{"id":607325,"date":"2024-02-01T19:18:01","date_gmt":"2024-02-01T16:18:01","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/en.buradabiliyorum.com\/how-pitchfork-changed-the-rap-industry-by-changing-itself\/"},"modified":"2024-02-01T19:18:01","modified_gmt":"2024-02-01T16:18:01","slug":"how-pitchfork-changed-the-rap-industry-by-changing-itself","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/how-pitchfork-changed-the-rap-industry-by-changing-itself\/","title":{"rendered":"#How Pitchfork changed the rap industry by changing itself"},"content":{"rendered":"<div id=\"ez-toc-container\" class=\"ez-toc-v2_0_84 counter-hierarchy ez-toc-counter ez-toc-custom ez-toc-container-direction\">\n<p class=\"ez-toc-title\" style=\"cursor:inherit\">Table of Contents<\/p>\n<label for=\"ez-toc-cssicon-toggle-item-6a2e2cc31522e\" class=\"ez-toc-cssicon-toggle-label\"><span class=\"\"><span class=\"eztoc-hide\" style=\"display:none;\">Toggle<\/span><span class=\"ez-toc-icon-toggle-span\"><svg style=\"fill: #dd3333;color:#dd3333\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" class=\"list-377408\" width=\"20px\" height=\"20px\" viewBox=\"0 0 24 24\" fill=\"none\"><path d=\"M6 6H4v2h2V6zm14 0H8v2h12V6zM4 11h2v2H4v-2zm16 0H8v2h12v-2zM4 16h2v2H4v-2zm16 0H8v2h12v-2z\" fill=\"currentColor\"><\/path><\/svg><svg style=\"fill: #dd3333;color:#dd3333\" class=\"arrow-unsorted-368013\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" width=\"10px\" height=\"10px\" viewBox=\"0 0 24 24\" version=\"1.2\" baseProfile=\"tiny\"><path d=\"M18.2 9.3l-6.2-6.3-6.2 6.3c-.2.2-.3.4-.3.7s.1.5.3.7c.2.2.4.3.7.3h11c.3 0 .5-.1.7-.3.2-.2.3-.5.3-.7s-.1-.5-.3-.7zM5.8 14.7l6.2 6.3 6.2-6.3c.2-.2.3-.5.3-.7s-.1-.5-.3-.7c-.2-.2-.4-.3-.7-.3h-11c-.3 0-.5.1-.7.3-.2.2-.3.5-.3.7s.1.5.3.7z\"\/><\/svg><\/span><\/span><\/label><input type=\"checkbox\"  id=\"ez-toc-cssicon-toggle-item-6a2e2cc31522e\" checked aria-label=\"Toggle\" \/><nav><ul class='ez-toc-list ez-toc-list-level-1 ' ><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-1\" href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/how-pitchfork-changed-the-rap-industry-by-changing-itself\/#In_the_wake_of_massive_layoffs_at_Pitchfork_Nadine_Smith_a_Pitchfork_rap_freelancer_for_half_a_decade_tracks_the_sites_growth_from_hip-hop_gadfly_to_an_essential_critical_voice_of_the_genre\" >In the wake of massive layoffs at Pitchfork, Nadine Smith, a Pitchfork rap freelancer for half a decade, tracks the site\u2019s growth from hip-hop gadfly to an essential critical voice of the genre.<\/a><\/li><\/ul><\/nav><\/div>\n<h2 class=\"deck\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"In_the_wake_of_massive_layoffs_at_Pitchfork_Nadine_Smith_a_Pitchfork_rap_freelancer_for_half_a_decade_tracks_the_sites_growth_from_hip-hop_gadfly_to_an_essential_critical_voice_of_the_genre\"><\/span>In the wake of massive layoffs at Pitchfork, Nadine Smith, a Pitchfork rap freelancer for half a decade, tracks the site\u2019s growth from hip-hop gadfly to an essential critical voice of the genre.<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n<p><\/p>\n<div class=\"content_blocks\">\n<style>\n<\/style>\n<div id=\"content_block-259394\" class=\"content_block breaker triple_gutter_right triple_gutter_left image\">\n<div class=\"media_wrapper\">\n<p>  <img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/thefader-res.cloudinary.com\/private_images\/w_1440,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:best\/GettyImages-452472700_xqpg9h\/isaiah-rashad-performs-at-the-2014-pitchfork-music-festival-in-july-20-2014-photo-by-roger-kisby-getty-images.jpg\" srcset=\"https:\/\/thefader-res.cloudinary.com\/private_images\/w_220,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:best\/GettyImages-452472700_xqpg9h\/isaiah-rashad-performs-at-the-2014-pitchfork-music-festival-in-july-20-2014-photo-by-roger-kisby-getty-images.jpg 220w,https:\/\/thefader-res.cloudinary.com\/private_images\/w_300,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:best\/GettyImages-452472700_xqpg9h\/isaiah-rashad-performs-at-the-2014-pitchfork-music-festival-in-july-20-2014-photo-by-roger-kisby-getty-images.jpg 300w,https:\/\/thefader-res.cloudinary.com\/private_images\/w_400,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:best\/GettyImages-452472700_xqpg9h\/isaiah-rashad-performs-at-the-2014-pitchfork-music-festival-in-july-20-2014-photo-by-roger-kisby-getty-images.jpg 