 |
[DOPE-GAME RAP] Clipse has elevated the dope-game rap genre to a new level of artistry, propelling its rep with slick, painstakingly constructed lyrical assaults rather than the shock value and two-word choruses of most mainstream rap. Not that the Virginia-based duo can’t shock—brothers Pusha T and Malice take the insider vernacular and outlaw chic of diamond-clad throwbacks like Camp Lo and combine it with lyrical density on par with Hova himself. That combo, sprayed over Space Age (not to mention commercially viable) beats by hip-hop’s prodigal production team, the Neptunes, can be apeshit overwhelming or thinking-man subtle. That all depends on what Clipse wants you to hear.
