That was De La Soul's promise on 1993's BUHLOONE MIND STATE, and it was a classic bit of lyrical bet hedging that gave them an out should their third LP somehow crossover and reintroduce them to the mainstream. "This ain't pop, but if people dig it, don't be surprised, 'cause we know the shit's hot." The critics liked it, their core constituency (myself included) loved it, and everyone else, on MTV's orders, ignored it. Finding better traction that same fall, however, was A Tribe Called Quest, whose MIDNIGHT MARAUDERS forged deep into whiteboy country with an incessant party-down vibe that eschewed the introspection of De La's superior LP. In other words, it blew up. Three years later, with BEATS, RHYMES AND LIFE, A Tribe Called Quest went pop, and, in the process, imploded.
The word has been out on Talib Kweli's THE BEAUTIFUL STRUGGLE for a while now; that it's the emcee's bid to crossover and, finally, sell some CD's while keeping as much of his hard-won credibility intact as possible. It's a solid effort -- the parts that are 100% Talib are, as usual, enthralling -- but the attempts at courting hip-hop's more prideful audience, the kids who've been buying Jay-Z's records for years while dutifully ignoring his pleas for them to check out more socially conscious artists like Mos Def and Talib, fall flat. Like any truth teller, Talib isn't adept at acting from someone else's script, and while these are his rhymes... the shit ain't real to him. Known for his graceful flow, Talib halts more frequently on the LP's fourth track, "We Know", than he has in his entire career dating back to Black Star. He's obviously trying to leave some jagged edges sticking out on what's supposed to be a smooth hip-hop ballad, the kind that's been plaguing the genre since LL dropped "I Need Love", but, instead, it's just a second layer of compromise. "Rocking Los Angeles, House of Blues on Sunset/Performing like an orgasm my girl ain't even cum yet/Seen her by the side of the stage, giving me energy/Potentially wife material/Connected mentally." Man, that's going to hurt every night you're forced to spit that on the upcoming tour.
What worries me most, though, is how listenable THE BEAUTIFUL STRUGGLE is; ignore the lyrics, and it's hit after hit after hit. The N.E.R.D. contribution is better than anything on their disastrous second LP, "Going Hard" is an incendiary track one, and "Ghetto Show" is yet another classic Common collaboration. But the spirit of the whole endeavor is summed up rather bluntly on "I Try", produced by Kanye West and featuring Mary J. Blige. After poignantly enumerating an updated list of the world's ills, Talib anguishes, "The label want a song about a bubbly life/I have trouble trying to write some shit that bang in the club through the night/While people suffer tonight." That's the curse of having a conscience, Talib. While no one in their right mind will hold this LP against you -- after many years of putting in tireless work as one of the best emcees around, you're entitled to a measure of financial security -- you'll always know that this is your "one for them", your BEATS, RHYMES AND LIFE. And that's cool; there's still a chance to recover. Just don't let the career go pop along with the sound.