400w,https:\/\/thefader-res.cloudinary.com\/private_images\/w_600,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:best\/GettyImages-452472700_xqpg9h\/isaiah-rashad-performs-at-the-2014-pitchfork-music-festival-in-july-20-2014-photo-by-roger-kisby-getty-images.jpg 600w,https:\/\/thefader-res.cloudinary.com\/private_images\/w_750,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:best\/GettyImages-452472700_xqpg9h\/isaiah-rashad-performs-at-the-2014-pitchfork-music-festival-in-july-20-2014-photo-by-roger-kisby-getty-images.jpg 750w,https:\/\/thefader-res.cloudinary.com\/private_images\/w_840,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:best\/GettyImages-452472700_xqpg9h\/isaiah-rashad-performs-at-the-2014-pitchfork-music-festival-in-july-20-2014-photo-by-roger-kisby-getty-images.jpg 840w,https:\/\/thefader-res.cloudinary.com\/private_images\/w_960,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:best\/GettyImages-452472700_xqpg9h\/isaiah-rashad-performs-at-the-2014-pitchfork-music-festival-in-july-20-2014-photo-by-roger-kisby-getty-images.jpg 960w,https:\/\/thefader-res.cloudinary.com\/private_images\/w_1260,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:best\/GettyImages-452472700_xqpg9h\/isaiah-rashad-performs-at-the-2014-pitchfork-music-festival-in-july-20-2014-photo-by-roger-kisby-getty-images.jpg 1260w,https:\/\/thefader-res.cloudinary.com\/private_images\/w_1800,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:best\/GettyImages-452472700_xqpg9h\/isaiah-rashad-performs-at-the-2014-pitchfork-music-festival-in-july-20-2014-photo-by-roger-kisby-getty-images.jpg 1800w,https:\/\/thefader-res.cloudinary.com\/private_images\/w_2400,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:best\/GettyImages-452472700_xqpg9h\/isaiah-rashad-performs-at-the-2014-pitchfork-music-festival-in-july-20-2014-photo-by-roger-kisby-getty-images.jpg 2400w,\" sizes=\"100vw\" alt=\"How Pitchfork changed the rap industry by changing itself\"><span class=\"img_caption\"><\/p>\n<p>    <span class=\"caption\"><br \/>\n      Isaiah Rashad performs at the 2014 Pitchfork Music Festival in July 20, 2014. Photo by Roger Kisby\/Getty Images.<br \/>\n    <\/span><\/p>\n<p>  <span class=\"credit\"><br \/>\n      \u00a0<\/p>\n<p>  <\/span><\/p>\n<p><\/span><\/p><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<style>\n<\/style>\n<div id=\"content_block-259384\" class=\"content_block paragraph text triple_gutter_right triple_gutter_left center_align\">\n<div class=\"content_inner_wrapper\">\n<div class=\"paragraph_wrapper center_align\">\n<p>            <i>Rap Column is a column about rap music by Vivian Medithi and Nadine Smith for The FADER.<\/i><\/p>\n<div class=\"\" style=\"padding-bottom: 20px; margin-top: 20px; text-align: left;\">\n<\/div><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<style>\n<\/style>\n<div id=\"content_block-259386\" class=\"content_block paragraph text triple_gutter_right triple_gutter_left center_align\">\n<div class=\"content_inner_wrapper\">\n<div class=\"paragraph_wrapper center_align\">\n<p>            It\u2019s been two weeks since the <a href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/category\/news\/\" data-internallinksmanager029f6b8e52c=\"2\" title=\"News\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">news<\/a> broke that Pitchfork, a bellwether of music for over two decades, would be dramatically restructured by parent company and publisher Conde Nast. In a swift and unexpected bloodletting, <a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/apnews.com\/article\/music-pitchfork-gq-conde-nast-wintour-media-ecaef9445b5d9f86d9990c181306cb71\">at least a dozen staffers were laid off<\/a>, and every section of the site aside from Reviews and News essentially shuttered. Conde Nast has said that they intend to bring Pitchfork under the editorial purview of <i>GQ<\/i>, but what exactly that means is still unclear: for the time being, at least, the Pitchfork brand remains, albeit in a desiccated form.