State Of The Art-Sudden Death

[Verse One: Tom Rockwell - Sudden Death] I took a look at the state of hip-hop, and it made my jaw drop Ccause it＇s mostly just sloppy pop I＇ve watched the quality drop over the years Even the rap pioneers managed to bring me to tears It＇s like everybody stopped trying, but people keep buying Which keeps the record companies complying And rappers gettin high and puttin out this crap It＇s pathetic what passes on the radio as rap I＇m flippin down the dial then I flip it the bird Cause every song that I hear is just totally absurd It＇s about as fresh as a turd Festering on the sidewalk as I sit there gesturing At the radio like the DJ＇s can see me I＇m screamin so my windows got steamy Every song sounds the same, if they＇re lookin for fame Why do their records sound so damn lame? The beat is a cheesy remix or a cheap rip off And the rappers come off soundin soft Cause none of it rhymes and it sounds all wrong It＇s like they＇re rappin over the beat from the previous song I get the impression that they really don＇t care What it sounds like as long as it＇s played on the air And the record companies＇ll take care of that part It＇s sad, but that＇s state of the art [Verse Two: Tom Rockwell - Sudden Death] Every album that comes out is worse than the last one Curses and a verse about how they＇re gonna blast one Mumblin the lyrics off instead of really handlin That way you can＇t tell that they＇re really just ramblin And most rappers can＇t even handle that part So they get a guest appearance by ever rapper on the charts And when that leaves you feelin all cold and empty They just add another verse by a dead MC Rappers nowadays come a dozen for a dime But true lyricists are nearly impossible to find I remember a time when I would hear Rakim And go damn, I wanna be just like him Today it＇s all about bein gangsters and pimps In real life most of ＇em are pranksters and wimps The real gangsters are out there buying the CD＇s The real pimps are the people in the record companies So don＇t tell me you keep it real cause you come off About as real as the integrity at Microsoft And like them you jam it down our throat every day But what kills me is it never used to be this way I ain＇t sayin that rap should stay the same for all time But the least they can do is make an attempt to rhyme It＇s like they got their lyrics on sale at the Qwik-E-Mart It＇s pretty sad, but that＇s the state of the art [Verse Three: Tom Rockwell - Sudden Death] What happen to the rappers who could freestyle Flow off the heads of the dome for a little while, goin wild Off of the dome flowin for a long time And hey how about that - they would actually rhyme! Legends of the game have faded away They can＇t rip it like they used to back in the day And nobody stepped up to take their place So now the race continues on at a lumbering pace Run-D.M.C. ain＇t the kings no more LL＇s about as funky as a canker sore Whodini disappeared and Doug E. Fresh went stale And I think Sir Mix-A-Lot got into some bad ale The Fat Boys broke up and then one of ＇em died And when I heard that, I sat down and cried Cause I realized I＇d never get to see them perform It was the end of an era that I had to mourn Today＇s rappers can＇t cut it like they used to There＇s a couple that I like but I won＇t say who Cause by the time this song is done those people might suck So I＇m not gonna press my luck I＇m not trying to preach, I＇m just ventin my frustration At the sense of apathy in the hip-hop nation It＇s spreadin all Hova like a rancid fart It＇s pretty sad, but that＇s the state of the art