On this day in Hip Hop, I feel we as an audience take for granted the contributions that our rap forerunners have set. We love what we love, right? However, I don’t think many bother to care or appreciate what came before that transpired the now and present. That’s regarding the different styles that have developed throughout our many years
There are many schools of Hip Hop: Lyrical, Street, Hustlas, Fashion Killas, B-Boy, Poppy, Consciousness, Experimental/Abstract, Grown & Classy. Yet, one school that has had a big impact on the genre has been Melodic, or specifically the melodic crooner wave. These days, it’s hard to find a contemporary Hip Hop song without melodic elements.
And make no mistake — if it wasn’t for the arrival of the late Long Beach artist, Nate Dogg, I highly doubt that the world would be accepting, or would have been open to see Hip Hop evolve.
Specifically, it has always dawned on me how unique he was when he first came out and his longevity. The man was a bona fide hook master that every rapper wanted on a song due to his vibrato, hardened angel gospel stirring vocals. Basically, the original singer that is a rapper but is a singer.
His range of hits include: “Regulate”(1994), “All Bout U” (1996), “The Next Episode”(2000), “Where I Wanna Be”(2000), “Area Codes”(2001), “Can’t Deny It”(2001), “21 Questions”(2003), “I Like That”(2004), “Shake That”(2006) and so many that are hard to contain in one article.
An excellent yet underrated songwriter he was, I considered him to have created/or solidified the school of melodic Hip Hop. However with two lanes at the forefront within. You have the Ja Rule, Nelly, 50 Cent and Drake camp who blended melody with rhythmic/rapping elements. The other lane, that we’ll discuss, is the melodic crooner style that Nate Dogg played a role in spearheading: singers that have the vibe, rhythm and feel of rappers. TJ Swan of the Juice Crew (mid to late 80s) is an early architect but he wasn’t as good or as captivating of a singer as Nate Dogg was.
In my opinion, the melodic crooner lineage is Nate Dogg to Devin The Dude, Kokane, and LV, to Big Moe & Sleepy Brown, to Butch Cassidy, to Akon & T-Pain, to Roscoe Dash, to Ty Dolla Sign & Buddy, to Don Toliver, Rod Wave, BLXST and Morray. Most of these artists have directly and indirectly cited the King of Hooks as an influence on their music.
This is probably a lot more complex than it gets. Still, I can’t help but pinpoint that he serves as the bridge to the style of Melodic Hip Hop. Without him….Hip Hop may not have reached the global appeal or marketing endorsements it has received.
RIP Nate Dogg.