<\/p>\n<div class=\"\" style=\"padding-bottom: 20px; margin-top: 20px; text-align: left;\">\n<\/div>\n<p>            The shocking development prompted <a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.vulture.com\/article\/what-we-owe-pitchfork.html\">countless writers<\/a>, readers, and <a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/lookingforgold.blogspot.com\/2024\/01\/p-fork.html\">even artists<\/a> to begin <a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.rollingstone.com\/music\/music-features\/pitchfork-music-gq-1234949447\/\">pouring one out<\/a> for a publication that has helped define millennial culture. If you\u2019ve followed music at all in the 21st century, you probably have an opinion about Pitchfork: maybe you love it for introducing you to music you\u2019ve never heard of, or maybe you hate it because they gave your favorite artist a 5.3 a decade ago. Either way, it was a crucial link in the chain of the music ecosystem, not just for the writers who worked there, but for the musicians and publicists who depended upon its coverage. <\/p>\n<p>            Though the pronouncement of Pitchfork\u2019s actual death may have been slightly premature, it\u2019s nevertheless the end of an era: the lay-offs included not just editor-in-chief Puja Patel, but some of its longest-serving staffers, including editors like Amy Phillips and Ryan Dombal who have worked for the company since the 2000s\u2014an increasing rarity in a digital <a href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/category\/social-mediaa\/\" data-internallinksmanager029f6b8e52c=\"1\" title=\"Social Media\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">media<\/a> landscape where the turnover feels endless and writers are regularly disposed of to satisfy the impossible demands of corporate overlords.<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"content_block paragraph triple_gutter_right triple_gutter_left\">\n<div class=\"content_inner_wrapper\">\n<div class=\"\" style=\"padding-bottom: 20px; margin-top: 20px; text-align: left;\">\n<\/div><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<style>\n<\/style>\n<div id=\"content_block-259397\" class=\"content_block breaker triple_gutter_right triple_gutter_left pull_quote\">\n<div class=\"media_wrapper\">\n<blockquote class=\"pull_quote\"><p>Over the last decade&#8230; the site began to take rap seriously, making hip-hop a core component of its coverage instead of a mere <a href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/category\/download-scripts-themes-apps\/\" data-internallinksmanager029f6b8e52c=\"9\" title=\"Download Scripts &amp; Themes &amp; Apps\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">app<\/a>endage.<\/p><\/blockquote><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<style>\n<\/style>\n<div id=\"content_block-259387\" class=\"content_block paragraph text triple_gutter_right triple_gutter_left center_align\">\n<div class=\"content_inner_wrapper\">\n<div class=\"paragraph_wrapper center_align\">\n<p>            I should divulge at this point that I do have a particular bias when it comes to Pitchfork: 2024 will mark five years that I\u2019ve been a freelance contributor to the site, a relationship that began when I reviewed a project from <a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/pitchfork.com\/reviews\/albums\/triad-god-triad\/\">the vocalist Triad God<\/a> in 2019. It\u2019s impossible for me to overstate the impact that writing for Pitchfork has had on my own career, both in the platform it gave me and the opportunity to be edited by some of the sharpest minds in the business. While I\u2019d written about music before, it wasn\u2019t until I wrote for Pitchfork that I started to feel like I was an actual music writer, a voice contributing to a culture much larger than myself. There\u2019s a strong likelihood I would not even be authoring this column if it wasn\u2019t for everything I learned from Pitchfork. <\/p>\n<p>            When I first heard about the massacre behind-the-scenes, it knocked me off my axis \u2014 other outlets have paid me better, but the consistency of my relationship with Pitchfork has been a crucial anchor in an industry where freelancers are guaranteed nothing. Being a self-employed homebody, I don\u2019t have any of the nostalgic memories of working in the office or listening to a hotly-anticipated record together that true blue Pitchfork staffers might be able to provide. But I do think I can offer some insight into the site\u2019s legacy, especially where rap is concerned: not just as someone who contributed a piece of that coverage over the years, but as someone who read it extensively. <\/p>\n<div class=\"\" style=\"padding-bottom: 20px; margin-top: 20px; text-align: