If you'd asked me this question strictly about his performances up to ATS I'd tell you he was within the range of most non-club rappers you'll hear. He's very good, but he doesn't rap to make people dance and so this puts him in an entirely different category than 95% of what people think of when they think rap these days. I'm going to get in trouble for this but I'd say that, today, he's as stand-out a rapper as Eminem is in raw talent, but lyrically he's much better than the current crop. Mike's lyrics are more akin to poetry these days and so they come off as super-simple, but the amount of work he puts in making them super simple is amazing.
I hate mainstream rap. You know, that Pitbull, Lil Wayne verses that appear in female pop artists' songs. I hate that. Linkin Park made me love hip hop. And I can enjoy an Eminem, Jay-Z, Kid Cudi, or, simply, a hip hop song that has some meaning. Mike doesn't rap about how women are crawling around him, or how cool is that he's gonna party all night long. Just like he said, he isn't riding a trend, which is what I appreciate a bunch. With that said, Mike is great at rapping. Lyrics aside, his voice flows perfectly with the rhythm. He a real MC.
No offense taken, but won't agree or disagree. I was just sayin that Mike would not be considered good by today's average mainstream hip-hop fan....probably not even to underground heads
I think most people would say that Eminem, Jay-Z and Kid Cudi are "mainstream rap". Or maybe that was your point, idk. Anyway, I think a lot of people here don't realise that hip hop isn't really that big anymore and most of the stereotypes you guys are talking would only apply to songs by 50 Cent, Ludacris, The Game etc. from five to ten+ years ago now.
Whenever I want some hip hop, I just turn to A Tribe Called Quest, De La Soul, or Eric B. and Rakim. I don't even bother with current hip hop.
Hollywood Undead... shouldn't even- they're awful (in my opinion). I don't listen to that much rap but I do like some underground hip-hop, and very little mainstream from that, I wouldn't say he's a bad rapper, I think he's pretty good. His raps are enjoyable to listen to. I listen to Fort Minor sometimes, there are no songs from it I absolutely hate, but some songs are better then others. That's really what it comes down to: if you like the way it sounds it doesn't matter how good of a rapper he is. However, I don't listen to Linkin Park if I want to listen to rap: I listen to Linkin Park when I want to hear their sound
He's a good rapper, but he could be better. There are a few songs that don't hold up as much as others when it comes to him rapping (i.e. Burn It Down, Somewhere I Belong, Wretches and Kings etc). But other songs, like I Have Not Begun, A Place For My Head, and Until It Breaks, he is on point. I would love to have a song with the swagger he brings from Until It Breaks, but has the same metaphorical lyrics as A Place For My Head, or the outro to And One.
I'm not disagreeing that he has songs that are weaker and songs that are stronger. I just thibnk it's funny that in the good you mentioned I Have Not Begun and Until it Breaks which are two of my least favorite raps from him.
Well, yeah, they are mainstream rappers. But their lyrical themes aren't all that shitty. [video=youtube;JByDbPn6A1o]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JByDbPn6A1o[/video] [video=youtube;3EWruiIjBmo]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3EWruiIjBmo[/video] [video=youtube;7xzU9Qqdqww]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7xzU9Qqdqww[/video]
Ive been a hip-hop-head all my life and im pretty sure the best rapper ever is Eyedea. Second best ? Mike Shinoda.
It depends. If we're comparing him to current/mainstream rap and hip hop he's probably top 5. But all time he doesn't really compare to say Run DMC, Public Enemy, the pharcyde, Aesope Rock, or NWA. All of which are more my type of hip hop. I think he's better than any rappers. I know how this sounds but his lyrics are better than say jay z and Eminem (who are incredibly overrated if you ask me.) But he has a kind of old school sound, aggressive sound to his rapping. I like that. However his part in burn it down isn't that good and I've really come to dislike LGM.
Top 5? Interesting. If U don't mind, what are the other 4 in Ur list? I.M.O.- Mike's a gifted poet, a great performer, a good musician, but an average rapper. He's not considered an 'M.C.' as are the others listed in Ur post. It's His wide range of talents that set Him apart in the often 1 dimensional artist/musician pool.
At the end of the day, he gets the job done. His greatest aspect when it comes to rapping is how catchy his raps generally are.
Lol I mean I don't think of Mike as an all time great rapper really. I just think the current pool of talent in mainstream rap is really shallow. Like I said if going all time he's pretty far down on my list but my among current rappers I put him with Lupe fiasco, sid Wilson, zac de la rocha, and Mike are pretty much sum up my list