/r/altrap
A place to discuss, share and enjoy alternative rap and hip-hop.
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WELCOME TO ALTRAP
A place to discuss, share and enjoy alternative rap and hip-hop.
We have but one rule; keep the focus on alternative.
If your submission gets caught up in the spam filter just give me a shout.
Keep listening to music that moves something inside of you instead of what the radio feeds you.
If you want to post your own content - please use the 'self-post' monthly thread stickied on the front page instead of posting a new link directly into the subreddit.
Also, be sure to check out:
/r/altrap
11,645 Subscribers
POST YOUR OWN MATERIAL HERE - DECEMBER 2024
This monthly thread is the place for anyone wanting to share their own content - music, blogs, articles, podcasts, etc!
Please note that any self-made content posted outside of this thread will be removed.
Previous posts:
2024
2023
2022
2021
2020
11:14 UTC
Pink Siifu - stay sane (prod. navy blue) (video)
Some of the most beautiful arthouse hip hop you'll ever hear.
09:18 UTC
Help- weird rap playlist
Back needing more suggestions for a playlist!
Also Lmk if you want the link!
04:50 UTC
What should I add to my playlist?
Open to suggestions, happy to share link!
23:37 UTC
A Leap in Time - Del tha Funkee Homosapien and Dan the Automator team up to rewrite the future.
12:49 UTC
JoeJas - Left Hearted Bandit
09:20 UTC
R.I.P Reggie "Saafir" Gibson
04:15 UTC
New Kingdom, The Goats, Digable Planets
All 3 of the aforementioned groups only had two albums, (IMO). Love albums like this from that era and still do. Cypress Hills 1st and 2nd The Beasties 2nd & 3rd, etc. Your thoughts on these groups and albums?
23:51 UTC
Alternative hip hop playlist
Artists of different size, new and old!
https://open.spotify.com/playlist/0KqmuOVz9bkmaCmxTRlNJ5?si=1W3V6XDmQZacVOgTklhkcA&pi=u-LWsHor4WTjyq
00:09 UTC
Where to discover the niche artists?
So besides here, where do the much smaller altrap artists promote their stuff? Like 20k monthly listeners or less if u look at Spotify. Thanks 🙏
00:08 UTC
Noah23 - Two Joints
14:59 UTC
What Does Alternative Hip Hop Mean To YOU?
I'm not asking what your definition of alt-rap is, necessarily. I'm basically asking what purpose the subgenre serves in your musical selection or escapades. What does it mean to you on a personal level(?), I guess.
In my case, alternative hip hop is what Grunge was to Seattle kids.
Like them, I wasn't entirely into the mainstream side of things. And while I have a lot of respect for the Golden Age of Hip Hop - with legends like Tupac, Biggie, Nas, etc. - I HAVE to wholeheartedly admit, that I didn't quite resonate with their sound and aesthetic.
I wanted something that fit my tastes a bit more.
My main attraction to hip hop came from folks like Busta Rhymes and Timbaland (especially). I loved Busta's rapping and I adored Timbaland's production. These guys were my gateway into the genre. But when I started properly listening to hip hop and trying to understand the genre a bit more, I was mainly listening to folks like Logic, Ocean Wisdom (who convinced me to start rapping), and Token.
These were guys that also became a good gateway into the genre, Logic especially.
But when I listened to Ocean Wisdom (in late 2018), something interesting popped up. Via Apple Music, his earlier works were/are categorized as Alternative Rap. Now, I knew what "alternative" music was (I was listening to folks like K. Flay, twenty øne piløts, etc.). But I initially only thought that "Alternative" only applied to rock music that blurred different genres together - which is partly correct, but I was only speculating that definition at the time.
But I only started to look into the term when I was listening to Tyler, The Creator's discography and his album WOLF was labeled as Alternative hip hop on Wikipedia. There's that term again.
And at this point (early 2021), I kind of stopped listening to hip hop music that wasn't Logic or Ocean Wisdom, because I was REALLY not into the production or subject matter from other mainstream rappers. Even certain underground hip hop was sounding a bit too bland for me.
I was super into rock and electronic music growing up (and even more so, now), so my "alternatives" to hip hop music was UK Grime (from P Money, Skepta and a bit of Stormzy) and rap rock (though, exclusively from K. Flay, grandpa and twenty øne piløts).
When I started researching just what the hell this interesting term meant...
I STRUCK FUCKING GOLD!
Alternative hip hop is exactly what I wished hip hop was.
I've ALWAYS been a fan and advocate of fusing different concepts together to make something new or to do something a bit different. I guess, that's why I loved twenty øne piløts so damn much.
So when I found out that both K. Flay, twenty øne piløts, and now Tyler, The Creator were also associated with this term, I locked the fuck in.
And ever since, alternative hip hop has been my go to genre of music.
Because I like the art of rapping. Poetic lyricism with a less melodic and more rapid pace. But I never liked the subject matter or the production of trap music or certain boom bap anthems.
Production wise I've always wanted hip hop beats that were more inspired by rock, electronic, ambient or psychedelia.
Alternative hip hop gave me those experimental fusions. Rap rock, industrial hip hop, psychedelic hip hop.
I've always wanted to join my peers in their enjoyment of hip hop music (mind you, there was SOME mainstream hip hop I vibed with). But now I found my own "alternative" that somehow subverts the styles that they like.
Alternative hip hop speaks to me as a person, who loves the art of rap and the fusion of styles that cater more to what I find interesting. Therefore, I found my musical home.
12:57 UTC
DJ Krush & Black Thought - Zen Approach
07:16 UTC
Any good artists to get into if I'm into JPEGMAFIA?