left;\">\n<\/div><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<style>\n<\/style>\n<div id=\"content_block-259388\" class=\"content_block paragraph text triple_gutter_right triple_gutter_left center_align\">\n<div class=\"content_inner_wrapper\">\n<div class=\"paragraph_wrapper center_align\">\n<p>            It might just be an age difference or a matter of taste, but I never really felt much connection to the provocations of Pitchfork\u2019s early years: my most formative exposure to the site wasn\u2019t in the halcyon days of blog rock, but the early and mid-2010s, when the site began to substantially expand the range of genres it covered. Pitchfork was and is inextricably intertwined with \u201cindie\u201d culture, but I always gravitated toward the rap coverage: to me, Pitchfork was never about indie guys taking the piss out of sacred cows, it was <a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/pitchfork.com\/staff\/meaghan-garvey\/\">Meaghan Garvey<\/a> writing about <a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/pitchfork.com\/features\/rising\/9647-sicko-mobbs-never-ending-party\/\">Sicko Mobb<\/a>, or <a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/pitchfork.com\/staff\/tom-breihan\/\">Tom Breihan<\/a> writing about <a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/pitchfork.com\/artists\/27250-paper-route-gangstaz\/\">Paper Route Gangstaz<\/a>, or <a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/pitchfork.com\/staff\/david-drake\/\">David Drake<\/a> writing about <a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/pitchfork.com\/reviews\/albums\/22157-gucci-mane-everybody-looking\/\">Gucci Mane<\/a>. I still constantly think about a stray line from <a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/pitchfork.com\/staff\/jeff-weiss\/\">Jeff Weiss<\/a>\u2019 <a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/pitchfork.com\/features\/lists-and-guides\/9779-the-year-in-rap-2015\/#:~:text=Jeff%20Weiss%20details%20Drake's%20two,world%20of%20nihilist%2Dflavored%20capitalism.\">2015 survey of the year in hip-hop<\/a>, where he says \u201cIf Kanye is rap\u2019s Steve Jobs, Drake is the CEO of Snapchat.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>            Whenever I hear complaints that Pitchfork went too \u201cpoptimist,\u201d it rings a little hollow. In the 2010s, Pitchfork did start to review pop artists it might have deliberately ignored in a previous era, but it was part of a larger effort to broaden the range of genres that the site took seriously. That change wasn\u2019t just about keeping up with the times or trying to cover a more diverse arrange of artists; in many ways, it was a response to the razing of music media, as many genre-specific publications died or dwindled. With rap magazines like <i>XXL<\/i> and <i>The Source<\/i> becoming shadows of their former selves, it fell on comprehensive publications like Pitchfork to fill in the gaps.<\/p>\n<div class=\"\" style=\"padding-bottom: 20px; margin-top: 20px; text-align: left;\">\n<\/div>\n<p>            To my eyes, the most substantial change in Pitchfork\u2019s editorial direction over the last decade isn\u2019t that pop music got more space: it\u2019s that the site began to take rap seriously, making hip-hop a core component of its coverage instead of a mere appendage. Just compare <a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/pitchfork.com\/features\/lists-and-guides\/5923-top-100-albums-of-the-1990s\/?page=9\">Pitchfork\u2019s list of the best albums of the 1990s from 2003<\/a> with <a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/pitchfork.com\/features\/lists-and-guides\/the-best-albums-of-the-1990s\/\">the version published last year<\/a>: the only hip-hop album that cracked the top 10 on the original list was DJ Shadow\u2019s <i>Endtroducing<\/i>, while the 2023 update includes Ms. Lauryn Hill, Wu-Tang Clan, and A Tribe Called Quest. Part of that is a <a href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/category\/general\/\" data-internallinksmanager029f6b8e52c=\"3\" title=\"General\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">general<\/a> cultural change beyond Pitchfork, as hip-hop has become subsumed into the elemental texture of pop music.