trxncvt asked: who's more underrated and why, young dro or rich boy?
well, I’m actually a fan of both, but I’m not that avid of a Rich Boy listener. I really enjoyed his debut LP, and I think he’s a pretty dope rapper when it boils down to it, in the same mold of a young Tip. Yeah, he’s a dopeboy, but he’s a dopeboy with a heart and a lotta passion. I heard a little bit from his mixtapes, but for some reason, I never really followed Rish Bwoi past 2007. Let’s Get This Paper is a banger though. Also, Polow Da Don really helped out Rich Boy on his album a lot by giving him all those beats; I wish he was still producing some Throw Some D’s soul-sampling beats instead of garbage like Spotlight.
Young Dro is a great technical rapper, another rapper who has honestly released a fantastic album and some inconsistent mixtapes along the way. Best Thang Smokin’ is one of the best purely-rapped albums of the last ten years, and Dro’s obsession with colors, cars, seafood, and dressing like our grandfathers made him stand out when he debuted amidst a bunch of Jeezy and T.I. rip offs. Oddly enough, he was referred to as the latter a bit by mainstream publications, but Dro never really reminded me much of T.I. at all, as their style is vastly different. I’m a much bigger fan of Dro than Tip (especially nowadays), but Dro’s been kinda uneven for the last four years or so. Due to the fact that his sophomore album has been in developmental hell for so long, Dro’s tried everything he can (which unfortunately includes singing) to try and get noticed again, when it’s pretty obvious he’ll never be commercially viable again, or score a hit like Shoulder Lean. He’s still one of my favorite rappers though, and in my opinion, probably the most underrated rapper alive, at least when it comes to backpackers and the like; not people who care about rapping, like noz and his disciples, who champion Dro to the end.
However, perhaps just by saying that, I’m missing the point entirely. Who do I enjoy more, and find to be a far more talented artist? Young Dro. Who’s more underrated? Probably Rich Boy, because people at least care about Dro (and even though he’s underrated and misinterpreted, people still care), meanwhile, Rich Boy is a dope rapper that’s looked at as nothing more than a one hit wonder by everyone, in real life and on teh internetz. I don’t think anyone’s even thinking of Rich Boy; I’ll be honest, this is the first time I really heard dude’s name mentioned since Drop, and all I remember that for is the beat.