Today marks the rather born day of a lyricist who has eternally contributed to the supremacy of Hip-Hop culture, Talib Kweli.
Alone, the Brooklyn breed emcee is a force of overwhelming influence when it comes to essential rapping. Essential rapping that is centered around the logistics of the Black man in North America. True Hip-Hop heads are familiar with Kweli’s late ’90s debut as one half of quintessential duo Black Star where he shares the tasks of audible blows with Yasiin Bey formerly, Mos Def. His canny wordplay and strategically complex approach honored the clever bars of Mos as they went on to pave an exclusive lane with their debut album, Mos Def & Talib Kweli Are Black Star.
The duo painted a clear picture regarding the handicapped state of Hip-Hop and matters in sync, which were headers of the Black community: knowledge of self, civilian challenges, and the demise of Hip-Hop leadership via the deaths of Biggie Smalls and Tupac Shakur. Tracks in the likes of “Respiration” feat Common, “Re:Definition,” and “What’s Beef” set suspense as to the forthcoming spits of Kweli.
Monumental to independently moved rap musicians, Kweli’s 2002 solo debut Quality soared towards his steady mark as an overall artist. Cracking into the mainstream, rap fans spanning from hardcore tasters to underground chasers embraced the make of the Kanye West-produced “Get By” and track where the Black Star emcee elaborates on the hand-to-mouth lifestyle of Blacks and Latinos in America, solidifying his stance as an unquestionable activist.
Kweli went on the craft seven more solo gems, including 2004’s victorious The Beautiful Struggle and 2007’s Eardrum, undisputed classic makes from the Brooklyn emcee.
Overall, Talib Kweli is an avid Hip-Hop purist. At the age of 43, he still owns authoritative dynamism in the emcee arena through sound. Showcased on his latest gem, Radio Silence, Kweli has morphed with the times in respect to his signature philosophical stance as he collaborated with modern day sensations in the likes of Anderson .Paak, Waka Flocka, Rick Ross, and Yummy Bingham. He continues to stand firm in social activism, most notably in the virtual walls of Twitter, where he effortlessly debunks the rhetoric of opposing forces and is heralded as one of the few from his Hip-Hop generation to stand as an influencer in the niche.
Happy birthday to Brooklyn’s unapologetic defiant lyricist, Talib Kweli.
