Shakira used to record provocative, thoughtful music in Spanish, but traded some cultural cred for a massive, multilingual career and a seat on The Voice. Dre and Snoop Dogg became global sensations and everyone was bumping like they understood Compton. When niche artists go mainstream, of course, their identity either gets diluted or gets suddenly adopted by a massive new audience of “outsiders.” Gangsta rap was underground for a specific community until Dr. And it’s a good thing when artists connect with communities who recognize them as part of the tribe. That’s not an insult: I grew up in a suburb of Chattanooga and, if I were 16-24, I’d totally be his target demographic.
He’s from your world, and he’s making hip-hop just for you.
If you’re a reasonably well-off kid who likes rap music, you won’t have to perform any cultural translations to understand his music. As I was walking home last weekend I had to navigate the enormous mob of fans with his name scrawled across their bodies and clothing.Īllen’s backstory isn’t your typical “raised on the rough streets” tale: He’s a Wharton graduate who left a lucrative job at Google to pursue his hip-hop dreams. Hoodie just played a sold-out show at New York’s Roseland Ballroom, a few blocks from where I live. ( Slate just published great article about Allen’s genius for social-media promotion and his willingness to call fans after they buy his album.)
It also looks like a Twitter campaign is going to get Hoodie on Jimmy Fallon’s show. And despite not having a manager or a record label, he’s developed a dedicated fan base that sent his album All American into Billboard’s Top Ten. That’s because Steven Markowitz (as his mama calls him) has been rising through the ranks of underground hip-hop for almost four years. “We’ve been listening to Hoodie Allen! Where the hell have you been?!?” “Of course we should be listening to Hoodie Allen!” they might say. For lots of people, the title of this post will seem pretty stupid.
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