Charlie Taylor
In Search of Sauce
Black Women Watch...
5EPN Radio
The Beauty Of Independence

Think for a moment about where you get Hip-Hop news. Now think about where you get quotes from people of note.

Unlike the regular News Journalism we all know of, Music Journalism isn't so easy to define. Because a majority of the news we get is either bare-bones information such as 1st Week sales or release dates. Or they simply come from the source and leads outlets to just regurgitate the information (e.g. An artist saying something incendiary on IG Live.)

So what is Music Journalism? How has the way we get news changed everything and who are the Music Journalists of note?

TIMESTAMPS:
Weekly Music Roundup - (3:00)
Topic Intro - (11:09)
The divide between "Personalities" & writers - (16:20)
Our definitions of Music Journalism - (22:43)
Let's talk DJVlad - (30:43)
Negativity (& lack of morality) sells -  (33:21)
The concept of "Critical Mass" - (39:50)
The Overton Window of Hip-Hop Journalism - (47:40)
Is Hip-Hop Numbers Journalism? - (56:08)
Lighter Note - (1:01:47)

Thanks for listening. Below are the Social accounts for all parties involved. Be sure to let us know that you're supporting us!

Music - "Pizza And Video Games" by Bonus Points (Thanks to Chillhop Records for the right to use)

HHBTN (Twitter & IG) - @HipHopNumbers
5E (Twitter & IG) - @5thElement_UK
5E Community Discord
ChillHop (Twitter) - @Chillhopdotcom
Bonus Points (Twitter) - @BonusPoints92

Other Podcasts Under The 5EPN:
"What's Good?" W/ Charlie Taylor
In Search of Sauce
Black Women Watch...
5EPN Radio
The Beauty Of Independence

Depending on who you are, 2019 was either a good year for Hip-Hop or a bad one. Factually, 2019 was a commercial dud. But look past the numbers and you will find plenty of artists taking centre stage with their work.

The DITD duo recaps some of the year and looks forward to potential 2020 releases.

TIMESTAMPS:
Weekly Music Roundup - (3:36)
Topic Intro & General Thoughts - (16:12)
How we treat Music drops compared to other arts - (22:23)
IGOR's success: Blip or trend? - (34:21)
ROTD3 & "Sincerely, Detroit" proving that collaboration is hard - (40:33)
What drops are we looking forward to in 2020? - (48:05)
Artist, Producer & Rapper of the Year - (1:01:27)
Lighter Note - (1:08:40)

Thanks for listening. Below are the Social accounts for all parties involved. Be sure to let us know that you're supporting us!

Music - "Pizza And Video Games" by Bonus Points (Thanks to Chillhop Records for the right to use)

HHBTN (Twitter & IG) - @HipHopNumbers
5E (Twitter & IG) - @5thElement_UK
5E Community Discord
ChillHop (Twitter) - @Chillhopdotcom
Bonus Points (Twitter) - @BonusPoints92

Other Podcasts Under The 5EPN:
"What's Good?" W/ Charlie Taylor
In Search of Sauce
Black Women Watch...
5EPN Radio
The Beauty Of Independence

The 2010s... It's been an interesting one for sure. The music landscape has shifted dramatically in the past 9-10 years. Hip-Hop is now a dominant force in the music world, it's become easier to get into music and to get big, but even harder to stay on top.

The world has sped up so fast, but we attempt to slow it all down for an hour and look forward to the new decade as well as take a look back.

TIMESTAMPS:
Weekly Music Roundup - (1:32)
Topic Intro - (15:23)
2010 - 14, the years of change - (16:46)
Has Rihanna created the ideal blueprint for the future? - (26:25)
Will Trap's reign continue into the new decade? - (35:18)
What will be the dominant wave for 2020? - (45:05)
Final Thoughts on the decade - (1:06:39)
Lighter Note - (1:09:30)

Thanks for listening. Below are the Social accounts for all parties involved. Be sure to let us know that you're supporting us!

