Top 5 and G.O.A.T debates happen all the time when it comes to hip hop. As an avid fan of the craft I feel like a new discussion should begin. Music is an art and I think it's fair to judge rappers as overall artist without limiting the discussion to a comparison amongst just rappers.
Today you can mention an artist from the Renaissance era and they're automatically placed in a separate class and revered as a God-like figure. When I say artist this goes beyond musicians. I'm talking sculptors, painters, etc. The Creation of Adam is an amazing painting, but does Michelangelo have an illmatic? Can you definitively say William Shakespeare is a better storyteller than Nas? Leonardo da Vinci is well known for the Mona Lisa, but can you feel it like Can I Live by Jay-Z? Is it nuts to question if Reasonable Doubt is a better piece of art than The Night Watch or did Jay-Z have to die 300 years ago to be in the same sentence as Rembrandt? Like all types of artist nobody is well known for every piece they've made, but we've seen Nas take leftover tracks and make the Lost Tapes album which is easily one of his best projects. Could we open an art exhibit of lesser known work by Masaccio and have it be arguably his best collection of work? This isn't to knock well known artist of the past. I'm just simply proposing a new way of thinking.
We put the greatest rappers in a box where they far exceed the competition and don't think of putting them in the same sentence as Van Gogh, Mozart, and Beethoven. I don't believe in waiting till someone is dead for over a 100 years to give them the credit they deserve. I've lived long enough to see illmatic turn 25 and age like Merlot from the finest vineyard. As time passes the legend of Nas beginning to craft one of the greatest albums in history as a 17 year old wunderkind will only grow. 300 years from now some kid will research Shawn Carter and see tales of his wealth, quotes from his peers, photos of him with his jewelry, and possibly view him with the same allure as we have when we see someone from the 1600’s in noble clothing. I fully understand how it goes, but it's time to give people their roses while they're still here.
As I type this the 2019 WNBA draft is underway and the league doesn't even have a president. I truly believe this league has been mishandled for a very long time and a change has to come. By no means would I claim to be the biggest supporter or expert on all things WNBA, but I know for a fact that a situation like this should never happen.
At a time when the casual fan would only know players like Candace Parker, Maya Moore, and Sue Bird the WNBA is at a point where the legends have done all they can do for the league. Now it's time for the new generation to take the baton and take the league to a new height. The two players I believe in 10 years will be the Candace Parker and Maya Moore of their era are 2018 rookie of the year A'ja Wilson and 2018 MVP Breanna Stewart. I truly believe that with the support of the people they can have a Magic & Bird type of impact and boost the popularity of the WNBA. Like many I tune into the sports debate shows and there's never a mention of the WNBA because the ratings and lack of social media trending moments suggest that it's not a hot topic to cover. That doesn't mean there's no talent in the WNBA because that's far from the truth. What it does mean in that the fans aren't active enough. When the wage gap became a talking point I began to see many women speak in support of the players which I have no issue with. What was a problem was that a lot of them couldn't tell you who the last champion was or what was the last game they watched because they don't follow or actually support the league. From the myspace days to now I've seen tons of photos from women attending NBA games but outside of other athletes or media members nobody I've followed on any social media platform have posted anything from a WNBA event. I don't think I've ever seen anyone wearing any WNBA team apparel. This is in no way any fault of the players. This falls on the shoulders of the intended audience.
I understand that the level of athleticism isn't the same as the NBA, but there is real world class talent in this league. I'll go as far as to say there aren't many active athletes under 25 with a resume that compares to Breanna Stewart’s. I mean…
Just Sunday during the Women's National Championship over 20,000 people were in attendance to watch Baylor defeat Notre Dame. College sports tend to have huge followings but I just wish the WNBA could get that same love. It's to the point that it feels like NBA players are at times being forced to state their support for the league just to possibly garner new fans. Now with Maya Moore sitting out the league loses star power that it couldn't afford to lose.
They're already at a disadvantage because they play just 34 regular season games, average attendance is under 7k, 6 prior teams are gone, 5 teams have relocated, on their 4th commissioner, don't sell much merch, and couldn't even get Oxygen to renew their broadcast deal. People just simply don't support the product. If the ratings, social media trends, ticket sales, and merchandise sales increase these women would have more leverage when they demand a higher percentage of the revenue. The talent of the product is legit but the lack of fan support is holding back the progress. A league created for women desperately needs the support of women in order to evolve.
I'm old enough to remember how big the inception of the WNBA was. I remember Sheryl Swoopes dropping a signature shoe and having commercials so I know how prominent the WNBA can be when it is backed by fan support. The NBA loses money annually keeping the league afloat because it doesn't generate a profit, and even the likes of Kobe Bryant has taken matters into his own hands by training and coaching young girls who aspire to be stars in the WNBA and working with current WNBA players. The next generation of stars are in place. It's up to the women to support them and the possible results are endless. The 2019 season starts on May 10th. How yall gonna act?