<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<style>\n<\/style>\n<div id=\"content_block-259398\" class=\"content_block breaker triple_gutter_right triple_gutter_left video\">\n<div class=\"media_wrapper\">\n<div class=\"video_wrapper\">\n<div class=\"fluid-width-video-wrapper\" style=\"padding-top: 56.25%;\">\n<p>    <iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"Sicko Mobb - Fiesta REMIX (Explicit) ft. A$AP Ferg\" width=\"640\" height=\"360\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/PAigszDtXK8?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe><\/p><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p><script>\n \/\/trackYouTubeVideo('259398');\n<\/script><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"content_block paragraph triple_gutter_right triple_gutter_left\">\n<div class=\"content_inner_wrapper\">\n<div class=\"\" style=\"padding-bottom: 20px; margin-top: 20px; text-align: left;\">\n<\/div><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<style>\n<\/style>\n<div id=\"content_block-259389\" class=\"content_block paragraph text triple_gutter_right triple_gutter_left center_align\">\n<div class=\"content_inner_wrapper\">\n<div class=\"paragraph_wrapper center_align\">\n<p>            Pitchfork\u2019s initial ethos was very much what you would expect from a group of predominantly white DIY guys from Chicago, which meant that in the site\u2019s early years, rap and R&amp;B were largely overlooked, perceived as a representation of the corporate values Pitchfork set out to skewer. Despite that perception, Pitchfork was never totally rap-agnostic. <a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/defector.com\/a-notorious-pitchfork-reviewer-was-my-biggest-musical-influence\">In the prehistoric era of the site<\/a> that now only lives on the Wayback Machine, you can find reviews of everything from <a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/web.archive.org\/web\/20000816035531\/http:\/\/www.pitchforkmedia.com\/record-reviews\/d\/dr-octagon\/dr-octagonecologyst.shtml\">Dr. Octagon<\/a> to <a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/web.archive.org\/web\/20000816034906\/http:\/\/www.pitchforkmedia.com\/record-reviews\/k\/kottonmouth-kings\/royal-highness.shtml\">Kottonmouth Kings<\/a>, though even positive coverage of hip-hop could still at times treat it like an exoticized novelty. <\/p>\n<p>            Pitchfork started to take rap more seriously with the addition of writer <a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/pitchfork.com\/staff\/rollie-pemberton\/albumreviews\/?page=3\">Rollie Pemberton<\/a>, better known today as the rapper Cadence Weapon. In his 2022 memoir <i>Bedroom Rapper<\/i>, Pemberton <a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/thewalrus.ca\/bedroom-rapper\/\">reflects on his time<\/a> reviewing albums for the site; the then-17-year old reached out to site founder Ryan Schrieber about contributing after noticing that only one rap album, Cannibal Ox\u2019s <i>The Cold Vein<\/i>, made it onto 2001\u2019s end-of-year list. Though Pemberton could snark it up with the best of them, he also brought a sense of history and tactility to his rap reviews that other contributors at the time lacked:<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"content_block paragraph triple_gutter_right triple_gutter_left\">\n<div class=\"content_inner_wrapper\">\n<div class=\"\" style=\"padding-bottom: 20px; margin-top: 20px; text-align: left;\">\n<\/div><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<style>\n<\/style>\n<div id=\"content_block-259391\" class=\"content_block breaker triple_gutter_right triple_gutter_left block_quote\">\n<div class=\"media_wrapper\">\n<div class=\"block_quote_wrapper paragraph_wrapper\">\n  I was a young Black rapper with a solid grasp of classic and underground hip hop, which imbued my writing about rap with a level of credibility no other reviewer there had. If you look at the write-ups for Pitchfork\u2019s top fifty singles of 2003, when some of the other writers wrote about rap, it seemed as if they were doing it begrudgingly, like they had been forced to acknowledge the greatness of a track but wished they hadn\u2019t. It felt disrespectful. Some writers wrote about rap music like they were detailing the movements of a newly discovered tribe in <i>National Geographic<\/i>. Back then, white critics treated mainstream rap and R&amp;B singles solely as guilty pleasures.