Music - "Pizza And Video Games" by Bonus Points (Thanks to Chillhop Records for the right to use)

HHBTN (Twitter & IG) - @HipHopNumbers
5E (Twitter & IG) - @5thElement_UK
5E Community Discord
ChillHop (Twitter) - @Chillhopdotcom
Bonus Points (Twitter) - @BonusPoints92

Other Podcasts Under The 5EPN:
"What's Good?" W/ Charlie Taylor
In Search of Sauce
Black Women Watch...
5EPN Radio
The Beauty Of Independence

The posthumous album is something that we want and don't want in equal measure. When somebody says "Do you want never-heard-before music from an artist you like?", of course, you're going to say yes! But when that artist isn't alive to have a say, some take pause and ask themselves do they want it?

There are many places to look at posthumous albums, there are many examples, good and bad. The DITD duo discusses as many angles as possible.

TIMESTAMPS:
Weekly Music Roundup - (1:52)
Topic Intro - (18:47)
Ben's general thoughts - (20:11)
Charlie's general thoughts - (25:25)
The dichotomy of the fan & posthumous albums - (32:04)
We don't add these posthumous albums to their legacy, so what's the harm?- (40:00)
J Dilla, the GOAT vault? - (41:54)
Features are a dead giveaway to whether the album is "true" or not - (46:34)
Final Thoughts - (52:50)
Lighter Note - (56:33)

Thanks for listening. Below are the Social accounts for all parties involved. Be sure to let us know that you're supporting us!

Music - "Pizza And Video Games" by Bonus Points (Thanks to Chillhop Records for the right to use)

HHBTN (Twitter & IG) - @HipHopNumbers
5E (Twitter & IG) - @5thElement_UK
5E Community Discord
ChillHop (Twitter) - @Chillhopdotcom
Bonus Points (Twitter) - @BonusPoints92

Other Podcasts Under The 5EPN:
"What's Good?" W/ Charlie Taylor
In Search of Sauce
Black Women Watch...
5EPN Radio
The Beauty Of Independence

Certifications are confusing. Simple as that. A lot of us claim to know a lot about it but in reality, past platinum plaques, we know nothing.

Charlie has been long done with the certifications ever since Nicki Minaj broke a record held by Aretha Franklin. Ben, as the numbers guy, stands on the other side of the fence but the two come together in acknowledging that these numbers, especially in the mainstream, are fugazi. We simply accept it as a mode of conversation and that's it.

As you can imagine, this is one of those "Charlie hates, Ben explains" episodes. but there's the customary shade & knowledge drops aplenty.

TIMESTAMPS:
Weekly Music Roundup - (1:39)
Topic Intro - (18:22)
The catalyst for this topic - (20:57)
Ben drops knowledge - (28:11)
Can this all be simplified? - (36:48)
It's all content fodder - (45:11)
Lighter Note - (55:25)

Thanks for listening. Below are the Social accounts for all parties involved. Be sure to let us know that you're supporting us!

Music - "Pizza And Video Games" by Bonus Points (Thanks to Chillhop Records for the right to use)

HHBTN (Twitter & IG) - @HipHopNumbers
5E (Twitter & IG) - @5thElement_UK
5E Community Discord
ChillHop (Twitter) - @Chillhopdotcom
Bonus Points (Twitter) - @BonusPoints92

Other Podcasts Under The 5EPN:
"What's Good?" W/ Charlie Taylor
In Search of Sauce
Black Women Watch...
5EPN Radio
The Beauty Of Independence

Well. Here we are. The number 1 Album of the Decade. Throughout the past few weeks, Ben & Charlie have been going through their individual Top 10 AOTD's.

From albums about blackness, concepts, mental health, self-reflection and looks into worlds we haven't experienced before. Both lists are interesting in different ways.

But at the end of the day, it all came down to, not just the Hip-Hop Album of the Decade, but one of the greatest albums ever made, regardless of genre.