I remember first listening to Peggy. I was on the beach cleaning up trash on probation. I put my earphones in expecting some new cloud rap shit because that was what was popular at the time. Hearing his varied, trippy, industrial production and his brash, nihilistic, political lyrics... I felt like at one point I was tripping on acid... I've been a fan ever since...
Do you guys have any suggestions on other rappers that are as experimental with their sound as he is? Any artists that rap as experimental / political as he does?
Thanks in advance.
01:29 UTC
POST YOUR OWN MATERIAL HERE - NOVEMBER 2024
This monthly thread is the place for anyone wanting to share their own content - music, blogs, articles, podcasts, etc!
Please note that any self-made content posted outside of this thread will be removed.
Previous posts:
2024
2023
2022
2021
2020
16:39 UTC
Buck 65 - Phil
13:29 UTC
Nujabes - battlecry (ft. Shing02)
07:38 UTC
Captain Murphy - Mighty Morphin Foreskin
13:26 UTC
Any cool Alt Rap Record Labels I should check out?
Up and coming or established?
22:22 UTC
The Beauty of Ambient Hip Hop
Ambient music is atmospheric and immersive in nature, playing with dreamlike or eerie tones. The minimalist production of ambient music allows for a spacious sound and feel, enhancing the immersion and allowing the listener to fit into the music.
But what happens when you fuse the spacious and atmospheric nature of ambient music, with the beats and raps of hip hop?
808s in ambient music is nothing new. Downtempo and trip hop had already experimented with ambient textures, mixed with chill beats.The trip hop scene in the mid to late 90s very much pioneered the atmospheric fusion with hip hop. Folks like DJ Shadow and DJ Krush took the hip hop template and decided to make it more cinematic and meditative. The 90s was also a time when ambient fusions were at an all time high. Genres like Intelligent Drum & Bass, Ambient house, Ambient techno, Chill-out and Downtempo were rocking the underground scenes.
So, it was about time that hip hop and rap music joined the spaced out corners of ambient music.
Ambient hip hop (which would become interchangeable with cloud rap) is a match made in surreal heaven. Not only the sound, but also the aesthetic. Breakbeats and raps over ambient melodies made for such a surreal fusion, as all the grit from Golden Age Hip Hop was washed clean with atmospheric soundscapes, as well as dreamy or eerie imagery.
And the aesthetic of ambient hip hop is also interesting. Despite the cleaner and otherworldy sound, album covers would still look grimy and the artists would still be rocking informal streetwear. Except, these ambient hip hop artists wouldn't be gangsters, wearing luxurious jewelry and driving lowriders. Instead, they would be a bunch of stoners, street artists, and skaters carrying around their drum machines & backpacks, as well as crate digging like it's a part time job.
While gangsta and hardcore rap was meant to raise awareness of the ghetto hard ships and the oppression of African-Americans, ambient hip hop was meant to take you on a surreal journey and clear your mind with the same tools used to make those hardcore records.
10:39 UTC
Flying Lotus - Zodiac Shit
15:28 UTC
I'm looking for obscure 2000's alt rap that I might have not heard.
I'm well versed in Def Jux stuff ie CanOx, Mr Lif, El-P, Aes, Murs etc. I'm looking for even more underground stuff as I love this era of alt rap and want to find more. Drop me some links please!
10:55 UTC
Deca & Dealz - "Caught in the Fray"
19:05 UTC
Saul Williams - Black History Month
15:04 UTC
POST YOUR OWN MATERIAL HERE - OCTOBER 2024
This monthly thread is the place for anyone wanting to share their own content - music, blogs, articles, podcasts, etc!
Please note that any self-made content posted outside of this thread will be removed.
Previous posts:
2024
2023
2022
2021
2020
15:02 UTC
slowsigh - WAY OUT
19:49 UTC
Some Alt Rap For The Summer
• Hieroglyphics - You Never Knew
• Souls of Mischief - '93 Til Infinity
• JPEGMAFIA - Grimy Waifu
• JPEGMAFIA - WHAT KINDA RAPPIN' IS THIS?
• Tyler, The Creator - Glitter
• BROCKHAMPTON - JOHNNY
• BROCKHAMPTON - Big Pussy
• Watsky - Don't Be Nice
• Mos Def - Speed Law
• A Tribe Called Quest - Award Tour
• A$AP Rocky - Kids Turned Out Fine
• MF DOOM - One Beer
• Niko B - Who's That What's That?
• Flying Lotus - More (ft. Anderson .Paak)
• De La Soul - Eye Know
• Shabazz Palaces - Fast Learner
• Captain Murphy - Between Friends (ft. Earl Sweatshirt)
• Earl Sweatshirt - 2010
• Earl Sweatshirt - Inside
• Pink Siifu - Lng Hair Dnt Care
• Devon Hendryx - Generation Y 1989
• Devon Hendryx - Montebello High School Prom
• Samiyam - Hummus (ft. The Alchemist)
• VRITRA - FRENDZ
• Pyramid Vritra - Like Summer
• twenty øne piløts - Lavish
• twenty øne piløts - Lane Boy
• Del The Funky Homosapien - No Need For Alarm
• Topaz Jones - D.I.A.L
• Topaz Jones - Buggin
13:52 UTC
Fly Anakin - Sean Price (Official Video)
08:59 UTC
Upcoming Eyedea book announced
The Many Facets of Eyedea: Selected Writings & Oral History.
Published by Parker Pubs in collaboration with Kathy Averill.
More info coming soon...
00:01 UTC
Del The Funky Homosapien - Chunkin' [Manik Mondaze]
15:09 UTC
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