\n<\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<style>\n<\/style>\n<div id=\"content_block-259390\" class=\"content_block paragraph text triple_gutter_right triple_gutter_left center_align\">\n<div class=\"content_inner_wrapper\">\n<div class=\"paragraph_wrapper center_align\">\n<p>            Pemberton\u2019s reviews took rap seriously, not just as a music but as a living culture that he was actually immersed in. His mentality \u2014 a fondness for the alternative and a skepticism toward the mainstream \u2014 mirrored Pitchfork\u2019s approach to rock music, as Pemberton covered the latest releases from underground labels like Rhymesayers and Def Jux while also putting on for lesser-known acts, like fellow Canadian rapper Buck 65. 2003 saw the launch of Pitchfork\u2019s highly-coveted Best New Music feature, and five rap albums received the designation that year: <a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/pitchfork.com\/reviews\/albums\/8670-oaklandazulasylum\/\">WHY?\u2019s <i>Oaklandazulasylum<\/i><\/a>, <a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/pitchfork.com\/reviews\/albums\/2345-boy-in-da-corner\/\">Dizzee Rascal\u2019s <i>Boy In Da Corner<\/i><\/a>, <a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/pitchfork.com\/reviews\/albums\/8514-vaudeville-villain\/\">Viktor Vaughn\u2019s <i>Vaudeville Villain<\/i><\/a>, <a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/pitchfork.com\/reviews\/albums\/5883-hope\/\">Non-Prophets\u2019 <i>Hope<\/i><\/a>, and <a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/pitchfork.com\/reviews\/albums\/4219-the-black-album\/\">JAY-Z\u2019s <i>The Black Album<\/i><\/a>. Even though the site was starting to push its own envelope, that line-up illustrates how Pitchfork often favored a more traditional conception of underground hip-hop; one of Pemberton\u2019s most controversial reviews was an infamous 3.2 pan of <a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/pitchfork.com\/reviews\/albums\/7712-from-me-to-u\/\">Juelz Santana\u2019s <i>From Me to U<\/i><\/a>. <\/p>\n<p><\/p>\n<div class=\"\" style=\"padding-bottom: 20px; margin-top: 20px; text-align: left;\">\n<\/div><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<style>\n<\/style>\n<div id=\"content_block-259392\" class=\"content_block paragraph text triple_gutter_right triple_gutter_left center_align\">\n<div class=\"content_inner_wrapper\">\n<div class=\"paragraph_wrapper center_align\">\n<p>            Though Pemberton was fired from the site in 2004, he laid the groundwork for what was to come, and Pitchfork\u2019s rap coverage continued to expand with the addition of writers like Tom Breihan. In the late 2000s and early 2010s, the rap albums most highly acclaimed by Pitchfork often felt like consensus favorites: marquee major label acts like Kanye and Drake, or critical darlings like Earl Sweatshirt and Danny Brown. While the writing itself could be very good, it still sometimes felt like the site approached rap music from the perspective of an indie head who only checks out a handful of pre-approved hip-hop records a year.<\/p>\n<p>            In the last five years, the site\u2019s rap coverage shifted; it was less concerned with attempting to capture an elusive monoculture, and more interested in exploring the actual frontiers of hip-hop culture. These days, it\u2019s not usually Kendrick who gets Best New Music, but emerging voices like <a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/pitchfork.com\/reviews\/albums\/silkmoney-i-dont-give-a-fuck-about-this-rap-shit-imma-just-drop-until-i-dont-feel-like-it-anymore\/\">$ilkMoney<\/a>, <a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/pitchfork.com\/reviews\/albums\/yung-kayo-down-for-the-kount\/\">Yung Kayo<\/a>, or <a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/pitchfork.com\/reviews\/albums\/ceo-trayle-hh5\/\">CEO Trayle<\/a>. I\u2019m not sure of many other sites that would give such high marks to the album that <a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/pitchfork.com\/reviews\/albums\/drakeo-the-ruler-thank-you-for-using-gtl\/\">Drakeo the Ruler recorded over a prison phone<\/a>. Staff writer <a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/pitchfork.com\/staff\/alphonse-pierre\/\">Alphonse Pierre<\/a> is something like the Jacques Cousteau of rap, uncovering hidden gems I\u2019d never hear of otherwise; he was an early advocate of the new waves of Michigan rap and New York sample drill, and he\u2019s been at the forefront of <a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/pitchfork.com\/features\/article\/milwaukee-rap-scene\/\">Milwaukee\u2019s exploding scene<\/a>. While Alphonse is constantly putting over younger talent, I\u2019m always impressed by the careful and thoughtful manner in which <a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/pitchfork.com\/staff\/dylan-green\/\">Dylan Green<\/a> considers the legacies of living legends, from controversial icons like <a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/pitchfork.com\/reviews\/albums\/killer-mike-michael\/\">Killer Mike<\/a> to underappreciated lyricists like <a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/pitchfork.com\/reviews\/albums\/starlito-love-drug\/\">Starlito<\/a>, as well as Paul Thompson\u2019s grasp of rap history. And then there\u2019s a whole host of emerging writers who have joined the stable of insightful voices: <a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/pitchfork.com\/staff\/mano-sundaresan\/\">Mano Sundaresan<\/a>, <a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/pitchfork.com\/staff\/hattie-lindert\/\">Hattie Lindert<\/a>, <a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/pitchfork.com\/staff\/dash-lewis\/\">Dash Lewis<\/a>, and so many more I\u2019m probably forgetting. <\/p>\n<div class=\"\" style=\"padding-bottom: 20px; margin-top: 20px; text-align: left;\">\n<\/div><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<style>\n<\/style>\n<div id=\"content_block-259400\" class=\"content_block breaker triple_gutter_right triple_gutter_left video\">\n<div class=\"media_wrapper\">\n<div class=\"video_wrapper\">\n<div class=\"fluid-width-video-wrapper\" style=\"padding-top: 56.25%;\">\n<p>    <iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"CEO Trayle - The Thanks I Get (Official Music Video)\" width=\"640\" height=\"360\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/VWClO-z6p5w?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe><\/p><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p><script>\n \/\/trackYouTubeVideo('259400');\n<\/script><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<style>\n<\/style>\n<div id=\"content_block-259393\" class=\"content_block paragraph text triple_gutter_right triple_gutter_left center_align\">\n<div class=\"content_inner_wrapper\">\n<div class=\"paragraph_wrapper center_align\">\n<p>            Again, I might be biased: I now consider many of these folks not just peers or colleagues, but my actual friends. But in some ways I feel like that makes me more impartial, because I can actually see the faces behind the scores. Though Pitchfork is often falsely perceived as a monolithic brand, dispensing decimal points from on high, what makes the site so singular is that it\u2019s always been determined by the unique voices and idiosyncratic tastes of its writers. Whether Pitchfork is too poptimist for you now or not poptimist enough, what spurred the site\u2019s editorial evolution over time wasn\u2019t a corporate mandate or some enforced sense of conformity: it\u2019s that the people behind the site kept evolving too. <\/p>\n<div class=\"\" style=\"padding-bottom: 20px; margin-top: 20px; text-align: left;\">\n<\/div>\n<p>            Contrary to what some might tell you, the Pitchfork ethos was never really about privileging a certain kind of music or advancing a specific agenda. It was about creating a space where talented writers were free to trust their gut instincts. Even under the precarity of corporate stewardship, Pitchfork will continue to endure so long as the people who made Pitchfork keep that spirit of adventurousness alive. Only a few days after news of Pitchfork\u2019s uncertain future broke, <a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/pitchfork.com\/reviews\/albums\/xaviersobased-keep-it-going-xav\/\">the site surprisingly awarded Best New Music to emerging New York rapper xaviersobased<\/a> \u2014 maybe the site\u2019s heyday as a millennial mouthpiece is over, but Pitchfork can still be for the children.