Hip-Hop in the Twenty-First Century
The diversity of hip-hop in the early twenty-first century is evident in the range of artists and artistic directions. Some artists have followed the tradition of developing songs with a national consciousness. Such is the case of:
- Arrested Development
- Black Star (with the duo Mos Def and Talib Kweli)
- The Coup
- Common
- Dead Prez
- The Roots
- X-Clan
- Five Percenter
- Brand Nubian
- Lakim Shabazz
- Poor Righteous Teachers (see Miyakawa 2005)
Others such as MCs Busta Rhymes, DMX, Eminem, Jay-Z, Nas, The Notorious B.I.G., Pharoahe Monch, and Kanye West have specialized in verbal dexterity. In addition, collectives such as Freestyle Fellowship have formed.
Arrested Development - United Front (Video) [ 00:00-00:00 ]
Few songs speak more clearly as a people's national consciousness than " United Front " by Arrested Development (1994). Exploring the lyrics, one can easily compare the catharsis reached within the song with that of the spiritual. First mentioned is the ultimate aim to better oneself to serve the greater good of all humanity. The chorus highlights the necessity of a unified effort to achieve this aim.
Lyrics
Everyone's lost and were looking for a savior
Everyone's blind and were looking for a leader
We've lost our faith, and we need someone to guide
us
Right now, it's so easy to be deceived
I'm climbing my soul to reach to newer levels
Reach the mountain top so I can better see
Step back and see the whole mighty picture
Gain control of my destiny
Chorus
United we stand, united we fall
United we plan as a united front
United we stand, united we fall
United we plan as a united front
Regarding verbal dexterity in hip-hop music, The Notorious B.I.G. gives us a hearty dose of it in " Dead Wrong (feat. Eminem) ." It is said that Eminem composed his lyrics (3:24) for that song in ten minutes, another testament to the verbal dexterity of contemporary hip-hop.
Further, in the twenty-first century, artists such as Alicia Keys 
SIDE NOTEIn 2001 Keys released Songs in A Minor, a hugely successful debut album that featured a number one hit with "Fallin'" and sold more than ten million copies worldwide. " Fallin", Usher " U Remind Me", John Legend SIDE NOTEJohn Legend made history in 2018 by becoming the first black man to win all four of the major Americant entertainment awards: Emmy, Grammy, Oscar, and Tony (EGOT). " All of Me", Keyshia Cole " Love", and Beyoncé Knowles SIDE NOTEBeyoncé improvised the "uh-oh uh-oh" hook, her future husband Jay-Z added a rap, and "Crazy in Love" was released in May 2003 to huge acclaim, cementing Beyoncé's status as modern pop's ruling diva. " Crazy in Love" continue to define a diverse style of contemporary hip-hop and R & B music, including R & B pop and hip-hop-soul, that had-and continue to have-broad appeal. We'll go into greater detail about some of these artists and their music in later sections.