Beef, violence, scandal, rumors, and convictions headline almost evey major radio station and online hip-hop site. You’ll probably hear about an artist’s finance troubles, criminal conflict, etc.. before you get the weather and traffic report, but what about the MUSIC? You can hear a trickle of hope sometimes bundled between inconsistency and ego. Time is a rare unreplaceable resource. A pie graph of your personal time sheet could probably explain your current circumstances better than you could. Tick.., tick.., and it moves on with or without you. Time has exposed the people’s decreasing interest in the actual music, proof being evident in sales… You can catch any local open mic packed door to door with karaoke kings four out five entries wasting time.  So how do you add time to a seemingly fading industry? You go back to the basics. Switch the dialect to the music, make your best artist your biggest stars, replace rumors with freestyles, and pass the baton when neccesary. Rap now caters to a fanbase so large that it has become watered down. The truth is you won’t find it on a pure level unless you’re listening to one of your local favorites, someone who makes music without considering markets. There are several bright spots getting buried in the miscellaneous coverage. B.O.B for example who has some high quality tracks, with a relevant flow, and personality chewing up almost every beat I’ve heard him on. The bar needs to be raised. There should be a filter of experienced musicians along with a few un-opinionated fans in every studio. There should be a rap bar test or exam before we let people put out music. Consistency, message, uniqueness, flow, and relevance should all be tested. When subpar efforts are expected and mediocrity is marveled at somethings wrong. It’s definitely time for the artist to step up……the music.