<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<style>\n<\/style>\n<div id=\"content_block-259396\" class=\"content_block paragraph embed triple_gutter_right triple_gutter_left center_align\">\n<div class=\"content_inner_wrapper\">\n<div class=\"media_wrapper\">\n<div class=\"\">\n    <iframe loading=\"lazy\" width=\"100%\" height=\"450\" scrolling=\"no\" frameborder=\"no\" allow=\"autoplay\" src=\"https:\/\/w.soundcloud.com\/player\/?url=https%3A\/\/api.soundcloud.com\/playlists\/1757022360&amp;color=%23ff5500&amp;auto_play=false&amp;hide_related=false&amp;show_comments=true&amp;show_user=true&amp;show_reposts=false&amp;show_teaser=true\"><\/iframe><\/p>\n<div style=\"font-size: 10px; color: #cccccc;line-break: anywhere;word-break: normal;overflow: hidden;white-space: nowrap;text-overflow: ellipsis; font-family: Interstate,Lucida Grande,Lucida Sans Unicode,Lucida Sans,Garuda,Verdana,Tahoma,sans-serif;font-weight: 100;\"><a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/soundcloud.com\/xaviersobased\" title=\"xaviersobased\" style=\"color: #cccccc; text-decoration: none;\">xaviersobased<\/a> \u00b7 <a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/soundcloud.com\/xaviersobased\/sets\/keep-it-goin-xav-hosted-by-dj-rennessy\" title=\"Keep It Goin Xav (Hosted By Dj Rennessy)\" style=\"color: #cccccc; text-decoration: none;\">Keep It Goin Xav (Hosted By Dj Rennessy)<\/a><\/div>\n<\/div><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"content_block paragraph triple_gutter_right triple_gutter_left\">\n<div class=\"content_inner_wrapper\">\n<div class=\"\" style=\"padding-bottom: 20px; margin-top: 20px; text-align: left;\">\n<\/div><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<style>\n<\/style>\n<div id=\"content_block-259385\" class=\"content_block paragraph text triple_gutter_right triple_gutter_left center_align\">\n<div class=\"content_inner_wrapper\">\n<div class=\"paragraph_wrapper center_align\">\n<p>            <iframe loading=\"lazy\" frameborder=\"0\" src=\"https:\/\/playlist.megaphone.fm?p=TFI7834680816&amp;light=true\" width=\"100%\" height=\"482\"><\/iframe><\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p><\/p>\n<div class=\"author\">\n    <span><br \/>\n      By <span class=\"credit_name\">Nadine Smith<\/span><br \/>\n  <\/span><\/div>\n<blockquote><p><strong><span style=\"color: #ff6600;\">If you liked the article, do not forget to share it with your friends. Follow us on\u00a0<span style=\"color: #ff0000;\"><a style=\"color: #ff0000;\" href=\"https:\/\/news.google.com\/publications\/CAAqBwgKMN63nwsw68G3Aw\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener noreferrer\">Google News<\/a><\/span>\u00a0too, click on the star and choose us from your favorites.<\/span><\/strong><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<blockquote>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><strong>If you want to read more Like this articles, you can visit our <span style=\"color: #ff9900;\"><a style=\"color: #ff9900;\" href=\"https:\/\/en.buradabiliyorum.com\/social-media\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Social Media category.<\/a><\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p><span style=\"color: black;\"><a style=\"color: #ff9900;\" href=\"https:\/\/www.thefader.com\/2024\/02\/01\/rip-pitchfork-rap-industry-essay\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Source<\/a><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>In the wake of massive layoffs at Pitchfork, Nadine Smith, a Pitchfork rap freelancer for half a decade, tracks the site\u2019s growth from hip-hop gadfly to an essential critical voice of the genre. Isaiah Rashad performs at the 2014 Pitchfork Music Festival in July 20, 2014. Photo by Roger Kisby\/Getty Images. \u00a0 Rap Column is&#8230;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":607326,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/thefader-res.cloudinary.com\/private_images\/c_limit,w_1024\/c_crop,h_533,w_1023,x_0,y_150,f_auto,q_auto:eco\/GettyImages-452472700_lmoedb\/GettyImages-452472700_lmoedb.jpg","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[17],"tags":[70532,145238],"class_list":["post-607325","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-social-mediaa","tag-hip-hop","tag-rap-column"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/607325","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=607325"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/607325\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/607326"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=607325"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=607325"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=607325"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}