No.1 on both lists, "Diggin' In The Digits" official Album of the 2010s, Kendrick Lamar's "To Pimp A Butterfly".

TIMESTAMPS:
Weekly Music Roundup - (2:17)
Opening thoughts on TPAB - (16:34)
What was Kendrick's main role in the making? - (27:04)
What sets the album (& Kendrick) apart from the rest - (24:04)
Describing the first time we heard the 2Pac "interview" - (43:45)
Extra thoughts on the album & the TPAB era - (52:48)
Top 5 Albums of All-Time (All genre) - (1:04:13)
Lighter Note - (1:06:25)

Thanks for listening. Below are the Social accounts for all parties involved. Be sure to let us know that you're supporting us!

Music - "Pizza And Video Games" by Bonus Points (Thanks to Chillhop Records for the right to use)

HHBTN (Twitter & IG) - @HipHopNumbers
5E (Twitter & IG) - @5thElement_UK
5E Community Discord
ChillHop (Twitter) - @Chillhopdotcom
Bonus Points (Twitter) - @BonusPoints92

Other Podcasts Under The 5EPN:
"What's Good?" W/ Charlie Taylor
In Search of Sauce
Black Women Watch...
5EPN Radio
The Beauty Of Independence

It's time for Part 3 of our four-part series covering our personal Top 10 Hip-Hop Albums of the Decade. On this episode, we cover our list from 4 to 2.

TIMESTAMPS:
Weekly Music Roundup - (2:27)
Topic Intro/Charlie's No.4 - (23:53)
Ben's No.4 - (36:05)
Charlie's No.3 - (48:23)
Ben's No.3 - (1:00:59)
Charlie's No.2 - (1:10:49)
Ben's No.2 - (1:22:49)

Thanks for listening. Below are the Social accounts for all parties involved. Be sure to let us know that you're supporting us!

Music - "Pizza And Video Games" by Bonus Points (Thanks to Chillhop Records for the right to use)

HHBTN (Twitter & IG) - @HipHopNumbers
5E (Twitter & IG) - @5thElement_UK
5E Community Discord
ChillHop (Twitter) - @Chillhopdotcom
Bonus Points (Twitter) - @BonusPoints92

Other Podcasts Under The 5EPN:
"What's Good?" W/ Charlie Taylor
In Search of Sauce
Black Women Watch...
5EPN Radio
The Beauty Of Independence

Our Top 10 Hip-Hop Albums of the Decade continues! On this episode, we cover albums that are ranked 7 to 5 on our lists.

This episode went so long that we had to, for the first time ever, cut our runtime. So our Lighter Note had to be snipped a little. But don't fear, if you want to catch the omitted section, tune into Episode 52 of "What's Good?" W/Charlie Taylor. You can find the show in the same places you listen to DITD or just hit up The 5th Element Podcast Network.

TIMESTAMPS:
Weekly Music Roundup - (1:47)
Topic Intro - (14:14)
Ben's No.7 - (20:20)
Charlie's No.7 - (31:21)
Ben's No.6 - (44:40)
Charlie's No.6 - (55:20)
Ben's No.5 - (1:01:09)
Charlie's No.5 - (1:11:59)
Lighter Note - (1:26:29)

Thanks for listening. Below are the Social accounts for all parties involved. Be sure to let us know that you're supporting us!

Music - "Pizza And Video Games" by Bonus Points (Thanks to Chillhop Records for the right to use)

HHBTN (Twitter & IG) - @HipHopNumbers
5E (Twitter & IG) - @5thElement_UK
5E Community Discord
ChillHop (Twitter) - @Chillhopdotcom
Bonus Points (Twitter) - @BonusPoints92

Other Podcasts Under The 5EPN:
"What's Good?" W/ Charlie Taylor
In Search of Sauce
Black Women Watch...
5EPN Radio
The Beauty Of Independence