Gimme Back a "Nickel Bag of Funk"

There's nothing better than cruising around town on a hot summer day, and hearing Ladybug Mecca spit her ultra-smooth rhymes straight outta your speakers:


The Bloom, the Swoon, the Sugars on your block

The Planets land in flesh in the corners of New York...








And Butterfly and Doodlebug chime in to bring it all back with:


A nickel bag of funk...



Do I ever miss the era when Hip Hop actually offered a meaningful alternative to the ubiquitous T & A/bitch n' ho formula that dominates the mainstream scene today. By the end of the 90s, the popularity of Digable Planets and Native Tongues alumni--De La Soul, A Tribe Called Quest, Black Star, and The Roots--gave way to the new wave of bling-slingin'-thug-struttin' rappers such as 50 cent, The Game, and Eminem (to name just a few). Yes, I know that Kanye (whether you love him or hate him), Pharell Williams, Lupe Fiasco, and K'naan have all significantly diversified the sound of paint by number hip hop, but I still can't help but throw it back to the days of Tribe's innovative jazz flow of "Check the Rhyme," or De La Soul's disco/breakbeat mash-up, "Rollerskating Jam."

So out of sheer nostalgia, here are a couple of MCs who broke out of the corporate mold to make Hip Hop their very own...


Digable Planets--"Nickel Bags"--2005 Reunion Tour Amsterdam






De La Soul--"Rollerskating Jam"